396: GOD'S TIMING

Today a new video called 'God's Timing' was uploaded. It is the 4th video in a series of videos being created for the 500th year Commemoration of the Protestant Reformation. It is now available to watch on the youtube channel.  There are more videos being created to complete this series about the Protestant Reformation. A new installment of videos will then be created focusing on the Restoration and then a final series about the future of Christianity. They will all be posted here on this website:

Here is link for Part 04: God's Timing

A friend of mine just sent me the new release that Chaplain Gavin Ashenden, a chaplain to the Queen of England just resigned from his high religious position. Just like Martin Luther and other men of courage, he stood up for the truth and his convictions. I admire such men of courage. Here is an excerpt from a news article that is very interesting.

Nine years ago I as appointed as a Chaplain to the Queen. Last week, as the press has reported, I resigned.I had expected to enjoy the honour of the office for another 8 years – until I was 70.I was sorry to give it up.I resigned in order to be able to speak out more freely about the struggle that Christianity is facing in our culture.When in the 1950’s Macmillan was supposedly asked what as Prime minister he most feared, he replied “events dear boy- events”.I had no idea that there were plans afoot by a Scottish Cathedral to ‘reach out to Muslims’ by scrapping a Bible reading from their worship on the Feast of the Epiphany, (when Christ’s Lordship is celebrated as the Light of the World greeted by Persian travelling mathematicians,) and replacing it with a part of the Koran that denied Jesus was the Son of God, Word made flesh. But when it did happen, it represented such a serious repudiation of allegiance to Christ and the Gospels, that it could not be left unchallenged.

...

We live in a period of serious ignorance about faith and religion. For the last forty years, teachers have been relentlessly teaching that everything is relative. It has been part of an assault on the Christian claims that there are moral absolutes. I was faced with the choice of either keeping my royal honour, and not creating ripples on the surface of the body politic by speaking out; or resigning the honour so that I could comment freely on issues of the day that I considered required a Christian voice. I’ve been speaking out for a while now, and stretching the comfort zone of the two roles to a place where one had to give way to the other.

As so often in life, as Jesus warns us, we have to choose which god we serve. During this last week, I found I had come to a moment when I had to make a choice. In the Christian life, there are times when one has to renounce once kind of honour in the hope of gaining a different kind of honour.

395: THE PROTESTANT REFORMATION DISCUSSED IN THE 2017 PRIESTHOOD LESSON MANUAL

Below is the cover for the new priesthood lesson manual for 2017. This year's LDS curriculum will involve studying the life and teachings of President Gordon B. Hinckley. When I saw the cover of the manual I immediately noticed the large portrait on the wall looming behind President Hinckley. No, it is not portrait of Jesus Christ, nor even of Joseph Smith.. but it is a painting of Brigham Young. Anyway.. thought that was interesting, but I digress.

The first lesson in the manual is on "The Restoration of the Gospel—The Dawning of a Brighter Day". Ironically one of the main points in the lesson is about the Reformation. Here is an excerpt from the manual found on page 3 sections 2.

Section 2: 

The Renaissance and Reformation helped prepare the way for the restoration of the gospel.

Somehow, in that long season of darkness, a candle was lighted. The age of Renaissance brought with it a flowering of learning, art, and science. There came a movement of bold and courageous men and women who looked heavenward in acknowledgment of God and His divine Son. We speak of it as the Reformation.

Reformers worked to change the Christ church, notably such men as Luther, Hus, Zwingli, and Tyndale. These were men of great courage, some of whom suffered cruel deaths because of their beliefs. Protestantism was born with its cry for reformation. When that reformation was not realized, the reformers organized churches of their own. They did so without priesthood authority. Their one desire was to find a niche in which they might worship God as they felt He should be worshiped.

While this great ferment was stirring across the Christian world, political forces were also at work. Then came the American Revolutionary War, resulting in the birth of a nation whose Constitution declared that government should not reach its grasping hand into matters of religion. A new day had dawned, a glorious day. Here there was no longer a state church. No one faith was favored above another.

After centuries of darkness and pain and struggle, the time was ripe for the restoration of the gospel. Ancient prophets had spoken of this long-awaited day.

All of the history of the past had pointed to this season. The centuries with all of their suffering and all their hope had come and gone. The Almighty Judge of the nations, the Living God, determined that the times of which the prophets had spoken had arrived. Daniel had foreseen a stone which was cut out of the mountain without hands and which became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.

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Most are not aware that this year is the 500th year commemoration of the Reformation. It was on October 31, 1517 that Martin Luther began the reformation after publishing his 95 Thesis. A new website was posted today with a wealth of information  about Martin Luther as well as all of the other key players in the Reformation. Here is the link to the website:

 www.christianreformation500years.info  

In addition to numerous essays, the website contains short videos vignettes. Below are links to the first installment of 3 videos commemorating the Protestant Reformation. Each video is about 4-5 minutes in length. More videos are underway to be posted on the youtube channel. Subscribers will be notified when new videos are uploaded.

Here are the three videos.