Lord, sadly with all the riots in our blue cities we've sure been seeing this ugly flag a lot. Please change hearts and minds -- bring your peace and order again.
Do young Americans really know what it stands for?
Q. So why in the world should we all think about or pray against Socialism, Marxism and Communism here today?
You remember when Bernie Sanders lost in the Iowa caucus right? He then came back with a victory in New Hampshire’s Democratic presidential primary. Amazing. The victory settled Bernie some — and by default his outspoken socialist ideologies — as a main contender for that party’s nomination. How could he and Socialism become so popular? Well, you could tell that he was pretty honest and sincere.
According to a Gallup poll published this crazy year (2020) an astonishing four in 10 Americans said they believe socialism would be good for the USA. Other recent polls have found half of millennials now have a positive view of socialism. That should be awake up call! (Been thinking about what Jack Graham was teaching about this yesterday at Prestonwood.)
No serious reborn Christian can support Socialism, Marxism and Communism.. that go against the existence of God.
We as Bible-believing evangelical Christians are in a battle -- it's a life and death conflict between the spiritual hosts of wickedness and those who claim the name of Christ… But do we really believe that we are in a life and death battle? Do we really believe that the part we play in the battle has consequences for whether or not men and women will spend eternity in hell? Or whether or not those who do live will live in a climate of moral perversion and degradation?
So what accounts for the changing attitudes among millennials on this? Have people in their early or late 20s actually seen the devastating effects of horrible Soviet-style repressive governments that are under socialism? I don't think so. Most teachers and lawyers in the USA are liberals now. As a nation we are past the Cold War era, and a generation has come along that hasn't really clearly been taught history (including what happened to people under Socialism). Perhaps they haven’t read on up on this or understand it... or perhaps they don't really care to.. but Bernie seems like a nice grandfather they perhaps never knew. He had gained the attention of the youth. He indeed was more honest than the others in the Democrat Party..until they paid him off each time in exchange for his huge calling/mailing list.
Young people have been listening to their liberal teachers, college professors, politicians and cultural influencers, and what they have been told sounds pretty good. Pot would be legalized, gobs of freebees if you don't work, college debts would be paid off.
Though socialism may seem attractive at first glance, socialism's appeal is very deceitful. Socialism is a socioeconomic and political philosophy that advocates for total government ownership of the means of production for the sake of providing equality. It’s not government by or for the people as we have known (when Democrats haven't been caught cheating) — it’s people by and for the government.
Yet for people of faith (including us born again Christians), it goes beyond socialism’s misguided socioeconomic and political ideas. The core of socialism opposes the very idea of there being a real God, one that we can have a personal relationship with.
No one serious about their Christian faith can be serious about supporting any anti-God philosophy.
Need three reasons to completely ditch Socialism?:
1.) Socialism flat-out denies the existence of God, oh yes it does.
Karl Marx, the father of Marxism and of scientific socialism, believed faith—especially Christianity—to be poisonous. He called religion the “opiate of the masses.” In fact, according to Marx, the idea of God is harmful and must be removed, if necessary by force, from society.
We are told by socialists today, Well, hostility to faith is a thing of the past. That was old-style socialism.
This argument is hollow. Socialist countries today still oppress and threaten people of all faiths. This is why churches in China are detonated and Christians continue to be persecuted. It’s why the luggage of Western visitors is inspected for Bibles in North Korea. It is why pastors in Cuba and other Latin American countries are still persecuted and why evangelism in Soviet Russia is very limited.
In America, socialism hasn’t yet taken such severe forms of oppression, but that doesn’t mean it’s not present. Today, politicians oppose candidates to the federal judiciary simply because they have spoken about their Christian faith.
2.) Socialism literally dehumanizes people.
The 20th century was the bloodiest century in the history of the world. Does it surprise us it was also the century when socialism was at its height? Under the regimes of Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin in Russia, Adolf Hitler in Germany and Mao Zedong in China, more than 150 million people were murdered, starved to death and sent to extermination camps. Many of these victims were people of faith, such as Jews and Christians.
The Bible teaches people were created in the image of God. Every human life has inherent value — regardless of age, gender or race. Our value doesn’t come from our abilities nor is it debased by our disabilities.
But socialism denies the image of God in humanity, making people dispensable. If a person is perceived to be an inconvenience, he or she can easily be discarded.
In America, this socialist belief has manifested itself in our inexcusable history of abortion. More than 60 million babies have been killed through abortion since Roe v. Wade. No country, except for Communist China, has a more liberal abortion policy than the United States. It’s no coincidence that Planned Parenthood — the largest provider of abortions in the country — was inspired by the socialist views of its ideological founder Margaret Sanger.
In Europe, abortion is being taken to even greater extremes. For example, Iceland is on the verge of “eliminating” Down syndrome — by effectively aborting every baby diagnosed prenatally with the disorder. This isn’t an innovation in medical care; it’s extermination of the weakest.
Jesus (God) was murdered and rose again. But these days Norman Geisler was right when he said, “When God dies (and He never will), man dies.”
3.) Socialism leads to real captivity.
We don't need any more of that. God, we pray against the bondage and idolatry involved with Socialism. We even pray against all the current day sex and drug trafficking and slavery in the States. Lastly, socialism’s atheistic and dehumanizing views inevitably lead to oppression and captivity. Since the state is more important than the individual, the state — in the name of the greater good — has the power to curtail individual rights such as religious liberty, free speech, freedom of assembly and private property ownership. When you remove these freedoms, you end up with a police state.
While we are not living in such a place, we see the influence of socialism more and more in our country. Just take this recent example: a city in North Carolina removed the word “Lord” from a fallen officers memorial because it received complaints from residents.
The fact that socialism is entirely at odds with religion is not an issue only Christians should care about. We live in a free and prosperous America because our nation was founded on Judeo-Christian principles that laid the groundwork for success.
Respected author and historian Rodney Stark spoke of this in his book “The Victory of Reason: How Christianity Led to Freedom, Capitalism, and Western Success.”
He quotes a senior businessman from China who was tasked with finding the secret behind the success of the West. The businessman said, “We studied everything we could from the historical, political, economic and cultural perspective. At first, we thought it was because you had more powerful guns than we had. Then we thought it was because you had the best political system. Next we focused on your economic system. But in these past twenty years, we have realized that the heart of your culture is your religion: Christianity. That is why the West is so powerful. The Christian moral foundation of social and cultural life was what made possible the emergence of capitalism and then the successful transition to democratic politics. We don’t have any doubt about this.”
You indeed know that the Bible does not endorse one particular political or economic system — but it does teach us that God gave us life and intended for us to live free. Go look at it closer. Socialism is against both of these, and that’s the biggest reason why Christians cannot support it. If you have been, simply repent (turn and trust Christ), believe in His Gospel, let the other go. Come to.. come back to Christ now.
“Who has done this and carried it through, calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord—with the first of them and with the last—I am he.” Isaiah 41:4
This week, let's continue to pray against Socialism and Covid in the USA.. and earnestly pray for our leaders.
Lord, Thanks for a president that is against Socialism. Please keep healing President Trump, his wife Melania, and his team of Covid 19. Thanks that you have been healing him. You are with us and will carry us through these Covid times. You've done it before with other plagues of past generations -- thank you!
Great God, so worthy of praise, we pray for our churches...
May the day quickly return when Your Christian people can freely sing Your praises in all US churches here. Lord, help US pastors walk biblically! We pray that church leaders would walk in wisdom instead of in the flesh or in hypocrisy. Help all American pastors live real honest and pure in your victory. We thank You for the freedom to worship here in Texas—let it be that way in every state and may it always be so.
Draw the lost close.. into Your Kingdom to praise You, Jesus, and use us to plant seeds, to water seeds, and to reap many souls into Your Kingdom. Use us to influence, in serve well, to practically help people, to draw them to you.. not to us. (Psalm 145:3; 34:1; 30:4; John 6:44)
Lord of Hosts, we ask for protection in Your powerful Name....
We are a nation of law and order here. Please put an end to the violence in our streets and against churches! Restore order an peace here. May these rioting criminals be exposed, caught, and come to know that You are God. May you convict and save as many as are willing to turn. May You be exalted! Destroy their evil plans and attempts -- every evil plot or weapon formed against us. Push back the attacks. Spread Your protection over us, Jesus! (Psalm 64:2; 40:16; 92:8; Matthew 16:18; Isaiah 54:17; Psalm 5:11-12)
Nothing is impossible with You, God, including the development of a safe vaccine and medicine...
Our hope in in You, Jesus Christ! Glad there is power in Your wonderful Name! Come alongside developers and researchers; establish the work of their hands. Help them to meet impossible deadlines, for nothing is too hard for you to do. On this fast track, may there be no missteps, no one harmed. (Psalm 62:5; 90:17; Jeremiah 32:17;)
God of love, we pray for those showing great love, risking their lives for the sick...
Do the numbers of COVID cases continue to grow here, well, we pray that they would rapidly decrease and go away. Heal the sick and protect those who help them. Please continue to heal our hard-working President and his kind wife, Melania. May we all demonstrate our love for others by obeying guidelines to reduce risk..even if the masks aren't working much. I can't stand masks, Lord. (Luke 5:17; Psalm 28:7; John 15:12-13; Philippians 2:3)
(Continue on as you are led of course, injecting your own personal prayer ideas..)
Light of the World, lamp to our feet, we pray for schools, parents and children....
Being in the classroom is vital to child development—light the way for schools to open, guide them along the best path. Keep children, teachers, and staff healthy and safe. Provide for parents so they can meet their children’s needs! (John 8:12; 2 Samuel 22:29; Psalm 32:8; 127:3)
We want our nation's leaders on both sides to stop acting lame or evil. God of order and peace, help our leaders and Congress to set aside politics and come together as one for the sake of the people..
While they disagree, people and businesses suffer. Companies large and small are out of business; people, out of jobs. Enable leaders to work together; guide them make wise decisions. Give us leaders who love You and Your law. (1 Corinthians 14:33; 1 Peter 3:8; Luke 10:27; Psalm 119:97)
We Love And Praise You, Lord. Way-maker, Miracle Worker, Promise Keeper, Light in the Darkness, that is who You are...
God, I pray against the cheating (election fraud). Yes, we pray for Your will will be done in next month's US Election. for souls and against Socialism here. I pray those who try to spread it here will quickly fail. Don't need it, we need You, Jesus! Thank You, Lord, for Your people who prayed in DC a week ago. Thanks for those who walked, prayed and sang in the peaceful march across the Brooklyn Bridge and who prayed outside Trump's Walter Reed hospital. May Your agape love be the bridge that unites hearts. Break down strongholds and remove barriers that stand in American's way. (Memorize and pray the truth of Bible verses. Colossians 2:2; 2 Corinthians 10:4. He's so loyal and faithful. Let's remind God of his kind promises!)
In Jesus’ powerful name we ask, amen.
Here's the definition of socialism (my dad just sent this to me): “A way of organizing a society in which major industries are owned and controlled by the government rather than by individual people and companies.”
