Does your faith need strengthening? Are you confused and wondering if Jesus Christ is really "The Way, the Truth, and the Life?" "Fight for Your Faith" is a blog filled with interesting and thought provoking articles to help you find the answers you are seeking. Jesus said, "Seek and ye shall find." In Jeremiah we read, "Ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall seek for Me with all your heart." These articles and videos will help you in your search for the Truth.

Monday, September 30, 2024

Saturday, September 28, 2024

Friday, September 27, 2024

What’s the UN’s new ‘Pact for the Future’, and why did Russia oppose it?

 Original Post Found Here

Like many UN documents, it’s packed with big goals but is short on specifics about how to achieve them. And its passage snubbed Moscow.

The UN General Assembly
The General Assembly Hall during the Summit of the Future at the United Nations headquarters in New York, September 22, 2024 [David Dee Delgado/Reuters]

The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has adopted an ambitious pact that aims to make the organisation more relevant and effective on the global stage in the 21st century amid mounting criticism over its failures to stop wars and hold to account those who violate its charter.

Russia and Iran were among seven nations to oppose the “Pact for the Future”, but they failed to prevent the document from proceeding during the summit that ran on Sunday and Monday.

Let’s take a look at the centrepiece document of the annual gathering in New York, the lofty goals it aims to achieve for the global community, and why Russia argued no one is fully satisfied with the text.

What’s the Pact for the Future?

The UN describes the pact as a “landmark declaration” pledging action towards an improved world for tomorrow’s generations.

The lengthy text adopted by the 193-member UNGA includes a pledge to move faster towards achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement commitments on climate change. It speaks of addressing the root causes of conflicts and accelerating commitments on human rights, including women’s rights.

It includes two annexe documents, called the Global Digital Impact, dealing with regulating artificial intelligence (AI), and the Declaration on Future Generations, which pushes for national and international decision-making to focus on securing the wellbeing of generations to come.

“We are here to bring multilateralism back from the brink,” Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told world leaders gathered at the UN headquarters on Sunday. “Now it is our common destiny to walk through it. That demands not just agreement, but action.”

The pact covers a range of topics, with differing levels of ambition, and different UN forums and agencies will be responsible for following up on different topics, according to Richard Gowan, UN director at the Crisis Group.

“Some of the proposals are quite specific, like a request for the Secretary-General to review the state of UN peacekeeping operations. Others, such as a promise to work towards nuclear disarmament, are sadly more rhetorical flourishes than concrete proposals,” he told Al Jazeera.

“Nonetheless, it is important that UN members work out a proper implementation plan for the actionable parts of the pact, as we have often seen world leaders sign off on fine-sounding pledges at the UN and then fail to follow through on them.”

Does the pact spell out how it’ll make the world better?

Not really. As is often the case with UN resolutions and pledges, the Pact for the Future is packed with lofty goals and commitments but is thin on actual, realistic steps that the body can take to implement its own vision.

  • The document asserts that nations “will end hunger and eliminate food security”, address global financing and investment gaps, commit to a fair multilateral trading system, achieve gender equality, protect the environment and the climate, and protect people affected by humanitarian emergencies. But it is silent on how the UN and its members will do this.
  • As Israel’s war on Gaza, the Russia-Ukraine war and the civil war in Sudan continue to claim lives, it recommits the UN to support the International Court of Justice (ICJ). But at a time when Israel has made it clear that it will not allow the UN court to affect its devastating war, in which more than 41,000 people have been killed in Gaza, the new pact does not spell out how the body plans to get members to follow its rules.
  • The pact sets out a promise to revitalise obligations and commitments on disarmament of nuclear and biological weapons, “renew trust in global institutions” by making them more representative and responsive, and promote and protect human rights, including through fighting racism and xenophobia. Again, however, these are mere promises in the text.
  • Reflecting growing dissatisfaction with deadlock and lack of global representation in the UN Security Council (UNSC), the document pledges to “redress the historical injustice against Africa as a priority” and “improve representation” for Asia Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean. But the document makes no mention of how the UN will speed up reforms the Global South has been demanding for years.
  • The Pact of the Future adds that it wants to accelerate the reform of the international financial architecture, bolster response to global shocks, and improve cooperation on exploring outer space and preventing an arms race there. But many of the countries leading the space race are also permanent members of the UNSC with veto powers that insulate them from any meaningful criticism.
  • As many UN resolutions go unheeded, the pact pledges to “strengthen the response” of the UNSC and “revitalise” the work of the UNGA while strengthening the overall UN system, including the Economic and Social Council and the Peacebuilding Commission. How? No mention, again.

Gowan said many UN members believe UNSC reform is essential after the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, but actually cutting a deal would be difficult, as will be reforms of the international financial institutions.

“I think that overall developing countries had a bigger role in shaping this pact than they did in some previous UN reform processes, but the US still effectively defended its red lines on issues like the international financial system,” he said.

“The pact is far from perfect, and many people may feel it lacks the depth and urgency required to deal with the global polycrisis. But I think that we should be grateful diplomats could work out a deal at all in the current bleak environment.”

Olaf Scholz at UN
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz addresses the summit as a main backer of the pact as his country facilitated the process of getting it adopted with Namibia [David Dee Delgado/Reuters]

So why the opposition?

Russia, Iran, North Korea, Belarus, Syria and Nicaragua introduced a last-minute amendment to the draft resolution to assuage their criticism of the text, which mainly revolves around national sovereignty and the role of external entities in domestic affairs.

It added a paragraph that said the UN “shall be driven by intergovernmental decision-making process” and “its system shall not intervene in matters which are essentially within the domestic jurisdiction of any State” in line with the organisation’s charter.

Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin told the summit that those who coordinated the text over many months – Germany and Namibia – only included “what was dictated to them mainly by Western countries and ignored Russia’s repeated requests for intergovernmental negotiations on the text. He described this approach as “despotism”.

Moscow, he said, would “distance itself from the consensus on this document”.

Vershinin also stressed that the pact could not be viewed as creating “new mandates and obligations” for states as it is “simply a declaration, and a very vague one”.

But the Republic of Congo – representing Africa’s 54 nations – and Mexico, a major Latin American power, rejected the amendments, preventing them from going through and paving the way for the document to be adopted.

The opposing countries are among the most heavily sanctioned nations in the world, largely subject to unilateral designations imposed by the United States and the European Union, as opposed to those adopted multilaterally in the top UN bodies. The Crisis Group’s Gowan said Russia “read the room quite badly” and introduced last-minute changes when others had decided to proceed. Russia felt it had been disrespected after Germany and Namibia seemingly ignored some of its concerns, he said.

“I must admit that I am still quite confused about why Russia did not quietly withdraw its amendment, rather than face a vote on the issue it was bound to lose. Diplomats say that the Russians were offered quite a lot of opportunities to avoid this public defeat.” 

To read from the United Nations' own website click here.

Who Is the Prince of the Covenant? - Speculations by Nelson Walters


Dennis Edwards: Nelson again doesn't seem to understand the significance of Daniel 8 in the End Time agenda. What he does speculate here is that the prince of the covenant is not the Antichrist, but rather the head of Babylon the Whore. Daniel 8 links the covenant with the beginning of the Jewish sacrificial worship on the Temple Mount. From the data given in Daniel 8, the official sacrificial worship will begin some 220 to 250 days after the signing of the covenant. That's around 7 or 8 months from after the covenant's beginning. [To see how those dates are reached the following link will take you to a class on the 2,300 days of Daniel 8.] 

7 to 8 months from the beginning of October would take us to April or May of next year. April is often when Passover falls on the Jewish calendar. Passover would be a prime time to restart sacrificial worship for the Jewish people. We have speculated for years that the signing of the covenant would be a compromise agreement which would give some official autonomy to the Palestinian people. In exchange, the Jews would be able to renew their sacrificial worship on the Temple Mount under an international peace-keeping force. What was interesting in Nelson's speculation is that a former USA President, who has been working behind the scenes during the Biden administration, has interest in becoming the next President of the United Nations. However, the present President remains in office until 2026. 

Let's stay attentive, and see if the International Court will actually have the authority to get things rolling for the Palestinian people. It would seem that an international peace-keeping force of great strength would be needed for Israel to agree to such an agreement. That force might include military from the Antichrist's nation. To read more on the United Nations Pact for the Future click HERE. To read from the United Nations website click here. 

Thursday, September 26, 2024

Greatest Biblical Event of Our LIFETIMES Just Happened?

Dennis Edwards:

Nelson, Daniel 8:13-14 tell us that the period of the prayer and the transgression of desolation will be 2,300 days. Therefore, if this is the Covenant we should see the Jewish people begin sacrificing within around 8 months from now. See my article:https://fightforyourfaith.blogspot.com/2021/07/how-do-2300-days-of-daniel-8-fit-into.html 

We are definitely moving toward World Government, but I believe the Covenant will give the Jewish people the right to begin their sacrificing on the Holy Mount, no doubt in exchange for giving the Palestinians some autonomy and security. Remember the Red Heifer. Daniel 11: 30-31 shows us that the AC will stop the daily sacrifice and place the abomination that makes desolate. Daniel 9:27 shows us that the breaking of the Covenant and the stopping of the sacrifice and placing of the abomination takes place "at the midst of the week," or at the 3 and 1/2 year mark of that last 7 year period. 

Daniel 8:13-14 tells us how many days the sacrifice and abomination shall stand. So many days of sacrifice before it is stopped, PLUS, so many days of the abomination standing, EQUALS, 2,300 days. Since the abomination standing is either 1,260 days or 1290 days, then the time of the sacrifice must be 2,300 days MINUS 1260 or 1290 days. That gives us either 1,040 days or 1010 days of sacrifice which will stop at the 3 and 1/2 year mark or 1,260 days from the signing of the Covenant. That would mean, if this is indeed the Covenant and not a precursor to it, that in 220 days or 250 days the Jewish people will start their religious sacrificing on the Temple Mount. 

It seems a bit premature to claim that. Unless their is some secret agreement already made or if some major military operation is going to be made against Israel?

Wednesday, September 25, 2024

Pope Francis Says All Religions Lead to God; A Strong Bishop Corrects Him (2)

Posted by Daily Citizen Staff | Sep 16, 2024 | Culture


At an interreligious youth meeting in Singapore late last week, Pope Francis made some troubling statements about how people around the world can find God’s salvation.

Departing from his prepared remarks, Francis declared to the gathering that “every religion is a way to arrive at God.” He continued, “Sort of a comparison, an example, would be they’re sort of like different languages in order to arrive at God.”

The leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics continued along this universalist tack: “But God is God for all. And if God is God for all, we are all sons and daughters of God.”

He lamented that some argue, “But my God is more important than your God!” and asked, “Is that true?”

Answering his own question to the young people, the pontiff finished,

There is only one God and each of us has a language, so to speak, in order to arrive at God. Sihk, Muslim, Hindu, Christian. There are different paths. Understand?

And the leaders on stage, representing various religions, happily shook their heads in agreement.

Crux, a Catholic news site, said of these statements from the Pope, “Such rhetoric has stirred controversy … among more conservative Catholics who fear that it calls into question Catholic doctrine on Christ as the lone savior of the world and also undercuts missionary efforts to bring people to the faith.”

They are not wrong.

When Pope Francis made similar statements at an interfaith meeting in Kazakhstan in 2022, Auxiliary Bishop Athanasius Schneider from that country warned such statements risk creating a “supermarket of religions” where people can shop for what suits them.

Of course, such teaching is in direct conflict with Jesus and the Gospel itself.

Jesus was unequivocal when He said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6, ESV)

As C.S. Lewis famously pointed out, either this claim is true, or Jesus is a lunatic or a liar.

The Christian Church has always held, from earliest days, to the exclusivity of salvation in Christ alone.

When Jesus asked the twelve Apostles, “Do you want to go away as well?,” Peter himself, who Catholics believe was the first leader of the Church, responded,

Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God. (John 6:68-69, ESV)

And it was this same Peter, speaking of Jesus before the Jerusalem Council in Acts 4, who proclaimed, “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12 ESV)

In First Things, archbishop emeritus Charles J. Chaput, a good friend of Focus on the Family, correctly said of the pontiff’s comments last week.

Pope Francis has the habit, by now well established, of saying things that leave listeners confused and hoping he meant something other than what he actually said.

Chaput adds, “That all religions have equal weight is an extraordinarily flawed idea for the Successor of Peter to appear to support.”

He continues,

As St. Paul preached two thousand years ago, the search for God can take many imperfect forms, but they are each an imperfect search for the one, true, triune God of Sacred Scripture. Paul condemns false religions and preaches Jesus Christ as the reality and fulfillment of the unknown God whom the Greeks worship (Acts 17:22–31).

All Christians must appreciate the clarity with which Archbishop Chaput explains,

We are called Christians because we believe Jesus Christ is God, the second person of the Trinity. From the beginning of our faith, followers of Christ were unique among world religions because they accepted as true Christ’s extraordinary claim that he is God—in part because of his miracles, in part because of his preaching, but ultimately because of his death and bodily resurrection. Christians have also always believed that this reality makes Christianity categorically distinct from all other religions, and in turn requires a total commitment of our lives.

This captures the universal truth of Christianity, the foundation of the Gospel itself. Our Lord alone has the words of eternal life, to whom else shall we go?

Every leader of Christ’s Church must be crystal clear about this fact.

Any who are not, undercut their own calling, contradict the claims of Jesus Himself, and diminish the martyrdom of untold waves of saints through the ages who have given their lives for the sake of our Lord’s matchless Gospel.

Pope Says: “All Religions Are A Path To God” Others Move To Correct Him (1)

 


by  | Sat, Sep 21 2024

During his recent visit to Singapore, Pope Francis declared that “all religions are a path to God,” sparking a backlash among Christian leaders and believers around the world. Departing from his prepared remarks, Francis, who’ll turn 88 in December, spoke off the cuff, stating that different religions are like “different languages” to reach God.

“If you start to fight: My religion is more important than yours, mine is true and yours isn’t. Where will that lead us?” he asked, according to Catholic news outlet Crux. “There’s only one God, and each of us has a language to arrive at God. Some are Sikh, Muslim, Hindu, Christian, and they are different paths [to God],” he added.

US Christian commentator Billy Hallowell wrote in The Washington Times: “The pontiff tossed petrol on the proverbial flames of concern when he went off-script, delivering a head-scratching monologue seen by some as undermining the Christian Gospel.”

Reacting to the Pope’s comments, Bishop Joseph Strickland, who oversaw the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tyler, Texas, until his dismissal by the Vatican last year, said in a social media post: “Please pray for Pope Francis to clearly state that Jesus Christ is the only Way. To deny this is to deny Him. If we deny Christ, He will deny us, He cannot deny Himself.”

Bishop Strickland was ousted for disagreeing with Francis on the issue of banning pro-abortion Catholic politicians from receiving communion and over the degree to which outreach to the LGBT community is acceptable in the Catholic Church. A petition created in defence of the bishop last year said he was ousted because he “publicly corrected several heterodox statements from Pope Francis.”

Greg Laurie, pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California, also took take aim at the Pontiff’s message by quoting: “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. No man comes to the Father except by Me” (John 14:6).

Outspoken former Anglican and current Old Catholic priest Father Calvin Robinson who has just moved from the UK to the US to take over an Episcopal parish in Michigan, also quoted that verse, adding: “This is a counter-scriptural statement from Pope Francis. The Scriptures teach us the opposite. The gate [to Heaven] is narrow.”

Billy Hallowell wrote: “These concerns from Mr. Strickland, Mr. Laurie and many others aren’t simply minor, dismissable complaints. They’re essential calls to correct a grave spiritual malfeasance and inaccuracy perpetuated by one of the world’s most well-known religious leaders.”

“One of the strongest presentations of this reality is seen in John 3 when Jesus speaks with a Pharisee named Nicodemus. During the exchange, Christ explains that: No one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again. From there, Christ explains that the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in Him.”

“Thus, it’s impossible to act as though different religions are merely divergent “languages” that all lead to the same God. The entirety of the Biblical message is one of transformation — the need to accept Jesus and allow God to transform our hearts and lives. Christ makes it painstakingly clear that a person can truly access the Lord only through Him,” the Christian commentator continued.

“This is why, via the so-called Great Commission, He implores his disciples to: Go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you (Matthew 28:19-20, NIV).

“Jesus didn’t say: Go out and point people toward any random religion or philosophy, nor did he offer any prompt that affirms: All religions are paths to God. The Pope’s claims simply do not stand up to the Bible’s historical and theological narrative — and even an atheist understands this reality.”

“It’s possible Pope Francis misspoke, is being taken out of context due to translation, or wishes to further clarify his remarks. Considering the gravity of what he’s saying — and especially in light of his position in global Christendom — he owes believers everywhere an immediate and expansive explanation,” Billy Hallowell concluded.

Argentina's Milei blasts UN Over Agenda

 https://www.foxnews.com/world/argentinas-milei-blasts-un-over-support-covid-lockdowns-appeasing-bloody-dictatorships To see video

A Different Perspective on the Steve Lawson controversy

Dennis Edwards: 
God uses broken vessels, not those that are proud and lifted up. I think brokenness is an important aspect of being used by God. Humble thyself in the hand of the Lord, and He will lift you up. If we don't humble ourselves, if we allow pride to enter in, we are doomed to fall. We become so righteous in our own righteousness God has to wake us up and allow us to mess up and be caught.

We who are saved are in the club of the sinners who know we are sinners and need God's help for salvation. Yet, often Christianity in the churches stinks of self-righteousness, of people pretending to be perfect and without sin. Jesus said it plainly, "Let him who is without sin cast the first stone." He desires mercy, not sacrifice.

Steve Lawson by God's grace will go on to greater things in his brokenness than when he was so righteous and perfect. May God help him to land on his knees and find his strength in the arms of Jesus that he be a greater blessing of reaching the loss rather than hobnobbing with those who feel they are saved through their own righteousness. Self-righteousness stinks, it's filthy menstrual rags.

David was closer to God after he was exposed for his sin with Bathsheba, than before. We have the beautiful Psalm 51 as a result. Adam and Eve were closer to God, had to get closer to God, after the fall. God's way up is down, just the opposite of what we think. God gets His greatest victories out of seeming defeats, victories of brokenness, of humility, of love.

God is in the business of breaking His vessels that He might make them better vessels. Abraham, the father of faith, had some seemingly questionable moments of moral failing. But God didn't throw him away. He patiently led him, proved him, tested him, and Abraham eventually came out as pure gold. Broken, but remade in the hands of His maker. Let us pray for Lawson's remaking, that he come forth a finer vessel, more fit for the Master's use. fightforyourfaith.blogspot.com

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