State Religion coming soon!

Chinese Province Forces Believers to Apply Online to Attend Church

 link   https://www.christianheadlines.com/contributors/christopher-eyte/chinese-province-forces-believers-to-apply-online-to-attend-church.html

A crackdown on spiritual activities is forcing Chinese Christians in the Henan province to apply online for permission to attend church.

The ‘Smart Religion’ requirements app created by the Henan provincial religious department does not have a legal basis, China Aid reports. There has been a drop in numbers attending churches because of the introduced measures.

Henan has a large Christian population, and believers must now register and make appointments for any religious activity via the ‘Smart Religion’ application. It was created by the Ethnic and Religious Affairs Commission of Henan Province. Muslims and other religions have also been affected by the same controlling directive.

According to China Aid, those registering first need to choose the intended religious venue and no key search words are allowed, such as ‘Christianity’ or ‘Catholicism.’

Personal information is then inputted to make a reservation: name, date of birth, phone number, ID number, permanent residence, and occupation. Church attendees must also give a reservation code and have their bodily temperature checked. Older people would be guided by officials in using the mobile phone application.

(Click on link above for the whole article)

Do we truly think that this can't happen in the USA?

This in fact did already happen here as a trial run... 

Do you remember the approximate 2-year fiasco and shut downs that happen during the Corona Virus plan-demic?   Many believe this was a trial run and many believe this will soon happen again.

And what if it were to happen again?

We saw what happen!

We saw how people reacted.. 

We  saw how neighbor fought against neighbor... 

We experienced the inconsistencies and the bad and dishonest governing bodies literally creating rules and laws out of thin air -  for the sake of the "greater good".  

Church services were relegated to Zoom meetings ... and many were satisfied with that.  Threats and arrests were made.

Singing hymns was discouraged... Gathering and worship congregations discouraged while violent and disruptive leftist protests were encouraged.... 

The next time around will be better?... You think?

Pray so that you'll be able to stand in the evil day.

=====

Sabbath (Let's talk)

 

27 All things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.
    28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

 Let's open up our Bibles

and let's revisit the richness of God's Word pertaining to the sabbath.

There are those who think sabbath and immediately think "Saturday"... and yet there's so, so much more to the sabbath than simply a day of the week.

"He again fixes a certain day, “Today,” saying through David after so long a time just as has been said before,

“TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE,

DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS.”

-- Hebrews 4:7

"For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His." 

-- Hebrews 4:10 

(select scripture)

Exodus 20:11

Eze 20:12

Eze 20:20

Mark 2:28

Hebrews 3 and 4

The POWER to choose God?

 

In this video, Sean McDowell makes it seem like men are "FREE" to choose God and that God wants humanity to be "FREE" to choose or not choose Him.   (some sort of fairness we're pursuing here)

But why does he or anyone think that human freedom is so much a part of God's interest?   This sounds more like something MAN is concerned about - not God!

After all, men can't be FREE in any way EVEN if they don't "choose" God because as the Bible teaches,  we're all "SLAVES TO SIN".  

"What does it profit you to gain the whole world, yet lose your own soul" -  Mark 8:36

Free from God but slaves to eternal death?   How much is that "freedom" worth in God's eyes?

So perhaps God isn't too concerned about man's freedom to deny Him as much as some people believe.

Especially since the call to come... is a COMMAND not a suggestion.

(Acts 17:30)

Do we have the power to CHOOSE God... as in, come to salvation... as in, seal ourselves with the Holy Spirit?... 

That is what it means to BE SAVED or "BORN AGAIN".  The "New Birth"; REGENERATION... RESURRECTION.   

Those of us who say we can CHOOSE our salvation... are we remembering that salvation involves all of the above?

So do we still think our salvation is something that WE do?

What is OUR PART in that experience?   Are we 10% active in that regeneration or 50%? ... 

All we know is that we must obey, respond, come forward, do the right thing; repent, change, grow in The Lord, etc., etc.

We are in that walk in REAL TIME but God has already fashioned the road of that walk in the eternal.

(Ephesians 2:10)

So do we have FREE WILL?

Yes, I exercise it every day for breakfast...  Eggs or oatmeal?

But REGENERATION?... SPIRITUAL RESURRECTION?  Is a bit above OUR paygrade - wouldn't you say?

With regard to salvation, it's us in the now but only because of what God had already decreed for us from before the foundation of the world.

Listen to my video above and tell me what you think.

:)

Grace, Joy and Peace!

Happy Resurrection Day!

 Christ is risen!

He lives, He will return, and He has the keys to death and Hades.

Live daily knowing that we are "more than conquerors in Christ, Jesus."

May His power and truth guide us and produce joy and peace to live for Him daily among our neighbors.

Praise God!