The Cross: Christ came on purpose for it

By: American Decency Staff

Personal note: It is Good Friday. Oswald Chambers writes in his regarded devotional “Utmost for His Highest” – “The Cross was a superb triumph in which the foundations of hell were shaken. … The Cross did not happen to Jesus: He came on purpose for it. He is the ‘lamb slain from the foundation of the world….'” He was in control. He is in control – nothing – absolutely nothing catches Him by surprise. Disney and Wal-Mart? Haaa! The following : “Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another … Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. …” Taken from Romans 1:24, 28-32] “There hardly could be a more fitting description of our own culture today. Bent on the pursuit of autonomous freedom — freedom from any restraint, and especially from God’s truth and moral absolutes — our culture has set itself on the course of self-destruction. Autonomous freedom! How the voices of our day cry out! ‘I must be free to kill the child in my womb. I must be free even to kill the newborn child if I don’t think he or she measures up to my standards of ‘quality life.’ ‘I must be free to desert my husband or wife, and abandon my children. I must be free to commit shameless acts with those of my own sex. …'” “The last verse really is frightening (from Romans 1:32) when we think of it in relationship to our culture today: ‘Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.'” [Taken from “The Great Evangelical Disaster” by Dr. Francis A. Schaeffer, 1984, Crossway Books] And then here comes Disney and Wal-Mart with new news regarding their business trends. MSNBC reports (April 5, 2007) “Fairy Tale Weddings opened to gay couples Disney changes policy to allow same-sex unions at U.S. resorts, cruise line” “… Disney’s Fairy Tale Wedding packages start at $8,000 and include a wedding planner, the ceremony, food and beverages, flowers and table decorations. The Lavish Wedding Option also includes a ride to the ceremony in the Cinderella coach, costumed trumpeters heralding the couple’s arrival, and attendance by Mickey and Minnie Mouse characters dressed in formal attire. …” http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17972793/from/ET/ Wal-Mart news (I received the following email – today – sent to us from a friend of this ministry as they received it from Planned Parenthood. (NEW YORK CITY – In response to Planned Parenthood’s massive grassroots advocacy campaign “Fill My Pills Now,” Wal-Mart notified Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) today that it has revised its nationwide corporate policy with regard to emergency contraception. The new Wal-Mart policy ensures customers “will now receive their prescriptions or OTC products in store without discrimination (no harassment or lectures),” “without delay,” and “without judgment,” according to the Planned Parenthood survey that Wal-Mart returned to PPFA today.) http://ppfa.org/news-articles-press/politics-policy-issues/walmart-policy-13564.htm Dear … I want you to be among the first to know about a major victory Planned Parenthood just won. It’s a giant step forward in protecting women’s access to emergency contraception (EC) – [the morning after pill]. In recent weeks, Planned Parenthood activists fanned out across the nation checking, community by community, on access to EC at local pharmacies. Armed with evidence gathered by these Pill Patrol members, Planned Parenthood approached Wal-Mart asking it to clarify its policies on this crucial issue. We’ve just received word that Wal-Mart has now committed in writing to a nationwide corporate policy on emergency contraception. Under that policy, Wal-Mart will stock EC and dispense it without discrimination and without delay. Of course, we have to remain vigilant to make sure Wal-Mart puts this policy into practice. But our hard work has really paid off. And now, we’ve got to act quickly to build on this remarkable victory. There are major pharmacy chains that continue to threaten women’s health when it comes to access to EC. And today, fresh from our Wal-Mart victory, we’re zeroing in on the biggest holdout. It’s time to target Target. The first step is to gather more evidence – the same fact-based approach that worked so well in convincing Wal-Mart to act. And we need your help. Sign up now to be part of the Planned Parenthood Pill Patrol campaign. Visit Target stores in your community to check on the availability of emergency contraception. Make no mistake about it. We just won a huge victory for women’s health and for Planned Parenthood’s campaign for accessible birth control. Now Wal-Mart joins other women-friendly pharmacy chains like CVS, Eckerd’s, Walgreens, Rite Aid, and Kmart, all of which have agreed to do the right thing on access to EC. But our work won’t be done until Target and other pharmacy chains adopt policies that protect women’s health. Thank you so much for the effort and commitment that produced a Wal-Mart victory that will affect thousands of women’s lives. And thanks even more for your continued commitment to our efforts to protect women’s health. … Sincerely, Cecile Richards ===== God’s Word speaks into such darkness — “Jesus said ‘I am the resurrection and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. …'” [John 11:25-26] And, “I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee. For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them. And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are. While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled. And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. [John 17:6-16] “In the world there shall be tribulation but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” [John 16:33] “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. …” [Ephesians 6:10-18] ========================================== American Decency Association Bill Johnson, President P.O. Box 202 Fremont, MI 49412 PH: 231-924-4050 www.americandecency.org

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