It is Appointed Unto Man Once to Die, and Then the Judgement

This past week, we saw three legends, Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett, and Ed McMahon all went to meet their maker. All three had fame and made a lot of money in their lifetime, though two died deeply in debt. Yet all three share the same fate: they will stand before a Holy God and face judgment for their actions, thoughts, even secrets.

In Hebrews 9:27-28, we read "and as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment." Here we see that everyone, even the rich and famous, will die and face judgment.

Romans 2:16 shows that God will not only judge our outward appearance and actions but also our secrets: "in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ..." You may be able to fool your friends, but you can't fool God. He knows all things and will judge even your secrets.

In 2 Corinthians 5:10-11, the Apostle Paul warns: "we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men..." We see here that we will be judged based on our works, whether good or bad and that this knowledge of a certain judgment and the terror of the Lord led the Apostle Paul to strongly persuade men to repent of their sins and call upon Jesus for Salvation.

In Romans 3, we find that there is none good, no, not one, and that we have all sinned and fallen short of God's glory. Knowing that we are not good, have fallen short of His glory, and face a certain judgment of our actions, thoughts, and secret, we have reason to fear, yet thankfully God offers hope. Romans 3 goes on to show that God has provided forgiveness for our sins and extended a peace treaty to us through the blood of Jesus Christ. Isaiah 53 shows us that God is able to offer you this forgiveness because Jesus took the punishment for your sins upon himself when he died on the cross. With the blood that Jesus shed when crucified, your sins can be washed white as snow.

How do you receive this forgiveness? Ask! Romans 10 tells us "that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." It really is that simple.

If you died today, right now, do you know where you will spend eternity? You can have assurance of salvation if you trust in Jesus as your Savior. Take a few moments, right now, to ask Him to forgive you of your sins and commit to live the rest of your life for Him.

Next, start reading the Bible, praying, and praising God, and find a Bible believing church to attend. If you live in Port Saint Lucie or Fort Pierce, you're welcome at Covenant Tabernacle. For all others, visit our website to watch our Sunday morning worship service streamed live from 10 AM - Noon and the recorded sermon on demand throughout the week.

Happy Father's Day - Calling All Fathers - Fulfill your Calling

We have an epidemic in America today. It isn't an epidemic of disease but a social malady, that of single parent households. Single parent households are a reality today's world. We need to support and pray for the mothers and fathers who are raising children by themselves, yet at the same time, we need to lift up the standard found in God's word of a two parent household comprised of a father and a mother. This traditional two parent household plays a huge role in shaping our children and our society.

In the 1980s, divorce was the number one cause of poverty for women. Sadly today, many men choose to father children out of wedlock, thus virtually guaranteeing that their children will either be killed by abortion or that their children and girlfriends would live lives of poverty. Fathers sometimes encourage, pay for, and/or coerce their girlfriends to have an abortion. Other times, fathers want to keep their children but have no say, yet fathers always have a say prior to conception. Being pro-life starts before conception. Being a good father does as well. Indeed, young men have a duty to abstain from sex prior to marriage and to love and be faithful to their wives in marriage. Making and sticking with this decision plays a huge economic role in raising children.

But the benefits of a father in the home don't stop with economics. Children who play rough with their fathers actually have more self control and are less likely to take out their aggression on others. Boys and girls who have a loving relationship with their fathers are less likely to engage in fornication or homosexuality. Fathers also provide firm discipline to help keep their children in line. Fathers push their children to achieve more and expose them to the business world, but the most important factor a father plays in raising his children is a spiritual one.

Of families where both parents bring their children to church, 76% of children attend church as adults. If only the father brings his children to church, the percent drops to 55%. If only the mother brings her children to church, only 19% stay in church, and a child who is not brought to church by either parent has only a 6% chance of attending church as an adult. This is why God instructs fathers in Deuteronomy 6:6-7 to diligently teach their children the law of God, and for those of us who haven't always followed God's commandments (and who has completely followed them), He instructs fathers in Psalm 78 to train their children to obey God's law that their children may obeyed God where their fathers disobeyed Him. That should give us all hope for the next generation, if we do our part.

To learn more, listen to my father's day sermon on the importance of fathers at Covenant Tabernacle's website.

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The National Day of Prayer - A Day of Humiliation, Repentance, and Fasting

Our Nation has a long history of calling upon God in the time of need. Our Pilgrim and Puritan forefathers as well as our nation's founding father all called for days of prayer and humiliation in times of local and national need. One such call came during the constitutional convention from Benjamin Franklin in 1787. At the time, the constitutional delegates could not agree on the terms of a constitution. With failure as the only other option, Franklin called our founding fathers to remember God's providential hand in the founding of America and call upon him even as our nations existence hung in the balance:

In this situation of this Assembly, groping as it were in the dark to find political truth, and scarce able to distinguish it when presented to us, how has it happened, Sir, that we have not hitherto once thought of humbly applying to the Father of lights to illuminate our understandings? In the beginning of the Contest with G. Britain, when we were sensible of danger we had daily prayer in this room for the divine protection. ”Our prayers, Sir, were heard, and they were graciously answered. All of us who were engaged in the struggle must have observed frequent instances of a Superintending providence in our favor. To that kind providence we owe this happy opportunity of consulting in peace on the means of establishing our future national felicity. And have we now forgotten that powerful friend? I have lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth- that God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid? We have been assured, Sir, in the sacred writings, that "except the Lord build the House they labour in vain that build it." I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without his concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better than the Builders of Babel: We shall be divided by our little partial local interests; our projects will be confounded, and we ourselves shall become a reproach and bye word down to future ages. And what is worse, mankind may hereafter from this unfortunate instance, despair of establishing Governments be Human Wisdom and leave it to chance, war and conquest.

I therefore beg leave to move, that henceforth prayers imploring the assistance of Heaven, and its blessings on our deliberations, be held in this Assembly every morning before we proceed to business, and that one or more of the Clergy of the City be requested to officiate in that service.^1.Our nation today hangs in the balance. As a nation, we have rejected God, His commandments, and His word. We've taught our children that their parents were monkeys who swung in a tree. We've removed the Bible, prayer, and the Ten Commandments from schools. We've forsaken the sanctity of the marriage bed for unbridled pleasure, and consequently, have turned to condoms and then abortion to silence the preborn witness to our sin. Indeed, we have slain over 52,000,000 pre-born children in our land. Even as the blood of Abel, their blood now cries from the ground for vengeance, and God will avenge! We need to turn back to God like never before in our nation. It is time for Americans to cry out to God in prayer and fasting on behalf of our nation. Join me May 7 for the National Day of Prayer as we humble ourselves, pray, seek God's face, and turn from our wicked ways.

2 Chronicles 7:13 14 - "When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, 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 heal their land." (NKJV)

1. Franklin’s Appeal for Prayer at the Constitutional Convention, 1787. http://www.wallbuilders.com/LIBissuesArticles.asp?id=98

Tax Tea Party Day - The Bible, Government, and Taxes - Who is America's Financial Savior?

America is in the most serious financial crisis since the Great Depression. Who will we turn to as our financial savior? Will we, like our founding fathers turn to God, or will we spurn the freedom their blood, sacrifice, and toil earned and turn to big government?

In answering this question we must first look at the results when we turn to big government. After the stock market crash that preceded the great depression, the US government under the leadership of Presidents Herbert Hoover and then Franklin D. Roosevelt intervened, and the results lengthened the great depression for 10 years. In an article entitled Another Great Depression? Economist Thomas Sowell citing the work of Richard Vedder and Lowell Gallaway, in their book "Out of Work" shows that the unemployment rate following the stock market crash of 1929 rose from 5% in November, one month after the crash, to 9% in December, but the rate steadily dropped each month thereafter until it reached 6.3% in June, 1930. Then the government intervention began, leading to unemployment rates above 20%!

In an editorial entitled Our Government Problem-Solvers, Sowell points out that the stock market crash of 1987 equaled that of 1929. What was Regan's Response? He did nothing! This allowed the market to correct and was followed by 20 years of economic growth.

President George W. Bush laid the groundwork for a march toward a larger, more socialistic government. President Barack Obama is now continuing this march to socialism as he seeks to implement the failed economic policies of FDR. I have criticized both presidents for their big government policies, and I have done so based on historical experience, the constitution, and more importantly, the Word of God!

When we look at the word of God, we see in Genesis 14:18-20 that Abraham paid at tithe (a 10th) to Melchizedek. When Israel asked for a king in 1 Samuel 8:11-20, God warned the Israelites that a king would take a tenth of all they own! Here, God defines tyranny. Any government that requires as much from you as God requires of you is a tyrannical government and a messianic state (i.e. a government that wants to be God for you by providing for all of your needs.) Of course, a government that provides all of your needs will tax the life blood from you! God's 10% standard seems like chump change when we pay taxes on our income, Social Security, Medicare, unemployment, telephone, cell phone, cable, utilities, gasoline, airfare, hotel, etc. Most American's would be glad if government (federal, state, and municipal) would stop at 10%. Many in America pay 40-50% of their income in taxes when you add up all of the taxes.

Why do we pay high taxes? Because we have demanded high levels of service from our government. High levels of service aren't free. They come at a steep price, high levels of taxation. Like the Israelites in Numbers 11:4-6, we have loved the benefit of slavery more than the benefits of freedom. Our nation's founding fathers would be appalled!

When we look at the purpose of government in the Bible, we see in Romans 13:1-7 that its purpose is limited to this: reward the righteous and punish the wicked. In other words, leave law abiding citizens alone and protect us from threats from without and within. Our founding fathers recognized this when they created a limited form of government. And with limited government comes limited taxes.

If we truly want freedom from excessive taxes, we must let our voices be heard. From the firehouse to the Whitehouse, we need to demand financial accountability, limited government, and limited taxes from our elected officials. And if they won't listen, we need to replace them!

There is a movement in America today called the Tax Tea Party Day. Deriving its name from the Boston Tea Party, these modern day Tax Tea Parties provide an opportunity for citizens to protest excessive government and excessive taxes. You can join tens of thousands of citizens in protesting high taxes April 15, 2009.

St. Lucie County residents can visit the following sites for more info:

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=63944670683

Meetup: http://www.meetup.com/Port-Saint-Lucie-Glenn-Beck-Meetup-Group

Indian River County residents can visit the following sites for more info:

Meetup: http://www.meetup.com/Indian-River-County-Tax-Day-Eve-Tea-Party/

Residents in other counties can visit the National Tax Day Tea Party Site: http://taxdayteaparty.com/.

Click here to watch my sermon on what the Bible says about the size scope and role of government and taxes: Who is America's Financial Savior? The Bible, Government, and Taxes - Tax Tea Party Day.  You can also watch past sermons, including Pro-Life sermons that call our nation to repentance at Covenant Tabernacle's uStream page.

There is no Fear of God Before Their Eyes

Sunday, March 8, in Maryville, IL, a pastor was gunned down while conducting a church service.  The same weekend, 4 shootings occurred on the streets of Ft. Pierce, Florida, most involving yound gang members and two resulting in death.  The words of the Psalmist (Psalm 36), echoed by the Apostle Paul in Romans 3 ring a true today as when originally penned, "There is no fear of God before their eyes!"

How is it that in America, churches are considering posting armed guards to protect parishoners and children are no longer safe to walk to the bus stops without the possibility of being gunned down?  How is it that there is no fear of God before their eyes?  I submit that it is because we have removed God and His laws from our society, our churches, our families, and our lives!  We no longer teach children in public schools that they are created by God, in His images, and that He has a special plan for their lives.  We now teach them that they happened by chance (or random mutation), and consequently, their lives have no real purpose or plan. In 1962, the Supreme Court removed prayer for public schools.  In 1963, the court removed the Bible from education of children in public schools.  In 1980, the Supreme Court, which has the Ten Commandments engraved on it's doors, removed the Ten Commandments from schools.

But I submit to you that long before we removed God, the Bible, and the Ten Commandments from our society, we removed Him from our churches, families, and lives.  Acording to the Barna Institute, only 9% of "born again Christians" have a Biblical Worldview.  The percentage drops to 7% of all Christians and sinks to 2% of mainline denominations (Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, and Episcopal) and a mere .5% for Roman Catholics.  This is pathetic.  Today's Christian "doesn't have time to read the Bible or pray" but will sit for hours on end in front of a Television set being conformed to this world!

If we are to save America, we must get right with God!  We must read (and love - Psalm 119) His word and law, and we must "humble ourselves and pray, and seek His face, and turn from our wicket ways" so that He can hear from heaven, forgive our sins, and heal our land!  II Chronicles 7:13-14.

If you haven't done so yet, visit Covenant Tabernacle's website and watch my recent sermon entitled "There is no Fear of God Before Their Eyes".  You can also watch past sermons, including Pro-Life sermons that call our nation to repentance at Covenant Tabernacle's uStream page.

Is Secular Humanism Neutral Concerning God and Religion

The issue is not whether schools will include religion or remain neutral. Secular Humanism as mentioned in the earlier posts is a religion!

Charles Darwin is still one of the most revered secular humanists. Prior to Darwinian evolution, students were taught that they were created by God: hence, they believed their lives had a purpose. Today, students are taught that their ancestors swung from trees and ate bananas and that they happened by chance, not design: hence, their life has no purpose or design. This has laid the foundation against a belief in God and has led to feelings of despair and worthlessness in the hearts of America's youth.

Another famous secular humanist is Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood. She founded PP to remove human weeds (African Americans) from our society. She also aggressively promoted sexual promiscuity among young people and longed for the day when a woman would have the right to pay to have her child killed while still inside her womb.

Another notion raised earlier is that individuals don't need God or religion to be good. The question here is who defines good. Some people believe that it's good to steal the belongings of others. A man who lives in my neighborhood is on the sex offender's list because he felt it was proper to abuse another sexually. I have neighbors who believe that wife swapping is OK. If all parties agree, who's to say it's wrong? What if a father and daughter or a brother and sister wanted to have a consensual sexual relationship? Who's to say it's wrong? What about NAMBLA (the North American Man Boy Love Association)? If a man and a minor boy want to have a consensual sexual relationship, who's to say it's wrong?

With secular humanism, you invariably have a lowering of the standards of society -- because the standard, God's Law (the Ten Commandments and the Bible) has been replaced with the idea that I can decide for myself what is right and what is wrong but what if I'm Hitler? What if I'm Stalin? Who's to say I'm wrong?

Our nation was founded by Christians who believed in the standard of the Bible, God's Law, and the Ten Commandments. They believed in public, government sponsored calls for prayer and humiliation before God. They believed in publicly funding education so that our nation's children could be able to read the Bible.

Either we will choose God's word, which doesn't change, or we will choose secular humanism, which allows every man, woman, and child to decide for themselves. With the former, we have respect for God, life, and property. With the latter, we have the slippery slope of every lowering morals and standards we now find ourselves in.

You can choose to do things your own way if you so desire, but do know that there is a price to pay for such a choice.

"The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 6:23.

For sermons on secular humanism, Darwinism, and the Bible, visit Covenant Tabernacle's website.

We Need To Put Prayer Back in Public Schools

From the founding of our country, until the 1960s, the Bible, prayer, and the Ten Commandments played a significant role in our public school system. In fact, the reason our founding fathers started public schools was so that children could be taught to read the Bible. In 1962 in Engel v. Vitale, the US Supreme Court removed prayer for public schools. In 1963 in Abington v. Schempp, the court removed the Bible from the public schools. In 1980 in Stone v. Graham, the court, which has the Ten Commandments engraved on it's doors, removed the Ten Commandments from schools.

In the 1960s, the biggest problems schools faces were talking in class, chewing gum, and truancy. Today, our schools deal with drug and alcohol abuse, rampant sexual promiscuity (and the pregnancy, STIs - Sexually Transmitted Infections, and abortion that comes with such behavior), and violence, including rape, gang activity, and even mass murder.

Are our schools better off without God? You be the judge.

We need to Put Prayer Back in Public Schools!

For sermons on the judicial activism that removed prayer, the Bible, and the Ten Commandments from public schools and brought us abortion on demand and homosexual marriage in Massachusetts, visit http://www.covenanttabernacle.com/covenant_tabernacle_radio.html.

Port St. Lucie Ministers Call on Port St. Lucie to Allow Nativity and Menorah on City Property

In Light of Yesterday’s Supreme Court Decision, Port St. Lucie Ministers Call on Port St. Lucie to Allow Nativity and Menorah on City Property 

Contact: Rev. Al Albright, 772-879-7196

Contact: Pastor Bryan Longworth, 772-408-4356

Yesterday, he US Supreme Court ruled unanimously in the case of Pleasant Grove City v. Summum, that cities can display religious articles paid for by private donations.  Port St. Lucie ministers Al Albright and Bryan Longworth now call upon the city of Port St. Lucie and surrounding municipalities to allow a Menorah and a Nativity to be displayed in front of city hall as a part of holiday festivities.  Albright and Longworth will raise the money for the displays so that no tax money is required. 

In the case of Pleasant Grove City v. Summum, the US Supreme Court unanimously upheld the right of government entities to display copies of the Ten Commandments and other religious symbols that are funded by private donations.  According to the ACLJ which represented Pleasant Grove City, “The decision gives government the right to speak for itself and the ability to communicate on behalf of its citizens.  It's a significant decision that clears the way for government to express its views and its history through the selection of monuments - including religious monuments and displays.”  (Click here for a full copy of the decision.)

Reverend Al Albright previously gathered petitions in support of displaying a Menorah and Nativity at city hall and on February 26, 2007, asked the Port St. Lucie city council to allow such a display.  (Click here to obtain a copy of the minutes from the February 26 meeting.)  At the February 26, 2007 meeting, the city council did not make a motion on Albrights petition.

“In this case, the US Supreme court supported and confirmed our nation’s history which has allowed the display of religious symbols from its founding.  In fact, the US Supreme Court itself has the Ten Commandments engraved on its doors and above the judicial bench,” Longworth observed.

“The city attorney previously expressed concern that displaying a Menorah and Nativity at city hall could open the city up to a lawsuit.  This case clearly shows that local governments have a right to display religious symbols that are funded by private donations.  In light of this case, the City of Port St. Lucie has not excuse not to allow a Menorah and Nativity,” Albright said.

Reverend Albright and Pastor Longworth now plan to ask the City Council to pass an ordinance allowing  a Menorah and a Nativity to be displayed as a part of holiday festivities.  Albright and Longworth are also raising money from local churches, synagogues, businesses, and citizens to fully fund these symbols so that no tax money is required.

Rev. Albright is a former chaplain from Pittsburgh.  Pastor Longworth is the associate pastor of Covenant Tabernacle in Port St. Lucie.  Pastor Longworth helped lead opposition to the St. Lucie County School District’s condom education program.  Longworth also ran for and won (by nearly a 20% margin) a race for St. Lucie County Republican State Committeeman for St. Lucie County, but the Republican Party of Florida denied him his seat. Rev. Albright and Pastor Longworth are available for public comment on this issue.

Visit our Church website: www.CovenantTabernacle.com where my dad, Pastor Chuck Longworth call the church and America to repent of her sins so that true revival and reformation can happen.  It's not too late for God's people, who are call by His name, to humble themselves,pray, seek His face, and turn from their wicked ways, so that God can hear from heaven and once again bless America.  

For other messages on revival and pro-life, visit Covenant Tabernacle's uStream.tv page and tune in for our worship service each Sunday streamed live from 10 AM - 12 noon at www.CovenantTabernacle.com.

Happy Valentine’s Day

While others slept in this morning, my kids and I got up to make my wife breakfast in bed.  (She made it easy for us by preparing the biscuit dough and leaving directions.)  Our sacrifice pales in comparison with those of Jim, Mary, Cheryl, and the others who faithfully get up each Saturday as early as 5:00 AM to minister to women and their preborn children at the abortion mill in Ft. Pierce.  This morning, on a day meant for love, 10-20 preborn children in Ft. Pierce will leave this earth without every knowing the warm embrace of their mothers.  They will be victims of abortion.  Nationally, the numbers will be more like 8,000 – 10,000.  Of their mothers, who also are victims, 10% will suffer immediate complications.  For 2%, the complications will be serious.  They will have a higher chance of committing suicide, a higher risk of breast cancer, dying from homicide, ectopic pregnancy, complications in subsequent pregnancies, and the likelihood of later bearing a handicapped child among others.  They will also go through life without the opportunity to hold and care for their child(ren).  This often leads to depression and post abortion stress syndrome.  (See http://www.afterabortion.org/physica.html and http://www.afterabortion.org/complic.html.)  The women and men who have been through abortion need to know someone love them.

On Valentine’s Day, in 1990, I knelt in prayer with 17 other Christians on the sidewalk in front of Atlanta’s Fem Center abortion mill.  We weren’t blocking the sidewalk, raising our voices, intimidating anyone, or causing a disturbance.  We simply knelt in quiet prayer for the moms, dads, and their preborn children.  Atlanta police officers soon arrived, and much to our surprise, carted us off to jail for “disorderly conduct.”  I spent the next 18 days in jail with Joseph Foreman, a national leader with Operation Rescue, Chet Gallagher, a former Las Vegas police sergeant who lost his job after he joined rescuers at the door of an abortion mill instead of arresting them, and other courageous men and women.  Among the women was Karen Black who has revolutionized the ministry of sidewalk counseling.

We were moved from filthy jail cell to filthy cell until we were moved to the Key Road City Jail where hundreds of Christians, including Operation Rescue founder Randall Terry, were held in 1988 after being arrested for peacefully protecting preborn children from abortion.  While in jail, we (the men) were thrown into solitary confinement twice for daring to hold Bible studies!  What a witness is was to the other inmates to sing Amazing Grace as we marched to solitary confinement.

In court, Jay Sekulow defended us.  He won the case which helped give him national notoriety.  We later sued the city and won an out of court settlement that required the City of Atlanta not arrest Christians on peacefully praying on the sidewalks in the future.

This summer, I had the pleasure of taking this picture in front of the Fem Center.  As you can see, the building is for sale.  Women and children will no longer be hurt and killed in this building!

Moms, Dads, and Their Preborn Children Need Your Love

Valentine’s Day is a day to share love.  We need to share love with our spouses and children, but let us remember that moms, dads, and their preborn children need someone to love them as well.  Be the one who loves them!

"Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends. (John 15:13 NKJV)

Be a friend to those in need!

Indian River Pregnancy Centers

CareNet Pregnancy Services of IRC
1503 24th St
Vero Beach, FL 32960
Phone: 772-569-7939

St. Lucie County Pregnancy Centers

CareNet of the Treasure Coast
8432 S US Highway 1
Port St. Lucie, FL  34952
772-871-2211
Partner: http://www.carenetfriends.com
Client: http://www.carenettc.com

Pregnancy Care Center
1119 Delaware Avenue
Fort Pierce, FL 34950
772-489-9702
Partner: http://www.ourpcc.com
Client: www.thinkingaboutabortion.co

Martin County Pregnancy Centers

CareNet of the Treasure Coast
5569 SE Federal Highway
Stuart, FL 34997
772-283-2911
Partner: http://www.carenetfriends.com
Client: http://www.carenettc.com

Lifeline of Martin Co.
933 Lincoln Avenue
Stuart, FL 34996
772-286-4670

Pastor Bryan Longworth
Your Conservative Rep
View Pro-Life Sermons at Our UStream page