Welcome to Twisting Truth

TwistingTruth is a journaling Bible study about Things They Never Told Me in Sunday School. I will be the first to admit that this blog can come off as very negative, but this is a venture that was undertaken largely because very few people in the church wanted to deal with these issues.

The short Table of Contents:

2012 — beginning a series on How Child Protective Services (CPS) opposes the Teachings of Christ.  I am studying this because too many people have patronized me and dismissed me as overreacting. They believe CPS is “basically good” but made a “few errors.”

2011, summer and fall — What Jesus said about Hell. I studied this because I wanted to find out what the future holds for the liars.

2010 — Liars and their Lies. I studied this because both DFCS (Division of Family and Children Services) and sheriff’s department officials knowingly gave false witness as part of their paid employment and even under oath.

It is not that I enjoy spending hours seeking negativity; it is that they never taught this stuff in Sunday school.

Swan Songs

This past week, Michael Savage, the Savage of the “Savage Nation” radio show, published a poem on his website.

The teflon swan

The teflon swan spoke. The right-wing fever broke.

Scandals come and scandals go. The vandals sail through the gates.

“Too smooth, too cool to be guilty,” say the ducks as the swan swam on.

Savage’s on-air comments made it very clear that the swan is President Obama. After overcoming my shock that such a progressive swan could even have a right wing, (I’d assumed it had been amputated at Columbia, along with the rest of his records,) I rebelled against Savage’s portrayal of cygnus behaviors. “Too cool” is a description that is for the birds; it is as bad as my intended pun. I have responded with a poem of my own—

Swans do not make silky speeches.

They are Loud. Aggressive. Trumpeters.

Trumpeting and Neck-bobbing,

they establish their territory;

Intolerant of competition in their nesting area,

they will kill.

Observed an interval apart,

they convey a sense of peace, an exotic beauty.

Swan sham! It is a ruse.

Affronted, their wings beat a flurry of crosswinds.

Pecking, preying, flapping, fighting

they out-compete the native birds.

Although young cygnets begin life fairly low on the food chain, once the swans mature to flight stage they survive most natural predators. It is not because they are smooth, cool, or admired, however. It is because when they are offended, they flap their wings to make themselves look larger. They peck and bite, their long necks giving them the advantage of extended reach. Swans are such defensive fighters that many golf courses will buy a pair of swans for their water hazards simply to help keep the Canadian geese away.
Perhaps Dr. Savage was showing how those who heard the speeches were so mesmerized they’d ‘duck’ their duty. That is a possibility. But I am inclined to believe the swan swims on because of intimidation most fowl.

`

Source links
Swan Song (2010) Thumbnail of painting by Rachel Rolseth, http://rachelrolseth.com/
The Teflon Swan (2013) Poem by Michael Savage, http://www.michaelsavage.wnd.com/2013/05/the-teflon-swan/
Research on swan behavior:
Metroparks Zoo, http://www.clemetzoo.com/rttw/swan/behavior.htm
Newton, http://www.newton.dep.anl.gov/askasci/zoo00/zoo00240.htm

Obama Announces the ‘Right to Anger’

 

In a statement about the tyranny of the Internal Revenue Service, Obama declared that “Americans have a right to be angry about it, and I’m angry about it.”

 

This is BIG NEWS. The head of the Executive Branch has announced that there is a Right to be Angry.  Will someone please let me know where this is codified? The Federal Government usually uses the Commerce Clause of the Constitution to justify rights that were not previously enumerated, so does this mean that my right to be angry applies only to someone across the state line?

 

Will someone please tell me if this is a natural right or a fundamental right? Apparently not all rights are equal rights, and I am struggling to understand how the right to be angry could be politically correct. Yet, simple deductive logic would show it must be a PC right because none other than Mr. Obama himself has said so.

 

I am glad to see the President is exercising his right to anger. This will go a long way in modifying the stodgy old mores of society.  Not that long ago, only radical groups and inner city gangs routinely displayed anger in public. I am sure that with the President’s endorsement of such a powerful emotion, the Untied States will flourish. (BTW, there is no spelling error in that last sentence.) Soon, folks everywhere will be angrier than ever before.

 

In the past, many people bad-mouthed the God of the Old Testament for using lightning, thundering, earthquakes, plagues, and other displays of anger.  At long last, the President is ruling with a rod of irony.

The Baby Killers of Washoe County

The Washoe County Social Services Department, Nevada, wants to (a) murder a baby, (b) impose additional psychological distress on a mentally challenged woman, (c) interfere with a court-approved adult guardianship, and (d) defy the American right to the pursuit of happiness by obstructing all opportunity for providing a child to an adoptive couple. They want a judge to force a 32-year-old woman to have an abortion against her wishes.

What would you call someone who claims that woman ought to have the right to decide about her own body parts without the government telling her what to do, and then turns around and tries to get a judge to order an abortion? I would call her a REPROBATE!

Prenatal protocol for high-risk pregnancies is being followed, and there is a waiting list of couples who want to adopt. Social Services has its panties in a wad because the baby was exposed to anti-epileptic medication. They have absolutely no proof that the baby has been harmed—only suspicions. They are wasting resources and causing problems where no problem that they are qualified to solve even existed.

Whoever the person was that decided to stick her nose into this family’s private business ought to have her nose cut off. That appendage is only a tiny fraction of the body parts she wants to remove from the baby.

Grab your barf bag and then read the story here: LifeNews.com

Leaders Under the Influence of Satan

 

The Bible is neither silent nor lacking in descriptions of leaders who were Under the Influence of Satan or some of his evil emissaries. I am deliberately using the term “emissaries” because it means
• someone who does a job for a government or a leader
• someone who delivers a message for them
• someone sent on a mission to represent the interests of someone else
and because I do not want my real message sidetracked by dithering over distinctions between demons, fallen angels, evil spirits, principalities, and the like.

 

The first leader obviously identified as under the influence was Nimrod. Genesis 10:9 describes him as ‘Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the Lord,’ and it is not talking about bagging an ibex. This hunter is more like a street commando.  Chuck Smith’s commentary says:

It should be translated “he was a mighty tyrant in the face of the LORD.” The hunting was the hunting of men’s soul. Nimrod became a leader in apostasy, developer of a great religious system later to become known as the Babylonian religious system or the “mystery Babylon.” That whole religious system was begun by Nimrod.

Archeology, historical writings, and even mythology offer additional insight into the character of Nimrod, the great-grandson of Noah. Much like the serpent in the Garden of Eden, Nimrod caused men to doubt that God had their true happiness at heart, and suggested that following God was actually an act of weakness. Josephus reports that Nimrod gradually changed the government into tyranny in order to turn men from the fear of God and make them dependent upon his power. The translation continues, “Now the multitude were very ready to follow the determination of Nimrod, and to esteem it a piece of cowardice to submit to God; and they built a tower …” This was, of course, what came to be known as the Tower of Babel because God sent judgment  in the form of a confusion of language.

Another leader under the influence was King Saul. After Saul rejected the word of the LORD and listened to the people instead, the LORD has rejected Saul from being king over Israel.  At that point, instead of handing in his resignation, Saul tries to remain king without God’s support. An evil spirit comes and begins terrorizing him, and the only thing that brings relief is David’s harp music.  Eventually Saul become so jealous of David that he tries repeatedly to murder him.

Another occurrence of biblical examples of a king under the influence is the Book of Daniel’s record of Nebuchadnezzar’s seven seasons of insanity. Nebuchadnezzar had a prophetic dream a year before it came to pass.

Two more examples that are certainly worth mentioning occur in passages from Ezekiel 28:12-17 and Isaiah 14:12-15.  These begin with comments about the kings of Tyre and Babylon, but continue on to address the controlling spirit behind them, even possession by Satan.

The case could be made for many other rulers being intermittently controlled or fully possessed— the Pharaoh ‘who knew not Joseph,’ Queen Jezebel, the Herods of the New Testament era, and more. Satan even tried to influence Jesus as he tempted him three times at the end of his wilderness fast. The point is that this was commonplace in the past, the devil purposely tries to influence those with power, and we should expect it to be happening today.

Evil emissaries do visit humans.  There is an evil intelligent design in the way they visit leaders and put thought in their minds.

My next planned post is about some counselors and advisers who were also visited by an evil spirit.

 

All the Logic of a Pre-K Graduate

I checked in to the election coverage of the day and saw this headline, “OBAMA: ‘A New America In Which Prosperity Is Shared’”

I was skeptical, but tried to remain objective. I clicked for the quote. Here it is:

“Do we go forward towards a new vision of an America in which prosperity is shared?” Obama asked. “Or do we go backward to the same policies that got us in the mess in the first place?”

Seriously? Who is writing this guy’s speeches?

Anyone who has passed second grade arithmetic and learned about borrowing in subtraction problems is going to recognize that the “sharing exemplar” taught back in one’s pre-K classes is an outmoded paradigm. Sharing cookies never created more cookies, just more crumbs; and every time something is borrowed from the tens column to make the ones bigger, the tens lose a major chunk of their value.

As I recollect, Old King George thought that the colonists ought to “share the wealth” too. They did not like it very much. That was fifth grade social studies.

I suppose a true cynic would say that before one can share prosperity, one must first have prosperity. I don’t think I learned that in school at all. I think I probably overheard that attitude from some late-night comic.

It is rather curious that Obama would bring up “the same policies that got us in the mess,” as if he’d been doing absolutely nothing the past three-and a half years.

Not to Worry, Mr. Obama. I know you have been doing stuff. The headline right before that one said, “Treasury: U.S. to lose $25 billion on auto bailout.” David Shephardson of the Detroit News explains, “The Treasury Department says in a new report the government expects to lose more than $25 billion on the $85 billion auto bailout. That’s 15 percent higher than its previous forecast.” The loss was calculated two months ago when GM stock sold for $22.20 a share. It has since dropped to $20.47, making the loss to taxpayers even greater. Okay, perhaps the economics of the stock market was not studied until high school, but I think most people can understand that the President has been working hard to save a vital industry that has been held in the thrall of labor unions that contribute to his campaign.

Of course, you really do not need a formal education to select a President. You can always fall back on getting your information from TMZ instead.

Rep. Paul Ryan — My Workout Routine Is INSANE – TMZ

Other credits
The headline video The Prosperity Shared Video
The auto bailout article
The Detroit News article

Why the GLBT Community Is Like the Chick-fil-A Cows

I have been reading the news stories and seeing how Dan Cathy’s seemingly ordinary interview with the Baptist Press suddenly took on a life of its own. Dan Cathy is the CEO of Chick-fil-A. Years ago, I read the autobiography of Dan’s dad, Truett Cathy, It’s Easier to Succeed than to Fail. Considering that Chick-fil-A is a family owned business, there was nothing in the recent interview that should have come as a surprise. As the saying goes, the acorn does not fall far from the tree.

It occurred to me that the over-reaction of the GLBT is a lot like the cows used in the Chick-fil-A ad campaigns. The company is known for its billboards with cows almost as well as it is known for its chicken sandwiches and for being closed on Sundays.

The cows are Holsteins, and as dairy cattle, their lives are not endangered. They are far more likely to be kept alive as contributors to your milkshake than they are to be slaughtered for burgers. The cows are forever making a big media fuss on billboards, acting like mortal peril is imminent, when no one has suggested butchering them at all!

Why is the Jim Henson Company making such a big squawk about severing ties now? If they truly cared about social issues, then they ought to have researched their business partners before signing the contracts. If they did not know what Chick-fil-A was all about before now, then they are dumber (and probably more neurotic) than Telly Monster.

The billboard bovines are poor logicians. One cannot deduce attitudes toward beef consumption based solely on a preference for chicken. Similarly, one should not presume an anti-gay disposition based on a preference for traditional marriage. If that were true, then all gays must hate heterosexuals.

… … do you think that is possible?

Mental Illness? Or Demonic Activity in Denver?

In wake of the shootings at the Century 16 Cineplex in Aurora, Colorado, many news stories are now bringing up “Mental Illness.”

From a purely secular standpoint, they are on the right track. From a Biblical standpoint: Close, but no cigar.

Let’s call this what it really is: Spiritual forces of wickedness.

Jesus cast out demons, (also called devils, unclean spirits, or evil spirits). It is impossible to give an exact percentage for how much of his ministry dealt with this for a couple of reasons. Many times the Bible records the healing of “infirmities” without identifying the source. These could be organic or they could be demonic—we cannot know. Another reason is that passages like Mark 3:10 &11 simply refer to “many” demons being cast out. The point is, Jesus knew demons existed and He told His disciples to cast them out. It is likely that His ministry attracted more demonic activity than an average person might encounter, but nothing indicates that demons ever stopped tormenting people.

The apostle Paul delineated four categories of demonic activity in his letter to the Ephesians. These are:
1. rulers (principalities)
2. powers (authorities)
3. world forces of this darkness (the world’s rulers of the darkness of this age)
4. spiritual forces of wickedness in heavenly places (spiritual powers of evil in the heavenlies; spiritual wickedness in high places)

Because different translations vary slightly, the first term is the one used in the New American Standard, and I have given additional names used by other translators in parentheses. Additionally, earlier in this letter (1:21) Paul had itemized another similar listing, “Far above all rule, and authority, and power, and lordship, and every name having been named, not only in this age, but also in the coming age.: In the King James, it reads, “Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come.”

The evidence shows that at least two categories of unclean spirits were at work in Aurora.

One level was personal concerning James Holmes. While not all mentally ill persons are demon-possessed, most violent psychopaths are. Our secular courts do not acknowledge that, but there is a lot they miss. The Batman shooter was wearing body armor, so I rest my case for the violent psychopath charge.

Another level has to do with upper-level forces of darkness. There is a demonic hierarchy. This is demonstrated several places throughout the Bible, but perhaps the best known example is in Daniel chapter 10 which describes an encounter between God’s angels and the prince of the kingdom of Persia. This shows that upper-level demons are assigned to geographic areas and oversee large populations. This is different than possession of just one person.

The Dark Knight Rises shooting is fairly conclusive: There is a demonic ruler of darkness assigned to this region of Colorado and its preferred Modus Operandi is guns. The Columbine school shootings in Littleton, Colorado, in April of 1999 left 15 people dead. Then in December of 2007, a gunman attacked the Youth With A Mission center in Arvada before fleeing 75 miles to the south and opening fire at the New Life Church in Colorado Springs. The death toll for these two incidents was 4. Quick action by Jeanne Assam, who carried a concealed weapon, was credited with keeping the count from going higher. It is interesting that Littleton, Arvada, and Aurora form a triangle around Denver.

It is probable that every major city has a demonic “world force” assigned to it. Because Denver’s seems to show up in the use of firearms and thereby attract heavy media coverage, it may be easier to see it at work there than some other places. For example, it would be harder to identify the influence of an evil or unclean spirit via pharmaceuticals because that method of destruction is more individualized— its mixture with legitimate drug use is more obscure, whereas illegitimate use of a firearm is fairly easy to determine; and because different individuals metabolize drugs with differing effects.

In Western culture, demonic activity continues to be labeled “mental illness.” Jesus told his disciples to pray for deliverance from evil. Matthew 6:13 A literal translation is deliver us from “the evil one,” and would by extension include all that Satan has influenced.

The Church gets pounded from both sides in this. On one hand she is harshly criticized for merely pointing out a connection between mental illness and demonic activity, and on the other hand she is criticized for not stopping it. A Dark Knight has Risen over Denver, and it isn’t Batman.