This week, in Pennsylvania State Legislature, a female
Christian Republican in her opening prayer mentioned the
name Jesus thirteen times before the state swore
in its first Muslim woman at the statehouse.
And this Christian Republican, who is also a
pastor's wife, when she invoked the name of
Jesus, she opened a hornet's nest.
The Democrats were outraged at her bigotry, and
the Muslim woman said, and I quote, the
entire invocation was offensive, but to use Jesus
as a weapon is not okay, end quote.
Ironically, another Muslim lawmaker opened the session on
Tuesday by reading from the Koran, prompting applause
in the chamber.
I want to say something, friends.
I don't normally jump into politics, but what
took place in the legislature of Pennsylvania this
week is a portent of things to come.
The battleground in this country will be waged
at the name of Jesus, just like the
early church had to find out the hard
way that they had to proclaim either Caesar
is Lord or Jesus is Lord.
And if they said Jesus is Lord, they
were promptly arrested, put in chains, and dragged
to the Coliseum to be fed to the
lions as a public spectacle.
There's a day fast approaching in this country
where if you pray in the name of
Jesus, you will be considered an enemy of
the state.
Don't you believe for one skinny minute that
I am exaggerating, friends, but I am telling
you the truth of common persecution to Christians
in this country.
There will be a sifting that will separate
the goats from the sheep.
Listen to me loud and clear that this
day is coming that will empty out our
congregations as they run for the doors to
save their skins.
The hypocrites in the churches will be found
out as this battleground is more firmly drawn
by a line in the sand that runs
to the name of Jesus.
The Muslims have rights in this country, and
the homosexuals have rights in this country, but
Christians do not have those same rights.
You may think you do, and you can
hide under cover by just talking about the
Creator or mentioning God, and most folks will
leave you alone, but the minute you do
what that Christian woman politician did in the
Pennsylvania legislature and mention the name of Jesus,
then the fur will start to fly, the
snakes will start writhing, and the devil will
use his human dupes to destroy you because
the devil hates the name of Jesus.
This is the battleground, friends.
The fight will be here.
The churches will begin to feel the heat,
and we will have in this country what
has taken place in China as I speak.
There are two churches in China, one above
ground, which is called the Three-Self Church,
and it's backed by the Communist government, where
you are not allowed to mention the Holy
Spirit or the blood atonement of Jesus, and
there's the underground church in China, which meets
in barns late at night or haylofts or
in abandoned buildings and houses, and it is
the underground church where the vital Christianity is
and where the hot persecution flies.
In America, in the not-too-distant future,
there will be the above ground church sold
out to the state, and there will be
an underground church that meets in houses to
pray up the name of Jesus.
The battleground of that fight will be formed
by lines in the sand that lead to
the name which is above all names.
My Bible says in Philippians 2.10 that
at the name of Jesus every knee should
bow of things in heaven and things in
earth and things under the earth.
The battleground of that name will grow hotter
and hotter as the lead starts to fly
in this country as hot persecution comes to
those who follow the crucified Christ and who
are not ashamed of him and who are
willing to lose all for him, even their
own lives if necessary.
Let me tell you something, friend.
You better get out a spiritual thermometer and
take your temperature to see if you'll be
able to stand what is coming down the
pike at the crossroads of the name Jesus.
The wheat will be separated from the chaff.
Let us pray.