David C. Alves's Blog, page 5

Signs of Our Times Meets Love

The world is closer to the end than we know and most of us sense it’s extremely close.

This is a short but powerful video. Click on the Hand to watch, then Share it with your friends and those you love.

What if everyone took seriously for one moment the claims of God Himself  . . . that He is love.

Filed under: Bits and Pieces, Consider It, Signs of the Times, Videos

ISIS’s god of death vs Christ’s God of Life

ISIS Converting “Unbelievers” by the Sword

Recently my wife, Marcy, read me a quote from an “Open Doors” ministry memo. Islamic extremists (devout Mohammedans) issued an ultimatum following “prayers on July 18.” Following PRAYERS! [which tells as much about their god as it does them] Are you ready?

We offer Christians three choices: convert to Islam, pay the Jizya [a protection tax], or you will have ‘nothing but the sword.’”

In other words, their god tells them that either you convert, submit, or die. This is the core of Islamic devotion to Mohammed.

The memo goes on to report that Mosul was home to 3,000 Christians before the attacks by ISIS—the Islamic State in June 2014. Now the majority of those followers of Jesus Christ have had to flee. Why? Because the god of death has issued an ultimatum against the God of Life and His people—Jews and followers of Christ.

This is not a new war. This is not a new version of Islam. Nor is it merely a human war. We’ve seen this all through history.

I was amazed when I heard Bill O’Reilly say that he just didn’t get it where all the anti-Semitism came from in history. I’ve watched O’Reilly for years. I appreciate his take on things. But I was shocked that a student of history who also testifies to being a Christian doesn’t know where it came from.

[True followers of Christ do not go around forcing anyone to believe in Yahweh or Jesus. We certainly present Him as the Truth, but that is because Truth is who HE revealed himself to be. We simply present HIS claims. People are free to choose or not. God grants this liberty, this freedom to all human beings. Therefore no one in heaven or earth, human or non-human can take it away. That’s why genuine followers of Christ (I can’t speak for all who claim the title “Christian” because horrors have been perpetrated upon the world in the name of God by those who did not know Him).  Those Jesus said were His true followers, understand Him and will not follow another, or DO THINGS THAT DENY HIS CHARACTER.  They are possessed by the Spirit of Christ.

ISIS is a typical example of the anti-Yahweh, anti-Christ spirit. This is the demonic principality that was in Haman, Herod the Great [who, sometime between 4BC-2BC, had all Jewish boys below the age of 2 murdered], Mohammad, Catholic zealots of the Inquisition, countless others in the dark ages, in Hitler and his SS, and today continues to possess Islam’s decadent followers of allah. I assure you demon oppression and possession is real, not figurative. I have been involved in deliverance ministry in the past and I assure you, what I’ve encountered there is the same reality that Jesus encountered in His own ministry. I didn’t just read about deliverance ministry, I live it. So I recognize it when I see it.

Jesus Christ said that you can know a people by the spiritual animus and character of their god. The god of Islam demands that people die. The God and Father of Jesus Christ demands that people not murder one another: “Thou Shalt not Kill” and “Love your enemies.” The Spirit of Yahweh’s unique Son—Jesus Christ—animates His true followers. You will not find them threatening, killing, hating, and hunting down those who will not accept their worldview. They serve the only true God—a God of LIFE! The author of love, who has chosen to reveal Himself through the Messiah as “Father.” And not a dysfunctional father either.

Allah is a god of death who has no son.

Yahweh is the author of Life and love, and testifies that He has a Son–Jesus Christ, the Messiah.

They obviously are NOT the same god.

Christians MUST take a stand in prayer against this evil demonic god and his demonized followers. Jesus identified the Father of all (including the Jews) who would commit murder and say they’re doing it for God . . . Their father, allah, is the father of lies. The Pharisee’s father was Satan himself–the father of lies and a murderer from the beginning. Hear Jesus:

 “ . . . your father the devil. A liar and murderer.”

You can easily know who a person is following as his god by the fruit that follows. Jesus said of FALSE prophets (including, and especially Mohammad) that “ . . . you shall know them by their fruits.” What do their lives produce. Even their words can fool you, but their character and what they leave in their wake will not (if you have eyes to see and ears to hear).

Those who love and follow Christ are too busy winning the world for Christ to hate people and want to massacre them. We will win the world, not through violence but through the love and transformative power of God upon the human heart. Those who further both nationalistic Zionism and orthodox Islam, do so by threats and murder. They have one and the same god–Satan. Their fruit proves it.

If they really thought their god was all powerful, he could defend his own reputation. He wouldn’t need mindless, robotic, evil murderers to do his dirty work for him. No this exposes the rotten core of Islam for all the world to see. And we’ve seen it before. The Ottoman Empire was destroyed by the West on 9/11/1835. It will be consumed again, but not by the West. The West is lost in a politically correct dream. Islam will be destroyed when Yahweh destroys allah, his followers– all liars and murderers who have not repented of their evil deeds–in the Lake of Fire at the coming of Christ.

I speak to the church. Don’t let the world (islam or otherwise) squeeze you into its mold. Allah, the Caananite moon-god should NEVER be mistaken for Yahweh–the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Creator of everything seen and unseen.

We are to put on the spiritual armor and STAND against the evil forces and principalities of this world. Jesus will deal with them when He returns. But we must stand in the Love of the Father, by speaking the truth and not allowing others to be convinced that we have the same God. Those who still seek truth and God need to see the difference as we glorify Him in our lives.

Filed under: Bits and Pieces, Consider It, In the News, Islamization, Signs of the Times

Flawed Anthropology, Easy Money, and Politics in New Hampshire’s Correctional System

CONCORD, NH – Op. Ed. – People change. This is an incontrovertible truth in life. Yet, this concept seems to be lacking in the wonderful state that has become my home–at least it’s MIA in the New Hampshire state prison system. [Fortunately it hasn't hit our schools yet.]

The money to be made by an opposite view–people don’t change–is real. The flawed anthropology which argues that people can’t change has no place in any serious attempt at rehabilitation. The shallow promises to act on behalf of change are the result of playing to the popular. In New Hampshire, when it comes to sex offenders, the popular is paranoia and ignorance. These never lower rates of recidivism.

Any pseudo-science that would claim that people do not change, does not deserve our serious attention. For every Psychiatrist or psychologist with an MA in the art of Psychology or Sociology, I’ll give you three Dr.’s of Theology or ministry who will present documented proof of miraculously changed lives. Changed lives can be easily documented or demonstrated. The press, politicians, and pseudo-scientific community refuse to acknowledge change. Change is threatening because transformation apart from them excludes them and is something they can’t take credit for or control.

Another reason the mainstream media refuses to understand spiritual change is their Western, anti-supernatural bias. Although you cannot see spiritual, supernatural transformation, you can clearly see its results in the life changes in millions of people. Yet they either refuse to see or cannot see. Is their blindness willful or does it have another source?

I learned in journalism [in my investigative reporter days assigned to East Boston and Boston City Hall], that we should “follow the money.” In NH, easy money hides in the notion that people like Raymond Guay can’t change. Good politics too.

Here in New Hampshire, the money trail is found in all the fees that are collected by independently contracted counselors–licensed by the state. The state collects licensing fees. The men and women on parole have to see these counselors weekly and have to pay for it themselves. Why should they ever get better? Why should they be released as healthy and changed? There’s no money in human transformation. So, “sex offenders can’t change” is the motto of profit.

There’s lots of talk about rehabilitation here in New Hampshire, but I question the sincerity. Four or five years ago I met with the Commissioner of Corrections, Bill Wrenn. He promised a meeting of those of us involved in aftercare. It never happened. He also promised to get to the bottom of parole officers undermining parolee’s chances of reestablishing themselves in community after having done their time.

The state set up a chaperone program to help ex-sex offenders be able to attend churches of their choice. After having licensed thirteen of the men in my congregation, the state decided that it did not recognize their own certification, All training was conducted under an independent “counselor,” used almost exclusively by the state to inform them about prisoners and parolees. He has since been charged with a crime. And I believe was convicted and sentenced.

I know first-hand that some officials in the state of NH want to use these state certified counselors to declare parolees, who have served their time, as mentally unfit for release. If they can’t keep sex offenders in prison, then they can at least have them committed to their mental facilities.

Several years back, one woman on the parole board made it her mission to incarcerate sex-offenders for life. Never mind making distinctions between repeat offenders and one time offenders or predatory versus passive, single instance offenders. In her narrow mind, She lumped them all together.

During a parole hearing, she announced as much to a man that I was interceding for. She obviously does not believe that people change. For that reason ALONE she has no place serving our community on the parole board. We do not serve the people when we do not consider the weakest among us to be people also.

I hate to think of what the little mob in the town of Chichester or the state officials of NH would have done with Saul of Tarsus, who through his experience of regeneration became the Apostle Paul, one of Christianity’s greatest champions. Previously a murderer of men, women, and children of the early followers of Jesus, he was transformed to become a man of great love and character. Though he still had flaws after his conversion, they were not dangerous flaws. Nor did he ever kill anyone again. Today he is known as one of the greatest of Christ’s apostles–a champion of the Christian faith. So much for people not being able to change.

I’m really more concerned with the question: Can politicians and journalists really change? I believe they can . . . IF.  If they are willing to return to integrity and character they can change. If they are willing to be compassionate, they can change.

We need to and can do several things:

We need to take a close look at Maine’s way of classifying sex-offenders
We need to take a close look at Vermont’s new system of combating recidivism. States all over the union are inviting Vermont’s prison officials to speak and teach about their successes.
We need to thoroughly purge New Hampshire’s propensity for profiting from its “rehabilitation” programs. No more keeping parolees of proven character who have paid the penalty and done their time under the control of the state and financially bound to it by various fees, fines, and levies.
We have to end ALL clear conflicts of interest in the counseling and reporting of ex-prisoners.
Find men and women who do believe that people can change and support them to find NEW ways to work with prisons and parolees. If the people who now work there don’t believe they people change, then remove them and show them that we’re not afraid of change. Too many successful models work to hold on to one that doesn’t.

If they are willing to embrace a genuine concern for ALL people . . . even ex-offenders, perhaps there is yet hope. If the people and politicians of New Hampshire will treat one-time ex-offenders the way they would want to be treated, everyone will change–for the better of our future and our remarkable state. Let’s put NH on the map for something other than politics as usual.

–Dr. David C Alves

Concord, NH

QUESTION: Can people really change? Haven’t you?

 

Photo: en.wikipedia.org

Filed under: Bits and Pieces, In the News, Recommended Resources

Religious Freedom vs. LGBT Rights? It’s More Complicated

Religious Freedom vs. LGBT Rights? It’s More Complicated | Christianity Today.

I’m really interested in the response of my readers.

Please read the above article which appeared in Christianity Today this week. Then, instead of commenting on the article on the CT site, come back here to this post and comment. Thanks.

QUESTION: What strikes you as helpful or problematic in the article?

Filed under: Bits and Pieces, Consider It, Homosexuality, Signs of the Times

Peace with God as a Way of Life | Forest Haven, New Hampshire

Peace with God as a Way of Life | Forest Haven, New Hampshire.

After Evangelicals get “saved,” what’s the next step? Want to know deeper peace–Peace with God as a Way of Life. There is a life that awaits the honest seeker–a life that first gives you a peaceful heart and then makes you a signpost along the highway of God. Don’t take my word for it. Read this post from my friend and brother, Randy Thompson, Director of Forest Haven in Bradford, NH.

Filed under: ON THE JOURNEY, REFLECTIONS

Breaking Camp to Follow Jesus

The Lord our God said to us at Horeb, ‘You have stayed long enough at this mountain.  Break Camp and advance into the hill country . . . go to all the neighboring peoples . . . ‘

–from Deut. 1:6-7 (NIV)

God’s people had camped with Him at the mountain where the law was given. This is also where Elijah came in a time of particular discouragement and depression.  Desert mountain symbolized to early Christians a place of bondage to law and slavery (Gal. 4:24ff).  At last, God would take them into the rich, green land He had promised them, the “hill country” of freedom and abundance.  They would be a people, holy unto Him, a light to the peoples around them.  Israel was a testimony to the One true God. They were waiting for a word from Him.  They wanted guidance.  They anticipated that God would answer them, but they needed to hear His command—GO—advance.

Like them, a second time in Israel’s history, God’s people waited to hear from Him.  Four hundred years of silence finally broke as Messiah Jesus came into the world.  At the right time, He appeared publicly to Israel and said to those who would follow Him, “Go into all the world.”(Matt. 28:18-20).  This was God coming to His people to heal, deliver, forgive, restore for a reason . . . so that they could break camp and “GO.”  These new followers of Messiah would be a holy people, washed clean, created to be a light on a hill, a pure people for fellowship with God and for reconciling the nations and multitudes to God.

God has been preparing a people here at New Life for the past seven years.  Noteworthy that the number seven is the number of completion, the biblical number of perfection.  Not that we are perfect in and of ourselves, but we have a God who is at work in our midst and He is perfecting us to be a holy people to be used of Him to minister to “all the neighboring peoples” (Titus 2:11-14).

God’s heart for us is to forget the past and move confidently ahead with Him.  Some of us have been hurt or wounded in the process of becoming a people and tracking with the Lord into house-church, but now it is time to be healed and set our hearts on advancing with our Savior.  For He has called us to “Follow” that He might make us fishers of men and women, boys and girls who need a Savior.

God is calling us to a deeper love, to bear with one another in love, to move on from here and to “break camp.” Now, in His Spirit and grace, He commands us to GO.  Go to all the peoples in this region who need Him.  Go to those who need freedom and salvation.  “Forget the former things.”  He is doing a NEW WORK.  Do you perceive it?

We are breaking camp.  We have pulled up stakes and are following our God. Don’t be left behind. He has important life-saving work for you to join Him in. But it’s in hill country of relationship, not the desert of religion.

Filed under: Consider It, ON THE JOURNEY

Zero Toleration of Racism or Regionalism for God’s Family

“ . . . For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility,”

–Ephesians 2:14 NIV

With the increase of immigrants–legal and illegal–into our nation, with the spread of Neo-Nazism, vigilantism, and the rise of separatist churches, the body of Christ needs to address racism.  Not that there is anything wrong with having national borders. God himself established nations and borders.

   “When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he divided mankind, he fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God.” (Deuteronomy 32:8, ESV)

But the discerning see Satan moving–in the upswing of Neo-Nazis and skinhead racist activities and in the south in black churches where white people are not welcome and in white churches where black believers are unwelcome.  We see him at work spitting in the face of a Mexican migrant in Texas. As a result, we must be thoughtful about how WE–the Family of God–will respond, when Puerto Ricans, Chinese,  Mexicans, Liberians, or African-Americans begin to attend our lifegroups, worship, and Celebrations.

One Blood

Have you come to realize that, as believers, we no longer are to consider Hispanic, Latino, African-American, or Caucasian blood?  Instead, we see only the blood of Jesus that has reconciled our lives through His blood shed for us and has joined us  to one another through salvation, symbolized as we partake together at the Lord’s Table. So that we are of one blood in the body of Christ. The wall of partition has been broken down.  What a profound thought.

The text above tells us that Christ has “destroyed the barrier.” That is, the barrier in our hearts against others.

When we of many colors and backgrounds gather around the cup of the Lord, we proclaim His death for us all and “drink His blood” (symbolically). In that blood, the nations have been reconciled into ONE family, ONE nation, ONE household in Christ Jesus. You and I are no longer separated by blood. We belong to Him and to one another. Here is no room for prejudice or retribution, anger or vengeance, only thanks-giving.

Zero Toleration In the Churches

In the churches, Father-God wants to bring people from all the Nations into our midst.  We must not tolerate racism or regionalism in ourselves. Your growth in spiritual life requires that you begin to see from God’s perspective (2 Cor. 5:15-16).  You are not your own, you’ve been joined to a new community, a new family (Eph. 2:19-22), a family of the nations.

God wants you to see other born-again Christians as a part of your very own body (1 Cor. 12), no matter what their color or national origin.  As for our enemies, we are to learn to love those who oppose us. As a matter of fact, who do you have more in common with: your white, Anglo-Saxon Protestant neighbor, who bullies his wife and kids, drinks until drunk, and shouts profanities out his window until 2am, or a born-again, Spirit-filled Iraqi or Iranian? In Christ, there is no room for racism.

Are You Connected to Him?

Let’s remember that the precious shedding of Jesus’ blood, connected you to God and to His children . . . ALL His children.  Your future is a life in community, not as white or black or yellow, but as an obedient disciple and a child of a multicultural Family.  Blood counts, but only the Blood of Jesus.  Join me in creating a welcoming, Kingdom-fellowship, the Oikos (household) of God to the Nations (Eph.2:19).

Filed under: Consider It, ON THE JOURNEY

Review of A Sabbatical Primer for Pastors by Wayne Cordeiro

“If every beginning minister were given a start-up kit when they began, David Alves’ book, would be an essential. It contains the indispensable fundamentals for a long and fruitful ministry. Providing step-by-step guidance, this book could save many from premature erosion that takes place beneath the surface in ministry. I highly recommend this primer for every new and veteran minister who cares about his or her future vitality!”

Dr. Wayne Cordeiro, author ofLeading on Empty: Refilling Your Tank and

Renewing Your Passion and Senior Pastor of New Hope, Oahu

Filed under: Books, FOR READERS, Recommended Resources

A Sudanese Court Sentences Meriam Ibrahim to be Hanged

A Sudanese court ruled last week that the marriage of Meriam Ibrahim (27) was invalid and sentenced her to 100 lashes for adultery as well as death by hanging for rejecting Islam. Ibrahim was turned into law enforcement by her own brother for her 2011 marriage to Daniel Wani, a Christian American man. Ibrahim has their 20-month-old son with her in prison while her husband appeals the court’s decision.

The friendly face of Islam. Need I say more? This is true, Koranic Islam–not just “radical” Islam. This is an example of a NATION that practices Sharia Law--the totalitarian law of Islam. This totalitarian political system has its attached religious wing–Islam–which devotes its energy to capturing and killing those who disagree or speak truth regarding its true nature.

When you support Islam and Sharia Law, you support everything God (Yahweh) is opposed to. The god of Islam is the god of DEATH. The God of Christianity is LIFE in the resurrected Son of God–Jesus Christ–Israel’s Messiah. Christians don’t hunt, torture, behead or kill those who don’t follow Christ. Only Satan murders, lies, robs, and destroys those who value religious liberty and toleration.

Religious toleration is about everyone free to practice peacefully their own religion free of harrassment AS LONG AS THAT FAITH DOESN’T HARM OR COERCE OTHERS TO BELIEVE.

QUESTION: Does it make any sense at all to allow Islam to flourish in the United States (or anywhere in the world for that matter?).

Filed under: Bits and Pieces, Consider It, In the News, Islamization, Signs of the Times

Newest Review of A Sabbatical Primer for Pastors

Newest Review of A Sabbatical Primer for Pastors

Newest review of A Sabbatical Primer for Pastors posted yesterday at Amazon.com. Have you read it  yet? If you’re a pastor or Christian leader, I hope you’ll take time to read this review. 

Filed under: ON THE JOURNEY