Friday, May 18th, in the year of our Lord 2018
By Adam McManus (adam@TheWorldView.com)
Egyptians Christians Tattooing Cross to Wrists
Coptic Christians in Egypt enter into this year’s Islamic celebrations of Ramadan under intense pressure, according to Open Doors, but they are showing their faith in Jesus by continuing a centuries-old tattoo tradition, tattooing a cross on their wrists, reports The Christian Post.
When Egypt went from being a largely Christian country to a Muslim one, Christians were tattooed to show their identity and they were required to pay a tax because of their faith. Today, the Coptic Christians are choosing to tattoo their faith as a way to honor the dead and show their faithfulness to Jesus no matter what they are facing.
The Bizarre Turkish Prosecution of Pastor Brunson
According to North Carolina Republican Senator Thom Tillis, the prosecution in Turkey’s case against imprisoned American Pastor Andrew Brunson is that churches in the United States are somehow conspiring to undermine the Turkish government, reports The Christian Post.
In addition, hinging on the claims of alleged “secret witnesses”, Pastor Brunson, a man whose 26-year Christian ministry in Turkey speaks for itself, is allegedly connected to the Islamic Gulen movement which in July 2016 failed in its coup attempt against Turkish president Recep Erdoğan.
Tillis has joined a bipartisan group of over 60 other senators in calling on the Turkish government to release Brunson in a letter sent to Erdogan in April.
Trump Denies Planned Parenthood Tax Dollars
Thanks to President Trump’s executive pro-life leadership, the Department of Health and Human Services hopes to cut $50-60 million in Title X taxpayer funds annually from murder giant Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers, reports Life News.
Texas School Shooter Obsessed with Death
The teen accused of killing 10 people in a mass shooting at Santa Fe High School near Houston, Texas on Friday was described by fellow students as a quiet loner who played football but kept to himself and was reportedly the victim of some bullying, reports Reuters.
Classmates remembered the 17-year-old junior often wore a trench coat, similar to the garment authorities said the assailant used to conceal the shotgun and a .38 revolver he carried into the school.
One of his ominous Facebook posts was an image of a black T-shirt with the words “Born to Kill”.
Russell Moore, president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, wrote, “What a horrific act of violence in Texas. Jesus once told us the devil was ‘a murderer from the beginning’ (John 8:44). He still is. Come, Lord Jesus.”
Christian Softball Player Takes a Stand on Dancing with the Stars
Professional softball player Jennie Finch-Daigle refused to dance to Janelle Monáe’s song “Make Me Feel” due to the vulgar lyrics and bisexual references during last week’s installment of ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars”, reports The Christian Post.
In a recorded phone call to the producers, Finch said, “I’m just not feeling comfortable with it. I can’t go through with it,” telling her professional dance partner, “I need to follow who I am and stand up for what I believe.”
Romans 12: 2 says, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will.”
Museum of the Bible: 500,000+ Visitors in 6 Months
Located just two blocks off the National Mall, the Museum of the Bible, which cost $500 million and took three years to build, has drawn 565,000 visitors since it opened six months ago, reports Christian Headlines.
In August, the Museum of the Bible will sponsor a temporary exhibit, titled “Pilgrim Preacher: Billy Graham, the Bible and the Challenges of the Modern World,” about the evangelist who died in February.
Sneak Peek: The Energetic Royal Wedding Sermon
Before Prince Harry and American actress Meghan Markle said “I do” this Saturday, they heard an unusually energetic sermon from an American minister. Stay tuned for a compelling excerpt of the sermon heard in person by Oprah Winfrey, Elton John and George Clooney immediately following today’s newscast.
Church’s Act of Kindness Prompts Tears
And finally, Victory Christian Center in Liberty Township, Ohio paid for the gas for the first 100 cars that came to the local BP gas station that day, reports The Christian Post.
The church, which has eight campuses spread across Ohio and Pennsylvania, spent over $3,200 in gas for the 100-plus customers who came to fill up their vehicles.
Pastor Lock Beachum said, “I actually heard about a couple of people who cried. They were just so blown away of this act of kindness. Our church is in a distressed area.”
Closing Line
And that’s The World View in 5 Minutes on this Monday, May 21st in the year of our Lord 2018. Subscribe by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldView.com. I’m Adam McManus. Seize the day for Jesus Christ.
Special Report: Despite Smooth Royal Wedding Sermon, Pastor is Theologically Bankrupt
Time now for a World View Special Report. I’m Adam McManus.
By Adam McManus
The Most Reverend Michael Curry, the first black Bishop of the Episcopal Church, preached an impassioned message on the love of God which seemed to be a refreshing change from the traditional royal wedding fare of the past.
“Jesus of Nazareth, on one occasion, was asked to sum up the essence of the teachings of Moses. And He reached back to the Hebrew scriptures of Deuteronomy and Leviticus. And Jesus said, ‘You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ This is the first and great commandment, and the second is like it: love your neighbor as yourself.
“And then in Matthew’s version, He added, he said, on these two, love of God and love of neighbor, hang all the law, all the prophets, everything that Moses wrote, everything in the holy prophets, everything in the scriptures, everything that God has been trying to tell the world. Love God. Love your neighbors. And while you’re at it, love yourself.
“Someone once said that Jesus began the most revolutionary movement in all of human history: a movement grounded in the unconditional love of God for the world. A movement mandating people to live that love, and in so doing, to change not only their lives, but the very life of the world itself. I am talking about some power. Real power. Power to change the world. If you don’t believe me, well, there were some old slaves in America’s Antebellum South who explained the dynamic power of love, and why it has the power to transform. They explained it this way. They sang a spiritual, even in the midst of their captivity. It’s the one that says there is a balm in Gilead—a healing balm.
“There is a balm in Gilead to make the wounded whole. There is a balm in Gilead to heal the sin-sick soul. One of the stanzas actually explains why: if you cannot preach like Peter, and you cannot pray like Paul, you just tell the love of Jesus, how he died to save us all. That’s the balm of Gilead.
“This way of love, it is the way of life. They got it; He died to save us all. He didn’t die for anything he could get out of it. Jesus did not get an honorary doctorate for dying. He wasn’t getting anything out of it. He gave up His life. He sacrificed His life for the good of others, for the well-being of the world, for us. That’s what love is.
“Love is not selfish and self-centered. Love can be sacrificial and, in so doing, become redemptive. And that way of unselfish, sacrificial, redemptive love changes lives. And it can change this world.”
You can watch the 14-minute sermon here.
Sadly, in 2016, Bishop Curry said he lamented the decision by the wider Anglican Communion to slap sanctions on the U.S. church over its support of faux homosexual marriage.
If he takes the teaching of Jesus of Nazareth seriously, as he appears to in the royal wedding sermon, then Bishop Curry would know that it was Jesus Himself who said in Mark 10:6-8 that “from the beginning of the creation, God ‘made them male and female. For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’; so then they are no longer two, but one flesh.” Jesus affirmed that marriage is between a man and a woman for a lifetime. Not two women. Not two men.
Thank God that Bible-believing Anglicans worldwide had the guts to chastise their American counterparts in the Episcopal Church for rejecting God’s vision for marriage and sexuality.
This has been a World View Special Report. I’m Adam McManus.
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Algeria Fines Pastor Carrying Bibles
The Algerian, African police fined Pastor Nouredine Belabed, a 37-year-old father of three, $868 for carrying Bibles in his car under a controversial law that forbids “undermining the faith of a Muslim,” reports Morning Star News.
Chinese Shutting Down Churches on Fake Fire Safety Issues
The Communist Chinese government in the Zhejiang province of Eastern China has begun to scrupulously inspect religious venues, intimidate church members, and conduct so-called fire safety inspections in order to find excuses to shut down the churches, reports China Aid.
One Chinese Christian named Li said, “The police … wander around in the church and arbitrarily point out that some facilities do not meet the standards. Then, they require you to reform in two weeks. Even if you do exactly as they said, they would still deem you ‘unqualified’ in the next inspection. You are helpless.”
Vandals Destroy Alfie Evans Memorial
The parents of the late 23-month-old Alfie Evans have gone through enough in recent weeks — with the battle over the life and death of their little boy and his ultimate death. Now they are dealing with additional heartbreak as vandals have destroyed a memorial with cards and gifts left to memorialize their son, reports Life News.
Posting images of the tree near Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, which yanked Alfie’s life support over his parents’ objections, a member of the Alfie’s Army Facebook group condemned the “extremely disrespectful act” and appealed for the tributes to be replenished.