Vol.14 No.1

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American Christian Voice
read this magazine wearing Rhino skin
Volume 14 No. 1 Contents Don’t Miss These!
8
Roe V. Roe: Women
Hurt By Abortion
Speak Out
12
ABOUT US
4.ACV About Us
5.ACV Mission Statement
5.Impressum
15.YakBak
27.Puzzle Page!!
36.Where you can buy a copy of the
American Christian Voice...
36.Subscription Info
36.War Room Widow
39.Would you like to join the ministry
of the American Christian Voice?
FROM THE COVER
7. Revealed! How Trump will get
Mexico to Pay for Wall
16.Bible is on Side of Secure Borders
18.Political Thoughts: Separating the
Sheep from the Goats
26.Do We Need Congressional Approval
to Create Term Limits on Congress?
37.I’m a Christian, a patriotic American,
and a free-market, shrink-thegovernment
conservative—who also
happens to be gay.
40.Jimmy Kimmel Says Late Night Hosts
Are All Liberal Because It Requires
'Intelligence.' Ben Shapiro Responds.
CENTERFOLD
24.Seven Thoughts on the Billy
Graham/Mike Pence Rule
GOLD STAR ATTENTION
2.Gold Star Family Inn information
35.Gold Star Family Inn supporters
FEATURES
8.Roe V. Roe: Women Hurt By Abortion
Speak Out
9.Ex-QB Colin Kaepernick Celebrates
Super Bowl With $20K Donation To
Group Named For Convicted Cop-Killer
10.Want To Tell The State To Stick It?
Homeschool Your Kids
14.’Religion divides people’ - A
refutation from a Muslim
20.Ask the Rabbi
23.Are You a Wheat or a Tare?
29.Gun safety regulations that even
NRA members should support
32.How Legalism Betryas Christ,
Violates the Gospel, and Destroys
People
34.Clickbait
34.Why You Keep Falling For Fake News
42.Who Is The Church?
REMEMBERING BILLY GRAHAM
12.Jim Bakker Remembers Billy
Graham
24.Seven Thoughts on the Billy
Graham/Mike Pence Rule
Jim Bakker
Remembers
Billy Graham
16
Bible is on Side of
32
Secure Borders
How Legalism
Betrays Christ,
Violates the Gospel,
and Destroys People
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God Loves you just the way you
are, not the way you should be.
Because no one is as
they should be.
- Brennan Manning
The American Christian Voice magazine, Memory
Lock Fence and the Gold Star Family Inn are
ministries under the non-profit, 501(c)3
designation, Ozarks Christian Foundation.
All contributions in excess of goods and services
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VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 3

about us
People often ask us who we are,
expecting to hear the name of a
particular Christian group or
religious organization.
We are not an organization, nor do we
want to be one, so we cannot introduce
ourselves with a particular name. Jesus’
disciples did not give themselves any
special name either, but were recognized
as such through their message and
lifestyle. Later they were called
Christians because they proclaimed Jesus
as the Christ, the Saviour who came to
mankind from God.
We, too, are Christians, disciples of
Jesus. We want to follow the example of
the first Christians and put what we read
in the Bible into practice in our lives. We
do not belong to any denomination or
any other kind of religious society. We
are together because each of us wants to
follow Jesus, our Lord and our God (John
20:28) and not out of any obligation to
abide by the rules and regulations of an
institution.
Leslie Leylands best put it this way,
“The basis for loving our neighbors, and
for unity in Christ, is not proximity, understanding
or commonality. We are one
in Christ not because we are one in the
same, but because Christ is the same. It
is an impoverished theology that mistakes
unity in Christ for sameness in
Christ.”
ACV Magazine - Who We Are
We regard the Bible as the sole basis
of Christian doctrine. This is why we
meet every day to think together about
God’s word. We take the Bible seriously
as the authority for our faith and life,
while also trying to understand it within
its historical and literary context, using
the mind God gave us to continuously
gain a deeper understanding of it. We
want to avoid both the fundamentalist
and the liberal errors in their views on
the Bible and we are aware that we can
only understand the Bible correctly with
the help of the Holy Spirit.
Faith, for us, is a reality which fulfills
all areas of our life and does not mean
cultivation of traditional customs.
Our partners are small in number and
consists of people with different
professions, with formerly different
religious and social backgrounds. We
simply want to be Christians, brothers
and sisters who worship God as our
common Father and Jesus as our Lord.
We reject the religious notion that we
are better than the lost because we don’t
have sin in our lives. That is a clear
contradiction to God’s word and
brotherly love. We humbly accept that
our short comings are viewed differently
by our heavenly Father because we are
now His kids. Our weaknesses are
covered by the blood of Jesus. We are
convinced that unity, which God wanted
to be the reality among
Christians, cannot be
achieved by the
controlling human
structures of authority
but is only the fruit of
obedience of every single
disciple towards the Holy Scripture. We
are in unity because each of us puts his
own self aside and wants to follow what
God revealed in the Bible and made
recognizable for everyone.
At present we know Christians in a
few different countries, but we are
looking forward to getting to know
brothers and sisters in other parts of the
world as well. We think it would be a sin
against brotherly love for Christians to
live side by side without taking an
interest in one another. In 1 John 3:14–
16 the apostle wrote:
We know that we have passed out of
death into life, because we love the
brothers. Whoever does not love abides
in death. …By this we know love, that he
laid down his life for us, and we ought to
lay down our lives for the brothers.
* Our “About us” was adapted by our
dear brothers in sisters in Europe. While
we take a different position on some
“twiggier matters” of the law we love their
spirit and understanding of the Word of
God and their response to it.
www.Christians.eu
We also have a calling to honor the
Families of the Fallen soldiers and
first responders with FREE lodging
through our Gold Star Family Inn
here in Branson Missouri. Their
lost, loved ones are “Christ types”.
They laid down their lives for the
freedom of others. Our mission
statement follows on the next page.
Make 2018 Your Best Year Ever!
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ACV Magazine NEW Mission Statement
Representing the Body of Christ Through Our Diversity
The American Christian Voice
magazine is published with the primary
purpose being to educate the body of Christ
through informative articles (Intelligent), to
edify the body of Christ through motivating
articles of Christian faith and courage
(Inspirational), and to promote the message
that disciples of Christ are not under the
penalty of sin or condemnation of it (Fun!).
It is because of what Christ has done...
not what we do that makes us in good
standing with God. Our obedience is to
Love Him and our fellow sojourners.
Now that Christ has cloaked us with His
Righteousness, God the Father looks at us
as Sons/Daughters, no longer at enmity
with Him. We are in training now. That is
why this publication focuses on politics. If
we are to rule and reign with Jesus Christ
we should be very much interested in
training here and now.
We are dedicated to be Kingdom
builders as we realize that our diversity
should not impede the method in which
God chooses to woo through the Holy Spirit
the lost through love. We can err in our
theological understanding of doctrine and
dogma but love never fails. In the law we
find death - in love we find Liberty to obey
by desire... not compulsion.
We implore all people to call out to God
and ask Him to fill you with His Holy Spirit.
THE Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is a Person.
HE will fill your heart, mind and soul with
truth; Not some man's opinion of God. In
this manner, when you see the counterfeits,
Check Out Our Website
& Call Us Today!
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Father. He loves you. He is good and only
does good. He is not "out to get you". He is
out to love you. Not because of what you do
(or do not do) but because of what Jesus has
already done for you.
We encourage our readers to eschew
religion and pursue a relationship with
God through Jesus Christ as led by the
Holy Spirit, thus allowing an openmindedness
to differing opinions on
complex matters.
We strive not to be the fire alarm, but
the fire extinguisher.
Please be advised that the contents of
this publication often do not represent
the positions held by many of the
sponsors of the American Christian
Voice (or for that matter, the publishers).
L R John, Lorri, Belen and proof readers -
Yanni and Kairos Sacoulas (which explains alot).
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American Christian
Voice Magazine
Intelligent, Inspirational & Fun!
PUBLISHER
Lorraine Sacoulas
MANAGING EDITOR
John G. Sacoulas
PATRONS
Kay & Joy Friberg
SENIOR STAFF WRITERS
Kathy O’Neil, Rabbi Jeremy Storch
SYNDICATED WRITERS
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lorri@americanchristianvoice.com
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VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 5

THANK YOU SPONSORS!
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6 WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM | VOL.14 #1

strong fences make good neighbors
WND EXCLUSIVE
REVEALED! HOW TRUMP
WILL GET MEXICO TO PAY
FOR WALL
President finally discloses
strategy to accomplish 1 of
biggest campaign promises
WASHINGTON – Quietly, and without any
fanfare from major media, Donald Trump
has unveiled his plan for getting Mexico to
pay for the border wall.
By Harriet Sherwood and agency
He says he plans to offer a new deal on
NAFTA that will share increased revenues
between the two countries more equitably,
a small portion of which will be diverted to
pay for the cost of the wall.
The Trump administration is currently
seeking federal funding for the wall while
renegotiating the U.S. trade deal with both
Mexico and Canada.
“They can pay for it indirectly through
NAFTA,” Trump said recently in an
interview with the Wall Street Journal. “We
make a good deal on NAFTA, and, say, ‘I’m
going to take a small percentage of that
money and it’s going toward the wall.’
Guess what? Mexico’s paying.”
Trump’s comments came hours after he
was updated by his administration’s top
economic and trade advisers on the
progress of those negotiations and the
administration’s trade actions more
broadly.
Trump repeatedly promised during the
campaign that he would build a wall on the
Southern U.S. border and get Mexico to pay
for it. Democrats are refusing even to
approve a budget without a bill to approve
DACA, the Deferred Action for Childhood
Arrivals program, which he rescinded in
the fall.
Trump warned that if Mexico did not agree
to new terms on the free trade deal, known
formally as the North American Free Trade
Agreement, then he would simply
“terminate” the deal.
“Now, Mexico may not want to make the
NAFTA deal, which is OK, then I’ll terminate
NAFTA, which I think would be frankly a
positive for our country,” Trump said.
“The Budget should be balanced,
the Treasury should be refilled,
public debt should be reduced, the
arrogance of officialdom should be
tempered and controlled, and the
assistance to foreign lands should
be curtailed, lest Rome will become
bankrupt. People must again learn
to work instead of living on public
assistance.”
-Cicero, 55 BC
Battles are fought in our minds
every day. When we begin to feel the
battle is just too difficult and want to
give up, we must choose to resist
negative thoughts and be determined
to rise above our problems.
We must decide that we’re not going
to quit. When we’re bombarded with
doubts and fears, we must take a
stand and say: “I’ll never give up!
God’s on my side. He loves me, and
He’s helping me! I’m going to make
it!- Joyce Meyer
VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 7

By Jerry Newcombe
original jane roe speaks
ROE V. ROE: WOMEN HURT BY ABORTION SPEAK OUT
Post abortive women say it hurts women
Recently, a group of abortion advocates, as
part of the National Network of Abortion
Funds, set out to solicit people to speak out
on behalf of abortion through their
personal stories. They call it: “We Testify –
Storytellers Rise Up for Roe.”
That got me thinking about how there are
many women who could testify to the exact
Jerry Newcombe opposite of what the
abortion advocates want to hear. Having an
abortion turned out to be a disastrous
turning point in their lives.
Through the years of my broadcast
ministry, I’ve had the privilege to interview
many women who have had abortions and
came to regret it. For example, Carol
Everett, who not only had an abortion but
went on to become a part-owner of a few
abortion clinics in the Dallas area. She once
told me: “Nothing [in my life] worked after
my abortion.” But, she reasoned, if in some
twisted way, she could talk other women
into having an abortion, maybe her own
abortion wouldn’t seem so wrong. She went
on to become partly responsible for some
35,000 abortions, and the money was good.
But then Carol found Christ – whom she
was not seeking – or more accurately, Christ
found her. She is now very happy to work
for the pro-life side.
Women regretting their abortions is a
common phenomenon. Consider these
testimonies:
Monica: “The worst part of abortion to me
is the emptiness. … I deprived my daughter
of her sister or brother, or my son of a sister
or brother. And sometimes when I see my
family, I feel like it’s incomplete, because I
notice that third person is missing.”
Janice: “The abortion was humiliating. It
was dehumanizing. I lost my dignity there
in that clinic. I lost my self-respect. It was a
very unpleasant procedure.”
Raquel:
“God has
healed
me and
brought
me to a
new
place,
but
there’s
still that
pain,
that loss
that
never
goes
away;
you don’t forget. … It wasn’t quick. It wasn’t
painless. It was horrible. No woman should
ever have to endure that type of procedure,
or even those lies that they said, that I
would ‘forget.’ Because you don’t forget it.”
As the abortion advocates try to conjure up
women to testify on behalf of Roe, how
about hearing from Roe herself?
It’s not news that Norma McCorvey, the
Roe of Roe v. Wade (the Supreme Court
decision that legalized abortion on demand,
Jan. 22, 1973), later became a pro-life
Christian. She died last year.
McCorvey did a television interview with D.
James Kennedy Ministries in the late
1990s. In that interview, she said, “My story
began … in 1969 when I found myself
pregnant, on the streets. I was into drugs,
and I really didn’t have any other
alternatives in line. I did not believe in God,
and I’d fallen away from the church at a
very early age. In retrospect, when I look
back on those days and I see what a sad
person I was, I have to really kind of smile
and think about little Emily – a little 7-yearold
girl who came up to me at my office one
day and told me that if I knew God that I
wouldn’t be going to the place downstairs.
She befriended me when Operation Rescue
moved in next door to the abortion clinic
where I worked.
And at first, I didn’t
like them there
because they
reminded me of what we were doing.”
She further testifies: “I really hadn’t been
happy with anything that I saw in the proabortion
movement. … They don’t really
care about women. All they care about is
your money. But once you’re gone, they
don’t know you. … They took your baby, and
they left you just a shell of a woman – just a
shell.”
McCorvey never had an abortion herself –
the Supreme Court decision did not come
until after she had already given birth – but
she has seen what it does to women who
have had them. She came to deeply regret
her participation in the Court decision that
bears her pseudonym.
Describing herself in the third person,
“Roe” said, “What Roe v. Wade did for
Norma McCorvey was send her into about
a 20-year spin of depression and
lesbianism and alcoholism. And it was just
like living in the pit of hell.”
Abortion is a human tragedy. In my opinion,
it continues to bring God’s wrath down on
this nation. The sooner America moves
away from the abortion ethic, the better off
we will be. I guess the ultimate test is, going
forward, which Roe should we listen to?
The pre-conversion Norma McCorvey or
the one whom Christ had made new? Let’s
embrace the new and improved Roe, who
testified, “Now that I’ve become a Christian.
… I’m 100 percent pro-life. … I’m a much
happier person.”
Jerry Newcombe, D.Min., is a TV producer
and the co-host of "Kennedy Classics." He has
also written or co-written 24 books,
including "The Book That Made America"
(on the Bible) and (with D. James Kennedy)
"What If Jesus Had Never Been Born?" and
(with Peter Lillback) "George Washington’s
Sacred Fire." Jerry hosts gracenetradio.com
Thursdays at noon Eastern.
ed- Through DNA science we have learned
that abortion destroys a unique human
being that has never existed in history, the
present, or the future. No two alike. Not even
in identical twins. Absolutely an original
person with a one-of-a- kind personality and
temperament. Think of your own children,
nieces, nephews or grandchildren. If any one
of them would have been aborted, what
8 WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM | VOL.14 #1

jack & ryan have reason to be pro-life
would be the consequences? Even a former
family nemesis that passed away last year ,
and by most peoples’ assessment, led a
corrupt and useless life, left behind some
awesome children that would not be here
without him.
Like liberal actor, Jack Nicholson continues
to say, “I cannot honestly be pro-choice. My
birth mother (Jack was told his
grandparents were his parents and his real
mother who became pregnant at 17 was his
sister) had told people if abortion were legal
when she got pregnant, she would have
discarded me immediately. I found out later
that she even tried unsuccessfully, to kill me
in the womb on her own.”
It is always preposterous to hear a woman
say that it is the woman’s body so it should
be her choice. Well, it
wasn’t Jack’s mother’s
body. It was Jack’s body
she attempted to kill
and her grandson Ray
and his fiture progeny.
Ex-QB Colin
Kaepernick
Jack & Ryan Nicholson Celebrates
Super Bowl With
$20K Donation To Group
Named For Convicted Cop-Killer
"Assata's Daughters" is an activist
organization named for Assata Shakur, one
of the FBI's "Most Wanted."
Honoree Colin Kaepernick spoke onstage
at ACLU SoCal Hosts Annual Bill of Rights
Dinner at the Beverly Wilshire Four
Seasons Hotel on last December in Beverly
Hills, California.
Former 49ers backup quarterback Colin
Kaepernick might not have played in
Sunday night's Super Bowl, but he did
celebrate the pinnacle of the National
Football League's season by raising money
for a group named after convicted copkiller
Assata Shakur.
The Washington Times reports that as part
of his post-football career Kaepernick has
been raising money for a variety of
progressive causes through a program
called Million Dollar Pledge. Some of the
groups are innocuous, such as proeducation
organizations and campaigns to
help get kids off the street after school, but
at least one, Assata’s Daughters, has more
concerning roots.
Assata's Daugthers bills itself as a "direct
action" group that "carries on the tradition
of radical liberatory activism encompassed
by Assata Shakur.” But Shakur herself was
a member of the Black Liberation Army and
in 1977 was convicted of killing a New
Jersey State Trooper in a highway shootout.
She escaped prison and fled to Cuba, where
she remains, evading authorities .
She is one of the FBI's most wanted.
Kaepernick gave $25,000 of his own money
to Assata's Daughters before bundling an
additional $20,000 from celebrity friends
who are anxious to signal their support for
the out-of-work football player and his
crusade to bring social justice to the NFL.
By EMILY ZANOTTI
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VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 9

By Jamie Rohrbaugh
your children’s cohorts are the true teachers
Want To Tell The State To Stick It? Homeschool Your Kids
This notion that the children
belong to the state, that their
education must be provided
for by the state … is inimical at
every step to liberty.”
– J. Gresham Machen
The swelling legions of
homeschoolers poke a subtle
rebuke at America’s ever
expanding nanny state. Under both
parties, Washington has systematically
invaded private spheres and co-opted
public services historically performed by
local bodies. But a spontaneous
groundswell of freedom minded folks has
continued America’s rich inheritance of
rugged individualism.
The God-fearing, flag-waiving, gun-toting
homeschool crowd embodies the
American spirit of mutual self-reliance.
You won’t encounter a more neighborly
bunch. Their children thrive without
government “help.” Their support
networks blossom sans the state’s
sanction. Meanwhile, taxpayers waste a
fortune securing abysmal academic
results. In 2012, SAT scores fell to their
lowest level since tracking began. As
spending soars, assessment scores
plummet.
The modern homeschool movement
comes largely by Christians aghast over
an academic establishment overrun by
progressives. Schools long ago became
laboratories for instilling statism and
distilling politically correct groupthink.
Values clarification anyone? With public
education increasingly geared toward
multicultural agitation against America’s
godly heritage, many parents resolved to
safeguard the hearts, souls and minds of
their young.
At least 1.5 million students receive
home-based academic instruction. The
ranks of homeschoolers are rising rapidly
across every social strata, faith and
ethnicity. While many families lack
sufficient means for someone to stay
home, it’s not generally those affluent
enough to afford exclusive parochial
education. The highest homeschool
10 WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM | VOL.14 #1
participation appears in households with
incomes ranging from $25,000 to
$75,000. The homeschool community
reflects a cross-section of Americans; the
children of truck drivers and lawyers,
whites and blacks, rich and poor,
Christians and
unbelievers.
What is
civilization,
save passing to
posterity the
accumulated
prosperity,
cultural
achievements,
customs and
mores of our
forbearers? In
the American
context this
includes selfreliance.
Parents are the
primary
medium for
rearing
children. Should liberty endure, America
must restore her multi-generational
perspective, lately befuddled by
Leviathan permeating life.
We have two principle tutors, lessons
learned via individual experience and the
wisdom amassed by our ancestors.
Progressives have purposely uprooted
America’s multi-generational perspective
for many decades. Woodrow Wilson, who
prior to the White House presided over
Princeton, wrote, “The use of a university
is to make young gentlemen as unlike
their fathers as possible.”
Not to besmirch the many fine teachers,
but an education establishment intent on
discrediting tradition as a compass has
rendered much of America’s youth adrift
with only the pittance of personal
experience to navigate their course.
Students are prodded to disdain the
independent spirit and biblical morality
which birthed America’s exceptionalism.
But casting aside the wisdom of our
fathers comes at great peril.
Edmund Burke admonished “The
individual is
foolish, but the
species is wise.”
J. Gresham Machen, the foremost
defender of fundamentalism in the
modernist controversy of the past
century, also led the battle against
compulsory public education. A fierce
libertarian,
Machen
cautioned, “If you
give the
bureaucrats the
children, you
might as well
give them
everything else
as well.”
We have. See
election 2012.
Barack Obama –
who spent his
past assailing the
American system
– would not be
president
without
overwhelming support from twentysomethings
imbued with a reverence for
the state. No longer the family tree,
“government is the only thing we all
belong to” claims the ruling party.
Ron Paul senses the urgency, “Expect the
rapidly expanding homeschool
movement to play a significant role in the
revolutionary reforms needed to rebuild
a free society with constitutional
protections.” Dr. Paul warns, “We cannot
expect a federal government controlled
school system to provide the intellectual
ammunition to combat the dangerous
growth of government that threatens our
liberties.” Proving his point, homeschool
parents were instrumental behind
several UN treaties stalling in the Senate.
Like the local self-government formed
indigenously by settler communities on
America’s frontier, homeschoolers
spontaneously built a support apparatus
from the ground up. The free market at
work, parents can readily access almost
any curricula, subject matter or activity.
The Department of Education’s Dr.

Patricia Lines countered the notion of
homeschoolers withdrawing from
America’s social fabric, “Like the
Antifederalists these homeschoolers are
asserting their historic individual rights
so that they may form more meaningful
bonds with family and community. In
doing so, they are not abdicating from the
American agreement. To the contrary,
they are affirming it.”
A misperception persists that
homeschooled children lack social skills.
Dr. Brian Ray, of the National Home
Education Research Institute, surveyed
seven thousand adult graduates of
homeschools. His research reveals they
are significantly more likely to participate
in community service initiatives, join
civic, religious or business organizations
and be politically involved. A limited
study by J. Gary Knowles found no
homeschool graduates who were
unemployed or residing on welfare.
Unless socialization means sassing their
parents, as confirmed by Dr. Larry
Shyers, homeschooled children exhibit
significantly less behavioral problems
than other students. Public schools
nurture self-esteem. Homeschooling
cultivates character allowing children to
flourish into responsible citizens.
Moreover, Dr. Ray concludes adults
taught at home retained their parent’s
worldviews far more frequently than
peers. Students learning at home absorb
much less liberal cant.
Homeschooled kids don’t lack
socialization . . . but socialism.
The most pressing motive behind taking
on the terrific burden of home education
is to impart religious or moral beliefs at
36 percent; safety was primary for 21
percent of parents and dissatisfaction
with academic performance at other
schooling options accounted for 17
percent. Parents also cited geographical
distance, preferring non-traditional
teaching methodologies or wishing to
tailor classes per a particular student’s
needs.
Some parents simply prioritize getting
our children into Heaven over getting
them into Harvard. Forging godly
character, precept upon precept,
surpasses SAT scores in importance.
But homeschooled children suffer no
discernible academic handicap.
It’s not only national spelling bees and
similar competitions where
homeschooled students have become a
force. Studies consistently have
homeschooled students scoring 15-30
points above national averages. A recent
survey by Brian Ray covering 11,739
students showed homeschooled children
tested at the 86th percentile. These
stellar results held for boys and girls; all
incomes; whether or not the parent had
teacher credentials; whether their
budget was above or below $600; and the
amount of state regulation.
The Home School Legal Defense
Association asks, “If government
regulation does not improve the results
of homeschoolers why is it necessary?”
Many Americans coming from other
walks no doubt similarly ponder the
efficacy of red-tape.
The impressive results may partly derive
from positive selection.
And any child whose
parents
willingly invest so much time would
likely thrive in other settings, but
students previously homeschooled
continue to prosper at college. They
obtain above average grades with higher
graduation rates.
Despite undeniable successes – or
perhaps because of them –
homeschooling still faces resentment by
suspicious social workers and
government bureaucrats. Per Christine
Field, an attorney with the National
Center for Life and Liberty (we are
members), “If we are losing rights, it is in
the social services arena where an
anonymous phone call can bring
authorities in to ‘investigate’ a
homeschooling family. The Fourth
Amendment violations committed by
social workers … can wreak legal havoc
on parents.”
Homeschooling represents a microcosm
of traditional Americana and a rebuke of
government meddling. Hence liberals
hate it.
Grace Electric
417.699.8685
Email:
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Thank you, Todd for honoring
the families of the fallen - John,
Lorri and staff
VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 11

By Jim Bakker
this memory is telling of the man
Jim Bakker remembers Billy Graham
Excerpt from Jim’s book “I Was Wrong” ©1996
On January 2, 1992, I finally
succumbed to the flu. Besides the
physical misery, a deep sadness
plagued my heart and mind.
Nevertheless, I got up each morning and
went to work, but as soon as I finished
cleaning bathrooms and halls, I returned
to my cell, closed the door and crawled
back onto my bunk, still wearing my
work clothes.
On the day I had the worst fever, I lay
in my bunk, trying to “sweat it out.”
Suddenly, my cell door
opened and a guard
appeared in the doorway.
“Bakker, come with me,” he
commanded.
I groaned and rolled out of
bed. I had not showered or
shaved yet that day. I knew
I looked awful, but I was
too sick to care. I did not
even bother to comb my
hair; I simply ran my
fingers through the
increasingly thin strands
and left it at that. I started
to put on my good tennis
shoes, and stopped short. I
had no idea why the guard
wanted me. Maybe, he
wants me to clean up a
mess somewhere or help
push the trash cans over to
the dumpster, I thought.
No use ruining my good
shoes for that. I had two
pairs of tennis shoes in
prison, one pair I wore while I cleaned
the rest rooms, and the other I wore to
exercise, walk the track, or during afterwork
hours. The old tennis shoes I wore
mopping and cleaning rest rooms were
tattered, torn, and filthy. I decided to put
them on.
I reported to the guard, wearing my
work clothes and work shoes. He looked
at me strangely, but he didn’t say much.
He simply told me to sit down and wait.
Although I had been in prison for more
than two years, fear of the unknown still
caused me to be extremely nervous.
Have I done something wrong? I
wondered. Did I miss something when I
did my cleaning chores today? I retraced
my steps and activities over the past few
days,
carefully
examining
my words
and deeds.
After about fifteen more minutes,
another guard came over to me. “Get
your coat,” he said. I walked back to my
cell, retrieved my heavy green army coat
with its bright orange lining, and
returned to the guard station.
“Let’s go,” the guard said. We walked
out of Building Two into the bitterly cold
air, toward the front of the prison
compound. It eventually became clear
that we were going to the warden’s office.
The guard and I entered the building. I
noticed a number of people buzzing
around a doorway, some familiar faces,
others who were not. Something is up, I
thought.
A high-level prison official approached
me and whispered, “somebody is here to
see you, Bakker. Do you want to see
him?”
“See who?” I asked, honestly surprised.
I was expecting no visitors. Why would
they be making such a fuss over
somebody coming to see me? And why
are we in the administration building,
rather than in the visiting room?
“Hasn’t anyone told you who it is?” the
official asked.
“No sir,” I responded.
“Why Billy Graham is here to see
you?” the prison official gushed.
“Billy Graham? I repeated. “He’s here?
To see me?” I looked down at my shoes.
The gaping holes in them stared back at
me.
“Well, you do want to see him, don’t
you?” the official asked.
For a fraction of a second, I almost said
no out of sheer embarrassment. The last
time I had seen Billy Graham face-to-face
had been when he had appeared on PTL,
along with George Beverly Shea and Cliff
Barrows. Billy’s opening line to Tammy
Faye and me that day had
been “You feel just like
family, you have been in
our home so much.” On
that day, I had been
dressed in one of my best
suits of clothes, with every
hair in place. Now, I was in
rumpled, prison work
khakis, totally disheveled.
How could I allow the great
Dr. Billy Graham to see me
like this?
There was no way I was
going to refuse his visit.
“Yes, I would like to see
him,’ I replied. I took off my
old green over-coat and
tried to straighten my hair.
It was no use. I took a
breath and walked into the
warden’s conference room
where the prison officials
had indicated that Dr.
Graham was waiting along
with Dr. Westrick and
other prison officials.
As I walked through the door, Billy
Graham turned toward me and opened
his arms wide. Immediately, I felt his
total acceptance and love. I wanted to
run into his arms like a little boy would
run into his daddy’s arms. As I looked at
him, the tall, distinguished gentleman
looked back at me with absolute
compassion. I had not seen such
compassionate eyes in a long time.
We stepped toward each other and
embraced. “Hello, Jim,” he said in his rich
Carolina accent. “How are you?”
“Hello, Dr. Graham. I’m very sorry you
have to see me like this,” Billy Graham
simply waved my apology away.
We sat down beside each other at the
12 WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM | VOL.14 #1

thanks, billy, for not adding religion to the gospel
conference table and began to talk. The
room was still swirling with people, but I
felt as though Dr. Graham and I were in
our own separate world. We talked
quietly but freely. He told me that he was
glad to be able to see me. “I wanted to
come sooner,” he said almost
apologetically.
His wife, Ruth, was in Mayo Clinic for
some tests, which is why they were in
Minnesota in the first place. He told me
Ruth was especially insistent that he
come to visit me. “She sends her
greetings and her love,” said Dr. Graham.
Billy Graham asked about my family
and about my life in prison. He seemed
genuinely concerned, so I shared with
him some of the good points and the bad.
He then told me about his most recent
overseas crusade and how God had done
such great things there. He was clearly
pleased that so many people had
accepted Christ. He noted that satellite
television had extended the crusade
coverage to the four corners of the world.
I told him about Dr. Ruth Westrick, whom
I could see out of the corner of my eye.
“This woman is the Mother Teresa of
the prison system,” I told Dr. Graham. I
told him of Dr. Westrick’s compassion
and loyalty to the inmates and about the
dignity she had given me. I got the feeling
I was not telling Billy anything he did not
already know.
Before he left, Billy Graham offered to
pray with me, and as he began, the
activity in the room instantly ceased.
Time seemed suspended during Dr.
Graham’s visit, so I have no idea how long
he stayed. Probably not long, but I will
never forget that the man who had just
been voted one of the most influential
men in the world and who has ministered
to millions of people, took time out of his
busy schedule to come minister to one
prisoner. Amid my depression, flu, filth,
and hopelessness, Billy Graham had
come. I felt as though Jesus Himself had
come to visit me.
The prison officials stood by looking
on. I put on my green army coat and
headed for the door. Dr. Graham waved
good-bye from across the room. “Ruth
and I will be praying for you, Jim,” he said.
I made my way down the hall toward my
cell, still trying to grasp all that had just
happened........
Remarkably, when I was released from
prison I was invited by the Graham family
to their personal house. I climbed into
Franklin Graham’s pickup to drive up to
his parents’ home. Fortunately for me, he
had removed the guns from his gun rack
----federal felons are not allowed to be in
the same vehicle with a gun.
By the time we arrived at “the cabin,”
as the Grahams refer to their lovely, old,
log mountain home, Ruth and Franklin’s
wife, Jane Austin, and the children had
already arrived. Ruth had prepared a
full-course dinner for us. We enjoyed a
wonderful casual dinner together. I felt
as though I was sitting in the midst of a
family reunion. We talked and laughed
just as any family might during the
Sunday afternoon meal. We talked a great
deal about one of Ruth’s favorite subjects,
as well - - - how we could better get
Bibles to inmates and their families.
During the course of this conversation,
Ruth asked me a question that required
an address. I reached into my back pocket
and pulled out a paper envelope in which
I kept my addresses and cash. I had not
owned a wallet for over four and a half
years---prisoners are not allowed to have
wallets.
As I fumbled through the envelope
looking for the address, Ruth Graham
watched me quizzically. “Don’t you have
a wallet, Jim?” she asked tenderly.
“This is my wallet,” I replied pointing
to the envelope. Right then it seemed
natural to me to have a paper envelope as
a wallet.
Ruth got up and left the room. In a few
minutes she returned carrying one of
Billy Graham’s wallets. “Here is a brandnew
wallet Billy has never used. I want
you to have it,” she said.
I still carry that wallet to this day.
Before I left that afternoon, Ruth Graham
insisted upon sitting down and writing a
thank you letter that she asked me to
carry with me to Darlene Thompson,
the woman who was in charge of the
Salvation Army halfway house. In the
letter, Ruth wrote thanking the directors
of the halfway house for being good to
me. She also thanked them for allowing
me to come and spend the day with the
Graham family.
Over the years, I have met literally
thousands of wonderful Christian men
and women and families. I have never
met anyone more humble, gracious and
in a word, real than Ruth Graham and the
members of her marvelous family.
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VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 13

By Waleed Ahmed
why can’t all muslims be like this? LOL
‘Religion divides people’ – A refutation from a Muslim
I have heard numerous arguments
against religion. A friend of mine once
dismissed religion on the grounds that ‘it
divides people’. I’ve heard that argument
before and after that conversation I was
compelled to put some thought into it.
Following are some thoughts on that
argument.
Religion does divide people. That is true.
However, I prefer the word separate
rather than divide and you will see later
why. Religion does group people into
different sects. Jews, Christians, Muslims,
Hindus. These differences sometimes can
cause disagreements and hostility
between people of different religious
backgrounds. Wars have been waged in
the past and present in the name of
religion and often times the resentment
follows through generations to come.
But here’s the thing people tend to
overlook. Religion divides people; but so
does race, ethnicity, nationality, political
philosophies (democracy vs
communism), language (Quebec vs
English Canada) etc. Look at the wars
that have been waged in the past century.
At least 60 million people have died in
armed conflicts in the past 100 years.
How many of these wars were ‘religious’?
Did the Americans bomb Hiroshima for
religious reasons? Did Stalin massacre
thousands for religious reasons? Did the
genocide in Rwanda happen for religious
reasons?
The number of people that been killed in
so called ‘religious wars’ is miniscule
compared to those in secular wars. So the
point is, why insult religion and put down
its beauty by making it responsible for
our disunity? Look at all the hate that has
resulted because of democracy. I’ve never
heard any one ridicule democracy or
blame wars on it. Why the double
standard?
Here is what people need to understand.
Humans are inherently different from
one another. No matter what you do,
people will disagree over one matter or
another and will always have different
opinions. As humans we all have an
identity, a set of values or a philosophy
which suits our rational faculties. We
cling onto people who share this identity
and pledge allegiance to them. No matter
what one tries to do, this cannot be
changed and is in fact something that
God has programmed into us and is there
for a reason. God says in the Quran,
“If thy Lord had so willed, He could have
made mankind one people: but they will
not cease to dispute” (Quran 11:118)
“O mankind, indeed We have created you
from male and female and made you
nations and tribes, that you may know
one another” (Quran 49:13)
I gather three things from the above
verses. One the confirmation that we
have been purposely made different and
have been split into nations and tribes.
Second that disputation is also a part of
our nature and even if we were one
nation we’d continue to dispute over
religious matters. Lastly, the purpose
behind our divisions: to learn from each
other and not to despise one another.
Living in peace and learning to co-exist is
a divine trial and we as humans ought to
live up to it.
If anything, religion unites people that
are divided. Look at the history of the
Arabian Peninsula before and after Islam
for example. The Arabs had a strong
sense of tribalism and maintaining the
honour of their particular tribe was of
utmost importance to them. This
resulted in never ending wars where one
tribe was always trying to take revenge
and shedding blood in order to remain
‘honourable’. After the advent of Islam,
not only was the Arabian Peninsula
united but along with it were Eastern
Europe, North Africa, India and Western
China.
‘Okay fine, religion isn’t the only thing
that divides people and maybe it can
unite people sometimes too. But what
about hostility, hate and resentment
between people of different faiths?
Wouldn’t our world be more peaceful
without all this
religious bigotry? One
less reason to hate’
What people don’t
understand when they
ask the above question
is the following:
Religion isn’t the cause
of hate amongst
people; religion is the
justification for hate.
No religion inherently
preaches hate. No
religion inherently
teaches one to be
hateful to others; they
preach the opposite in fact. Yes, religious
people differ but differences don’t equal
hate. Theological disagreements don’t
usually amount to hate and deep rooted
resentment.
Hate is a human problem. It is a
manifestation of anger, pride, greed,
struggle for power and other human
flaws. The Palestinians don’t hate Israelis
because they are Jewish; they hate them
because they are oppressed by them.
Even in that case, religion is used as a
justification for hatred.
Some people argue that a world without
religion might not be perfect, but at least
better than what it is today. I argue that
we’d be in a position that is far worse as
the good that religious values bring far
out weight the divisions attributed to
religion. The divisions would remain the
same even if you remove religion. People
would find other excuses to justify hate
and oppression. Removing religion
would just rid the world of the good that
it brings about.
14 WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM | VOL.14 #1

. Feed Back From Our Readers
Write Us! We love Yak Baks. Be sure to include where you found us,
yak bak
and where you are from.
A few years ago the ACV
reported on an opinion piece by
Alex Jones. Turns out, he was
right all along. The orchestrated
collapse of America’s southern
border is part of an overall
agenda to destroy U.S. national
sovereignty in order to usher
America into a North American
Union with Mexico and Canada.
The crony capitalists who have
created the global statecorporate
nexus known as the
New World Order want a
perpetually poor population
across the world which can be
easily exploited and controlled.
Time will tell if Americans have
the guts to stop this agenda by
first building a wall.
Carey Dunlop, Akron, OH
________________________________
I want to tell you how excellent
I think the last issue (Volumn
13 issue 6) of the ACV is! Great
choice of articles! I especially
enjoyed the "Lead us not into
mistranslation(!)--I've always
disagreed with that particular
translation of the Lord's prayer;
the article "Trophies are for
Winning"--such important
thoughts in this day and age;
"Prophetic Vision"; "The
Making of a Miserable
Millennial"; the article on Joel
Osteen; and your article on
Jim Bakker. The magazine is a
wonderful compilation of
relevant, worthwhile articles.
Good job, and it looks great too!
Good work from your entire
staff!
Susie Link, Reeds Spring, MO
______________________________
Why do people who would
rather spit on a Bible than read
it justify their wrongheaded
ideas by appealing to it? “Who
would Jesus deport?” they ask,
rhetorically. They haven’t
suddenly “found religion”,
they’re just using words they
don’t personally believe to
shame religious people into
silence. (There is a difference
between a Sojourner and an
illegal immigrant.)
Wes Walker, DailyClash.com
___________________________
I am disappointed that
Christians are not more
discerning with whom they do
business. Many will tell you that
boycotts do not work and ask
what would happen if the left
stopped patronizing Christian
owned companies? For one
thing, we are promised that no
weapon fashioned against us
will stand. When Chick-fil-A
was targeted for a boycott, their
numbers increased but when
conservatives boycotted the
NFL; changes were made. I
don’t
know why
you would continue doing
business with Target and
Walgreen stores when a
perverted man can follow your
littel girl or your wife into one
of their public restrooms. Is a
sale price worth your support?
Denise Perez, Hilton Head, NC
_________________________
We enjoyed our time at your
Gold Star Family Inn. Giving
free lodging and entertainment
to the families of the Fallen is a
real blessing to us. Our son,
Christopher was killed in action
serving his country and laid
down his life for us all. He is so
honored - the highest honor of
all- don’t we all long to be with
our Savior too?
Chuck and Mary Johnson,
Holland, MI
_____________________
Can even hard boiled Christians
like me change their minds? I
am 93 years old and your
article on Joel Osteen and Jim
Bakker brought instant
conviction. I publically repent
and ask their forgivenesss for
speaking against one of God’s
anointed. I don’t have to like the
method they use to present the
Gospel and the Holy Spirit
showed me I am not allowed to
judge another man’s servant.
Yes, even an old dog
like me can learn a
new trick.
Eliza Wains, Winter Park, FL
____________________________
I read the article by Tim
Challies on how to make a
miserable millennial. I was sad
because my husband and I did
not raise our daughter like that
and she still turned out to be
the poster child for all lazy,
shiftless, entitlement
demanding brats. Beware
parents on who you allow their
friends to be. It turns out their
influence was greater than
ours. We are holding fast to the
scripture that promises our
little girl will come to her
senses as she gets older
because we were diligent in
Godly instruction when she was
young.
Hana Rogers, Newport News, VA
______________________________
Send your letters to the editor to:
American Christian Voice
1030 W. Main St. Hwy 76
Branson, MO 65616 or email:
editor@AmericanChristianVoice
.com
See all articles that were
referenced here at:
www.American
ChristianVoice.com
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VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 15

BY PAUL BREMMER
all things being equal
BIBLE IS ON SIDE OF SECURE BORDERS
Cheryl Chumley defends rule of law from attack by Christians - WND.com
In Exodus 22:21, God commanded the
Israelites, “You shall not wrong a
sojourner or oppress him, for you
were sojourners in the land of Egypt.”
Some American Christians have
interpreted that passage as a mandate for
the United States to excuse and
accommodate illegal immigrants.
But award-winning journalist Cheryl
Chumley notes a “sojourner” is a
temporary visitor; illegal aliens seek to
remain in the country, so that passage
does not apply to them.
Moreover, she pointed out, God Himself
was the one who separated the peoples
of the Earth and confused their
languages in Genesis 11, thus creating
nations. So national sovereignty is
perfectly biblical.
In her new book, “The Devil in DC:
Winning Back the Country from the
Beast in Washington,” which is set to be
released this month, Chumley wrote, “It’s
hard to believe in a morality that teaches
that breaking the law is OK.”
The Bible does not teach that breaking
the law is OK, she asserted. She cited
Proverbs 28:4, which reads: “Those who
forsake the law praise the wicked, but
those who keep the law strive against
them.”
Chumley said it is unseemly for a nation
based on the rule of law and Judeo-
Christian values to
reward illegal
immigrants for
their lawbreaking
by putting them on
a “path to
citizenship.”
“I don’t understand
why
the
lawbreakers are
given extra
concessions while
the citizens are put
in a second-class
state,” she told
WND in an
interview.
The most prominent Christian, by far, to
defend open borders has been Pope
Francis. The pope said Donald Trump is
“not Christian” if he talks constantly
about building a border wall between the
U.S. and Mexico.
(Have you seen
the Vatican
Walls?)
However,
Francis was not
the only
Catholic leader
to attack Trump
over the
immigration
issue, whether
directly or
indirectly.
Cardinal
Timothy Dolan
of New York
penned an
opinion piece slamming Trump’s “antiimmigrant
rhetoric” as “nativist.”
Around the same time, Bishop Kevin
Farrell of Dallas warned that “the ghost
of Nativism again prowls our land.”
Additionally, Archbishop Jose Gomez of
Los Angeles took exception to Trump’s
comments on illegal immigrants, saying
illegals are “human beings in search of a
better life,” according to
CNN. Gomez is a champion
of “immigration reform.”
Chumley said her impression is these
Catholic leaders hold “crazy” positions
on immigration.
“These are people that are supposed to
be grounded in biblical principles,” she
said. “First and foremost it’s truth, right?
They’re supposed to understand the
concept of right and wrong and law
versus lawbreakers, and yet they’re so
quick and speedy to embrace the
lawbreakers at the expense of those who
are here legally that it just spins my
head.”
Chumley, who also authored the book
“Police State USA: How Orwell’s
Nightmare is Becoming our Reality,”
noted a certain level of hypocrisy at
work.
“These same people that are pointing
fingers at the rest of America criticizing
us for wanting to uphold border controls
– you don’t see them too often opening
their homes and welcoming in these
illegal immigrants into their own homes,
sheltering them, providing for them,
giving them food and so forth,” Chumley
reasoned. “Nine times out of 10 their
calls for aid come at the taxpayers; they
want the taxpayers to do things that they
themselves don’t want to do.”
Instead of condemning the U.S. for not
welcoming illegal aliens, Chumley
opined, the pope should “quiet down”
16 WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM | VOL.14 #1

and focus on his core duty of pastoring
the church. She rejected the idea that
welcoming illegals is a matter of
compassion or love.
“How can it be
compassionate and
loving to break laws at
the expense of those
who live on the borders
and have to deal with
those border crossings
on a daily basis?” she
asked rhetorically.
Chumley said she is
fortunate to live far
from the Mexican
border. But those who
do live along the border
face frequent dangers:
illegal border crossers
stealing items from
garages or barns, breaking into houses,
attacking ranchers, etc.
The author insisted people who wish to
protect the border and uphold the laws
of their country do not lack compassion.
“If you want to be compassionate, then
what you should do is take it upon
yourself to help those you see are in
need,” she challenged. “It’s not
compassion to use somebody else’s
money, somebody else’s resources – the
taxpayers, I’m talking about – and say
that they have to pay for these people. It’s
compassion when you’re compelled by
your own heart, by your own moral
compass, to get your hands dirty and do
something yourself.”
In fact, Chumley stated one of her
primary messages in “The Devil in DC” is
that Americans don’t have to capitulate
to the devil in D.C.; rather, they can turn
the country around through their own
efforts.
“We need to be bold – you know, quit
sitting on the sidelines and wringing our
hands and screaming at the TV but
cowering in front of government
officials,” Chumley declared. “We are
their employers. The president is our
employee, and we need to remember
that.”
It’s not just the president who is our
employee, she noted – it’s also U.S.
congressmen, state officials and local
officials – from county clerks to town
supervisors to city councilmen. Chumley
begs Americans to wake up and hold
these leaders accountable.
“These people work for us, and we need
to get that in our minds and take that
back, because our actions start with our
attitudes,” she said.
Paul Bremmer is a WND staff writer based
in Washington, D.C.
editor’s note: Nobody champions the poor
more than our Catholic brethren, and I
believe they need a wall that massive
around their country. (yes, they are a
sovereign) but it disingenuous to
“pontificate” (sorry, I couldn’t help myself)
to other sovereigns to tear down their
walls when they are not inclined to do so
themselves. I do admire people who work
with those who are so disenfranchised as
those in Calcutta but it requires secure
borders and walls to maintain the wealth
to do so.
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VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 17

BY RYAN
a person’s first basic right is to be born
Political thoughts: Separating the Sheep from the goats.
I have had many conversations with
Christian brothers and sisters what I
would call them because our
identification in Jesus Christ. Some of
them who I respect greatly and
understand their criticisms against
Trump. No I did not disassociate my
presence from them and call them liberal.
It is ok to not be as conservative as I am
because God did not make two people
just alike.
Zackery is 9, Addison turns 7 in April. I
have been struggling with how do I teach
them good conservative beliefs without
indoctrinating them. How do I tell them
about God’s love when I feel like the most
part it is what is missing from
conservative people. How do I tell them
on one hand that God loves everyone and
then tell them on the other that you
should vote conservative and not care
about loving the poor.
While I do not support some of my
friend’s views against Trump vs his
stance against women, I do respect their
decision to not vote Trump. Most of them
have probably been blamed as politically
correct. They had some concerns that
kept them from voting for Trump. I share
their same concerns with his character
however if anyone filmed me long
enough, it would not be long before
people would probably protest against
me. Sure I have had my fair share of
church politics of people doing that
behind the scenes. I am talking about
blatant, overt hate-filled people
protesting against someone.
Where I would disagree with them is that
I don’t think Trump is responsible for
some of the Republican weaknesses.
While I definitely do not think Obama
was a good president as a whole, I think
he definitely displayed strong in certain
areas. Republicans usually are not good
at foreign policy. Where Obama failed
was his balance in the area. There is
nothing wrong in building great
relationships with other nations
(unfortunately, Islam nations), where he
failed was making other countries richer,
and bankrupting our own country. Where
I hate politics from whatever side of the
coin, Obama never blamed himself,
congress instead he blamed George Bush.
George Bush did not double if not triple
our debt during his presidency.
I would like Trump to take care and build
our economy first up and take care of our
Veterans who should never have been
mistreated the way they were under
Obama. But with that being said, I hope
Beware of the one on the left. He appears to want to cuddle
but in reality he will skew you with his horns if you do not line
up with his agenda to pander to every whim and desire of the
many who want to be their own God. He will sell you out to
the wolves as he appears as a creature of light but mocks his
true creator and endorses the taking of life sacrificed at the
altar of convenience. Jesus said, “My sheep know my voice and
follow me.” The goats... not so much. - ed
Trump does not
rest in acting as
if he is doing it,
or actually living up to his word and
providing a better economy. What I want
him to do is even greater than that. I want
him to be able to befriend Israel once
again, maybe even make peace with
Communism in Cuba, Russia, and China.
While at the same time taking the
hammer where it needs to be, against the
spreading of ISIS.
If people hate the U.S. for democracy like
Communism may be does, then those
countries we will never be able to
convince. However, I hope that Trump is
successful in getting rid of some of the
anti American sentiment found against
the liberals, ISIS, and countries that
generally hate the United States. I am not
saying being politically correct and
dancing around
eggshells. I do hope
Trump makes it a
somewhat priority to
be friendlier to other
nations that are not
Islam.
Another Republican
weakness is that this
might sting some as it
offends myself.. we do
not rightfully care
about the poor as we
should. I understand a
lot of this is based on
reality that the
economy sucks, the
price of living is going
higher, our pay wage
hasn’t seen an increase
in ten years. I
understand more than
anyone that our
resources are limited.
However how many
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18 WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM | VOL.14 #1

have us have clothes we haven’t worn in
years, shoes that grew out of fashion that
are just laying around the house. How
many old coats, gloves, scarves etc that
we have and are not being used.
Does it really bother me that millions of
people are either unemployed,
underemployed, or need government
assistance to live? Does it really bother
me that many people tonight do not have
a home, do not have have warmth during
the colder months. Does it really bother
me that people with not severe enough
mental illness are not able to get
disability or financial assistance?
These are some great questions to be
introspective with your heart. So if you
are a Republican and do not really care
about the poor. I would challenge you to
read Matthew 25:31-46.
*EDITOR’S INTERRUPTION*
Readers, be careful here. Matthew is
referring to Jesus’ disciples, not the
materially poor.
The Final Judgment
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his
glory, and all the angels with him, then he
will sit on his glorious throne. 32 Before
him will be gathered all the nations, and
he will separate people one from another
as a shepherd separates the sheep from
the goats. 33 And he will place the sheep
on his right, but the goats on the left. 34
Then the King will say to those on his right,
‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father,
inherit the kingdom prepared for you from
the foundation of the world. 35 For I was
hungry and you gave me food, I was
thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a
stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was
naked and you clothed me, I was sick and
you visited me, I was in prison and you
came to me.’37 Then the righteous will
answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see
you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and
give you drink? 38 And when did we see
you a stranger and welcome you, or naked
and clothe you?39 And when did we see
you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And
the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to
you, as you did it to one of the least of these
my brothers, you did it to me.’
41 “Then he will say to those on his left,
‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the
eternal fire prepared for the devil and his
angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave
me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me
no drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did
not welcome me, naked and you did not
clothe me, sick and in prison and you did
not visit me.’ 44 Then they also will
answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you
hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked
or sick or in prison, and did not minister
to you?’ 45 Then he will answer them,
saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not
do it to one of the least of these, you did
not do it to me.’ 46 And these will go away
into eternal punishment, but the righteous
into eternal life.”
Sheep cares about the needs of others,
goats do not care about the needs of
others. (Another interruption. Sheep care
about needs but should refuse to pander
to the idea that we should enable
prurient interests or irresponsibility)
Jesus separates the goats which are made
for destruction just like weeds and sets
apart the sheep which are made for
eternal life just like the tares. The
Kingdom of God cares about the needs of
the poor. It cares about people having
enough food, enough drink, enough
housing, enough clothing, enough
compassion for those who are shown
none. Truly what you have done for the
least of them, you have done for me.
As I try to teach my kids how to hold
conservative beliefs, those beliefs are not
good enough without being validated by
Jesus. I want my children to have a love,
compassion, desire to help others. What
I do not want them to do is to help people
who think they are entitled. There is a
major difference between wants and
needs. Needs are food, shelter, clothing. I
want them to have a passion for that. You
want free healthcare, free abortion care
well too bad, you have to go earn it like
the rest of us.
I do not want my kids to worship
Republican, or conservative beliefs. My
burden is even bigger, I want them to love
God. I want them to love God’s people. I
want them to not only hear God’s word
but sucessfully apply it to their lives. I so
much want to be the Holy Spirit to them
which I do only at times where I feel it is
extremely necessary. I want God to dwell
in them richly and have a passion for him.
What I do not want for them to is to be
entitled or self-righteous. I want them to
follow God because God’s love change
them. The purpose of these verses is that
God’s love will change your mercy,
compassion for people and that will be
the reason why his love through you he
will use to meet the needs of others. The
ones that give food, shelter, clothing away
does not earn God’s righteousness. They
too will be consumed into the fire pits of
hell unless God’s love saves them. So you
can give all you have to the poor but still
don’t know Jesus as Lord and Savior and
still not go to Heaven.
Faith precedes works which encourages
the works to happen. I don’t do good
works to save me but because God’s love
has saved me I will do what he wills for
my life. God’s providence cares about
people starving, cares about the
homeless, cares about clothing people.
Did you forget that God clothed Adam
and Eve after they sinned? God still cares
about you after you sin. What he wills for
you is to care about others even after you
have sinned against them by not caring.
Coming from a guy that stood up for
Trump, voted for Trump, defended
Trump. I will not defend an ideology less
God destroy my idols of politics. I see
Trump’s character flaws but there
shouldn’t be one sane person out there
that thinks Hillary has better character.
Faith without works is dead and the
Republican party soon too will if there
are no works that comes from having
faith.
Either we care about God’s people or we
don’t, YOU CHOOSE,- Ryan
https://ehrns2.wordpress.com/2017/0
1/21/political-thoughts-separatingthe-sheep-from-the-goats/
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VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 19

is it time to retire the bunny, eggs and the bonnets?
Ask the Rabbi - Easter or Passover?
From Rabbi Jeremy Storch
On April 1 of this year, a billion or
more people who identify
themselves as Christian will
celebrate Easter and for the week
following, a far smaller number will
observe Passover. I am confused. How can
you celebrate the death and resurrection of
our Lord and Savior a month before it
happens?
I can’t find anything in the Bible
mentioning the apostles or early Church
celebrating Easter. No eggs or rabbits
anywhere. I even found that the one place
where the word Easter is found in the
Bible—Acts 12:4 in the King James
Version—the original word there is
actually Pascha, the Greek word for
Passover!
My Bible clearly shows that Yeshua (Jesus),
a Jew, observed the Passover with His
closest followers and instructed them, and
us, to continue to keep it until His return
(Matthew 26:26-29). I was also
surprised to read that the apostle
Paul explicitly told Church members
in the Greek port city of Corinth—
most of whom were not and never
had been Jewish—to observe the
Passover as a reminder and
memorial of Jesus Christ's death (1
Corinthians 5:7-8 and 11:23-26).
Most Christians think that as long as a
person celebrates Easter as honoring
Christ's resurrection, God won't mind and
we shouldn't care. But God does mind and
we should care that He does.
Many sources are available that describe
the origins, history and purpose of the
Easter celebration. If you read them
without checking what the Bible says about
which religious festivals are acceptable to
God, you could easily conclude that the
writers and researchers know what they
are writing about. Their analyses may seem
well-grounded, even beyond questioning.
But question you must. If you follow
human dogma that doesn't match Yeshua’s
(Jesus') teachings, you're on religious
quicksand without the lifeline of God's
saving truth.
This is a brief excerpt from an article on
our website TheTabernacleInBranson.com
entitled “The Truth About Easter”. And
prayerfully consider joining us for our
Passover Seder this year on April 2nd.
To contact Jeremy for ministry in your
congregation, for a radio or television
interview or other special event, or for
information on his albums or teachings,
please call or email:
The Tabernacle
Branson’s Messianic
Congregation
256 Church Road
Branson, MO 65616
(417) 334-7373
info@thetabernacleinbranson.com
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VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 21

By Kathleen Caruso O’Neil
Are You
a Wheat or
a Tare?
What do you believe in? “I am a
Christian,” Chad replied. “How
do I know?” I ask.
I have watched him for a long time. I know
that he cheats on his income tax as I am an
accountant for his
company. I have
seen him short
change his
customers. He
is at church
every
Sunday
and
serves
on the
Deacon
Board.
He is
wellrespected
by others in
the
house.
It
church
puzzles me.
He was forever asking me if I wanted to
give my life to Jesus and all I could think
was, “Not if it means I will be like you.”
I have worked for Chad for about two
years. When he thought no one around, he
would pester the pretty young woman
who had joined his company in the last
year. She needed the job very badly to
support her child and was fearful of losing
her position. He held her job over her and
she put up with his advances. She confided
in me that he had paid for her abortion. I
tried to get her to quit and assured her I
would help her find another position, but
he had promised if she quit or told about
him, that she would not work anywhere in
this town.
Chad was a staunch Republican and
supported the party with funds and words.
He was a -respected person in our town.
This puzzled me. How could people be
with him and not see how double-minded
he is.
It is no wonder that many people have
been wounded by people who call
themselves “Christian” and who look good
on the outside. They know church
doctrine better than anyone and are
willing to argue their current position with
a haughty and demeaning attitude. This is
the kind of people that Jesus referred to
when he confronted the Pharisees and
Sadducees.
If any of this feels like it could be you, then
it is time to quit calling yourself a Christian
or fall to your knees in repentance! A true
and intimate relationship with Jesus is the
only answer to our world’s
problems. A new
Congress or a
President will not save
this
and
country
only
Jesus is the
answer.
We are at a
place in
history when
we can no
longer afford
to be Christians
of convenience.
Our country has
reached a place of
division
that can
split us apart. It is time to take an honest
position. We know that a house divided
can not stand.
Remember the old quote, “Who is on the
Lord’s side; who will serve the Lord?”
Examine your own heart today and see if
you are walking in Truth or talking a lie.
editor’s observation: Just to be clear, a tare
is a disingenuous Christian and certainly an
immature one. Why does God tolerate them
in the church? He sees the end form the
beginning and He is hoping that Chad will
mature and repent of His behaviors so he
becomes a good and faithful servant.
If he were to be plucked out of the wheat,
there would be no opportunity for
repentance. Unfair? Did God give up on you
when you returned to your own vomit?
A wolf in sheeps clothing in most cases are
beyond redemption because they know the
truth but deliberately do their father’s, (the
devil) bidding. See more articles in this issue
on the subject.
better not make an oath than break it
(303) 963-3000
ccuadmissions@ccu.edu
www.ccu.edu
VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 23

By Tim Challies
billy graham proved that it works
Seven Thoughts on the Billy
Graham / Mike Pence Rule
Ihave often wondered how the late,
great, Billy Graham would feel about
having a rule named after him. And
it’s not just any rule either, but one that
has generated all kinds of controversy
both within the church and outside of it.
Having a name synonymous with marital
faithfulness must be a joy; having a name
synonymous with charges of puritanical
prudishness must be a burden. I wonder
if he had been happy enough to hand it
off to Mike Pence and let him carry the
load for a while.
(Definition: The Billy
Graham/Mike Pence Rule
establishes that a man will
not put himself in
situations in which he is
alone with a woman who
is not his wife.)
The Billy Graham/Mike Pence Rule
bubbles up on a regular basis as a
discussion that usually seems to generate
considerably more heat than light. To be
frank, I don’t much care how unbelievers
feel about it, but do care quite a lot about
how Christians feel about it. Even more
so, I care how they feel about those who
do or do not hold to it. What follows are
some of my thoughts on the Rule.
First, we all acknowledge there are
appropriate and inappropriate ways for
men and women to relate when one or
both are married to someone else. The
question is not whether unmarried men
and women will establish boundaries
different from those they establish with
people of the same sex, but where and
how. Few would say it’s wrong for a man
and woman to consider one another
friends even if they are each married to
other people; few would recommend
they travel together as, say, two male or
two female friends can. We all establish
our own boundaries even if we never
name or formalize them. Some hold to
the Rule because they fear time alone
with a member of the opposite sex may
lead to sexual temptation and, ultimately,
adultery; some have no fear of
committing grave sin but still hold to it
out of a desire to avoid the appearance of
scandal.
Second, Romans 14:4
(and, indeed, the rest of
that chapter) sheds
important light on this
matter. The Billy Graham
Rule is not a universal law
mandated by the Bible,
but a personal rule
mandated by conscience.
It is not a biblical law but
an attempt to flesh out a
biblical principle (sexual
purity and/or being seen
as above reproach). Many
will follow the Rule
according to their best
understanding of how to
ensure they are honoring
God. In so doing they will be heeding
their conscience, and right here Romans
14:4 asks, “Who are you to pass judgment
on the servant of another? It is before his
own master that he stands or falls. And
he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to
make him stand.” If someone believes
they ought to follow the Rule or one
much like it, we must not only affirm
their right to do so, but also the rightness
of them doing so. We cannot and must
not pass judgment on them or belittle
them in any way. In fact, we need to be far
more willing to lend support than cast
judgment.
Third, no one owes anyone else an
explanation for why they do or do not
hold to the Rule (except, perhaps, one
spouse to another and/or an elder to his
fellow elders). Again, “It is before his own
master that he stands or falls.” Both
flaunting adherence to a law and
flaunting freedom from it are sinful and
unloving toward others.
Fourth, part of the reason we need to
be so careful in passing judgment and
holding others to our standard is that the
church is made up of many people from
many ethnicities, cultures, and
backgrounds. It is myopic to speak
universally across such diversity. A
Christian man sitting in a café sipping
coffee with a woman who is not his wife
may be doing something unremarkable
according to the customs of one culture
but utterly scandalous according to
another. A man who is recently saved out
of a lifestyle of extreme promiscuity may
be unwisely putting himself in the way of
too much temptation. A husband needs
to account for the fears, struggles, or
temptations of his wife (and a wife of her
husband) and for that reason may hold to
the Rule out of love even if he or she
experiences no struggle or temptation.
There are many, many reasons people
may hold to the Rule or one like it and
those are exactly and precisely none of
your business.
Fifth, the Rule may matter more today
than ever before for reasons related to
modern technologies and ideologies. On
the technology front, everyone carries a
camera and a broadcasting device with
them at all times. At any time, any person
can snap a photo and immediately make
it available to the world. An Instagram
snapshot can make a very innocent
situation appear decidedly suspicious. On
the ideological front, we have shifted
from the presumption of innocence to the
presumption of guilt, not in the legal
system but in the court of popular
judgment. Thus, it does not take proof of
adultery to find someone guilty and
imperil his or her reputation, but a mere
photograph accompanied by a suggestive
question or accusation. This comes into
24 WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM | VOL.14 #1

play especially for pastors and elders
who are qualified to the office only if they
are deemed above reproach.
Sixth, extremely rigid adherence to the
Rule may be unhelpful or even sinful if it
interferes with an opportunity to show
love to a person in need. Legitimate and
helpful rules can tip into sinful legalism
if they are so rigid they convince us we
cannot offer assistance to someone who
may be among “the least of these.” Think,
by way of example, of how the Pharisees
used man-made Sabbath laws as a reason
to condemn Jesus for carrying out acts of
mercy. The Rule may also be unhelpful or
sinful when it generates suspicion
toward people of the opposite sex feel as
if they are the problem. A man may begin
to distrust the women around him like
each one is a seductress who means to
ruin his life, marriage, and ministry.
Seventh, rules have a sneaky way of
becoming a person’s hope for
purity. Establishing personal
boundaries may be wise, but
abiding by a rule cannot be
confused with growing in
sanctification. A Christian
doesn’t prove the inner work
of the Holy Spirit by so
bounding himself with rules
that he cannot act out sinfully,
but when his desire to sin has
been replaced by a desire to do
what honors and glorifies God.
Rules have their place, but
they must never be separated
from a prayerful
determination to put sin to death.
Do I hold to the Rule? Kind of. I have
genuine friendships with women, but
don’t invite them to meet up for a coffee
“just because” or travel with me to a
conference like I do with their husbands.
On the other hand, I’m perfectly
comfortable having a business-related
lunch or coffee with a woman who works
for or with me. I’ve sometimes willingly
“bent” the rule in situations in which
rigidly adhering to it would have
removed an opportunity to express love
or care for a person.
The long and short of it
is that there is great
freedom within the
Christian life to hold or
not to hold to the Billy
Graham slash Mike
Pence Rule. In this, as in
so many other areas,
“each one should be
fully convinced in his own mind”
(Romans 14:5).
www.Challies.com
VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 25

y Alannah NicPhaidin
are there 38 rational leaders out there?
DO WE NEED CONGRESSIONAL APPROVAL TO
CREATE TERM LIMITS ON CONGRESS?
The short answer is NO. Our
founding fathers saw a day
when the people would need to
bypass Congress to get things
done.
There are two ways to change the U.S.
Constitution.
The first way is the way we usually think
of, passing a bill through congress with a
two-thirds majority vote in both the
House of Representatives and the Senate.
That is why so many people think we
would never be able to get term limits on
Congress. ‘Why would Congress vote to
term limit themselves?’ We agree, that
would be a tough sell. But that is where
the second, and lesser known way of
amendment, comes into play. The second
part of Article V of the Constitution
allows us to bypass Congress. We would
be able to call a Term Limits Convention
which would ultimately allow us to
impose the necessary term limits on
Congress.
Here’s how it was set up by our
founding fathers:
Two-thirds of state legislatures (34) pass
bills applying for the Term Limits
Convention.
2. Congress is mandated to call the
26 WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM | VOL.14 #1
Convention.
3. The Convention, which features
delegates chosen by the states, proposes
one or more term limits amendments.
4. Three-quarters of states (38) must
ratify the amendment, either by
legislature or state convention.
With this process there are checks in
place to make sure that there is a narrow
agenda for the term limits convention to
discuss ONLY term limits on Congress.
This will ultimately help us accomplish
our goal as over 75% of Americans agree
with term limits. It means no other
divisional issue can sneak in and prevent
our progress.
Through this process we are able to
completely bypass Congress. Yes it might
take a little longer, and yes it can be
difficult, but we are looking to change the
Constitution. As necessary as it may be, it
should never be ‘easy’ to change such an
important document. We agree that
getting Congress to agree to term limits
on themselves is like asking turkeys to
vote for Thanksgiving.
So we have to take it upon ourselves to
get this done!
The Okeechobee Livestock Market is
one of the largest cattle auction in the
state of Florida, located in the middle of
cattle country. We’ve been marketing
Florida’s best cattle for over 50 years.
Selling cattle through our auction ring has
been tried, proven and perfected. The
largest of our sales begin in July and last
all the way through February. Each week,
cattle buyers from all over the country are
represented at the Livestock Market.
Healthy cattle and weight gain
performance keep buyers coming back
week after week.
Info@OkeechobeeLivestockMarket.com
1055 Highway 98 North
Okeechobee, FL 34972
Tel 863-763-3127

Online readers, we’ve included a link to printable PDF puzzle page!
puzzle page
Answers to CrossWord
Puzzle on Page 47
Answers to Sudoku
Puzzle on Page 21
ACROSS
1 Assert
7 Junk e-mail
11 Air blower
14 Where we all
want to end up
15 __ hoop
16 Compass point
17 Number to be
added
18 Heroic
19 Unrefined
20 Peak
22 Fire remains
23 Expert
24 Wicked city
29 River of
Mesopotamia
31 Excessive interest
32 Turf
34 Holy person
35 Pig
36 Respects
38 Large weight unit
39 Boxer Muhammad
40 Ghost's greeting
41 Lode yield
44 Robes
46 Bridge
47 Applaud
50 Neither's partner
51 San __ (CA city)
52 Baseball's Jackson
54 Capital of Syria
56 Serving of corn
57 Compass point
59 That woman
60 Before, poetically
61 Twin brother of
Jacob
63 Cats
68 Time zone
69 Made music vocally
70 Uproar
71 Affirmation
72 Abel's brother
73 Lands
DOWN
1 Expression of
surprise
2 Headed
3 Boy
4 Adam and __
5 Aristocracy
6 A witch lived here
7 Her
8 Insect in a cocoon
9 List of highly
desired guests
10 Male ego
11 Sports car brand
12 Bayer's competitor
13 Freshest
21 The suffering of
Christ on the cross
24 Wind
25 National capital
26 Subatomic particle
27 Sphere
28 Fiery
30 Vapor
33 Prophetess
36 Shade tree
37 Aurora
39 Jauntiness
41 Organization of
Petroleum
Exporting Countries
42 Prego's
competition
43 Son of Seth
44 Cask
45 Cain fled to this
land
46 Sister for short
47 Frightening
48 Funeral car
49 Herons
51 Persian king;
the Mede
53 Result
55 Metric length unit
58 Covet
62 Good grief!
64 Time zone
65 Environmental
protection
agency (abbr)
66 Furrow
67 Compass point
Friberg’s Gone Green
Recycling & Waste
Management
Regular Hours
Mon - Fri
8:00 am - 4:30 pm
Sat
8:00 am - 1:00 pm
Sun
Closed
2957 State Road 35
in Frederic, Wisconsin
715-327-8349
VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 27

diversification at its finest
PEACE LUTHERAN CHURCH (ELCA)
WORSHIP SERVICES:
Praise & Worship - Sun. @ 8:30 a.m.
Education Hour - 9:15 a.m.
Liturgy &Traditional
Service - 10:30 a.m.
VISITORS WELCOME
HIGHWAY #165 AND
STATE DRIVE
350 State Drive
Hollister, MO
Pastor Emil Bartos
www.PeaceLutheran
ChurchHollister.com
(417) 334-1499
Crossroads Evangelical
Methodist Church
Sunday --Breakfast 9:15am, --Sunday
School 9:45am --Services 10:45am and
6:00pm; Wednesday --Services 6:30pm
715 N. Marshall
Marshfield, Missouri 65706
(417) 859-2488
pastorbrian@emchurch.org
CrossroadsEMC.com
see service times at:
jimbakkershow.com/morningside/
church-services/
FIRST CHURCH
OF THE NAZARENE
Sunday School: 9:30 AM
Praise & Worship: 10:30 AM
(Children's Church and Nursery
Available) Sunday Evening Service: 6 PM
300 W Hensley St, Branson, MO
(417) 334-4308
BransonNazarene.org
First Presbyterian
Church
Pastor Tom Wilcox
420 W Main St, Branson, MO
(417) 334-3468 • fpcbranson.org
Charity Christian
Revival Center
Sunday Prayer at 9:00 AM
Sunday School at 10:00 AM
Worship Service at 11:00 AM
Wednesday Bible Study at 7:00 PM
Dr. Willie Shields - wishields@charter.net
59 NE D Hwy
Knob Noster, Missouri 65536
(660) 563-4813
www.CharityChristian
RevivalCC.org
First Baptist Church Hollister
HIS Lighthouse on the Hill
136 Hill Billy Ln, Hollister, MO 65672
Phone: (417) 334-6970
Sunday School 9:30 am
Sunday Worship 10:30 am
Evening Worship 6:00 pm
www.FBChollister.com
Springfield Church of God (7th Day)
"Sharing Freedom in Christ"
Pastor: Andy Hassen • 1521 E. 24th Street N.
Springfield, MO 65803
(417) 831-6721
Sabbath School: 9:45 am • Worship: 11:00 am
Wednesday night: 6:30 pm
www.SpringfieldCOG7.org
A week without a Sabbath is
perpetual bondage.
Hebrews
10:36
For you have
need of
endurance,
so that when
you have
done the will
of God you
may receive
what is
promised.
• Spiritfilled
Davidic
style
Praise &
Worship
• Annoited Bible-based teaching
• Fellowship after each service
• Nursery & Children’s Shabbat School
Meeting at Branson Hills Ministry Center
256 Church Road, Branson, MO 65616
Discover the Hebrew roots of your Christian faith!
Join us for weekly services:
Erev Shabbat (Friday) 7:30 pm
Shabbat (Saturday) 11 am
(417) 334-7373
www.TheTabernacleinBranson.com
28 WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM | VOL.14 #1

Gun safety regulations
that even NRA members
should support
As the nation grieves over the endless
school shootings and policy makers try
to understand what can be done to prevent
mass shootings, sensible gun safety should
be part of the answer. A majority of
Americans — including gun-owning
Americans and National Rifle Association
(NRA) members — back sensible gun
regulation. gun advocates overwhelmingly
support common-sense measures typically
described as “gun control.” These include:
1. Requiring criminal background checks
on gun owners and gun shop employees.
2. Prohibiting terrorist watch list members
from acquiring guns.
3. Mandating that gun-owners tell the
police when their gun is stolen.
4. Concealed carry permits should only be
restricted to individuals who have
completed a safety training course and are
21 and older. (You want a gun before you
are 21... join the army)
5. Concealed carry permits shouldn’t be
given to perpetrators of violent
misdemeanors or individuals arrested for
domestic violence.
6. No guns may be purchased by any
individual that has failed a mental health
evaluation. More than three people
warning officials about a potential lunatic
would require a mental health evaluation.
7. Require three references from non family
members required for gun ownership.
8. Culpibility for the actual owner of a gun
committed in a crime.
9. Permit any government school teacher
that is willing to train for a concealed
permit to have one in the classroom. (or try
home schooling. Not many shootings
there.)
some people don’t deserve rights
10. Incarcerate any parent that
inadvertantly supplied the weapon to a
deranged child.
11. Revoke permanantly the right to own a
firearm if said person ever made idle
threats on social media.
VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 29

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Dear Lord, Help
me not despise
the things I do not
know or
understand.
~William Penn
The gospel that is beautiful and
transforming to God’s people is
ugly and odious to those who are
not his people. The gospel that so
satisfies those who believe it
revolts those who reject it.
Your children will either inherit God’s promises or
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walk in the promises of God.
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His response:
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30 WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM | VOL.14 #1

By Joe McKeever
stop majoring on the minors
How Legalism
Betrays Christ,
Violates the Gospel,
and Destroys People
“Then some Pharisees and scribes
came to Jesus from Jerusalem saying,
‘Why do your disciples transgress the
tradition of the elders?’ … And He
answered and said to them, ‘Why do
you yourselves transgress the
commandment of God for the sake of
your tradition?'” (Matthew 15:1-3).
“The letter kills, but the Spirit gives
life” (2 Corinthians 3:6).
Historians tell us the Pharisees
started off well, as revivalists in a
way, calling the nation back to
faithfulness. Eventually, however, their
insistence on righteousness settled down
into a code of laws and rules. They went
from being encouragers to harassers,
from lovers of God to bullies and legalists.
The legalist is someone who says, “I know
the Lord didn’t say this, but He would
have if He’d thought of it!”
The legalist is smarter than God. He
helps the Lord by completing His Word,
by filling in the gaps where the Lord
clearly forgot to say something, explain
something, or require a thing.
The legalist drives the rest of God’s
people nuts. He is forever finding rules
we overlooked, requirements we clearly
missed on purpose, and laws the rest of
us should be keeping. He insists his way
is the only one and can play the morerighteous-than-thou
card when we do
not agree with him.
The legalist claims to love the Word more
than you. Typically, he takes a single
saying of Scripture and builds an entire
system around it, then demands that
everyone else obey it. If you refuse, you
don’t love the Lord, are in rebellion
against God, and unworthy to be a leader
or teacher of this church.
When told “The letter of the law kills, but
the Spirit gives life,” the legalist will
accuse you of taking a truth out of
context. He prides himself in stressing
the letter of the law. He likes to say that
“Scripture says what it means and means
what it says.” That sounds so good, even
to the faithful, that few stop to consider
that Scripture often uses various ways of
saying something. And translating a
teaching from one language to another
often presents difficulties. So, it’s not
always that simple.
The legalist likes it simple.
Woe unto you if the
legalist in your church
happens to be your pastor.
His sermons will be harsh
(he will call it “preaching
against sin!” and many
will applaud him for it),
grace will be missing from
his messages (“cheap
grace” he will call it), and
the people he attracts to
your church will be clones
of him. It all goes downhill
from here. Soon, he will
be pulling the church out
of the denomination (they
no longer preach the
Word!) and disassociating
himself from any pastor
or church unwilling to
abide by such strict
adherence to the rules.
The fact is, the
denomination is often led by men and
women of greater understanding of
Scripture than he with his legalistic
demands and harsh interpretations.
In former days, such pastors loved to
harp on the length of women’s skirts and
hair, to require no makeup and jewelry,
men’s wearing facial hair, and people
dancing, smoking, attending movies, and
reading novels. In earlier days, they
railed against the radio and then the
television, followed by the computer.
If a legalist cannot find something to be
against, he will make it up.
There is something about legalism that is
attractive to a lot of people. It reduces the
Christian faith to a list of rules. No more
of this “search me, O God, and know my
heart; try me and know my anxious
thoughts; and see if there be any hurtful
way in me” (Psalm 139:23-24). No more
of this “The sacrifices of the Lord are a
broken spirit; a broken and contrite
heart, O God, thou wilt not despise”
(Psalm 51:17).
It’s rules. Laws. Regulations.
Requirements. Demands.
Legalism condemns those not agreeing,
those who take liberties the legalists
forbid, and those who insist that the
whole message of Scripture should be
considered, not just a verse here and a
verse there.
The Pharisees of Jesus’ day were the gold
standard of legalists. But their
descendants are many, vocal, and everpresent.
It was a Sunday night service in
Columbus, Mississippi’s First Baptist
Church, where I was pastoring sometime
in the late 1970s. We had a good crowd
that night, including several guests from
other churches for some reason I’ve long
since forgotten. I was excited and felt
great about the service.
The next evening at the deacons’
meeting, Deacon Atwell Andrews said
32 WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM | VOL.14 #1

to me, ‘Pastor, the fellow sitting next to
me last night at church was a Pentecostal.
And during the handshaking time, he said
to me, ‘Your pastor is going to hell.'”
Atwell continued, “I said, ‘Oh? My pastor
is going to hell? May I ask why?'”
“The man said, ‘His hair is too long.'”
Atwell, always with a little mischievous
air about him, had the right question for
the man.
“And how long should his hair be?”
“The man answered, ‘About like mine.'”
We had a good laugh over that. It was as
clear an example of legalism as we could
ever hope to have.
What legalism does…
-Legalism makes righteousness a matter
of externals and not the heart.
-Legalism makes righteousness a matter
of rules not found in Scripture (or
improperly interpreted).
-Legalism neglects the full teaching of
Scripture on an issue and goes to seed on
one small text and sets it up as the
standard.
-Legalism sets itself up as the judge. “We
will decide.”
-Legalism sets itself up as the standard.
“About like mine.”
In all its manifestations, legalism violates
a dozen principles of righteous
discipleship: the sovereignty of Almighty
God, the proper interpretation of
Scripture, obedience to the Holy Spirit,
love for people, the prominence of the
gospel message, and many others.
We are given a great picture of how
legalism abandons people by the story of
our Lord and the Syrophoenician woman
in Matthew 15:21-28. See below. Not a
pretty thing.
Matthew 15 and the attack on Jesus by
Israel’s self-appointed referees!
“Why do your disciples not wash their
hands before eating? You know they are
violating the traditions of the elders?
We’ve had these rules for a long time.
They are well-established by custom.”
They’re teaching Jesus, they think.
Correcting what is surely an oversight by
this untrained Rabbi of Nazareth. They
“just know” He’ll want to straighten out
His disciples.
Jesus was having none of this. He said,
“Why do you violate the commands of
God by your traditions?”
The Lord didn’t even response to their
question, except to give them one of His
own. His question was like a knife to the
heart. And make no mistake–violating
God’s commands is a far weightier thing
than “transgressing the traditions of the
elders.”
This was no gentle conversation between
two equals. No dialogue between them.
The Lord was speaking bare-knuckled
truth to the self-righteous, self-appointed
critics; God’s truth with the bark off.
Told that the Pharisees were offended by
HIs statements (Matthew 15:12), our
Lord scoffed. “Let them alone! They’re
blind leaders of the blind!”
It reminds us of His response to the
compliments of Nicodemus. Told that He
was surely from God “for no one can do
these miracles except God be with Him,”
Jesus said, “Except a man be born again,
he cannot see the kingdom of God!”
(John 3) He got straight to the heart of
the issue.
The heart of our Lord’s thrust to the
Pharisees and scribes that day (still on
Matthew 15) was “it’s not what goes into
the mouth that defiles a man, but what
comes out of it.” And “out of the
abundance of the heart the mouth
speaketh” (Matthew 11-20).
Righteousness is a matter of the heart
first, then the life. Get the heart right
first. “Create in me a clean heart,” David
prayed (Psalm 51). “Then, I will teach
transgressors thy ways.” “Then my
tongue shall sing of thy righteousness.”
“Then thou wilt delight in my righteous
sacrifices” (Psalm 13,14, and 19). Get
the heart right first.
God looks on the heart. See I Samuel
16:7. It’s one of the essential truths of the
faith.
What true righteousness does
The rest of Matthew 15 gives us
snapshots of our Lord as He ambles along
the shore of the Galilee, then walks up to
the top of one of the nearby mountains.
The crowds came from all the cities and
towns, “bringing with them the lame,
crippled, blind, dumb, and many others,
and … He healed them.”
He taught the people, then fed the four
thousand by one of the great miracles of
His earthly ministry.
True righteousness never abandons
people in favor of getting the rules right
(See our Lord’s lesson back in Matthew
15:4-6. By the rule of ‘Corban,’ they
diverted money into the religious
activities and abandoned their own
parents. Our Lord was not impressed).
This is the point of Matthew 25's
emphasis on “I was hungry and you fed
me, naked and you clothed me, etc.” It’s
not that doing such earns the way into
heaven; it’s that true faith in Christ
causes people to do such things. As
James was to say later, “True religion and
undefiled is this: to visit the orphans and
widows in their distress….” (James 1:27).
I cannot leave this without bringing in an
amazing reference to “good works
testifying about our salvation” found in
Jeremiah 22:15-16. It’s unique in
Scripture, and we will leave the subject
with this:
“'Did not your father eat and drink, and
do justice and righteousness? Then it was
well with him. He pled the cause of the
afflicted and needy; Then it was well. Is
not that what it means to know Me?’
declares the Lord.”
Wow and double wow.
Joe McKeever says he has written dozens
of books, but has published none. That
refers to the 1,000+ articles on various
subjects (prayer, leadership, church,
pastors) that can be found on his website
www.Joemckeever.com
VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 33

are you reading this online?
Clickbait
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Clickbait is a pejorative term for web content whose main goal is to get users to click on a link to go to a
certain webpage. Clickbait headlines typically aim to exploit the "curiosity gap," providing just enough
information to make readers curious, but not enough to satisfy their curiosity without clicking through to
the linked content.[1][2][3]
By Bernard Fuscola, Beliefnet.com
From a historical perspective, the techniques employed by clickbait authors can be considered derivative of
yellow journalism, which presented little or no legitimate well-researched news and instead used eye-catching
headlines that included exaggerations of news events, scandal-mongering, or sensationalism.[4][5] For sites
that thrive on thousands of click-throughs to content, many authors see the use of clickbait as a means to tap
into human psyche by crafting these eye-catching headlines.[6]
Why You Keep Falling For
Fake News
There is a strange thing that happens
anytime we see something published.
Intellectually we know, just because it’s
published, doesn’t mean it’s true. It just
means it’s published.
Yet, when we see something published,
we start to behave like someone who’s
never seen a newsreel before.
We’re in a trance.
There’s something about being
“published” that makes our common
sense go, “Bye, Felicia” and our lizard
brain takes over.
That lizard brain loves it some fake news.
Sensationalism, Fear Mongering,
Bombast…loves it.
This has been the case since for
centuries, which is why it’s a little
troubling that we’re only now becoming
concerned with “fake news.”
Fake news has been a thing since we
invented the printing press. And we keep
falling for it. Century after century after
century.
The good news about recurring patterns
is that you can break them. So, I’m going
to explain why you keep falling for fake
news so you can punch your lizard brain
in the face.
There are three reasons. Here we go:
Reason 1: Real news is boring.
If you liked real news, you’d be watching
CSPAN right now. But you’re not. Because
CSPAN is boring.
You’re already bored with your job and
your spouse and the drudgery of the 9-
to-5, why would you want to be bored
while you read the news?
You don’t.
You want to be entertained.
Is that not why you are here!?
If we don’t entertain you, you won’t click,
read, or watch what we produce. And if
you don’t click, read, or watch — then you
don’t get news (and we don’t get paid —
but that’s a topic for a different article).
If we can’t get your attention, you won’t
even get fake news, you get no news.
So we have to trick you. Like a dog.
Have you ever seen a dog take a pill?
No, you haven’t because they won’t do it.
Dogs are weird. If you want your dog to
take its medicine you have to hide it in
peanut butter.
Same thing with the news. Specifically
with what we call “headlines.” (lovingly
referred to as “click bait.”)
If I want to get your attention, I need to
bait you with headlines that make your
lizard brain go “WHAAAAT?! Tell me
more…[Click.]”
Otherwise, you’ll ignore me because
you’re busy and you don’t want to be
bored.
If I called this article “Intro to media
literacy” you’d be like, “meh, Mark as
read,” and move on with your day. Which
is why I had to bait you with something
interesting.
It’s also why I’m writing like I’m talking
to you instead of like an academic.
It’s so you pay attention.
(Ok fine, it’s also because I’m terrible at
writing like an academic.)
Right now, bombastic sensationalist
headlines are the only things you’re
paying attention to, so they’re going to
give you more of those until it stops
working.
Reason 2: You’re being framed.
Let’s say, your mom went to a fundraiser
to hear a speaker named Cathy.
When she calls you and recounts the
fundraiser, all she tells you about is who
was there and what they wore.
You conclude, “What a superficial
evening.”
Had you gotten the account from your
mom’s friend, Stacey, you’d have heard all
about Cathy’s tear-jerking speech on
human trafficking.
Both accounts are true.
No one is “lying” to you.
But by highlighting certain things and
downplaying others, each person is
34 WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM | VOL.14 #1

get our clickbait at www.AmericanChristianVoice.com
framing the story differently — causing
you to draw completely different
conclusions about the evening.
That’s exactly what’s happening with the
news.
The fancy academic term for this is “the
framing effect.”
IRL it’s understood that someone is
leaving things out or giving you what we
colloquially refer to as “their side of the
story.”
You watched all 7 seasons of Homeland.
Your attention span is fine.
You are the same. That’s the problem.
The landscape has changed and you’re
the same.
Back in the day, there were only four
channels you needed to keep up with. You
kept up with them and generally got the
gist.
Deep down, you suspected there was
more to the story (see #2), but there was
literally no way (literally) to get said
You’re in the click-bait-rabbit-hole-ofdoom,
set to resurface in an hour or so,
still feeling like you haven’t
read/watched/learned/commented
enough.
It’s not your fault, but it is your problem.
It’s a little your fault. You keep clicking on
crap and choosing entertainment over
real news. While you might not be able to
resist our clickbait, you can combat it.
Just like any addict, the road to recovery
it begins with awareness of the problem.
So now you know.
Should I click on this
story about how Oprah
Winfrey and Donald
Trump have a love child
together?
We expect that of our friends, not our
media.
And just like with your friends, if you
want the full story, you need to go out and
find it.
That’s why I recommend treating your
media consumption the way you treat
your mom and de facto assume it’s being
framed and do not draw any conclusions
before you consult the rest of the parties
involved.
Reason #3: The landscape
changed, you didn’t
There’s lots of fun pseudo-science and
neurobabble about dopamine hits and
shrinking attention spans and how we’re
all getting dumber.
None of it is true.
You’re as dumb as you’ve always been.
(#sorrynotsorry?)
“more to the story.”
So, you moved on with your day.
Today, you can get the “more to the story.”
But there is no feasible way to do it and
still have a life (or a paycheck).
There’s too much information.
Props to the 4 people who get this joke.
It’s not physically possible to consume it
all.
But, that doesn’t stop you from trying.
It doesn’t help that we lure you in with
our bombastic click-bait headlines (see
#1), so you can’t turn off your TV or your
computer or your phone and walk away.
You HAVE TO KNOW why Kim got
robbed!?! (#punny) JUST ONE MORE
CLICK I SWEAR!
And then POOF.
Margo Aaron writes about the dubious
underbelly of marketing and other
lighthearted topics at That Seems
Important. Winner of many participation
trophies. On a mission to rid the internet
of lazy content .
www.thatseemsimportant.com
If you had a choice
of eating tacos
every day or being
skinny, which would
you choose... soft
or crunchy?
VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 35

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What I mean by that is my values
define me, while my sexual
orientation sometimes feels
more like—well, a footnote. Literally, in fact.
I “came out” as gay in a footnote in my book,
End of Discussion.
When it comes to my political beliefs, my
orientation is only one part of the story.
It’s not the totality of who I am.
Some unimaginative leftists like to claim
that this qualifies me as a "self-hating"
gay person. This is so boring. That
intellectual laziness only underscores my
point. Far too often, people are sorted by
their gender, or their skin color, or their
sexual orientation, or any other
immutable characteristic that has nothing
to do with ideas or values.
To be candid, in my day-to-day life and
work, I spend a lot more time thinking
and writing about the failures of
Obamacare, for example, than I do about
“LGBT issues,” whatever that term might
mean on any given day.
Just like any conservative, I want taxes low,
the military strong, and don’t even get me
started on single payer health care or lateterm
abortion. I'm a conservative because
when I think about these issues critically, I
usually end up on the right end of the
spectrum. It's that simple.
Here's the thing: I fully recognize how
fortunate I am to live in a time and a
country where I can be openly gay and live
a normal life. And that’s in large part thanks
to the hard work of gay rights activists
who’ve paved the way for people like me—
people who had it much harder than I do,
and people who likely wouldn’t share my
politics. I am genuinely grateful to them.
But it’s a new era now. Why ostracize
members of our community who don’t toe
the left-wing political line? Exit polling
shows that in the last four general elections,
between 14 and 29 percent of LGBT voters
pulled the lever for the GOP. That's a lot of
us. Now, does that mean that we all support
every element of the party’s platform?
Absolutely not.
In fact, I know that many conservatives,
including some here at PragerU, don’t see
eye-to-eye with me on all of these
sexual orientation is a very temporary predilection
I’m a Christian, a patriotic American, and a free-market, shrink-the-government
conservative—who also happens to be gay.
questions. And yet, here I am—making a
PragerU video. Which perfectly illustrates
another really important point:
Conservatives are often much more
tolerant of dissenting views than those who
fancy themselves the torch-carriers of
open-mindedness.
Nope. Cross the left on a hot-button social
issue, and you’re out.
You see, some on the left believe that
they’re entitled to control the thoughts or
votes of certain groups of people—namely
minorities and so-called “victim groups.”
For some, it comes down to a cynical
calculation: Without the overwhelming
support of those groups, the Democrats
would win very few elections.
That’s why the left lashes out so viciously
at anyone who wanders off their assigned
reservation. I suspect conservative women
and Hispanics and African Americans know
exactly what I’m talking about.
The truth is, the left isn’t entitled to a d***
thing.
To paraphrase my coauthor and friend,
Mary Katharine Ham:
“We didn’t get liberated in
order to be told by liberal
activists precisely what
we’re allowed to think, or
how we must vote.”
A free-thinking, free
citizen of a free country is
not obliged to believe anything because
someone else believes he or she “ought” to
think or “ought” to vote or “ought” to rank
his (or her) priorities a certain way. Look,
I get it: Many other gay people approach
these issues and their voting criteria
differently—and I respect that. That’s their
call, even if it’s not
how I choose to
operate. What’s the
phrase again? “Live
and let live?” Why
has that been
turned on its head,
into “agree—or
else”?
Let’s debate issues
and stop trying to
punish “wrong”
thinking.
Like I said, I’m a
Christian, a patriotic
American, and a
free-market, shrinkthe-government
conservative—who happens to be gay.
That's how I choose to rank my priorities.
You know what that's called?
It's called progress.
I’m Guy Benson for Prager University.
Guy Pelham Benson (born March 7, 1985)
is an American
commentator
and political
pundit. He is a
contributor
for Fox News,
political editor
of
Townhall.com,
and a
conservative talk
radio personality.
Guy Benson
By Guy Benson
VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 37

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justification whatsoever; poor
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to rich people, nor are they
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simply because of their lack of
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acknowledgment of God's
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this from the least talented host
Jimmy Kimmel Says Late Night Hosts Are All Liberal Because It Requires
'Intelligence.' Ben Shapiro Responds.
Adapted from JAMES BARRETT
Jimmy Kimmel has fully embraced his
self-identified role as the Leader of the Late
Night #Resistance — a role which recently
prompted him to invite on a porn star to
show the audience how sophmoric his
lame, frat boy humor is. He recently
explained to some former Barack Hussein
Obama staffers of "Pod Save America" that
the reason that latenight
hosts like himself
are all liberal is because
it "requires a level of
intelligence," thus clearly
broadcasting to all
would-be conservative
viewers that he has a
very lowly opinion of
them indeed.
Daily Wire editor-inchief
Ben Shapiro took
to Twitter to respond to
Kimmel's conservative
bashing comment: .
Ben Shapiro ✔ @benshapiro
Careers that ooze intelligence:
3. Rocket scientist
2. Neurosurgeon
1. Late night host who says funny things
writers write for him
Shapiro followed up the response by
pointing out on The Daily Wire that
Kimmel's line of reasoning "does raise a
few questions":
First, all of the late night hosts are straight
white males. Presumably, Kimmel doesn’t
think that the requirement for intelligence
excludes those who are non-straight, nonwhite,
and non-male. Also, the dean of late
night hosts is Jay Leno, a Republican; does
that mean he’s dumb? If so, Kimmel will
have to explain how Leno dominated late
night for so many years. (and Johnny
Carson was to classy to alienate millions of
people with Kimmel drivel -ed)
Finally, when one thinks of positions that
require serious intelligence, late night host
usually doesn’t make the list. Kimmel
literally reads lines written for him by
others; his intellectual credentials stretch
all the way back to being a sidekick on
"Kevin and Bean" on KROQ in Los Angeles,
followed by a stretch as host of “The Man
Show” — alongside Kimmel’s longtime
friend, libertarian Adam Carolla.
Presumably, Kimmel does not think Carolla
is a dummy. And presumably, Kimmel
wouldn’t find his antics on that show
indicative of higher intelligence
requiring a particular political
viewpoint.
As for some examples of Kimmel's
"level of intelligence" at work,
here are two strong candidates.
First, his #MeToo moment that
recently came back to haunt him:
(So profane, msogynistic, sexist
and bigoted that it drew ire from
his normally vapid fem
supporters... therefore I cannot
describe it here -ed)
And then there's Kimmel's anti-
Trump porn star stunt, which he scheduled
to follow right after Trump's widelypraised
State of the Union address last
week. Here's intellectual superiority at
work, or something:
(again, so profane, msogynistic, sexist and
bigoted that I cannot describe it here -ed)
Jimmy Kimmel... intelligent... said no one.
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VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 41

you are
Who Is The Church?
1 Introduction
Many people are aware that not everyone
who goes to a Sunday “church service” is
really a Christian. Such people are
considered to be “nominal Christians”
(Christians by name only), who do not
have a relationship with Jesus. These
“Sunday-Christians” usually attend
church meetings, pray, sing and often
even take communion along with the
others even though they have not
committed their lives to Jesus. This
situation is regarded as biblical by the
various denominations and is referred to
as the teaching of the “invisible church”.
According to this teaching there is both a
visible church and an invisible church.
The visible church takes the form of
different denominations and churches
(e.g. Roman Catholic, Anglican, Reformed,
Lutheran, Baptist, Methodist etc.). These
visible churches consist of both believing
members (or “born again Christians”)
and unbelieving members (or “nominal
Christians”). The “invisible church”, on
the other hand, is considered to be the
one true church comprising all the “born
again” members of the visible churches
across the globe. It is not a visible
organisation or denomination; its
members are connected by their faith
without even knowing one another or
having personal fellowship with each
other. These people see it as their duty to
evangelize the unbelieving members of
the local visible churches which they
attend and where God has “put” them–a
kind of internal evangelism.1
The New Testament shows us a
completely different picture of the church
from the one described above.
The Church in the First Century
The first church in Jerusalem, which
came into existence after Peter’s sermon
at Pentecost, is described in the following
words:
Now many signs and wonders were
regularly done among the people by the
hands of the apostles. And they were all
together in Solomon’s Portico. None of
the rest dared join them, but the people
held them in high esteem. And more than
ever believers were added to the Lord,
multitudes of both men
and women… (Acts 5:12-
14)
The miracles which
happened among the
Christians, their devotion
to God and love for each
other aroused respect and
awe among the Jews. They
realized that joining them
would mean giving up
everything for Christ.
Those of them who had the
wish to love God with all
their heart believed and
joined the church. The rest
of the Jews who were not
ready to live such a life, did
not dare to join.
If an unbeliever came to
the church, everybody
assessed the “secrets of his
heart”:
If, therefore, the whole
church comes together
and all speak in tongues,
and outsiders or unbelievers enter, will
they not say that you are out of your
minds? But if all prophesy, and an
unbeliever or outsider enters, he is
convicted by all, he is called to account by
all, the secrets of his heart are disclosed,
and so, falling on his face, he will worship
God and declare that God is really among
you. (1 Corinthians 14:23-25)
The whole church endeavoured to help
the newcomer to understand what he
had to repent of. Sometimes this process
was quicker and in other cases it took
longer. If, however, the newcomer did not
want to repent after hearing the
assessment of the Christians, there was
obviously no base to baptise him, nor did
he join or take part in the fellowship.
There were exceptional cases in which
people like Simon the sorcerer joined the
Christians after hearing the Gospel. When
Philip preached about Christ to the
Samaritans, a large number of them
believed and were baptized–including
Simon, although he had not changed his
way of thinking. Since so many people
repented at the same time, it was not
easy for Philip to recognize that one of
them (Simon) was not honest. Thus,
Simon succeeded in deceiving the other
Christians for a short while. Soon,
however, the truth about him emerged,
and Apostle Peter, who later arrived from
Jerusalem, opposed him resolutely:
Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was
given through the laying on of the
apostles’ hands, he offered them money,
saying, “Give me this power also, so that
42 WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM | VOL.14 #1

anyone on whom I lay my hands may
receive the Holy Spirit.” But Peter said to
him, “May your silver perish with you,
because you thought you could obtain the
gift of God with money! You have neither
part nor lot in this matter, for your heart
is not right before God. Repent, therefore,
of this wickedness of yours, and pray to
the Lord that, if possible, the intent of
your heart may be forgiven you. For I see
that you are in the gall of bitterness and
in the bond of iniquity.” And Simon
answered, “Pray for me to the Lord, that
nothing of what you have said may come
upon me.” (Acts 8:18-24)
We see a similarly strict
assessment in such cases when
some men who lived or thought
in a different way to what Jesus
and the apostles taught slipped
into the church.
For certain people have crept in
unnoticed who long ago were designated
for this condemnation, ungodly people,
who pervert the grace of our God into
sensuality and deny our only Master and
Lord, Jesus Christ. (Jude 4)
Jude’s aim was to express that these men
have no place in the church. Even if they
succeeded in slipping in, they were only
able to remain in the church for a short
time, until the believers understood that
they were not actually brothers. We find
several other admonishments in the
letters of the New Testament urging the
churches to expose and separate from
such people: Acts 20:29–31; Matthew
24:23–26; 1Timothy 4:1–3; 6:3–5; 2
Timothy 3:1–9; 1 John 2:18–19.
The Purity and
Holiness of the
Church
If a member of the church
sinned in a way that made
him become unworthy of
the fellowship with the
saints and he did not want to
turn from his sins in spite of
the patient help and
repeated admonitions of his
brothers, the church ceased
having fellowship with him:
he was excluded. This was
based on Jesus’
commandment:
If your brother or sister sins,
go and point out their fault,
just between the two of you.
If they listen to you, you
have won them over. But if
they will not listen, take one
or two others along, so that
‘every matter may be
established by the testimony
of two or three witnesses.’ If
they still refuse to listen, tell it to the
church; and if they refuse to listen even
to the church, treat them as you would a
pagan or a tax collector. Truly I tell you,
whatever you bind on earth will be
bound in heaven, and whatever you loose
on earth will be loosed in heaven.
(Matthew 18:15-18 NIV)
The Jews did not have fellowship with
Gentiles because they considered them
unclean (see Acts 10:28). They treated
tax collectors in a similar way because
they compromised with the Romans
(Matthew 9:10-11). This categorical
rejection was not right, yet this was the
Jewish practice. Jesus refers to this
practice but shows that the reason for
separation should not be someone’s
social status or nationality, but his
refusal to accept the help and correction
his brothers and sisters repeatedly tried
giving him, choosing instead to remain in
his sin.
There is a practical example of this
instruction of Jesus being applied in the
Corinthian church:
It is actually reported that there is sexual
immorality among you, and of a kind that
is not tolerated even among pagans, for a
man has his father’s wife. And you are
arrogant! Ought you not rather to
mourn? Let him who has done this be
removed from among you. For though
absent in body, I am present in spirit; and
as if present, I have already pronounced
judgement on the one who did such a
thing. When you are assembled in the
name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is
present, with the power of our Lord
Jesus, you are to deliver this man to Satan
for the destruction of the flesh, so that his
spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.
Your boasting is not good. Do you not
know that a little leaven leavens the
whole lump? Cleanse out the old leaven
that you may be a new lump, as you really
are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover
lamb, has been sacrificed. (1 Corinthians
5:1-7)
Some verses later Paul continues:
But now I am writing to you not to
associate with anyone who bears the
name of brother if he is guilty of sexual
immorality or greed, or is an idolater,
reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even
to eat with such a one. For what have I to
do with judging outsiders? Is it not those
inside the church whom you are to judge?
God judges those outside. “Purge the evil
person from among you.” (1 Corinthians
5:11-13)
Somebody might ask: “Where is mercy?
Where is patience? Did Paul not have the
hope that God could still open the heart
of this sinner?” Yes he did!2 However,
even though he considered it possible, he
shows that there are clear conditions for
belonging to the church. Although this
kind of separation (i.e. exclusion) is hard
and painful, God’s church cannot have
fellowship with anyone who clings to sin.
If the excluded person repents he can
return to the church with a renewed
VOL.14 #1 | WWW.AMERICAN CHRISTIAN VOICE.COM 43

sanctification is a lifetime process
decision to live a life worthy of God and
his church.
editor’s note: Do not confuse this with
the weaknesses of the flesh, outward
behavioral manifestations of
strongholds not yet delivered from. It
is rather the observations of the lack of
the fruit of the Holy Spirit
The Fruit of the Holy Spirit is a biblical
term that sums up nine attributes of a
person or community living in accord
with the Holy Spirit according to the
Epistle to the Galatians: "But the fruit
of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience,
kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, and self-control."
Religion has taught us to judge people
on its false esoteric understanding of
righteousness.
brothers and want to
change. Each and every member of the
church fights against sin. A Christian
cannot live a double-life. He cannot serve
God while his heart is in the world (see:
Matthew 6:24; Matthew 10:38-39; James
4:4; 1 John 2:15-17; John 12:25-26; 1
John 2:4-6). Likewise, the church cannot
accommodate sinners who do not want
to change.
If Christians accepted people who follow
the way of this world as partakers in
their spiritual fellowship, they would be
deceiving them, because they would be
treating them as their brothers and
sisters in Christ, although in fact they are
not. In this way they would also be
portraying a false image of the church to
unbelievers.
unclean thing; then I will welcome you,
and I will be a father to you, and you shall
be sons and daughters to me, says the
Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:14-18)
God is willing to receive people as his
children who separate themselves from
unbelievers.4 The Greek word for church
(ecclesia) means an assembly that is
called out. This word was originally used
to refer to the custom of messengers
calling out the citizens of ancient Greek
towns from their houses for official
assemblies. Thus, the messengers of the
Gospel also call God’s people out of the
world into his assembly.
As we see, the practice of the first
Christian churches was totally different
from that of today’s denominations.
Do not be tempted to believe that we
obtain righteousness by our
conquering of weaknesses of the flesh.
Our right standing with God comes
from what Jesus did because of the
sacrifice He made for the world on the
cross. It is HIS righteousness imparted
as a gift to us that makes us righteous.
God is a God of hearts not heads, Love
covers a multitude of sins so LOVE AT
ALL TIMES!
This is how the first Christian churches
guarded their purity, and in this way it
was possible that there were no
unbelievers among them. That is why
Paul can address the brothers and sisters
in his letters as “saints” (e.g. 1
Corinthians 1:1-3; 2 Corinthians 1:1-2).3
In the New Testament the term “saint”
means the same as “Christian” (Acts 9:13;
Ephesians 5:3; Philippians 4:21-22;
Hebrews 3:1). All Christians are saints
and people can only belong to the church
if they let themselves be sanctified and
let God reign in their lives (Hebrews
12:14; Ephesians 5:5; Galatians 5:19-21).
Saints are not sinless people (this is
visible especially in the letters to the
Corinthians) but people “who are
sanctified in Christ Jesus”, who have
accepted Jesus’ forgiveness and salvation.
Even if they do stumble and sin, they will
listen to the admonitions of their
Do not be unequally yoked with
unbelievers. For what partnership has
righteousness with lawlessness? Or what
fellowship has light with darkness? What
accord has Christ with Belial? Or what
portion does a believer share with an
unbeliever? What agreement has the
temple of God with idols? For we are the
temple of the living God; as God said, “I
will make my dwelling among them and
walk among them, and I will be their God,
and they shall be my people. Therefore
go out from their midst, and be separate
from them, says the Lord, and touch no
Today everybody can become a member
of the “church” (after completing some
formalities), and usually exclusion is not
practised either. In order to be able to
distinguish who should be accepted as a
part of the church and who should be
excluded, more intensive fellowship is
necessary: spending more time together
and giving one another more attention in
order to be able to take part in each
other’s spiritual life. Without this
devotion to our brothers’ sanctification,
Christ’s commandment cannot be
fulfilled, and the purity of the church
cannot be preserved, jeopardizing its
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very existence.
The Parable of the Wheat and
the Weeds
The wrong practice, however, did not just
begin in our time. As early as the fifth
century, in the context of the Donatist
controversy5, Augustine used the
parable of the wheat and the weeds to
justify the presence of unbelievers in the
church. Augustine claimed, based on this
parable, that the church is a “mixed body”
(corpus permixtum) in which the wicked
live together with the righteous.
He put another parable before them,
saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be
compared to a man who sowed good
seed in his field, but while his men were
sleeping, his enemy came and sowed
weeds among the wheat and went away.
So when the plants came up and bore
grain, then the weeds appeared also. And
the servants of the master of the house
came and said to him, ‘Master, did you
not sow good seed in your field? How
then does it have weeds?’ He said to
them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the
servants said to him, ‘Then do you want
us to go and gather them?’ But he said,
‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root
up the wheat along with them. Let both
grow together until the harvest, and at
harvest time I will tell the reapers, Gather
the weeds first and bind them in bundles
to be burned, but gather the wheat into
my barn.’” (Matthew 13:24-30)
Then he left the crowds and went into the
house. And his disciples came to him,
saying, “Explain to us the parable of the
weeds of the field.” He answered, “The
one who sows the good seed is the Son of
Man. The field is the world, and the good
seed is the sons of the kingdom. The
weeds are the sons of the evil one, and
the enemy who sowed them is the devil.
The harvest is the close of the age, and
the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds
are gathered and burned with fire, so will
it be at the close of the age. The Son of
Man will send his angels, and they will
gather out of his kingdom all causes of
sin and all law-breakers, and throw them
into the fiery furnace. In that place there
will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Then the righteous will shine like the sun
in the kingdom of their Father. He who
has ears, let him hear.” (Matthew 13:36-
43)
In the parable of the wheat and the
weeds the field is the world, not the
church (verse 38). The church is in the
world and shines as a light in it;
therefore, the church cannot be identical
to the world!
…that you may be blameless and
innocent, children of God without
blemish in the midst of a crooked and
twisted generation, among whom you
shine as lights in the world, holding fast
to the word of life, so that in the day of
Christ I may be proud that I did not run
in vain or labour in vain. (Philippians
2:15-16)
Jesus used the parable of the wheat and
the weeds in order to help the Jews to
correct their ideas about the Messiah.
The Jews at that time expected the
Messiah to come as a glorious king and a
righteous judge; he would rescue his
people from the oppression of the
godless and cut off the evildoers from the
land.
Jesus, however, did not come to rule as a
political king, nor did he come to punish
the evildoers. The last judgement will
take place on the day of his second
coming. Until that time, both the good
and the evil have to live on earth together.
His kingdom is spiritual and has
overcome the world in a spiritual way:
I have said these things to you, that in me
you may have peace. In the world you
will have tribulation. But take heart; I
have overcome the world. (John
16:33)
In Matthew 13:41 the Son of Man gathers
the evildoers out of his kingdom. Yet
here, his kingdom does not stand for the
church, but for the world. Jesus is the
Lord of the whole created world and he
has the authority to rule over it as the
Messiah:
Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet,
and there were loud voices in heaven,
saying, “The kingdom of the world has
become the kingdom of our Lord and of
his Christ, and he shall reign for ever and
ever.” (Revelation 11:15)
A similar interpretation applies to the
parable of the net.
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net
that was thrown into the sea and
gathered fish of every kind. When it was
full, men drew it ashore and sat down
and sorted the good into containers but
threw away the bad. So it will be at the
close of the age. The angels will come out
and separate the evil from the righteous
and throw them into the fiery furnace. In
that place there will be weeping and
gnashing of teeth. (Matthew 13:47-50)
The fact that Jesus compares the
kingdom of heaven with the net does not
mean that the net refers to the church. In
other parables he compares the kingdom
of heaven, for instance, to a king6 or to a
merchant7. In these parables, there is no
grounds to think that the king or the
merchant symbolize the church. Jesus
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changing your intellect is fast, changing your heart can take a lifetime
often used the expression “the kingdom
of heaven” when he wanted to explain
something concerning God’s Kingdom.
“God’s Kingdom” (in Matthew: “Kingdom
of Heaven”) to the Jews meant the
kingdom of the Messiah. With his
parables Jesus mainly wanted to correct
their wrong understanding of this.
Other Frequently
Misinterpreted Passages
5.1 2 Timothy 2:16-21
But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for
it will lead to further ungodliness, and
their talk will spread like gangrene.
Among them are Hymenaeus and
Philetus, men who have gone astray from
the truth saying that the resurrection has
already taken place, and they upset the
faith of some. Nevertheless, the firm
foundation of God stands, having this
seal, “The Lord knows those who are His,”
and, “Everyone who names the name of
the Lord is to abstain from wickedness.”
Now in a large house there are not only
gold and silver vessels, but also vessels of
wood and of earthenware, and some to
honor and some to dishonor. Therefore,
if anyone cleanses himself from these
things, he will be a vessel for honor,
sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared
for every good work. (NASB)
In support of the false teaching of the
“invisible church”, the house mentioned
by Paul (v. 20) is identified with the
church and the vessels to honour and
dishonour are wrongly referred to the
believers and unbelievers, respectively,
who are together in the church.
It is correct to refer the house to the
church since the context is also about the
life of the church. However, the vessels to
“honour” and “dishonour”8 do not refer
to believing and unbelieving members
but, based on the context, to those
members who stand firm in their faith
and in the teaching and to others who are
weaker and could be more easily
influenced by false teachers (There were
Gnostic false teachers outside the church
who should be avoided because their
teaching spreads like gangrene and they
had already confused many in their faith).
To cleanse oneself from “these things” is
similar to the thought in verse 19:
“everyone … is to abstain from
wickedness…”. So “these things” do not
refer to the vessels to dishonour, but to
the false teachings and teachers. The
“vessels to dishonour” may have started
to give in to the influence of Gnostic
deceivers but if they separate themselves
from them, they will become “a vessel for
honour, sanctified, useful to the Master,
prepared for every good work.”
Many fellowships, in their attempt to remove what
they perceive to be bad weeds in the church, wrongly
ostrecize a member who has not yet fully matured
in Christ. When we ask a stranger if they are a
Christian, only spiritual discernment will indicate if
they are a first grader, middle school, high school or
a grad student. Too many members live an austere
almost puritanical life but do not have love. Their
witness is sounding brass. Noisy but not pleasant to
listen to with the accompiament of some strings.
(love, grace and mercy)
5.2 1 Corinthians 15:34
Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is
right, and do not go on sinning. For some
have no knowledge of God. I say this to
your shame.
In the context, the topic in this passage is
the correct understanding of
resurrection. It seems that some
Christians in Corinth—influenced by the
Greek concept of the afterlife—became
uncertain about what exactly would
happen to their bodies after death and
started to question the resurrection of
the body. Generally, Greeks believed in
the immortality of the spirit but bodily
resurrection was unimaginable for them.
Paul, on the one hand,
thoroughly explains the
right Christian teaching
about resurrection, but on
the other hand he rebukes
the Corinthians for their
doubts, as in this way they
question the power of God
who is able to raise the
dead. This is why he says
that some of them have no
knowledge of God—they
do not fully grasp how
powerful he is and that it
is not too hard a thing for
him to raise the dead in
immortal bodies. It does
not mean that some of
them were not Christians.
In the initial greeting of
the letter we can see that
he regarded all of them as
saints.
To the church of God that
is in Corinth, to those
sanctified in Christ Jesus,
called to be saints
together with all those
who in every place call
upon the name of our Lord
Jesus Christ, both their
Lord and ours… (1
Corinthians 1:2)
5.4 John 10:14-16
I am the good shepherd. I
know my own and my own
know me, just as the
Father knows me and I
know the Father; and I lay
down my life for the sheep.
And I have other sheep that are not of this
fold. I must bring them also, and they will
listen to my voice. So there will be one
flock, one shepherd.
Jesus says that there will be “one flock” in
the future. That is why many people refer
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the flock to those believers whom Jesus
will gather together from different visible
denominations on the last day. At that
time the believers who are scattered
throughout many different flocks will
supposedly be united into one flock. But
why should we refer this future event to
the last day? It could just as well refer to
another future event. Jesus speaks about
those who are “of this fold” and those
who are not. He had already called the
sheep from the first fold and he would
call the other sheep later. All the sheep
that listen to the voice of the Good
Shepherd would form one flock. In verse
16, he speaks about “this” fold, which
must refer to Israel, since during his
earthly ministry Jesus’ mission was to
call the “lost sheep of the house of Israel”:
These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing
them, “Go nowhere among the Gentiles
and enter no town of the Samaritans, but
go rather to the lost sheep of the house
of Israel. And proclaim as you go, saying,
‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”
(Matthew 10:5-7)
It follows that the “other sheep” refer to
the Gentiles. Jesus wanted to hint at the
fact that there were people from among
the Gentiles, too, who would listen to his
call. Some years later the disciples were
to experience this great event: the
unification of Jews and Gentiles. This is
summarized by Paul in the letter to the
Ephesians:
Therefore remember that at one time
you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the
uncircumcision” by what is called the
circumcision, which is made in the flesh
by hands—remember that you were at
that time separated from Christ,
alienated from the commonwealth of
Israel and strangers to the covenants of
promise, having no hope and without
God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus
you who once were far off have been
brought near by the blood of Christ. For
he himself is our peace, who has made us
both one and has broken down in his
flesh the dividing wall of hostility by
abolishing the law of commandments
expressed in ordinances, that he might
create in himself one new man in place of
the two, so making peace, and might
reconcile us both to God in one body
through the cross, thereby killing the
hostility. And he came and preached
peace to you who were far off and peace
to those who were near. For through him
we both have access in one Spirit to the
Father. So then you are no longer
strangers and aliens, but you are fellow
citizens with the saints and members of
the household of God… (Ephesians 2:11-
19)
Consequently, the unification of the
sheep from the two folds already took
place in the first century when Jewish
and Gentile Christians were joined
together as one flock in the church.
Summary
The teaching of the “invisible church”
does not occur in the Bible. Even if there
are differences between the members of
the Christian church in maturity, faith or
obedience, each member has a
relationship with the Head, Christ (1
Corinthians 12:12-27; Ephesians 4:15-
16). This church is seen by the world:
A new commandment I give to you, that
you love one another: just as I have loved
you, you also are to love one another. By
this all people will know that you are my
disciples, if you have love for one
another.” (John 13:34-35)
…I in them and you in me, that they may
become perfectly one, so that the world
may know that you sent me and loved
them even as you loved me. (John 17:23)
The world has to be able to see the
church. The Christian church must
always be aware of this responsibility. A
“church” that lives as a “mixed body” is
not the body of Christ and does not fulfil
the mission that Jesus entrusted to his
church. Christians live in deep fellowship
based on the teachings of Christ. Only in
this way can their testimony about
Christ’s love be authentic to the world.
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