The only hope this Christmas
It was my senior year of high school when John Lennon released his famous hit song “Imagine.” With its engaging melody throngs of young and old alike were swaying and singing along with lyrics like “Imagine there’s no heaven, it’s easy if you try, no hell below us, above us only sky.” Then there was this poignant line “nothing to kill or die for and no religion, too.” Certainly, the song influenced thousands if not millions of young people to yearn for some sort of utopia devoid of any divisiveness and without limitations on human conduct. If only that could be the case, then we all could be happy just doing our “thing” and living the good life with no restrictions and no condemnation, or so the song went.
Unfortunately, there are some distinct problems with the Lennon philosophy. First of all, none of us live in isolation, and the action of one individual has an effect, whether intentional or unintentional, on someone else. Secondly, if history has shown us anything at all, it is if left to our own individual cognizance, mankind has an inherent bent toward evil and not good. There is no better example of this bitter phenomenon than the Satan Temple in New Mexico.
Cosmopolitan Magazine highlights “non-religion” religion
It appears that John’s thoughts about “nothing to kill or die for” don’t apply to these folks certainly when it comes to children who are about to be born. Not only that, but Cosmopolitan magazine is touting the virtues of the Satanic rituals that take the life of a child in the process of elevating the Devil himself to a supreme status in their “non-religion” religion.
According to the Cosmo article, this New Mexico clinic draws its “inspiration” from landmark court rulings in favor of Christian business owners denying services to gays and transgenders based purely on religious principles. Their logic goes something like this: “we are a religion that practices satanic rituals involving the murder of unborn children. Therefore, the state cannot force us to stop providing this means of worship to those who want to have an abortion in this manner, even though they may not be Satan worshippers themselves.”
Cosmo writer Arielle Domb goes further to elucidate for us poor deplorables, “In reality, Satanism is a nontheistic faith in which TST’s roughly 1.5 million global members view Satan more like a mascot, one depicted not as a dark, omniscient deity but as a literary character — a venerable symbol of rebellion, rational inquiry, personal sovereignty, and resistance against tyranny.” Wouldn’t John Lennon be so proud to see that his non-religion utopia has come so far in the last five decades or so?
I grew up in the country with beef cattle and dairy cattle. In my time I’ve stepped in any number of cow piles and know well how much they stink. But this particular meadow muffin is of the rankest variety.
At Southern Evangelical Seminary we would agree that religions are not what they are promoted to be, particularly the false and dangerous narrative of the worship of the source of lies, death, and sorrow, Satan himself. On the contrary, the only salvation for our beloved country does not lie in any religious ritual but rather in a rebirth of a true relationship with Jesus Christ within the hearts of her inhabitants. The only way that these misguided souls can see through the lies of Satan is to experience the freedom of knowing Jesus as their Savior and Lord. Only then will the earthly lives of these precious children be given the protection they so desperately need and deserve.
Prayer this Christmas
The chorus of Lennon’s famous song goes like this: “You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one. I hope someday you’ll join us, and the world can live as one.” That is actually the prayer of Southern Evangelical Seminary for you and your family this Christmas. But we know that can only be accomplished in this world under the banner of the Lord of Lords and King of Kings. Just as surely as the Messiah came that first Christmas, He will return on clouds of joy in the eastern sky and then, and only then, will this small part of John Lennon’s song become a reality — but only for those who believe. Unfortunately for the other folks who don’t, the hell that John asked us to forget will become their reality for eternity. Therefore, in this Christmas season, I beg you with all that is in me to turn your heart toward the only truth that matters — the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
After a distinguished career as both a lawyer and a judge, Judge Phil Ginn retired as the Senior Resident Superior Court Judge for the 24th Judicial District in North Carolina. Over the course of his 22-year judicial career, he was privileged to hold court in almost 50% of the county seats in North Carolina. Currently, Judge Ginn serves as the president of Southern Evangelical Seminary.
