If secularism is our competitor; what exactly are we competing for? The public square? Who cares how the deck chairs are arranged on the Titanic? Lane's reference to the mountains of influence reveals his NAR bonafides as the Seven Mountains Mandate is central to their dominionism. The areas he rattles off as being dominated by the world are indeed those seven mountains. Instead of wanting to bring the Gospel to the lost, Lane wants the church to fight for control of a dying world through these cultural mountains. Many of his ilk believes this conquering is required to facilitate the second coming of Christ. You might think that is crazy but is it that far away from erecting a billboard exclaiming that Donald Trump is the word made flesh among us? They are just different points on a sliding scale beloved. Idleman's fanciful notion is just silly. Everyone who enters politics abandons their ethics and compromises their principles. Jesus warned us that even a little leaven eventually leavens the entire batch. You cannot dance with the devil and think you will lead. Salt and light are accomplished through the Gospel, not partaking in the very evil we try to see people saved out of. The example of slavery is a perfect way to try and explain the folly of the NAR and folks such as Lane and Idleman. Slavery was bad and as an issue the church should stand against it. That does not mean preachers should have been preaching about it. That means Christians who have been properly taught the bible should know it is wrong. To interject politics is to interject carnality into the discussion. The problem with what Lane and Idleman espouse is that they confer righteousness upon one party even if all they do is rail against the other. The reality is that neither party cares about the cause of Christ. The Republican Party led the charge against slavery and just a couple generations later led us into the Great Depression. None are righteous, not even one.
"The Founding Fathers established the Bible as the anchor and cornerstone in order to judge, thereby inducing unity, structure and shape, which in due course joined a people together, and so fashioned a unique culture that came to be known as American Exceptionalism." -- David Lane
"We, like the mighty Roman Empire that collapsed centuries ago, are crumbling from within. There are people and groups who are strongly committed to the destruction of anything rooted in our nation's Christian heritage. They attempt to be "one nation 'above' God," rather than "one nation 'under' God." Scripture identifies this as foolishness, self-exaltation and arrogance--the downfall of nations." -- Shane Idleman
Another hallmark of NAR dominionism is a very poor understanding of American history. You can say those that settled this land were mostly committed biblically but not so with the Founding Fathers. For every "God-infused" quote I can find two against. Most were not born again believers either. Many were Deists, which believed in "a" god but denied Christ as the Son of God. Thomas Jefferson produced his own bible where he removed any mention of the deity of Jesus and removed all of his miracles. To the NAR they believe in a fantasyland where America was founded by people who looked like them, sounded like them and believed like them and that is as crazy as erecting a billboard in Missouri exclaiming the president is Jesus Christ. The Lanes and Idelmans simply wield facts they know so little about they embarrass themselves. The term American exceptionalism was first coined as a critique of America by Joseph Stalin. The "One Nation Under God" was not added to the Pledge of Allegiance until 1954 as a response to the red scare from rogue senator, Joseph McCarthy. So these terms had nothing to do with our founding as a nation. The NAR script needs for these lies to be true because then they pretend that the US was once under covenant with God as Israel before it and if we could just get back to behaving correctly then maybe God will stay His coming wrath. Spoiler alert! He will not. God does not care about the behavior modification of people who do not believe in Him to begin with. We will let Idleman close us out today:
"Make no mistake about it: We are witnessing the rapid deterioration of a nation right before our eyes. But there is hope: 2 Chronicles 7:14 calls out from the past with resounding clarity to America today: "If My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray, and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."' -- Shane Idleman
So sad. First of all, these verses are not meant to be applied today as they were written for a specific time for the people of Israel. But even if you insist, they are directed at the church beloved. The church must repent and pray. The church must seek His face and turn from its evil ways. The reason why the world is deteriorating is that the church has abandoned its role. Not as morality police or theocracy enforcers but as the source of the Gospel here on earth. The land is healed when the world sees the shining city on a hill. It is healed when the world sees the peculiar people who do not confer righteousness where it does not belong. I recognize that the MGGA Facebook group is as crazy as it gets but if you asked the average non-believer they would not see them so far off from Shane Idleman and David Lane and that is a real problem for the Gospel. 2020 is rapidly approaching and by all means pray and vote as you feel led. Just do not confer righteousness upon any man beloved. No man is the word made flesh and dwelt among us. We lean not unto the understanding of any man. We do not live out our faith by following any man. You may think these notions are obvious but the scale is starting to slide in the wrong direction and we need to correct it before it is too late. It is idolatry, plain and simple. The Gospel is already great. We just have to tell it again and let God be God.
Reverend Anthony Wade -- May 14, 2019
