The Truth Manifesto

In this episode, P.R.E.Z. takes a look at what’s going on in Arizona as well as discrimination at Eastern Michigan University against a Christian student.

The Truth Manifesto proudly presents a new podcast series dubbed The Hard Truth. It is a fifteen minute reflection on the news of the day from a conservative, Christian, and ultimately, biblical perspective. From politics to religion and culture, The Hard Truth presents all of these things in lay men’s terms, rooted in the Truth.

Can You Handle the Truth?

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There are a lot of people across the United States unsatisfied with the direction the country is going and rightly so. We are in the midst of a socialist regime that seeks to change the very foundations of which this nation was founded. This philosophy, when administrated as a government mandate, suppresses freedom, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

This is not the fault of one man who is just a figurehead for all that is going wrong in this nation. It is an administration that seeks to polarize and demonize those who don’t hold their views, vilifying them for their belief in God and adhering to the Judeo-Christian values and principles that this nation was founded on (see the David Barton video on the Founders).

While this is all going on, we should really be grateful.

Minority Majority

In the Bible in Luke 17:11-19, there’s a story about Jesus healing ten lepers. He told them to show themselves to the priests and in faith, they got up and went, being healed on the way. Of the ten only one went back and thanked Jesus and a foreigner at that, not a Jew. Ten were blessed but only one was grateful and this gratefulness led to an even greater blessing, the salvation of his soul.

Subtle Narcissism

I have a lot of conservative associates who have the mentality of those nine lepers. They know where their blessings come from but they’re ungrateful for them.

They cry incessantly about the state of the country yet never thanking the Lord in their rants that they’re able to speak and proclaim the truth.

They vilify liberals with some of the most horrid expressions not once thinking about how this reflects on the One who gave them a voice, life, and breath.

They look at the government as the ultimate evil and are oblivious to the true enemy behind it all.

The reason? It’s all about them. They wrap it in descriptions like truth, liberty, freedom, the Constitution. But when you look closely through the malaise of verbal gyrations, it’s really all about them.

Not One Day

This is not to say to be silent, stand down, say, and do nothing. God forbid. However, it is to say that we should be grateful for so much from the Provider of all things. We should be grateful for being chosen to stand for Truth. We should be grateful that He uses us one more day. We should be grateful that we still have the freedom that many don’t have like brothers and sisters in churches all over the world who are persecuted for their faith. We should be grateful we can walk, talk, type, breathe, and exist.

Don’t let a day go by where we don’t thank the Lord.

Preach Truth. Stand tall. Be obedient. Express gratefulness. Worship the Lord.

The name Benedict Arnold has been gone down in American history being synonymous with  traitor, much as that of Judas Iscariot with betrayer. I was invited the day before good Friday to speak at a small gathering on the movie The Passion of the Christ. This is a movie which I own but I’ve only seen once. It is, for me, spiritually taxing and emotionally draining. Even as I was discussing the movie, I cried in remembrance of the atrocity and murder of the Lord. This was all set in motion by the a kiss of betrayal.

Some of us have gone through some kind of betrayal in our lives. Actually, we’re currently in the midst of it now. We see an act of betrayal on display in our country right now as the administration in Washington D.C. seek to pass policies that tear at the foundation of what the United States on regardless of the outcry of the majority of American people. They seek to spin it as what’s best for the people when it’s simply a power move.

It’s a shot at the principles of our nation. It goes beyond the politics that are being wrangled throughout all of this. It’s an insidious shifting of the nation’s identity. As Obama so plainly stated in 2009, he does not think this is a Christian nation. This administration is the most anti-Christ to ever be put into office. They are pawns of the evil one and they do so willingly.  A betrayal against God Himself.

Our Own Back Yard

Betrayal can hit closer to home. I’ve personally seen this is in the church as splits happen under all kinds of sinful pretenses and the actions of those who are supposed to exhibit the character of Godly men reveal what’s truly in their hearts. The Lord was spoke truly when He said:

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. (Matthew 23:27)

I have personally been on the receiving end of betrayal from Christians more so than non-Christians. The axiom is true that you hurt the ones you love. It’s true because we have not realized the total depth and destructiveness of the sin and evil within us.

What To Do

There are may ways to react to betrayal. The first one is anger. Though anger IS an appropriate response, it’s what we use it for in our actions that will define us. It is hurtful and painful but the Lord tells us:

Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:  Neither give place to the devil. (Ephesians 4:26)

We are in danger of letting bitterness rule and control us if we give in to excuse of saying we’re hurt. To be hurt for one day is expected. To be hurt for three days can be understood. But to be hurt for months and years is simply saying, “I’m bitter and unforgiving. ”

We take our cues as God’s children from the Lord. He says:

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; (Matthew 5:44)

We must surrender to God in this because we cannot deal with it. How this surrender should happen is written plainly in the words of scripture.  Yet, how do we apply this in our lives? How do we get over the pain? I’ll talk about that in my podcast later this week.

Three out of four Americans say they believe in God with the vast majority identifying themselves as Christian. However, the country is highly divided, the 2008 presidential election resulting in a near 50/50 split. Tempers have flared amidst a plethora of T.E.A. parties, town hall meetings, and media wrangling that’s unprecedented.

One of the main and least repeated facts concerning the ideological war between conservatism and liberalism is God’s influence in shaping each worldview.

According to Barna Research:

• Six out of ten conservatives say their faith is becoming an increasingly important moral guide compared to just three out of ten for liberals.

• Liberalism has almost six times as many atheists, agnostics, and general unbelievers than conservatives.

• 63% of conservatives believe the Bible to be accurate in the tenets it teaches to just 27% of liberals.

• 63% of conservatives were categorized as “born again” versus 32% of liberals.

• Conservatives are seven times more likely than liberals to identify themselves as evangelical Christians.

Politics is a smokescreen in the battle between conservatism and liberalism. It’s not about politics. It’s about God.

As one of those conservative Christians, this doesn’t come as a surprise since the Bible speaks specifically about this coming down the pike:

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.  For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. (2 Timothy 3:1-5)

When we look at the ideology of liberalism which supports such positions as abortion, euthanasia, and homosexuality, only two things can happen. You have to redefine and reinterpret the Bible so that it supports your position and therefore creating God in the image you want Him to be, or get rid of the Bible and God altogether, therefore strengthening the evil positions the philosophy is steeped in. Liberals have tried to do both and continue to do so with more of the latter.

I have said this before and I will say it again: there is no way you can be a true Christian and a true liberal. Not possible. Never gonna happen. Liberalism is anathema to the Christian worldview. Always has been, always will be.

So don’t be fooled by those who profess to be a liberal and a Christian. Challenge them with the truth of the scriptures. That will always be the litmus test of where they stand in the grand scheme of things.

Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:  And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. (1 John 4:1a,2-3)

The ressurection of the Truth.

Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water…..

My hiatus from the Truth Manifesto has been one that was well spent. The reason for it was because I ran for political office locally. Alas, it was not for me to move on.

Even so, through it I made some great contacts and built some good relationships and that was worth it. It was a lot of hard work but from the beginning, I had a feeling I was not going to move onward through the primaries. I knew this because I knew me.

Those who were coming daily to the Truth Manifesto understand that my position on things is from a biblical one first. My political position is such because of my spiritual one which takes precedence over everything. I do what I do because I’ve decided to wrap my life in the mission of spreading Truth on all levels. Winning was not as important as being what God has called me to be and because of that, I knew that I was going into this election at a loss in this political climate.

Nevertheless, I have no regrets. I can stand and look in the mirror knowing that at no time did I compromise my principles in order to win an election. Suffice it to say that because of it, more people listen to what I say. Ultimately, it’s worked out for the better.

So now I have returned though I’ve really been here this whole time. There will be some changes shortly so watch out for them. In the meantime, you can look for me on Facebook. Just look for David Prez Washington (*gasp* I gave me real name). I’ll be happy to hook up with you there and I spend a LOT of time there so I’ll be sharing my time between that and the Truth Manifesto which, quite frankly, is a part of the whole Truth Manifesto network.

It’s good to be back.

The American political system has been dominated with the two pronged party model for over 150 years. What we’ve found during that time is that neither party is infallible or even near it, much to each party’s chagrin. It will always be that way and there’s a reason for that.

A MARRED IMAGE

Normally, what we see when we see a politician is an image of what they think the people want to see and hear.  An image lacks substance. It can be a reflection at best. However, as much as we want to try to make it so, an image is not the real thing.

Recently, we’ve seen two images of politicians shattered.

The first is Nevada Republican front runner for president of the United States in 2012, John Ensign. Ensign recently admitted that he had an extramarital affair with a campaign aide.

The other is Monica Conyers, chairwoman of the Detroit city council and wife of House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-Mich.). She’s just accepted a plea deal concerning federal bribery charges. I think the following video of a council meeting speaks volumes.

MAJORING ON THE MAJOR

It’s sad to see this happening. Yet, this is a prime example when people get caught up in their image instead of building their character. We’re all susceptible to this. No one is exempt.

The problem today with people, not just politicians, is that they’re more concerned about their image instead of their character.  So when the rubber meets the road behind closed doors or otherwise, their true self is reveal.

Booker T. Washington is known for saying,

Character, not circumstance, is makes the person.

Baron Thomas Babington MacAuley defined character as

The measure of a man’s character is what he would do if he knew he never would be found out.

THE HEART OF THE MATTER

The one thing that no party or person on the face of the planet can escape from is summed up in one word.

Sin.

The prophet Jeremiah said:

The heart is deceitful above all things, and it is exceedingly corrupt: who can know it? (Jeremiah 17:9)

Two points to consider:

1. This is a rhetorical question. The answer is obvious. No oine can, not even

Heart Of True Character

the person who owns the heart. It means that the person’s heart is the first one to deceive an individual into thinking that they’re more than what they are.

The societal phrase, “Follow your heart,” is dangerous. It’s suicide. Follow God.

2. It didn’t say the heart of an evil man. It said the heart of man, meaning mankind. Everyone. Man. Woman. Child. Everyone.

Jesus says it like this:

But the things which proceed out of the mouth come forth out of the heart; and they defile the man.  For out of the heart come forth evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, railings: (Matthew 15:18-19)

Ye offspring of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. The good man out of his good treasure bringeth forth good things: and the evil man out of his evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. (Matthew 12:34-35)

People must come to the realization that they are useless, condemned, sinful, evil, hopeless, hell bound souls. This is the character of man without the Lord Jesus.

However, with Him, our character will begin to produce the fruit of the Spirit:

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, self-control; against such there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23)

The only way we can be what God has called us to be is in dependence on Jesus Christ. To imitate Him. That way when people see us they’ll see two things: the image and character of Christ.

Modern day America is drastically different from times past. One of the areas of change has been in the way we express ourselves in communicating. Profanity, slander, and gossip are the order of the day with many conservatives and Christians (yeah. Calling it out folks) joining right in.

WHAT’S IN A WORD?

Our culture is so inundated with verbal vulgarity and innuendos that people don’t equate certain words as being profane anymore. Many conservatives feel that they can talk however they want to talk yet espouse a belief in God as if that’s enough. May I remind them that even demons believe in God. A simple belief in God means nothing without action that reflects that belief  (James 2:18-19).

Words are powerful. It is by words that we (Christians in general) believe the universe was created and everything in it (Genesis 1). It was by words that Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead (John 11:1-45). It was because of the words he spoke and had written that Martin Luther, the reformationist, changed the way we view God. It was words that declared the that the United States would be a sovereign nation. Words are the compliment to our very souls being saved (Romans 10:9).

What’s in a word? More than we can imagine.

Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. (Proverbs 18:21)

A REFLECTION OF CHARACTER

There are over 170,000 words in the dictionary. Yet many people choose to use the most profane ones to express themselves. Why? Because there’s a black stain on their heart. In a word, sin.

O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.  A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned. (Matthew 12:34-37)

The way we use words is a direct reflection of our character. It shows what’s truly in our hearts. So, if profanity spews from your mouth, it simply means your heart is full of profanity and in turn reflects you have a profane character.

THE STANDARD IS GOD’S WORD

Just because our culture embraces profane speaking doesn’t mean we need to follow suit. If the God of the Bible is truly your God, then He’s called you to raise the standard.

But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. (Colossians 3:8)

Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: (Ephesians 4:31)

The ultimate call of a Christian is to be Christlike in whatever station God puts us. We can’t do this out of our own strength but through a daily refreshing in God’s word and submission to the Holy Spirit as He empowers us to be what God wants us to be. By doing this, we’ll begin to see the person we were meant to be.

The goal of the Christian is not to be the most successful, have the best reputation, or even to follow a life of piety. Our lives should be wrapped up in continuous submission to God so we can be like Christ.

The church today has missed the boat in terms of what our ultimate pursuit  should be. To take on the moniker of Christian means that we should be a reflection of who He is. The term itself literally means “little Christs”.

In the book of Ephesians, at the beginning of chapter 5, it reads:

Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children.

The word followers should actually translated ‘imitators’.

We tend to imitate what we’re are around the most. When we first come into the world, that’s our parents. Later on we may imitate their then our friends. We fill ourselves with the things we seek to reflect in what we watch, read, and listen to. The more time we spend with something or someone, the more we’ll get to know them and the more likely we can accurately reflect who they are through that relationship.

Sadly, many Christians devote little time learning about the Lord and growing in His grace than they do other things. Showing up on Sunday to a church gathering for an hour and a half is a akin to eating or spending time with your spouse once a week. How long do you think you could physically hold out before you keeled over? How long do you think your marriage would last?

For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: (1 Peter 2:21)

When Christ said, “Follow me,” He meant for us to be like Him. Do what He does. Act like He acts. Think like He thinks.

Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: (Phillipians 2:5)

For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. (1 Corinthians 2:16)

This is not to say that we are going to be perfect. Sorry folks. Not in this lifetime. We won’t be sinless. But as we walk with God and grow in grace, we should be sinning less.

A.W. Tozer put it well:

Everything in the universe is good to the degree it conforms to the nature of God and evil as it fails to do so.