Words From A Friend - Part Two

The articles for the next few weeks continue to come from a friend of mine Alan Langstaff, please consider his words and pray about his research

Let us start by looking at what is behind the present unrest and the lawlessness that has impacted so many communities and cities, and ask what is the cause of all of this? The protestors and, in turn, the mainstream media has presented systemic racism as the basic issue, but is it? SYSTEMIC RACISM: For many people, all the unrest is the result of systemic racism, especially represented by police brutality, as seen in the death of George Floyd. So also, people see white privilege as being a cause of the inequality in society today and built on the history of slavery. THE ISSUE BEHIND THE ISSUE: As a pastor, I discovered when counseling people, there was often the ‘presenting problem,’ the reason they sought your help in the first place. However, often behind the ‘presenting problem’ was the real issue. This same pattern applies to society and the issues facing America today. I want to suggest what is behind all the unrest. “In his insightful, 2009 mini-book, Barack Obama’s Rules for Revolution: The Alinsky Model, David Horowitz quoted an SDS radical who wrote, ‘The issue is never the issue. The issue is always the revolution.’ As Horowitz explained, ‘In other words the cause-whether inner-city Blacks or women-is never the real cause, but only an occasion to advance the real cause which is the accumulation of power to make the revolution (emphasis mine). That was the all-consuming focus of Alinsky and his radicals'”(charismanews.com). HISTORY: Why are people toppling statues and monuments today? Why do they want to get rid of the memories of past days? Well, it is simple! The Marxist communist approach is “to destroy a people you must sever the roots.” As Karl Marx put it, “people without a heritage can easily be persuaded.” This has been going on for some time in the schools and colleges with the textbooks and teachings on racism in history. Young people are taught that America was founded by white supremacists wedded to slavery. Consequently, there is no appreciation for our fore-fathers, even people like President George Washington, forgetting that America has built a democracy that has lasted longer than most nations. America has a constitution that is truly unique that has stood the test of time. It is not a perfect nation, but one to be proud of. So what’s all this leading too? WE ARE AT WAR IN AMERICA TODAY: Our country is divided, and war exists between Left and Right, that on the surface is a battle over political and philosophical ideology. A battle as to where we are headed. Should we head towards full-blown socialism or remain a free market society with capitalism still driving our economy and emphasizing freedom, including religious freedom? So the fight is on. God forbid that we should end up in a civil war, as was the case with slavery in the 1860s. The next election may be one of the most important elections ever and will give some answers to the question of where we are headed. There is a war going on, and believers better understand that it is. But, there is again an issue behind the issue. For underneath all that is happening in Washington and across the nation, there is still something else taking place. It is the issue of what the Bible says about all this. Ephesians 6 says, “We wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities, powers, and evil in high places.” There is a spiritual war going on in America right now. Author & commentator Michael Brown uses the Biblical figure of Jezebel to illustrate this battle. “In 21st-century America, Jezebel is not a person, but its as if her spirit is alive again. The influence of the same demonic force is being felt in the massive increase of pornography and sexual temptation, the militant spirit of abortion, the rise of radical feminism and most importantly, in the attempt to silence prophetic voices . . .the demonic spirit of Jezebel is powerful in America, and is going after the church”(charisma.com). David Horowitz, a committed Jew, also wrote a book called “The Dark Agenda,” in which he exposes the left’s radical agenda to rid America of Christianity forever (YouTube.co). Let us be like the sons of Issachar in I Chronicles 12:36, “who had understanding of the times and to know what Israel ought to do.” Now undoubtedly, one of the important things we ought to do is pray. Between now and November, we all ought to be praying for America and where we are headed. We ought to be praying as individuals, as families, as churches, and in corporate gatherings, be it in person or in virtual reality.

GOD IS STILL IN CONTROL John Adams declared, “Our administration was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” (founders.archives.gov) However, let us not forget that God is still on the throne. I believe God still has a purpose for America. Let me finish with the words of Benjamin Franklin, “The longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth – that God governs the affairs of men” (americanrhetoric.com).