BLOOMBERG
The defeat of Republican Roy Moore in Alabama’s U.S. Senate race by Democrat Doug Jones was a stunning rebuke to the GOP’s anti-establishment wing led by Steve Bannon and a major political embarrassment for President Donald Trump.
A Japanese court overturned a ruling that allowed a nuclear reactor in the country’s south to operate, frustrating the government’s push to bring online dozens of plants shut in the wake of the 2011 Fukushima disaster.
U.S. inflation picked up in November thanks to a jump in energy prices yet unexpectedly cooled when excluding food and fuel costs, which could factor into Federal Reserve discussions this week on how fast to raise interest rates.
AP Top Stories
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday refused to hear an appeal by a Georgia security guard who said she was harassed and forced from her job because she is a lesbian, avoiding an opportunity to decide whether a federal law that bans gender-based bias also outlaws discrimination based on sexual orientation.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s mistreatment of political prisoners is at least as egregious as that carried out in World War II concentration camps, according to a former international judge who survived Auschwitz.
A U.S. federal judge in the criminal conspiracy trial of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy and three other men on Monday warned that prosecutors’ failure to produce documents that could support defense arguments may lead to a mistrial.
Tens of thousands of Lebanese and Palestinians attended a Hezbollah rally in Beirut on Monday, where the militant group’s leader vowed to return its focus to Israel after years of fighting in Syria’s civil war.
South Korean President Moon Jae-In began his first state visit to China on Wednesday to soothe relations strained by the US deployment of an anti-missile system that has angered Beijing.
On December 5, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Foreign Ministry announced the creation of a joint cooperation and coordination committee with Saudi Arabia. This committee provides an official forum for Saudi Arabia-UAE security collaboration outside the auspices of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Immediately after the UAE’s statement, many Western and Arab analysts described the committee’s creation as a major escalation of the Qatar crisis and a critical step towards a strengthened Riyadh-Abu Dhabi alliance.
Five years after a gunman killed 20 children and six adults at a Connecticut elementary school, advocates who are disappointed with the failure of efforts to limit access to firearms are changing their strategy. Instead of pressuring lawmakers to push new gun-control measures through the U.S. Congress, volunteers from groups including Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America are now running for office themselves. Nine of 13 volunteers trained by the group ran for office this year and won seats, ranging from New Hampshire state representative to city council member in West University Place, Texas. Fourteen more have already declared their intentions to run for office in 2018, seeking seats in Congress, state legislatures and local government, all running as Democrats.
A Chinese diplomat in Washington recently threatened that China would invade Taiwan if the U.S. Navy sent a ship to visit the democratic island, something that Congress has called upon the Pentagon to do in 2018. Is this just empty rhetoric? Or does it reflect Beijing’s actual intentions? It’s actually a bit of both.
Poland’s media regulator fined a private news channel nearly $420,000 for what it alleged was unfair reporting during a political crisis last year, but some saw the penalty as an attack on press freedom.
One of the best meteor showers of the year will streak across the sky this Wednesday night and Thursday morning. At its peak, the Geminid Meteor Shower can produce up to 120 multicolored meteors, which is why it’s so fun to watch, despite the nippy weather in the Northern Hemisphere.
Underlying U.S. consumer inflation slowed in November amid weak healthcare costs and the biggest drop in apparel prices since 1998. The moderation in underlying prices will likely attract the attention of Federal Reserve officials meeting on Wednesday for a second day. There are concerns among some policymakers that the factors behind the tame inflation could prove more persistent.
BBC
The leaders of 57 Muslim nations have called on the world to recognise “the State of Palestine and East Jerusalem as its occupied capital”.
Merriam-Webster, a leading US dictionary has named “feminism” as its word of 2017 following a surge in online searches.
The Thomas Fire in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties has consumed 234,000 in just over a week. Firefighters reported that 20% of the blaze had been contained by Tuesday morning. Destroying 900 properties, including 690 homes, it has become the fifth largest wildfire in recorded state history. Some 94,000 residents have been displaced in the last week. Around 7,000 firefighters have been deployed to fight the blaze.
The owner of Westfield shopping centers is being bought for $24.7bn in a deal that will see the malls launched in new markets.
WND
As one big store closes, it can take several smaller stores along with it like a house of cards. Experts predict that a quarter of American malls will close in five years — around 300 out of 1,100 that currently exist.
The Orange County, California, district attorney’s office has announced that two baby-body-parts dealers investigated after a series of undercover videos about the abortion industry’s profits on fetal tissue have been ordered to close down.
The Briefing — Wednesday, December 13, 2017
1) A political earthquake in Alabama
New York Times (Alexander Burns and Jonathan Martin) –
Once a Long Shot, Democrat Doug Jones Wins Alabama Senate Race
2) The limits of conservative tolerance on questions of character
3) Elections have consequences—in the Senate and in the womb
4) Secular attempts to resolve the sin problem with therapy
New York Times (Benedict Carey) –
Therapy for Sexual Misconduct? It’s Mostly Unproven
5) New investigation that threatens to tell the truth about Planned Parenthood
New York Times (Nicholas Fandos) –
Justice Dept. Investigating Fetal Tissue Transfers by Planned Parenthood and Others
News – 12/13/2017
President Trump Merits Prestigious “Friend of Zion” Award
The Friends of Zion Museum presented US President Donald Trump with the Friends of Zion Award at the White House on Monday for his uncompromising support of Israel, epitomized by his recent historic recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s eternal capital. “We believe no American president in history has done more to defend the Jewish people in the United Nations,” Evans said of Trump.
Earth’s mysterious hum recorded underwater for 1st time
Earth is “humming.” You can’t hear it, but it’s ongoing. And now scientists have measured that persistent hum from the ocean floor, for the first time. Most of the movements in the ground under our feet aren’t dramatic enough for people to feel them. Since the 1990s, researchers have known that Earth is constantly vibrating with microseismic activity, known as “free oscillation,”
Russia Sharply Expanding Nuclear Arsenal, Upgrading Underground Facilities
Russia is aggressively building up its nuclear forces and is expected to deploy a total force of 8,000 warheads by 2026 along with modernizing deep underground bunkers, according to Pentagon officials. The 8,000 warheads will include both large strategic warheads and thousands of new low-yield and very low-yield warheads to circumvent arms treaty limits and support Moscow’s new doctrine of using nuclear arms early in any conflict.
Switzerland Is Well-Prepared For Civilizational Collapse
More than any other country, Switzerland’s ethos is centered around preparing for civilizational collapse. The Swiss have been tunneling the Alps for hundreds of years creating innumerable secret hideaways for people and stores.
Tillerson says U.S. ready to talk to North Korea; Japan wants pressure
Tillerson’s new diplomatic overture comes nearly two weeks after North Korea said it had successfully tested a breakthrough intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that put the entire United States mainland within range of its nuclear weapons. “Let’s just meet,” Tillerson said in a speech to Washington’s Atlantic Council think tank on Tuesday.
Iran calls on Muslim nations to step up efforts against Trump’s Jerusalem decision
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday all Muslim nations should work together to defend the rights of Palestinians against Donald Trump’s decision last week to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Israeli security forces arrest senior Hamas lawmaker in the West Bank
Israeli security forces arrested senior Hamas lawmaker in the West Bank Hassan Yousef on Wednesday morning, an IDF spokesman said. Yousef’s arrest came just over three months after Israel released him from prison, where he was held for nearly two years under administrative detention. A Shin Bet spokesman said Yousef, one of Hamas’s founders, was detained for his “involvement in advancing and promoting Hamas activities” in the West Bank, without elaborating.
Vice President Pence to visit Western Wall on Sunday
United States Vice President Mike Pence will visit the Western Wall on Sunday soon after arriving in the country for a two day visit, sources familiar with details of his trip confirmed on Wednesday. The visit to the site will come seven months after US President Donald Trump became the first sitting US president to visit the site. Trump visited the Western Wall with his family, but was not accompanied by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu…
Mogherini: Jerusalem should be shared between Israelis and Palestinians
After stating for a week that the final status of Jerusalem should be determined by Israelis and Palestinians…the European Union’s high representative for foreign affairs said…that she has committed to the Palestinian Authority she will work toward its division…Federica Mogherini said she “guaranteed” in a phone call with PA President Mahmoud Abbas that Europe would work to ensure the city is shared by Israel and Palestinians in a future two-state solution.
Yemen war: Air strikes on rebel prison in Sanaa ‘kill 30’
At least 30 people are reported to have been killed in Saudi-led coalition air strikes on a rebel military police camp in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa. Most of the dead were said to be detainees at a prison inside the camp. A guard said an initial attack damaged one wing of the jail, prompting some inmates to try to escape. Then another strike almost demolished the building.
Erdogan: World should recognise Jerusalem as Palestinian capital
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has urged leaders of Muslim nations to recognise Jerusalem as the “occupied capital of the Palestinian state”. Addressing a summit of the Organisation for Islamic Co-operation, he said the US decision to recognise the city as Israel’s capital was “null and void”. Mr Erdogan also again accused Israel of being a “state of terror”.
Russia Sharply Expanding Nuclear Arsenal, Upgrading Underground Facilities
Russia is aggressively building up its nuclear forces and is expected to deploy a total force of 8,000 warheads by 2026 along with modernizing deep underground bunkers, according to Pentagon officials. The 8,000 warheads will include both large strategic warheads and thousands of new low-yield and very low-yield warheads to circumvent arms treaty limits and support Moscow’s new doctrine of using nuclear arms early in any conflict.
Bahrain interfaith group pays unprecedented visit to Israel
An interfaith group from the Gulf state of Bahrain is paying an unprecedented public visit to Israel this week, receiving a warm welcome but generating uproar across the Arab world. The visit comes at a time when Israel is boasting of warming, albeit covert, ties with moderate Arab countries in a shared front against archrival Iran.
Democrat Jones wins U.S. Senate seat in Alabama in blow to Trump
Democrat Doug Jones won a bitter fight for a U.S. Senate seat in deeply conservative Alabama on Tuesday, dealing a political blow to President Donald Trump in a race marked by sexual misconduct accusations against Republican candidate Roy Moore. The stunning upset makes Jones the first Democrat elected to the U.S. Senate from Alabama in a quarter-century and will trim the Republicans’ already narrow Senate majority to 51-49…
Kremlin calls U.S. allegations of subversive activity ‘groundless’
The Kremlin said on Wednesday that U.S. allegations it was involved in a new generation of warfare, including internal political subversion, against the United States, were groundless and not backed by facts. White House national security adviser H.R. McMaster made the allegations on Tuesday.
Surveillance AI Now Has 2 Billion Faces In DataBase From Shanghai Subway
A Chinese company has developed a special artificial intelligence that has gathered over 2 billion faces in its database since its surveillance camera was installed in a subway in Shanghai. The Orwellian AI algorithm named Dragonfly Eye was developed by Shanghai-based tech firm Yitu.
DOJ escalates fight over transgenders in Armed Forces
The Department of Justice has escalated to a higher court the legal fight over whether the U.S. military will be forced to follow a district judge’s agenda and accept transgender recruits starting Jan. 1, arguing to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals that denying a delay could “harm military readiness.”
Major world leader threatens to wipe out Jews
President Obama praised Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as “a man of action” and one of the five world leaders with whom he had the strongest bond….But at a convention of his ruling party Sunday, Erdogan invoked a Muslim hadith…that made clear his view of Jews and the state of Israel, according to dissident Turkish journalist Abdullah Bozkurt, the Investigative Project on Terrorism reported.
Netanyahu: Iran eyes sending 80,000 Shiite fighters to ME
In press briefing before concluding European trip, PM Netanyahu says Iran seeks to shore up Syrian entrenchment, intends to use 80,000 Shiite fighters to ‘spark religious wars anew’; in prior statement to 28 EU foreign ministers, Netanyahu chides them to ‘stop pampering Palestinians’, says Palestinians need ‘reality check.’
BOMBSHELL: Evidence Of CIA Role In Forging Obama’s Birth Certificate
Infowars.com has learned former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s investigators had discovered bombshell evidence that the CIA and or other government entities illegally hacked into Hawaii Department of Health records searching for birth records on Barack Obama.
Pope Francis: Satan’s Been Misunderstood, Let’s Give Him A Chance
It’s strange to think that the Pope and the College of Cardinals are actually Satanists, but if you look at how the Pope continually facilitates the New World order agenda, it’s not really that far of the fetched.
TRUMP DECLARES: “We’ve already started the process” of ending Visa Lottery that allowed NYC jihad murderer to enter US – Muslims are outraged
And not a moment too soon. “Trump: We’ve Already Started Process of Ending Visa Lottery that Allowed Suspected NYC Terrorist into U.S.,” by John Binder, Breitbart, December 8, 2017: President Donald Trump says his administration has “already started the process” of ending the Diversity Visa…
‘Unknown’ soldiers: US won’t disclose location of thousands of its troops
The White House has omitted, from a report prepared for Congress, the number of US troops fighting around the globe, including in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. The expunged data coincides with a Pentagon report listing the location of 44,000 military personnel as “unknown”.
Hitler-themed pony in school assignment shocks parents in Illinois
Eighth-grade students in northeastern Illinois were given a task involving a pony with a Nazi swastika, along with a Hitler-style haircut and moustache. Parents were not impressed with the school’s methods, forcing it to apologize.
Evidence points to Bitcoin being an NSA-engineered psyop to roll out one-world digital currency
…it’s now becoming increasingly evident that Bitcoin may be a creation of the NSA and was rolled out as a “normalization” experiment to get the public familiar with digital currency. Once this is established, the world’s fiat currencies will be obliterated in an engineered debt collapse (see below for the sequence of events), then replaced with a government approved cryptocurrency with tracking of all transactions and digital wallets by the world’s western governments.
EX CIA Chief: I Was Part Of New World Order’s Plan To Remove Donald Trump
An ex CIA spy chief has blown the whistle, while inspiring other intelligence figures to do the same, admitting his leading role in on waging political war on president Donald Trump.
George Soros Caught Faking Documentary to Smear Donald Trump for Sexual Abuse
…Multiple women have now come forward accusing the president of sexual abuse, but now evidence has emerged that Soros’s film company has been paying them to make false statements against the POTUS.
President Trump Withdraws U.S. from Participation in Globalist Migration Compact
…The Trump administration has decided to withdraw from participation in the United Nations Global Compact on Migration, representing another significant departure from the global governance policies of the Obama administration.
The cryptocurrency revolution is the biggest story in the financial world right now. In recent days I have spent a lot of time writing about Bitcoin, but the truth is that all of the major cryptocurrencies have been on an unprecedented run lately. In fact, some of them have been rising much faster in price than Bitcoin has. So even though Bitcoin is now worth almost 18 times as much as it was at the beginning of 2017, that actually pales in comparison to how fast Litecoin has been rising. Of course not all of these cryptocurrencies will eventually succeed. There are about 1000 different cryptocurrencies in existence at the moment, and most of them will inevitably fail. But for now virtually every cryptocurrency is soaring, and the total market cap for all cryptocurrencies combined is rapidly approaching half a trillion dollars. (Read More…)
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ZeroHedge Frontrunning: December 13
- Democrat wins Senate seat in Alabama in blow to Trump (Read More)
- Capital Journal: With Alabama Loss, Trump and GOP Face Political Reckoning (Read More)
- Democratic Victory Stirs GOP Anxiety Over Midterm Elections (Read More)
- Fed Expected to Raise Rates (Read More)
- With rate hike in the bag, Fed may hint at Trump effect on economy (Read More)
- Fed 2018 Dots in Focus for Yellen Swan Song: Decision Day Guide (Read More)
- GOP Eyes Cut for Top Earners, 21% Corporate Rate in Tax Plan (Read More)
- EU parliament backs starting next phase of Brexit talks (Read More)
- Stocks Struggle Ahead of Fed Meeting; Bonds Fall: Markets Wrap (Read More)
- The date for next year’s Italian general election has been set: reports (Read More)
- GOP to Grill Rosenstein on Anti-Trump ‘Bias’ in Mueller’s Probe (Read More)
- This Electric Truck Will Probably Beat Tesla’s to Market (Read More)
- As U.S. Unwinds Web Rules, Industry’s Voice Echoes the Loudest (Read More)
- Manhattan luxury condo sales skew apartment prices: survey (Read More)
- Traders See No End to the Dollar’s Pain in 2018 (Read More)
- This English Town Backed Brexit. Now the Poles Are Leaving (Read More)
Headlines – 12/13/2017
Muslim leaders to convene extraordinary summit for Jerusalem
Turkey: World must recognize east Jerusalem as Palestinian capital
Erdogan seeks to galvanize Muslim leaders over Jerusalem
Israel and Turkey on a course of collision?
Saudi King, Crown Prince discuss Jerusalem issue with Jordanian King
Soleimani Says Iran Is Ready to Back Palestinian Forces
Trump’s Jerusalem move seen to impede regional alliance against Iran
Netanyahu told Macron he’d make ‘concessions’ within Trump peace plan – report
Tillerson says US embassy unlikely to move to Jerusalem before 2020
Pence, an architect of Jerusalem recognition, plans triumphant visit
How Trump fooled everyone with his Jerusalem declaration
Hundreds of Conservative Jews publicly oppose Trump’s Jerusalem recognition
Trump: ‘Proud to stand with the Jewish people who light up the world on this holiday’
Bahrain interfaith group pays unprecedented visit to Israel
IDF strikes Hamas position in Gaza after rocket launch
Senior Hamas leader among dozens arrested overnight in West Bank
Two Palestinians killed in Gaza, Israel denies claim of attack
US wary of Putin’s declaration of military victory in Syria
Iraq PM warns Islamic State might erupt again somewhere else
US slaps terror charges on accused Times Square bomber
Saudi Arabia condemns New York bombing: We reject all forms of terror
NYPD adjusting security plans for New Year’s Eve
Tillerson: US ready to talk but N.Korea must be ready to change course
Tillerson says U.S. ready to talk to North Korea; Japan wants pressure
Senior Russian diplomat hails US readiness to start talks with N.Korea
Europe’s Gas Flows Resume After Austrian Blast Rattled Markets
It’s Official: Bitcoin Surpasses “Tulip Mania”, Is Now The Biggest Bubble In World History
The bitcoin fever has hit Israel, but the global demand is crashing the infrastructure
A Faster Pace of Fed Rate Increases Could Rattle Markets
North Korea sanctions could hurt millions as winter bites, UN says
South Korea conducts anti-terror drills ahead of Winter Games
Holocaust-surviving judge: N. Korean camps may be worse than Auschwitz
North Korea readying for another nuclear test? Satellite images show hectic activity at Punggye-ri
6.0 magnitude earthquake hits near Kerman, Iran
5.9 magnitude earthquake hits near Kerman, Iran
5.0 magnitude earthquake hits near Ravar, Iran
Sabancaya volcano in Peru erupts to 25,000ft
Agung volcano in Indonesia erupts to 18,000ft
Sinabung volcano in Indonesia erupts to 15,000ft
Fuego volcano in Guatemala erupts to 14,000ft
Reventador volcano in Ecuador erupts to 14,000ft
100,000 Still Stranded Amid California Fires; Giant Thomas Fire Only 20% Contained
France’s Macron takes lead in climate change battle, with the U.S. absent
Taxes on Meat Could Join Carbon and Sugar to Help Limit Emissions
Sexual misconduct allegations weighed heavily on Moore candidacy, results suggest
Is Moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem a Prophetic Sign The Temple Will be Rebuilt
5 Most Ridiculous Books to Ever Become Christian Bestsellers
NAR Apostle Bill Johnson & Kris Vallotton ‘knight’ Ben Fitzgerald
Evangelical Leaders Pray With Trump in Oval Office, Present Him ‘Friends of Zion’ Award
Word of Faith Fellowship – ‘Nobody saved us’: Man describes childhood in abusive ‘cult’
Modern Day Witches Call Theirs ‘A Beautiful Way Of Life’
Cecile Richards: Time for Women to Start Bragging About Their Abortions, Don’t be “Ashamed”
| Tillerson Says Jerusalem Embassy Move Won’t Happen Before 2020
Posted: 13 Dec 2017 06:14 AM PST
talks in Paris with the French Foreign Minister, when he said the move was “not something that is going to happen this year or probably not next year.” However, he reassured concerned parties that Trump seeks to make the move “in a very concrete” way. “The president does want us to move in a very concrete, very steadfast way to ensure the embassy is located in Jerusalem when we’re able to do so, at the earliest possible time,” he said in Paris. READ MORE
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| Kim Jong Un now claims he can “control the weather”
Posted: 13 Dec 2017 05:42 AM PST
for this weather modification? When Kim “ascended” to the top of the 9,000-foot mountain through thick snow wearing his signature double-breasted winter coat and black leather shoes, a blizzard gave way to “fine weather unprecedented.” Kim was apparently responsible for this moment of sunshine on what should have been, according to a North Korean government statement, a dreary winter day. READ MORE
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| Hanukkah’s End-of-Days Paradigm
Posted: 13 Dec 2017 05:37 AM PST
These six psalms of Praise—are joyously sung as part of the synagogue worship service on all major Jewish holidays; Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles, as well as on the first day of every month, the celebration of the new moon. Why these six psalms? The Talmud records the instruction that these six psalms are to be recited on the biblical feasts as well as on any occasion of the redemption of the collective people of Israel. More specifically, for Hallel to be sung, the event that is commemorated must constitute a step towards the ultimate redemption of Israel. READ MORE |
| CUP OF TREMBLING: Erdogan calls on world to recognize east Jerusalem as Palestinian capital
Posted: 13 Dec 2017 05:18 AM PST
“The process to include Palestine in international agreements and institutions should be sped up,” he added. A similar call was made by the OIC’s secretary-general Yousef bin Ahmad Al-Othaimeen, who said the US decision was “an exceptional challenge” facing Muslim nations. The decision, he added, will fan violence in the region, giving extremists an excuse to sow chaos. READ MORE |
| Cryptocurrency Chaos: Bitcoin, Litecoin and Ethereum All Keep Surging To New Record Highs With No End In Sight
Posted: 12 Dec 2017 07:27 PM PST
cryptocurrencies will eventually succeed. There are about 1000 different cryptocurrencies in existence at the moment, and most of them will inevitably fail. But for now virtually every cryptocurrency is soaring, and the total market cap for all cryptocurrencies combined is rapidly approaching half a trillion dollars. Let’s start our discussion with Bitcoin. As I write this, a single Bitcoin is worth $17696.99, and that is absolutely astounding considering that the price was sitting at just about $1,000 as 2017 began. READ MORE |
| Police seize BIBLES during China church raid – Christian crackdown continues
Posted: 12 Dec 2017 07:17 PM PST
They confiscated religious items and bibles and threatened to punish Ms Jianfang. ChinaAid claims the move violates the Chinese constitution, which enshrines freedom of belief. China has launched a major crackdown on religion in recent months in an attempt to exercise control over the population. Churches not sanctioned by the government have been put under surveillance with hundreds of Christians arrested for disturbing public order over offences such as holding bible study groups and displaying crucifixes outside their homes. READ MORE
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| Massive city rocked by another huge 6.0 magnitude earthquake within hours
Posted: 12 Dec 2017 07:05 PM PST
struck by another quake, measuring magnitude 4.5, according to the USGS. Earlier this month the region was rocked by a 6.0 magnitude earthquake. The earthquake, which hit at 2.32am GMT, was initially recorded at a magnitude of 6.3 but was later downgraded to 6.0. The aftershock measuring in at a 5.0 magnitude struck around 15 minutes later, according to the USGS. READ MORE |
| School Helps Teen Transition Without Telling Her Parents
Posted: 12 Dec 2017 07:02 PM PST
recommended that they take her to a gender clinic. It was only at this point they discovered that she was being called a boy’s name and addressed with male pronouns while at school. The parents say the school was “facilitating and going out of their way to transition her into becoming a boy” without their knowledge. READ MORE |
| Christian Group Kicked Off University Campus Over Policy on ‘Sexual Immorality’
Posted: 12 Dec 2017 01:42 PM PST
According to a press release, the school’s dean of students, Lyn Redington, told BLinC, which was founded three years ago, that “it must ‘revise’ its religious beliefs and submit an ‘acceptable plan’ for selecting its leaders” if it wants to regain its status as an official student group recognized by the school. “This is 2017, not 1984,” Jacob Estell, the student president of BLinC, said in a statement. “Our beliefs weren’t made by us, and they can’t be changed by us either — certainly not just to satisfy Orwellian government rules.” READ MORE |
| People Are Mortgaging Their Homes to Buy Bitcoins!
Posted: 12 Dec 2017 01:38 PM PST
It’s easy, from one angle, to see why. Bitcoin started out the year being worth $1,000. On Nov. 20, Bitcoin set a new record by passing the $8,000 mark. As of mid-morning Tuesday, it was worth over $17,000. Very few investments double their value in just 22 days. But Bitcoin is the very definition of a volatile investment. The current rate of investment in Bitcoin is bound to eventually result in a sell-off as investors reap their profits. READ MORE |
| Trump Given Friends of Zion Award
Posted: 12 Dec 2017 01:26 PM PST
global leader with courage to stand with the nation of Israel and the Jewish people,” explained Dr. Mike Evans, founder of the Friends of Zion Museum. “We believe no American president in history has done more to defend the Jewish people in the United Nations,” Evans said of Trump. Evangelical faith leaders in attendance also sang the president’s praises. “We were so thankful for the open door that our president has granted us to have very open dialogue,” said Paula White, a member of the president’s faith advisory council and senior pastor of New Destiny Christian Center in Orlando, Florida. READ MORE |
| 50 injured and 300 homes damaged as tornado rips through South Africa
Posted: 12 Dec 2017 01:16 PM PST
25 of them were transported to a hospital for further medical care. “The municipality is assisting displaced residents with temporary shelter, and will begin assessing the extent of the damage and the estimated cost of rebuilding,” Baloyi said in a statement late Monday, adding that the priority is to help those affected to start rebuilding their homes. “Two help centers have been set up in Mamello and the Vaal Marina Town Hall to assist those affected by the tornado.” READ MORE
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| Florida court upholds ban on vegetable gardens…
Posted: 12 Dec 2017 01:09 PM PST
edible plants to backyards only, they were actually criminals. They didn’t think they were engaged in a Swiss chard conspiracy or eggplant vice, yet they were breaking the law. Florida’s 3rd District Court of Appeal upheld Miami Shores’ ban on front-yard vegetable gardens in a recent decision, so the couple will take their case to the Florida Supreme Court. They argue, on behalf of gardeners everywhere, that the village’s restriction is unconstitutional and an infringement on their property rights. FULL STORY |
| Radical Hindus Shut Down Prayer Meeting and Attack Pastors
Posted: 12 Dec 2017 11:28 AM PST
70 Hindu Dharm Sena and Bajrang Dal activists encircled the entrance, and Pastor Jogi and Pastor Rao were beaten and summoned to the police station.” “The activists slapped Pastor Santosh Rao thrice and beat us both,” Pastor Jogi said. “By then we understood that these people will not let us conduct prayers.” The Government Railway Police called the pastors to the station and warned them to cancel the meeting. READ MORE |
| 10 biblical reasons behind Trump’s Jerusalem decision
Posted: 12 Dec 2017 11:20 AM PST
1) Jerusalem is mentioned more than 600 times in the Bible. No electoral college nor parliament elected Israel’s king. God Almighty selected David as the leader of Israel, and chose Jerusalem as the capital of the Jewish kingdom, where King David ruled from for 33 years. While occupied over the centuries by numerous foreign empires, no other nation made Jerusalem its capital city besides the Jewish people. When confronted by critics of Israel’s claim to the holy city, Prime Minister Menachem Begin would retort, “We didn’t declare Jerusalem to be our capital city, King David declared it 3,000 years ago!” CONTINUE
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| A deeper significance on the day Trump recognized Jerusalem as the Capital of Israel
Posted: 12 Dec 2017 11:10 AM PST
I’m certain that the President did not know the momentous significance of the day on which he chose to proclaim the historic change of America’s policy with regard to the status of Jerusalem. In Israel, it was the night of the 19th of Kislev when the United States finally acknowledged what King David thousands of years ago sanctified and what the Jewish people never failed to forsake in their daily prayers. And it was on this very same day, the 19th of Kislev, in 1949, that Prime Minister David Ben Gurion– just one year after the establishment of the State – wrote and subsequently announced that the government of Israel had unanimously agreed that Jerusalem would be the one and only capital of the state of Israel. READ MORE |
| RUMORS OF WAR: North Korea May Be Preparing For Another Missile Launch
Posted: 12 Dec 2017 10:58 AM PST
previous five tests were conducted, appears to have been temporarily abandoned. “At the West Portal, there has been a consistently high level of activity since North Korea’s last nuclear test. This includes a routine presence of vehicles and personnel around the portal, movement of mining carts from the portal to the adjacent spoil pile and signs of fresh spoil being dumped onto the pile,” 38North experts said in a blog. “These activities suggest that tunnel excavation is underway at the West Portal, as the North Koreans expand the site’s potential for future nuclear testing.” READ MORE |
| CUP OF TREMBLING: Iran Guards Commander Says Ready to Back Palestinian Forces…
Posted: 12 Dec 2017 10:47 AM PST
The mosque is Islam’s third-holiest shrine and a frequent flashpoint for tensions between Israel and the Palestinians. Palestinians claim Jerusalem’s eastern sector, where the mosque stands, as the capital of a future state, and they oppose the U.S. move. Hamas has called for another uprising against Israel in response, though so far protests have been limited. Soleimani spoke a day after the head of Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement, Hassan Nasrallah, called on all “resistance” groups in the region to come up with a unified strategy to take back Jerusalem. READ MORE |
What is The Gospel?
Selected Scriptures
Code: A335
With that brief question Jesus Christ confronted His followers with the most important issue they would ever face. He had spent much time with them and made some bold claims about His identity and authority. Now the time had come for them either to believe or deny His teachings.
Who do you say Jesus is? Your response to Him will determine not only your values and lifestyle, but your eternal destiny as well.
Consider what the Bible says about Him:
JESUS IS GOD
While Jesus was on earth there was much confusion about who He was. Some thought He was a wise man or a great prophet. Others thought He was a madman. Still others couldn’t decide or didn’t care. But Jesus said, “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30). That means He claimed to be nothing less than God in human flesh.
Many people today don’t understand that Jesus claimed to be God. They’re content to think of Him as little more than a great moral teacher. But even His enemies understood His claims to deity. That’s why they tried to stone Him to death (John 5:18; 10:33) and eventually had Him crucified (John 19:7).
C.S. Lewis observed, “You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come up with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to” (Mere Christianity [Macmillan, 1952], pp. 40-41).
If the biblical claims of Jesus are true, He is God!
JESUS IS HOLY
God is absolutely and perfectly holy (Isaiah 6:3), therefore He cannot commit or approve of evil (James 1:13).
As God, Jesus embodied every element of God’s character. Colossians 2:9 says, “In Him all the fulness of Deity dwells in bodily form.” He was perfectly holy (Hebrews 4:15). Even His enemies couldn’t prove any accusation against Him (John 8:46)
God requires holiness of us as well. First Peter 1:16 says, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
JESUS IS THE SAVIOR
Our failure to obey God—to be holy—places us in danger of eternal punishment (2 Thessalonians 1:9). The truth is, we cannot obey Him because we have neither the desire nor the ability to do so. We are by nature rebellious toward God (Ephesians 2:1-3). The Bible calls our rebellion “sin.” According to Scripture, everyone is guilty of sin: “There is no man who does not sin” (1 Kings 8:46). “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). And we are incapable of changing our sinful condition. Jeremiah 13:23 says, “Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard its spots? Neither can you do good who are accustomed to doing evil.”
That doesn’t mean we’re incapable of performing acts of human kindness. We might even be involved in various religious or humanitarian activities. But we’re utterly incapable of understanding, loving, or pleasing God on our own. The Bible says, “There is none righteous, not even one; there is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God; all have turned aside, together they have become useless; there is none who does good, there is not even one” (Romans 3:10-12).
God’s holiness and justice demand that all sin be punished by death: “The soul who sins will die” (Ezekiel 18:4). That’s hard for us to understand because we tend to evaluate sin on a relative scale, assuming some sins are less serious than others. However, the Bible teaches that all acts of sin are the result of sinful thinking and evil desires. That’s why simply changing our patterns of behavior can’t solve our sin problem or eliminate its consequences. We need to be changed inwardly so our thinking and desires are holy
Jesus is the only one who can forgive and transform us, thereby delivering us from the power and penalty of sin: “There is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men, by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).
Even though God’s justice demands death for sin, His love has provided a Savior, who paid the penalty and died for sinners: “Christ … died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, in order that He might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18). Christ’s death satisfied the demands of God’s justice, thereby enabling Him to forgive and save those who place their faith in Him (Romans 3:26). John 3:16 says, “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.” He alone is “our great God and Savior” (Titus 2:13).
JESUS IS THE ONLY ACCEPTABLE OBJECT OF SAVING FAITH
Some people think it doesn’t matter what you believe as long as you’re sincere. But without a valid object your faith is useless
If you take poison—thinking it’s medicine—all the faith in the world won’t restore your life. Similarly, if Jesus is the only source of salvation, and you’re trusting in anyone or anything else for your salvation, your faith is useless.
Many people assume there are many paths to God and that each religion represents an aspect of truth. But Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me” (John 14:6). He didn’t claim to be one of many equally legitimate paths to God, or the way to God for His day only. He claimed to be the only way to God—then and forever.
JESUS IS LORD
Contemporary thinking says man is the product of evolution. But the Bible says we were created by a personal God to love, serve, and enjoy endless fellowship with Him
The New Testament reveals it was Jesus Himself who created everything (John 1:3; Colossians 1:16). Therefore He also owns and rules everything (Psalm 103:19). That means He has authority over our lives and we owe Him absolute allegiance, obedience, and worship.
Romans 10:9 says, “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved.” Confessing Jesus as Lord means humbly submitting to His authority (Philippians 2:10-11). Believing that God has raised Him from the dead involves trusting in the historical fact of His resurrection—the pinnacle of Christian faith and the way the Father affirmed the deity and authority of the Son (Romans 1:4; Acts 17:30-31).
True faith is always accompanied by repentance from sin. Repentance is more than simply being sorry for sin. It is agreeing with God that you are sinful, confessing your sins to Him, and making a conscious choice to turn from sin and pursue holiness (Isaiah 55:7). Jesus said, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments” (John 14:15); and “If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine” (John 8:31).
It isn’t enough to believe certain facts about Christ. Even Satan and his demons believe in the true God (James 2:19), but they don’t love and obey Him. Their faith is not genuine. True saving faith always responds in obedience (Ephesians 2:10).
Jesus is the sovereign Lord. When you obey Him you are acknowledging His lordship and submitting to His authority. That doesn’t mean your obedience will always be perfect, but that is your goal. There is no area of your life that you withhold from Him.
JESUS IS THE JUDGE
All who reject Jesus as their Lord and Savior will one day face Him as their Judge: “God is now declaring to men that all everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead” (Acts 17:30-31).
Second Thessalonians 1:7-9 says, “The Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. And these will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power.”
HOW WILL YOU RESPOND?
Who does the Bible say Jesus is? The living God, the Holy One, the Savior, the only valid object of saving faith, the sovereign Lord, and the righteous Judge.
Who do you say Jesus is? That is the inescapable question. He alone can redeem you—free you from the power and penalty of sin. He alone can transform you, restore you to fellowship with God, and give your life eternal purpose. Will you repent and believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?
Available online at: https://www.gty.org/library/articles/A335
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