Justice or Vengeance?

Race-baiter “Reverend” Al Sharpton can call himself “Reverend” all he wants.  However, I remember hearing Dr. Billy Graham state that he preferred not to be referred to as “Reverend,” as he did not feel worthy of such a title.  Sharpton certainly has no problem calling himself “Reverend.”  Of course, he comes nowhere close to the stature of a Billy Graham.  He has been calling for “justice” in Ferguson when what he really wants is vengeance.  He has chosen to ignore Romans 12:19, which reads Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.  If Officer Darren Wilson was wrong in his actions, Almighty God will cause him to suffer the consequences.  It is not up to Al Sharpton or the trouble-makers in Ferguson to do what God said that He will do.

The behavior of Sharpton, especially in the wake of the grand jury decision in Ferguson, MO tends to be more closely aligned with that of a false prophet/teacher than that of a “reverend.”  2 Peter 2:1-3 reads, But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves.  ²Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; ³and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.  Under the guise of “preaching” God’s word, he introduces destructive heresies, and many will follow this sensuality.  Without a doubt, Sharpton and his ilk are maligning the truth.

Galatians 5:19-21 reads, ¹⁹Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, ²⁰idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, ²¹envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.  Not only is Sharpton (as well as some of the so-called “pastors” in and around Ferguson) causing enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger (e.g. the rioting and looting), disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, carousing, and things like these, he is leading others to do the same.  It would be bad enough that Sharpton is condemning his own soul, but he is leading others, those who are ignorant of the scriptures, to do the same.

Romans 16:17-18 reads, ¹⁷Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them.  ¹⁸For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ but of their own appetites; and by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting.  Mr. Sharpton is causing dissensions throughout Ferguson, MO and other cities throughout the country.  The best thing people can do for themselves is to run away from Al Sharpton and his ilk, just as fast as their feet will carry them.  Otherwise, they will be sucked up into the morass that Sharpton and his ilk are leading the uninformed and scripturally ignorant.

After running away from these charlatans, the next thing the people of Ferguson need to do is follow 1 Timothy 2:8, which reads, ⁸Therefore I want the men in every place to pray, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and dissension.

What’s Wrong With Restoring Honor to America?

This past Saturday, August 28, Glenn Beck held the Restore Honor to America rally on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. Much of the liberal news media chose to ignore the facts. An example is one outlet that reported that Glenn Beck stood at “the very place” where Dr. Martin Luther King made his famous I Have a Dream speech. Actually, Glenn Beck stood a number of steps below where Dr. King spoke. In fact, Beck deliberately chose to stand below the place where Dr. King spoke, displaying the respect for Dr. King that he had already voiced. Misreporting by the liberal media is nothing new, and most people should expect it to happen by now.

Unfortunately, the Reverend Al Sharpton is following right along with the liberal news media, again not really a surprise. Still, when Mr. Sharpton chooses to misrepresent the rally, my concern moves from “Does Mr. Sharpton know the word of God?” to “Does Mr. Sharpton know the God of the word?” I’ll explain my statement below.

One of Mr. Beck’s remarks was quite simple. He said, “We must get the poison of hatred out of us.” Yet, Mr. Sharpton remarked, “They want to disgrace this day. This is our day, and we and we ain’t givin’ it away.” When Bill O’Reilly questioned Mr. Sharpton on his statement, O’Reilly said, “It sounds like Beck is talking about racial harmony,” Sharpton replied, “He (Glenn Beck) wants to make this a theocracy.” He apparently bases this statement on Beck’s call to restore America to Judeo-Christian principles. At no time did Mr. Beck call for a theocracy.

Simply abiding by those principles is a far cry from a theocracy. If, as a nation, we were abiding by those principles, this nation would be in much better shape than it is now. (By the way, Mr. Sharpton, if you truly believe and understand the word of God and know the God of the word, then you know that, soon and very soon, believers of Jesus Christ will be living in a theocracy, one in which the head is a King—Jesus Himself!)

My question for Reverend Sharpton is simple. Just how does a rally to restore honor to America disgrace the anniversary of Dr. King’s speech? I remember Dr. King, and I remember what he said in many of his speeches. I believe he would have been delighted to hear the things Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, and his niece said during the rally. The Restore Honor to America rally stood for many of the same things that Dr. King stood for and preached. Shame on Reverend Sharpton for deliberately mischaracterizing the rally and its principles! If anyone disgraced the anniversary of Dr. King's speech, it seems to me that it was Reverend Sharpton.

The reason I made the statement about Reverend Sharpton in my second paragraph is because the God of the word said (in Matthew 5), “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” Mr. Sharpton is hardly a peacemaker. He is much more a rabble-rouser than a peacemaker.

The God of the word also said (in the same chapter), “But let your statement be, ’Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no’; and anything beyond these is of evil (or from the evil one).” In other words, speak your words in such a way that you don’t need to swear an oath, because whatever you speak shall be taken as truth, because your word is always true. In my opinion, Mr. Sharpton has demonstrated that you cannot always take his yes as a yes nor take his no as a no.