It’s Thursday, August 11th, A.D. 2022. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard at www.TheWorldview.com. I’m Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com)
By Jonathan Clark
Pakistan jailing Christians
New reports from the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom highlight the persecution of Christians in Iran and Pakistan.
In Pakistan, Muslims accuse Christians of blasphemy against the Islam faith. They also target believers with lynchings, mob violence, forced conversions, and the destruction of church property.
Fifty-five people are imprisoned in the country on charges of blasphemy against Islam. Christians accused of blasphemy face violence, prison, and death.
Iran spreading anti-Christian propaganda
In Iran, the government is using media outlets to spread anti-Christian propaganda. Christians then face discrimination from their community because of the false messaging. Officials also use a pretext of national security to target Christian converts.
Jesus said in Matthew 5:11, “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.”
India’s first March for Life
Christians in India held the country’s first National March for Life yesterday.
Pro-lifers also observed a day of mourning in remembrance of the hundreds of millions of unborn babies killed in abortion over the last 50 years.
India legalized abortion in 1971. Since then, over 15 million babies are murdered in the womb every year, totaling nearly 800 million deaths.
Baby girls are often targeted in abortion. A 2018 government report found 63 million girls were “missing” from the population.
Minnesota jury affirms Christian pharmacist’s pro-life stand
Last Friday, a Minnesota jury ruled in favor of a Christian pharmacist who refused to fill a contraception prescription because of his religious beliefs.
Andrea Anderson filed the lawsuit against pharmacist George Badeaux in 2019 after he declined to provide the contraceptive.
He told Fox News he could not be part of ending a human life.
Listen.
BADEAUX: “I couldn’t fill this prescription because one of the possible mechanisms of action of the medication is that it can prevent the implantation of a fertilized egg into the uterus. And, in my mind, that would be ending a new human life.”
Biden expands taxpayer funding of abortion
On Sunday, the U.S. Senate passed the $430 billion Inflation Reduction Act.
Sadly, the bill expands taxpayer funding of abortion through the Obamacare health insurance plans.
The bill also gives $80 billion to the IRS to conduct enforcement activities. Pro-life activists are concerned about this in light of previous IRS discrimination against conservative groups. Last Monday, House Democrats demanded the IRS and U.S. Treasury review the tax status of the evangelical group Family Research Council.
Isaiah 10:1-2 says, “Woe to those who decree unrighteous decrees . . . to rob the needy of justice, and to take what is right from the poor of My people.”
GOP leaders denounce FBI raid of Trump’s home
GOP leaders are denouncing the FBI raid on former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home on Monday. The raid reportedly involved classified documents allegedly taken by Trump after he left the White House.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy called the raid “weaponized politicization” by the Justice Department.
The California Republican also said, “When Republicans take back the House, we will conduct immediate oversight of this department, follow the facts, and leave no stone unturned.”
Immigration will drive America’s population growth
The Congressional Budget Office released a Demographic Outlook report last month.
The report anticipates the U.S. population will increase from 335 million to 369 million over the next 30 years. Immigration is expected to drive America’s population growth in the next 20 years as deaths outpace births.
The report predicts the fertility rate will increase from 1.60 births per woman to 1.75 births by 2031. That’s still below the replacement rate of 2.1.
Pastors: Comfort is America’s #1 idol
And finally, a new study by Lifeway Research found that most pastors believe modern-day idols have influenced their congregations.
Over half of U.S. Protestant pastors say comfort, control or security, money, and approval are idols in their churches. Thirty percent of pastors said comfort was the most influential idol.
Scott McConnell with Lifeway Research said, “The largest number of congregations battle the influence of first-world comforts, and churches’ second most common modern-day idol is the commitment to keeping secure the comforts they already have.”
Paul wrote in Philippians 3:8, “I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ.”
Close
And that’s The Worldview in 5 Minutes on this Thursday, August 11th, in the year of our Lord 2022. Subscribe by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I’m Adam McManus (adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.