Participants: John Carter
Series Code: CR
Program Code: CR001712A
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00:01 The Carter Report presents "Living Victoriously,"
00:06 Secrets of Success 00:07 from Prime Minister Daniel of Babylon City 00:10 with your host John Carter. 00:25 Welcome to Living Victoriously. 00:27 Today, we are talking about religious freedom under threat. 00:31 Gonna turn to a text in the Bible, 00:33 Daniel 6:6 and onwards. 00:36 Now, this is a pick up from the previous program 00:38 on the same subject. 00:40 Daniel 6:6 and onwards. 00:44 Have you, folks, got out there? 00:47 "So these governors and satraps thronged before the king, 00:50 and said thus to him: 'King Darius, live forever! 00:55 All the governors of the kingdom, 00:56 the administrators and satraps, the counselors and advisors, 01:00 have consulted together to establish a royal statue 01:04 and to make a firm decree, 01:06 that whoever petitions any god or man for thirty days, 01:09 except you, O king, 01:11 shall be cast into the den of lions. 01:14 Now, O king, 01:17 establish the decree and sign the writing, 01:20 so that it cannot be changed, 01:22 according to the law of the Medes and Persians, 01:25 which does not alter.' 01:26 Therefore King Darius signed the written decree." 01:31 Now here, we've got a religious law. 01:37 Religious laws are not new. 01:41 Not new in America either. 01:45 America once had lots of oppressive religious laws, 01:50 no longer we believe today. 01:53 But here is the law that says, 01:54 "Unless you do so and so, and so and so 01:57 and conform and follow our religious laws, 02:01 you are going to be put to death." 02:04 Now there is a statement I want to make here. 02:09 I want you to listen to it carefully. 02:13 We need officially, people tell me 02:17 "We need to officially declare Us, 02:20 The United States of America a Christian nation 02:23 and we need to enforce the laws of Christ." 02:29 In fact what we really need to do 02:34 is to declare that Christ is the head of our country. 02:40 And if we follow the teachings of Christ, 02:43 we are going to be tremendously blessed. 02:46 In other words, we need to put the cross 02:51 up on the capital. 02:53 Listen to this statement here, from the US Constitution. 02:58 "Congress," I wonder why they said this. 03:00 "Congress shall make no law 03:01 respecting an establishment of religion." 03:04 Congress has got nothing to do with setting up religion. 03:07 "Or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, 03:10 or abridging the freedom of speech, 03:13 or of the press, 03:15 or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, 03:19 and to petition the government for a redress of grievances." 03:23 This was First Amendment in 1791. 03:29 And if you go back to the days of Daniel, 03:32 it appears that this was a new government administration, 03:39 and therefore they didn't want any problems and so they said, 03:44 we're not going to have... 03:46 We're not going to have any disagreement, 03:48 we're going to have one religion. 03:51 Therefore almost one, all must pray to one god, the king. 03:58 They were asking for total conformity, 04:02 one religion, 04:04 like the Church of Rome in the Dark Ages, 04:07 or in Saudi Arabia today. 04:11 Total conformity, a union of church and state. 04:16 Some people would say, would be a marvelous thing, 04:19 because they don't understand the Bible, 04:21 and they don't understand history. 04:23 Wants you to turn in your Bibles 04:24 to Revelation 17:1 and onwards. 04:30 "One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls 04:33 came and talked with me, saying to me, 04:36 'Come, I will show you 04:37 the judgment of the great harlot, 04:39 the great church, who sits on many waters, 04:43 with whom the kings of the earth 04:44 committed fornication, 04:46 and the inhabitants of the earth 04:47 were made drunk with the wine of her fornication." 04:51 This is a symbol of the great apostate church. 04:55 "So he carried me away in the Spirit 04:58 into the wilderness. 05:00 And I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast 05:02 which was full of names of blasphemy, 05:04 having seven heads and ten horns. 05:07 The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, 05:10 and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, 05:14 plenty of money, having in her hand 05:17 a golden cup full of abominations 05:19 and the filthiness of her fornication. 05:22 And on her forehead a name was written: 05:24 "Mystery, Babylon the great, the mother of harlots 05:29 and of the abominations of the earth." 05:33 I saw the woman, the church, 05:36 drunk with the blood of the saints 05:38 and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. 05:41 And when I saw her, I marveled with great amazement." 05:46 Every Bible scholar, Roman Catholic, 05:50 Protestant, or Jewish, 05:53 knows that in Bible prophecy a woman symbolizes the church. 06:00 Here is the great apostate church, 06:04 the great antichrist, 06:07 symbolized by a woman sitting on the beast, 06:11 that is the state. 06:14 So the union of church and state 06:18 is the very essence 06:22 of the spirit of antichrist. 06:28 Now, this has happened in history on many occasions. 06:34 The law of Darius was wrong back then 06:38 because man's conscience must be free. 06:44 The state does not have the right 06:47 to interfere with your conscience. 06:50 No, no, no. 06:53 The state does not have the right 06:55 to tell me any thing at all about my worship. 07:01 God must be first, not my country. 07:07 Now, if Daniel had thought like many people today, 07:10 he would have said "I will go along with the law of the land, 07:15 because it's my country first." 07:17 But in the Bible, it is God first, 07:20 God must always be first. 07:22 You shall worship the Lord, your God. 07:26 The state does not have the authority 07:28 to interfere with my worship. 07:31 Now, why did the pilgrims come to America? 07:35 Many Americans seem to have lost sight 07:39 of the precious origin of their great nation. 07:42 They came with this Bible, The Geneva Bible, 07:49 written even before the King James Version. 07:53 This Bile was translated by some British scholars 07:58 in Geneva. 08:00 You know why they were in Geneva? 08:03 Because of the persecutions of a bloody Queen Mary, 08:08 who was trying to bring back persecution and was doing so. 08:13 And so they escaped the British Isles 08:16 and they went to Geneva. 08:19 Amazing. 08:20 And this is the Bible 08:23 that became the foundation stone 08:25 of the United States of America. 08:27 This Bible came out on the boats, 08:31 came out on the Mayflower, not this one, 08:35 but the original one. 08:38 This is the Bible 08:40 that was the foundation of the United Sates of America. 08:44 It is a book about freedom. 08:46 Every person ought to have it. Every person ought to read it. 08:51 And look at Daniel 6:9, 10 as we go back to the chapter. 08:56 "Therefore King Darius signed the written decree. 09:00 Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, 09:03 he went home. 09:05 And in his upper room, 09:06 with his windows open toward Jerusalem, 09:08 he knelt down on his knees three times that day, 09:11 and prayed and gave thanks before his God, 09:13 as was his custom since early days." 09:18 Daniel's worship was not in secret. 09:23 What he was in secret, he was in public, 09:27 and what he was in public, he wasn't secret, 09:31 he was the real deal. 09:35 Now, Jesus said something about this. 09:39 Jesus said something about this in Matthew 10:32, 09:43 Matthew 10:32. 09:46 Jesus said these words, Matthew 10:32, 09:51 "Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, 09:55 him I will also confess before My Father 09:59 who is in heaven." 10:01 And so even though the death decree 10:03 has been passed, 10:04 Daniel doesn't change his attitude to God. 10:09 And look at Daniel 6:11-13. 10:12 Daniel 6:11-13. 10:14 "Then these men assembled and found Daniel praying 10:17 and making supplication before his God. 10:20 And they went before the king, 10:22 and spoke concerning the king's decree, 10:24 'Have you not signed a decree 10:26 that every man who petitions any god or man 10:29 within thirty days, except you, O king, 10:32 shall be cast into the den of lions?' 10:35 The king answered and said, 'The thing is true, 10:37 according to the law of the Medes and Persians 10:39 which does not alter.' 10:41 So they answered and said before the king, 'That Daniel, 10:44 who is one of the captives from Judah, is foreigner, 10:49 does not show due regard to you, O king, 10:52 or to the decree that you have signed, 10:55 but makes his petition 10:58 three times a day." 11:02 It is interesting to observe, my American friends, 11:09 that religious bigotry and religious hatred 11:15 drive people to commit murder. 11:18 Here you have religious and racial bigotry 11:22 which is not confined to any one race. 11:26 So the king is trapped by his own vanity. 11:30 And notice verses 14 and onwards. 11:35 This is 14 and onwards, 14 to 17, "And the king, 11:39 when he heard these words, 11:40 was greatly displeased with himself, 11:42 set his heart on Daniel to deliver him, 11:45 and he labored till the going down of the sun to deliver him. 11:49 Then these men approached the king, 11:51 and said to the king, 11:52 'Know, O king, that is the law of the Medes and Persians 11:56 that no decree or statute 11:58 which the king establishes may be changed.' 12:02 So the king gave the command, and they brought Daniel 12:05 and cast him into the den of lions. 12:07 But the king spoke, saying to Daniel, 12:10 'Your God, whom you serve continually, 12:13 He will deliver you.' 12:14 Then a stone was brought 12:16 and laid on the mouth of the den, 12:17 and the king sealed it with his own signet ring 12:20 and with the signets of his lords, 12:23 that the purpose concerning Daniel 12:25 might not be changed." 12:29 Daniel is now 12:32 an old man in his 80s. 12:37 The greatest test was given to him not when he was a boy, 12:42 but when he is an old man. 12:46 There is a death decree. 12:48 He is going to be thrown to the lions 12:50 because of his religious convictions. 12:56 The Bible teaches 12:58 that there is coming a great test for God's people 13:01 in the last days. 13:03 Revelation 13:15-17, I want you to notice it. 13:09 "He was granted power to give breath 13:13 to the image of the beast, the antichrist, 13:16 that the image of the beast should both speak 13:18 and cause as many as would not worship the image 13:21 of the beast to be killed. 13:25 He causes all, both small and great, 13:26 rich and poor, free and slave, 13:28 to receive a mark on their right hand 13:31 or on their foreheads, 13:34 and that no one may buy or sell 13:36 except the one who has the mark or the name of the beast, 13:42 or the number of his name." 13:44 What does it mean? 13:47 Every Bible commentator 13:51 who is anything in his scholarship 13:54 knows that the beast is the antichrist. 13:57 And the antichrist in its essence 13:59 is a union of church and state persecuting. 14:05 So when the Bible talks about the image of the beast, 14:08 it means a copy 14:11 of the antichrist. 14:15 And so in the last days, there will come a decree, 14:21 which will certainly go against the First Amendment. 14:25 It will say, "Unless you conform, 14:30 you will be put to death." 14:33 It's coming. 14:36 May I point out to you, my dear friends, 14:38 that conformity is the sin of our age 14:42 and the sin of millions of Americans today? 14:47 Our age is the age of conformity. 14:49 We elect presidents with slogans and sound bites, 14:54 and we're sucked into the vortex of destruction. 15:01 As it was, so it shall be. 15:05 Daniel 6:18-23, 15:09 Daniel 6, 15:11 "Now the king went to his palace 15:13 and spent the night fasting, 15:16 no musicians were brought before him. 15:19 Also his sleep went from him. 15:21 Then the king arose very early in the morning 15:24 and went in haste to the den of lions. 15:27 And when he came to the den, 15:29 he cried out with a lamenting voice 15:31 to Daniel. 15:32 The king spoke, saying to Daniel, 'Daniel, 15:35 servant of the living God, has your God, 15:38 whom you serve continually, 15:39 been able to deliver you from the lions?" 15:43 Then Daniel said to the king, 15:45 he's alive, 'O king, live forever! 15:49 My God sent His angel and shut the lions' mouths, 15:54 so that they have not hurt me, 15:56 because I was found innocent before Him, 15:58 and also, O King, I have done no wrong before you.' 16:02 Now the king was exceedingly glad for him, 16:06 and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den. 16:09 So Daniel was taken up out of the den 16:12 and no injury whatever was found on him, 16:14 listen, because he believed in his God." 16:20 Can you hear this? 16:23 He believed in his God. 16:26 Now, it's very plain that God is able to deliver, 16:30 but not always in this lifetime, 16:34 but certainly he will deliver before the end. 16:41 Like the three Hebrews in the fiery furnace, 16:45 Christ came down on this occasion, 16:49 but He was not seen. 16:51 When they went into the fiery furnace, 16:54 bless your hearts, Christ came down, He was seen. 16:58 But Daniel, now an old man has not comforted 17:01 by the visible presence of Christ, 17:04 but He's there just the same. 17:07 When you can't see Him, my friends, 17:09 He is there just the same. 17:12 Hallelujah! Amen! 17:13 You say. 17:16 And Daniel is delivered. 17:21 Now, I like telling you, folks, stories 17:23 because I'm not an arm chair theologian. 17:25 I don't like a lot of philosophy, 17:27 I don't like a lot of hot air and lot of talk. 17:31 I'm telling you what I know it's true, 17:33 I have seen His deliverance. 17:36 Some time back in South Africa, Carter Report team was there. 17:40 Our lives were threatened. 17:44 We could have been killed, 17:48 but God delivered us. 17:53 He's a merciful God. 17:54 South Africa incidentally is the most dangerous place 17:58 we have ever been to. 18:01 But God delivered us. 18:02 In India, we were threatened by extremists, 18:08 but God delivered us. 18:11 I have seen the hand of God. 18:14 We've been delivered from people 18:17 who are religious extremists. 18:20 The worst type of extremist is a religious extremist. 18:24 And of course atheism also is a form of religion. 18:31 Now we don't recommend Daniel 6:24, 18:33 but we shall read it. Daniel 6. 18:37 Now this man was hardly a model Christian gentleman. 18:42 "And the king gave the command 18:44 and they brought those men who had accused Daniel, 18:48 and they cast them into the den of lions- them, 18:53 their children, and their wives, 18:57 and the lions overpowered them, 18:59 and broke all their bones in pieces 19:02 before they ever came to the bottom of the den." 19:06 That is clear proof that these lions 19:09 were not little innocent cats, 19:14 they were not vegetarians, 19:17 they were man-eaters, 19:22 and so they take these people 19:24 who have persecuted the prophet of God, 19:28 and they picked them up, 19:30 and they tossed them down into the den of lion 19:33 and before they reach the bottom, 19:37 they're broken in pieces. 19:40 And what do you say about that? 19:42 Is the Bible saying that's what you ought to do 19:44 to your enemies? 19:45 Of course not. 19:48 It's telling you what a pagan king did. 19:52 But our Lord told us, to love our enemies. 19:59 Love your enemies. 20:01 Do good to those who persecute you, 20:04 those who hate you. 20:06 Be merciful to those people, love them. 20:10 But Darius to me was no Christian gentleman. 20:14 He was not guided by the teachings 20:16 that say "Love your neighbors as yourself." 20:22 It is also true to make this unfortunate comment. 20:28 This is a symbol of God's final judgment. 20:33 God's final judgment upon the oppressors of the poor 20:37 and the persecutors of God's people. 20:44 We should thank God, 20:46 we live in a country 20:47 whose culture was shaped by the Bible. 20:50 As I showed you before, 20:52 this is a modern edition of the Geneva Bible. 20:58 I wasn't brought up in America, I was brought up in Australia. 21:02 But I knew religious freedom, religious liberty, 21:05 freedom of the press. 21:08 We knew those things, 21:10 because of our British heritage. 21:14 But people are telling us today 21:16 now that this country was never meant 21:19 to be based upon biblical principles. 21:23 We believe in the separation of church and state, 21:27 but let me tell you this, 21:28 we believe that the teachings of Christ 21:32 ought to permeate every facet of society. 21:38 That makes a great society. 21:41 Why is America better than most countries? 21:47 Because it is based upon biblical teachings. 21:51 If you don't like to accept that, 21:53 go to those countries 21:55 where the people never had the Bible. 21:58 Never had the reformation, never had great preachers. 22:02 What do you have? The oppression of the poor. 22:06 You have filth and squalor. 22:09 Thank God for our heritage. 22:13 And look at Daniel 6:25-27, 22:18 "Then king Darius wrote: 22:20 To all people, nations, and languages 22:22 that dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied to you. 22:26 I make a decree that in every dominion of my kingdom 22:29 men must tremble and fear before the God of Daniel. 22:33 For He is the living God, and steadfast forever, 22:37 His kingdom is the one which shall not be destroyed, 22:40 and his dominion shall endure to the end. 22:43 He delivers and rescues, 22:45 and He works signs 22:47 and wonders in heaven and on earth, 22:49 who has delivered Daniel from the power of the lions." 22:54 What can we take from this today? 22:57 Here is the truth. 23:01 Not everybody is going to like this, but here it is. 23:06 There is only one true God. 23:09 Not all gods are the same. 23:11 You say, oh, I have got many... 23:13 No, no, no. There is only one true God. 23:16 Only one true God. 23:18 Not all religions are of equal worth. 23:23 Only the religion of the one true God can save. 23:27 Only the God of Daniel, Yahweh, Elohim 23:32 can save and deliver because He is the true God. 23:38 What a great God, this God is? 23:41 He is the one true, He is the true God 23:43 because He is the creator. 23:45 The gods of the pagan world 23:48 including the gods of Medo-Persia 23:51 and the gods of Babylon 23:53 are futile and hopeless. 23:59 That's not politically correct. 24:01 It's correct. 24:04 And here is another truth. 24:06 Lions are submissive and docile when Christ is present. 24:12 He can shut the mouths of lions. 24:16 And look at Daniel 6:28. 24:19 Daniel 6:28. 24:21 So this Daniel, what did he do? 24:24 He prospered, can't keep him down. 24:27 Ten times better. 24:28 "This Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius 24:33 and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian." 24:39 He prospered because he was true to God. 24:43 God honored him because he honored God. 24:50 There are conditions, 24:51 people would say, well, no you just. 24:53 No, no, no, there are conditions 24:56 to the manifold blessing of God. 25:01 God honors the man who honors Him. 25:06 And this Daniel through all the intrigue 25:09 of the gods of Babylon, 25:12 he was promoted and he prospered. 25:17 You can't keep God's man down, 25:20 therefore in the words of that little hymn. 25:27 "Standing by a purpose true, 25:31 heeding God's command, 25:34 honor them the faithful few! 25:37 All hail to Daniel's band. 25:41 Dare to be a Daniel. 25:44 Dare to stand alone. 25:48 Don't be an insipid, mediocre conformist. 25:56 Dare to stand alone! 25:58 Dare to have a purpose firm! 26:04 Dare to make it known! 26:07 So here it is. 26:12 God blesses the man who trusts in Him. 26:18 Amen. 26:24 Today, we are starting the Washington DC Project. 26:29 We are going by the grace of God 26:31 to buy time on Washington television, 26:35 and we're going to have messages for our people 26:38 in the White House and on Capitol Hill. 26:42 There is a reason why we are doing this. 26:44 And Time Magazine has been the reason 26:47 that we've thought of doing this. 26:49 Notice this Time Magazine, 26:52 it says "Is truth dead?" 26:57 Apparently many people in Washington would say 27:00 "Yes, truth is dead." 27:02 And we can say anything we like because truth is dead. 27:08 That's why we have so much fake news today in Washington. 27:15 We're going to be talking truth to power. 27:17 We're going to be talking about the great truths 27:20 that founded this great country. 27:22 We're going to be talking 27:23 about the great undergirding realities 27:27 that were the foundation stones of the great American Republic. 27:32 And we want you to support this project. 27:35 If you believe that we should bring a message 27:37 to the leadership in Washington, 27:39 please support us. 27:41 We have no money to do this at this moment. 27:44 We are asking you to send your offerings and your money 27:51 to the Washington Project. 27:52 Write to me please, John Carter, PO Box 1900, 27:56 Thousand Oaks, California 91358. 27:59 In Australia, you can write to us 28:01 at the address on the screen. 28:04 When you write to us, 28:05 for everybody who gives $100 or more, 28:08 we're going to give you America's original Bible, 28:12 the Patriot's Bible, the Geneva Bible. 28:16 Please write to me today. 28:25 For a copy of today's program, 28:28 please contact us at PO Box 1900, 28:31 Thousand Oaks, California 91358, 28:35 or in Australia, contact us at PO Box 861, 28:40 Terrigal, New South Wales 2260. 28:45 This program is made possible 28:46 through the generous support of viewers like you. 28:49 We thank you for your continued support. 28:52 May God richly bless you. |
Revised 2017-05-22