Participants:
Series Code: CR
Program Code: CR001730A
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00:01 I'm John Carter in Moscow...
00:02 I'm now in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. 00:04 I'm John Carter in Petra... 00:06 Reporting from India... 00:08 In Columbia... I'm John Carter. 00:11 Today on the Carter Report, 00:12 John Carter talks about same-sex marriage 00:15 and the mark of the beast. 00:21 Welcome back. 00:22 The same-sex marriage and the mark of the beast. 00:28 Now, I am talking today not as a politician. 00:31 I am not a politician, 00:33 I am a minister of the gospel and a humble Christian. 00:37 I believe the Bible. 00:39 And therefore, I want to say to all my friends 00:42 who are watching the telecast today, 00:45 I just want you to open up your mind and say, 00:48 "Is this fair and reasonable?" 00:51 I believe what we need more than anything else 00:54 in America today is more tolerance, 00:57 and more love, and more kindness, 01:01 and so I want to share these texts with you. 01:03 Now, the first text 01:04 I am taking out from where I left off 01:06 in the last session. 01:07 I want you to turn over here to Romans 1:24 to 27. 01:12 In the last session, 01:14 I took a text out of the Old Testament. 01:16 Now, I am going to take one out of the New Testament. 01:20 We're going to come to Romans 1:24 to 27, 01:24 and I am going to ask you, put yourself in my situation. 01:29 How can I as a person who professes to follow Christ 01:33 and the teachings of the Bible, 01:34 how can I disregard these texts. 01:37 Please, be honest and tell me. 01:40 Paul says, "Therefore God also 01:43 gave them up to uncleanness, 01:47 in the lust of their hearts, 01:50 to dishonor their bodies among themselves, 01:55 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, 01:59 and worshiped and served 02:01 the creature rather than the Creator, 02:04 who is blessed forever. 02:06 Amen. 02:07 For this reason God gave them up 02:10 to vile passions. 02:12 For even their women exchanged 02:15 the natural use for what is against nature. 02:19 Likewise also the men, 02:23 leaving the natural use of the woman, 02:27 burned in their lust for one another, 02:29 men with men committing 02:35 what is shameful, 02:37 and receiving in themselves 02:38 the penalty of their error which was due." 02:43 Is somebody going to say to me that's hate speech? 02:47 Are people going to say, 02:49 are liberal people going to say, 02:51 "I am not going to allow you to teach these things. 02:54 You've got to take this Bible out of the church. 02:58 You can't teach this in church school 03:01 because we don't believe in freedom of speech for you." 03:06 But the Bible says very plainly here, 03:10 the sex between men and men, 03:13 and women and women 03:16 is forbidden in the scriptures. 03:21 And as Martin Luther said, 03:23 "My conscience is bound by the Word of God 03:29 unless I am convinced 03:31 by reason of the text of the Bible, 03:34 I cannot and I will not recant." 03:37 So that is my friend, the Christians' stand 03:41 and the Christians' dilemma in our liberal society. 03:47 As some time back, 03:49 I saw an interview with Pastor Rick Warren 03:53 and Piers Morgan on CNN. 03:56 And Piers Morgan, who is doing a stint 04:00 from the great land of England had said 04:04 to Pastor Rick Warren 04:05 who has been called America's pastor. 04:09 He said, "How can you be against same-sex marriage?" 04:14 He said, well, Rick Warren said, 04:16 "Piers, my problem is, the Bible is against it." 04:19 He said as well, 04:20 "Isn't it time for you to update the Bible? 04:25 Isn't it time for you to get rid 04:27 of these offensive passages?" 04:31 Pastor Warren said this and I would say the same, 04:34 "We love homosexuals..." 04:37 Hear this, we love you, 04:40 Jesus loves you, Jesus died for you, 04:44 we love you. 04:46 "But the bible says homosexual acts are wrong, 04:49 just as adultery is wrong. 04:53 All sins are wrong." 04:56 I believe being homosexual is not a sin 05:02 but choosing to break the law of God is a sin, 05:08 whether it would be fornication, 05:10 or adultery, or any other sin. 05:14 Now in America, we have here 05:15 a great organization called the NAACP, 05:20 National Association 05:21 for the Advancement of Colored Persons. 05:24 They have made same-sex marriage 05:27 as civil rights issue 05:31 against the views of the vast majority 05:35 of African-Americans 05:37 in this great land of the United States. 05:41 But I would point out today, 05:44 you can't chose your color when you are born. 05:49 Perhaps you can't choose your sexual orientation, 05:55 but you can choose what you do. 05:59 And so this is not, 06:01 I would say respectfully 06:02 this is not a civil rights issue, 06:05 this is a moral issue. 06:09 May I say this, 06:11 and I say it in love but I say it. 06:14 The media generally, not everybody 06:18 but the media generally is opposed to Christ 06:21 and Christianity and represents the liberal left. 06:27 Many of those people 06:29 are atheists and Marxists, 06:34 and they seem to want to pull down Christianity, 06:38 they seem to want to pull down the cross at every opportunity, 06:43 and if they can poke a finger 06:46 at some pedophile in the church, 06:50 they jump for joy, 06:52 but I want to remind the media today 06:55 about this important truth. 06:58 What corrupt ministers and priests too, 07:02 this is got nothing to do with Christ, and the Bible, 07:07 and the Word of God. 07:09 Please, do not confuse the issue with all this smoke. 07:15 The liberal left, I say, 07:17 "Look at the sex scandals in Hollywood. 07:22 Look at the sex scandals among the stars of the media, 07:25 left and right. 07:29 Look at the sex scandals 07:31 among the politicians." 07:35 And these are the people 07:38 who tell you what to do and most of us, 07:42 not am I saying it are so naive, 07:46 we believe what they say. 07:49 Today, when you turn on the news 07:51 you don't get the news, 07:52 you get somebody's opinion, 07:57 whatever happened to news. 08:00 So what am I to do? 08:02 I'm talking to myself, I will not surrender my faith, 08:06 remember Luther. 08:08 If you ask me to participate 08:10 in a gay marriage as a Christian, 08:14 I will politely say no, 08:18 because this would involve my right to worship God, 08:21 and I am not going to be dragged back 08:23 to the days of the dark ages 08:25 when people were so intolerant. 08:28 I refuse to go backwards. 08:32 You have the right to do, 08:34 to choose to do what you want to do, 08:37 and I have the right to do the same, 08:41 and God helping me, 08:42 I will be true to my conscience and true to the Bible, you say. 08:47 Remember, many on the far left 08:50 like those on the far right are motivated 08:53 by the spirit of intolerance 08:57 and they believe in freedom of speech, 09:00 say certainly do 09:01 but only to themselves 09:04 and for themselves. 09:07 Recently, I was visiting 09:09 the beautiful city of Sydney. 09:13 I went to the Town Hall 09:15 where once I held evangelistic meetings, 09:17 the City Hall. 09:19 And next to the City Hall is one of my favorite spots, 09:24 it is the Anglican cathedral. 09:28 And the Anglican cathedral 09:29 and the Anglican people in Sydney 09:32 take the same stand that I do 09:35 because they believe the Bible. 09:37 And they have issued a warning from the Anglican Church, 09:41 the Church of England and Sydney says, 09:43 "Christians in Australia 09:45 can expect to be persecuted." 09:49 And therefore I say, 09:51 we must remember Martin Luther who said, "Here I stand." 09:56 The Christian church must say, "Here I stand." 10:00 My own denomination, my own church, 10:03 I am an Adventist Christian, 10:05 my own church must step up to the front and say, 10:08 "Here I stand." 10:12 And not be babies, and not be cowards. 10:18 It's easy to be brave 10:19 when there is nothing to be brave about. 10:23 It is time for Christians to say, "Here I stand. 10:26 I will stand with the Anglicans. 10:28 I will stand with every person 10:32 whoever he is." 10:35 The next question, 10:36 do I have the right to love everyone 10:38 as President Obama once said. 10:41 In an interview with Pastor Rick Warren, 10:44 Senator Obama said, listen, 10:48 these are his words, 10:50 "I believe that marriage is the union between a man 10:54 and a woman. 10:57 Now, for me as a Christian, it is also a sacred union. 11:01 God's in the mix," said Senator Obama. 11:07 Why did he change? 11:09 Remember, 11:10 President and Mrs. Clinton and DOMA, 11:14 the Defense of Marriage Act. 11:17 Don't you remember President Clinton saying, 11:20 "I will defend marriage 11:23 which is a sacred union of one man and one woman." 11:27 Don't you remember that? 11:30 Have you forgotten? 11:31 Have you forgotten the pledges of President Obama? 11:41 I will answer the question, 11:44 do I have the right to love anybody 11:46 with another question. 11:47 Do I have the right 11:51 to sexually love little children? 11:55 Do I have the right to love many women sexually? 12:00 Canada is grouping now with this problem. 12:02 They are all for same-sex marriage 12:05 but now there is a great influx of people coming 12:08 into the country who practice polygamy. 12:12 How can they say that is morally wrong? 12:17 So we will take this and we will take that, 12:19 and we will be our own gods. 12:22 Do I have the right to sexually love animals? 12:27 Some say, "Yes," 12:31 but as a Christian I say, "No, no, no." 12:37 And many 12:38 who are not Christians agree with me 12:42 including many honorable members 12:45 in the gay community. 12:48 They say, "Polygamy is wrong." 12:51 I say to them, "Who says?" 12:57 Many of these people do not believe, 12:58 who do not believe the Bible will often take 13:01 a correct moral stand 13:03 based on romantic feelings of right and wrong. 13:06 Why? Well, we think it so. 13:08 I want something more than romantic feelings 13:11 of right and wrong. 13:12 I want an infallible guide and that infallible guide for me 13:15 is the Bible, forgive me. 13:17 May I remind you 13:18 that all great civilizations have been built 13:20 upon the moral code down in the Ten Commandments. 13:23 You can't just say this is wrong. 13:29 You must have a reason 13:31 that is bigger than your personal likes 13:32 and your personal dislikes, you say. 13:37 Once upon a time there was a great dam. 13:42 It stood solid and firm for many years. 13:46 It was here in the land of America. 13:51 It was holding back a mighty sea of water. 13:54 But then there came a man 13:56 who drilled a hole into the wall of the dam, 14:00 soon there was a little prickle, 14:03 then a rush, then a flood. 14:08 President Obama, what they're trying to do so, 14:13 was the man who drilled the hole 14:15 in the wall of the dam. 14:19 And you say to him, 14:21 "Why did you change your view point? 14:22 Because you said things to Pastor Rick Warren, 14:26 you agreed with Bill Clinton on the defense of marriage 14:30 and most American people have forgotten 14:33 all of those things. 14:36 What's wrong? 14:40 Could it be the politicians gave up their moral stand 14:46 because of votes? 14:50 Not a moral issue anymore, how can I get the votes? 14:56 Now, I have news for you. 15:00 When you bore a hole into the wall of the dam, 15:04 you can be sure of one thing, 15:08 the flood is coming. 15:10 The flood is coming. 15:13 You can laugh, you can sneer, 15:15 you can make it look good, 15:19 but the flood is coming. 15:21 Would you come over here to Jude, the Book of Jude, 15:24 second last book in the Bible, 15:26 Jude 4-7 15:29 in the Holy Word of God. 15:33 Now, can you see why some people hate the Bible 15:37 because it condemns them. 15:40 "For certain men have crept in unnoticed, 15:42 who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, 15:45 ungodly men, 15:47 who turn the grace of God into lewdness 15:49 and deny the only God and our Lord Jesus Christ. 15:52 But I want to remind you, though you once knew this, 15:56 that the Lord having saved 15:57 the people out of the land of Egypt, 16:01 afterward destroyed those who did not believe..." 16:04 They were saved and they were lost. 16:06 "And the angels 16:07 who did not keep their proper domain, 16:09 but left their first abode, 16:11 He has reserved in everlasting chains 16:14 under darkness 16:16 for the judgment of the great day..." 16:17 Judgment is coming. 16:19 "As Sodom and Gomorrah, 16:23 and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, 16:28 having given themselves over to sexual immorality 16:34 and gone after strange flesh, 16:38 are set forth for an example, 16:43 suffering the vengeance of eternal fire." 16:53 There is a flood coming. 16:55 I think of the words 16:56 that really great man Thomas Jefferson who said, 16:59 "I tremble for my country 17:03 when I reflect that God is just, 17:06 that his justice cannot sleep forever." 17:09 Almost everybody today believes 17:12 that America is in a moral free fall. 17:18 A national apostasy will be followed 17:21 by national ruin. 17:26 He said, "I tremble for my country." 17:30 Woo to God, we had leaders 17:33 like the founding fathers of America. 17:39 Why did you call Revelation 13 17:41 that talks about the mark of the beast? 17:45 Because the mark of the beast 17:46 is fundamentally an attack upon the law of God. 17:50 Daniel 7:25 is a parallel prophecy. 17:56 Daniel 7:25, 17:58 "He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, 18:00 shall persecute the saints of the Most High, 18:02 and shall intend to change times and law. 18:06 Then saints shall be given into his hands for a time 18:09 and times and half a time." 18:10 Without giving you an exegesis. 18:12 The mark of the beast is tied up, 18:15 my beloved friends, 18:16 with an attack upon the law of Almighty God. 18:22 The mark of the beast is tied up 18:24 with an attack upon the law of God 18:27 by the government 18:28 which will then enforce its own laws. 18:33 Pretty scary, huh? 18:36 In the Garden of Eden, God gave two great gifts. 18:41 You can read it in Genesis 1 and 2. 18:43 The first gift was marriage. 18:46 Genesis 1:27, 18:48 two gifts given in the Garden of Eden. 18:50 "So God created man in His own image, 18:53 in image of God He created him, 18:55 male and female He created them." 18:58 This is marriage, one man, one woman. 19:01 Now Genesis 2:24, 19:06 "Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother 19:10 and be joined to his wife, 19:12 and they shall become one flesh." 19:15 The first great gift that God gave 19:17 to the human race was marriage. 19:21 And the second great gift 19:23 that God gave to the human race was the Sabbath. 19:27 Genesis 2:1-3 says, 19:31 "Thus the heavens and the earth, 19:33 and all the host of them, were finished. 19:35 And on the seventh day God ended His work 19:37 which He had done, 19:39 and He rested on the seventh day 19:41 from all His work which He had done. 19:44 Then God blessed the seventh day 19:47 and sanctified it 19:49 because in it He rested from all His work 19:53 which God had created and made." 19:55 Look at me and listen up, and listen up real good. 20:00 In the Garden of Eden, 20:03 God gave two mighty pillars 20:07 of society, 20:11 marriage and the Sabbath. 20:15 The devil hates them both. 20:19 When you destroy marriage 20:23 and the Sabbath, 20:26 hell is not far behind. 20:32 Now, listen to this. Listen to this. 20:37 My authority, you, 20:39 some will say to me after this telecast, 20:42 well, the Supreme Court says so, that makes it right. 20:46 That doesn't make it right at all. 20:50 Aren't you listening to me? 20:52 The Supreme Court is not the Supreme Court, 20:56 there is a Supreme Court in glory. 21:03 And when the Supreme Court contradicts the law of God, 21:06 I contradict the Supreme Court 21:10 because that is our authority of the Supreme Court 21:15 and a bunch of politicians shaking 21:19 in their shoes. 21:22 And let me read you something, 21:26 Karl Barth loved this statement, 21:28 often quoted it, 21:30 "When the holy day becomes the day of man, society, 21:33 and humanity wither away and the demons rule." 21:37 The great German theologian, 21:39 the greatest theologian probably of the 20th century. 21:43 When you get rid of the Sabbath, 21:44 he says the demons rule. 21:47 The same happens when the holy union of a man 21:49 and a woman is replaced 21:51 by a man made institution. 21:55 Society and humanity wither away. 21:59 The essence of the mark of the beast 22:00 is the acceptance of God, 22:02 man's law instead of God's law. 22:05 When the state changes God's law and enforces it, 22:09 there you have in essence, the mark of the beast. 22:14 When you accept 22:15 the law of the state in the place 22:16 of the law of the Creator, 22:18 you are bowing down and accepting in essence 22:23 the mark of the beast. 22:29 So it matters, doesn't it? 22:32 Therefore, what is my conclusion? 22:37 What shall we do? 22:40 I speak as a Christian, not as a politician. 22:46 I speak as a Christian who believes the Holy Bible. 22:49 Number one, "Resolve to love all people," 22:53 even the intolerant bigots on the left and the right. 22:58 And show an attitude of tolerance 23:00 not for the sin but for the sinner. 23:02 We all need love and grace. 23:07 We are all broken. We are all broken. 23:09 We're all born broken. 23:12 The heterosexual and the homosexual, 23:15 we're all broken. 23:19 Number two, "Stand up and speak up for Christ, 23:22 do not be intimidated by lawless men and women." 23:25 When we were in Ukraine in 1995, 23:28 the government said to me, "Close down the meetings, 23:33 or else we will put you in prison." 23:36 I said, "Go ahead." 23:41 Pride, whether you're gonna close down? 23:43 No. 23:46 That was the word they never heard before, 23:48 a preacher saying, "No." 23:51 Therefore stand up, don't be intimidated. 23:55 Number three, "Prepare for persecution." 24:01 Well, Billy Graham 24:03 was out running his great campaigns. 24:05 He was a moral force. 24:10 He was the conscience of America. 24:15 He said, 24:16 "Christians will be persecuted in the United States 24:20 by the United States government, 24:24 get ready for it." 24:26 Number four, 24:28 "Rejoice that you are called 24:29 to serve Christ in difficult times." 24:35 When I was in China, I met a pastor 24:40 because he wouldn't give up his faith 24:43 in the days of Mao. 24:46 He was tortured, 24:47 thrown into prison for ten years, 24:49 slept on concrete, beaten everyday, starved. 24:53 After ten years, they let him out, 24:56 they put him in another prison on the concrete being beaten, 25:00 went on for ten years. 25:03 I felt that I was in the prisons 25:05 of greatness. 25:06 May God raise up in His church, 25:11 men and women who will stand for the truth, 25:16 though the heavens fall. 25:19 Therefore... 25:21 Therefore, I say this to you 25:26 to my Australian friends, my American friends, 25:30 my friends around the world, 25:32 I say to you, 25:34 less I am convinced by reason 25:38 or the text of the Bible. 25:41 My conscience is captive to the Word of God. 25:47 Therefore, I cannot 25:51 and I will not recant... 25:57 Here I stand. 26:00 I can do no other. 26:05 God help me. 26:08 Amen. And amen. 26:13 And amen. 26:16 In the series, This I Believe, 26:19 Pastor Carter reveals the heart and soul of the Carter Report. 26:23 I believe in Jesus Christ. 26:28 I believe in the Ten Commandments. 26:33 I believe in the true gospel. 26:38 I believe in the last days. 26:44 I believe in the America 26:46 that believes in God. 26:50 I believe in heaven. 26:54 I believe in evangelism. 27:00 This I believe. 27:03 The seven DVD series, 27:05 This I Believe can be yours with the gift of $75 US 27:09 or $105 Australia. 27:11 Please write to us at the address on the screen 27:13 or visit our website at cartereport.org. 27:18 Pastor Carter and the Carter Report team 27:21 recently returned from Russia. 27:23 They brought back with them a special report 27:25 on Putin's new Russia. 27:29 I've gone there 49 times 27:31 because I've seen the power of God. 27:37 John Carter would like to offer you 27:38 this free one hour DVD, report from Putin's new Russia. 27:44 That is why I believe that the greatest gift 27:47 is the gift of the apostle. 27:51 Write to the address on the screen, call, 27:54 or visit our website 27:55 and receive your free DVD report 27:58 about Putin's new Russia. 28:00 I have seen Pentecost. 28:02 I have seen the power of God. 28:08 Get your free DVD report from Putin's new Russia 28:12 and watch the amazing transforming power 28:15 of the Gospel of Christ. 28:21 For a copy of today's program, 28:23 please contact us at P.O. 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Revised 2018-03-29