According to The Washington Times article (5-22-2013) Gallup poll: Most Americans think the country’s lost its moral compass, “some 72% of Americans said moral values in America are ‘getting worse,’ compared with 20% who said they are ‘getting better’…” Although it is true that globalization, technology, political representatives, media and the few that sit on our Supreme Court significantly affect the morals of our land; it is perhaps more significant our ministers as a whole rarely protest (organize/do anything the likes of Billy Sunday, Moody, etc.) at the local levels and have little power and influence over the masses; of which the individuals – mostly nominal Christians – especially as parents – can differ little blame.
Before building a house of facts, let’s look at what the foundation of what morals are and mean. The word comes from the Latin moralis, and interesting enough St. Gregory (6th century), who according to his words was involved ‘in the affairs of the Apostolical See,’ wrote three volumes entitled Morals of the Book of Job. But why called it Morals or ‘the Books of the Morals… an exposition on the book of blessed Job.’ First, notice Job according to the Lord, was ‘perfect and upright, and one that feared God (KJV).’ Another, translation says, ‘blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil (NIV).’
So i pull off the shelfs, Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance (1890) and Brown, Driver and Briggs’ Hebrew and English Lexicon (1906), in written print because occasionally i like to be reminded of the amazing work of hundreds of pages and ten thousands of words they addressed and compiled for Christendom before Word processors, Microsoft, Google, C++ or Javascript. So according to Strong’s and BDB, perfect (8535) in that verse also intertwines: ‘pious, gentle, undefiled, complete (Matt.5:48), morally innocent;’ and upright (3477) (yashar – as in Jasher – the Book of Jasher/Righteousness) in that verse includes, ‘just, right(eous), straight, pleasing to God.’ Thus, morality directly relates to righteousness.
So secondly, notice the Apostle Paul’s discourse in Romans 10:9-13, “…If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness (are justified; NIV), and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says, ‘Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.’ For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” So the Lord without partially, requires us all to be morally innocent or moral (righteous).
Third, morals imply and directly related and embody laws and ethics. Many of us in business, particularly those termed professionals, in which due to the nature of occupational position are more legally liable; are required by the industry and or employer to take continuing education. Often included in this, especially for the financial industry, are Ethics courses and Money Laundering courses; in which the IMF estimates about 5% of the global economy includes laundered money; and according to NYLICU ‘Anti-money Laundering 2014’ course, it is estimated that ‘annually across the globe is somewhere between $ 600 billion and $ 1.5 trillion.’
Ok so what is this ethics? The college text Ethics, Selections from Classical and Contemporary Writers (1999) states, “If the account given by Plato of Socrates’ trial before the Athenian court is accurate… Socrates could have avoided the death penalty… if he had agreed to give up his practice… he replied, ‘the unexamined life is not worth living (see Paul ‘examine yourselves’ 2 Cor. 13:5).’ The examination of life, to which Socrates devoted his life… philosophers call ethics. …Ethics is the science of conduct. …Ethics is a science in the sense that its study is an intellectual enterprise or a rational inquiry into its subject matter in the hope of gaining knowledge… Conduct in which persons make voluntary choices between alternative courses of action… Conduct, then, might be called ‘moral behavior’.” So notice that morals involve our ‘choices;’ and we would not have choices without freewill to make those choices which affect our morals.
Now, lastly before looking at some facts displaying the state of our morals in America; i ask you: who says what is moral and what authority do they have in saying so? And how is it that we understand that there is good and evil and right and wrong? Is it because the Lord God Almighty put which in our beings the spirit and conscience to rationalize in a reasonable manner? Why is it that other animals do not display the same care – and please don’t tell me at any animal on earth comes near humans in their amazing and God given ability to reason, care, hate, build up or destroy by choice. He is our Creator, and ‘there is only one Lawgiver and Judge… One who is able to save and destroy (James 4:12); for the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our Lawgiver, the Lord is our king and it is He who will save… (Isa. 33:22).’ And if this is true, for there truly is no other TRUTH, then it is His laws and commands that matter; and thus, His word and scriptures; His prophets and apostles that must teach the deepest courses in the rules of conduct and ethics or morals.
A FEW FACTS, etc.
CovenantEyes.com states, ‘By 2017, a quarter of a billion people are expected to be accessing mobile adult content from their phones or tablets, an increase of more than 30% from 2013…’ They display that as of 5/1/16 ‘3,000,000,000 searches for pornography since the start of 2015… 9 of 10 internet porn users only access free material… (yet still) in 2006 revenues for sex-related entertainment businesses were just under $13 billion… video sales and rentals, internet sales, cable, pay-per-view, phone sex, exotic dance clubs, magazines…’ And what does our ministers and representatives care about the family and eternal destruction this industry causes – do they change the laws? Hell no – because they have almost no power over the principalities of this present darkness – thus ‘Sheol or Hell enlarges its throat (Isa. 5:14);’ for ‘Death (Hades/Hell) and Destruction are never satisfied, for neither are human eyes (Pro. 27:20).’
Is part of the problem the leaders, representatives, judges and ministers; do they ‘murder by consent (Hosea 6:9)?’ Expastors.com in their article How many Pastors are addicted to Porn? The Stats are Surprising, they state, ‘It probably won’t come as much of a surprise to you when I say that the porn industry generates about $13 billion each year in the United States. It’s a heartbreaking reality that 9 out of 10 boys and 6 out of 10 girls have been exposed to pornography before the age of 18; the average age of first exposure is about 11 years old. And that men are 543% more likely to look at porn than women. Unfortunately, the secret is out… our world is obsessed with sex and pornography… A survey taken at a Promise Keepers rally revealed that over 50% of the men in attendance were INVOLVED with pornography within ONE WEEK of attending the event. And that was 20 years ago. FIFTY PERCENT OF CHRISTIAN men and 20% of Christian women say they are ADDICTED to pornography. And the most popular day of the week for viewing porn is Sunday…’
Continuing: ‘…Fifty-one (51) percent of pastors say pornography is a possible temptation. Nearly 20% of the calls received on Focus on the Family’s Pastoral Care Line are for help with issues such as pornography and compulsive sexual behavior.’ (i add: and if you are over 30 and have not had your head stuck in the sand, you likely know of one or more pastors in or near your city that has engaged in illegal acts with minors or adultery; continuing again:) AND of the 1,351 pastors that Rick Warren’s website, Pastors.com, surveyed on porn use, 54% said they had view internet pornography with the last year and 30% …within the last 30 days.”
And Morals (and family structure) are reflected by these facts… the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2014 reported stated that there was an increase greater than 15% in syphilis cases from 2013; and gonorrhea had a 5% increase. More importantly were the estimated ‘20 million new sexually transmitted inflections occurring every year in this country.’ Forget the $ 16 cost in health care; the number of MSM (men having sex with men) has nearly tripled in the last ten years. And by nature and judgment half of them that were diagnosed with syphilis are now also HIV-positive. It would be graphic for me to explain why – simply said the Creator did not design our bodies that way and where there is bleeding unchanged disease will follow – but above all these temporal things – it is an abomination to the Lord.
Although teenage pregnancy dropped in the US from about a half a million teenage pregnancy births in 1998 to a quarter million in 2014, the Department of Health and Human Services note that ‘rates of teen pregnancy are higher in the US that in other developed countries; and that the rate of contraception use is higher than the 1990s, though ‘adolescents are inconsistent users.’ Also, 30% of all US women will have an abortion by age 45. That is nearly an unbelievable number; almost twice that of the percentage of women that have miscarriages. Yes there is forgiveness and healing available; yet, the cries of the still reach the heavens. The number of ‘reported’ abortions in the US to the CDC in the last 6 years alone is over 4,000,000; to give you an idea of how many that is – it is greater than all the children born in the US in 2015.
Well perhaps legal drugs will help – you know pharmaceuticals (from the Greek ‘pharmakia’ – meanings drugs or sorcery); for we all know that this companies do their business solely out of the goodness of the hearts and not to drive up health insurance cost. Yes, of course, drugs are needed in society. But it is this run to them before equally petitioning the Lord that is sickening and likely which causes sickness as well.
I recall the time a dozen of us were in Mexico and a women (who had been off and on dealing with major stomach pains) had an attack of serious proportion and during which the locals we were about to preach to rushed her into the back of a truck (the dirt road would have likely tore her up) and even most of our on brothers in the Lord were of the mind ‘let’s get her to the hospital;’ and of course emergencies are not to be taken lightly at all – it is ignorance not to use great discernment in every case. So – two of us said roughly, ‘as a witness to these people we are about to preach the gospel to (after several of us in serious fasting and prayer – unlike your common variety of ministers) let us at least lay hands on her a pray a minute if she will allow us – which she did. Following which about 15 minutes later, she told those around her – ‘I feel no pain, and don’t feel the lump or discomfort that has often tormented me.’ An hour later after we preach the saving power of Christ Jesus and the healing available through the Holy Spirit, very many came forward for prayer and to confess Jesus as their Savior; and at least 2 others that I know of stated that they had been healed as we laid hands of faith on them (one of which swelling on his neck went down; the other I did not see – but nor did I see the eyes open on the girl in the hospital in American that we prayed for, nevertheless, the next day we were told by friends that she could see again).
Ok, so a bit more examples (from: The Last Trial) and i will try to conclude this article. Health expenditures as a percentage of GDP (Gross Domestic Product) increased from 5% in 1960 to over 15% in 2004, and rose again over the next decade, especially as psychiatrists and doctors prescribe more and more drugs. In 2012, the Health and Human Service budget accounted for about 20% of the $ 4 trillion economy. The biggest was due to depression and stress, whether now under the Affordable Health Care Act (Obamacare) or through Medicaid or Title IV. Now let us look at these selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, or serotonin-specific reuptake inhibitor (SSRIs) that are typically used as antidepressants… such as Prozac or Zoloft. First, of all there are natural serotonins available during the digestion of healthy proteins that contain the amino acid L – typtophan. Eating oats, nuts, rice, fish, eggs, yogurt, turkey, fruits, and dairy products all can be used to affect our bodies; and equally important is exercise.
Anyway, since we have a great demand for serotonin inhibitors, the pharmaceutical suppliers make tens of billions of dollars on this widely prescribed drug: as antidepressants, pain killers, or as antipsychotic medication. In 1971, when LY110141 was developed by Eli Lilly, depression was rarely talked about, and antidepressants were mainly used in psychiatric units and prisons. When people were said to have ‘anxiety,’ General Practitioners often prescribed tranquillizers such as Valium. LY110141 was first tested to treat high blood pressure, but did not work well in humans. Then it was tested as an anti-obesity agent, but it was not very profitable.
When it was tested on psychotic patients and manic depressants, LY110141 or Fluoxetine, provided as much harm as good. But on cases with mild depression it provided positive response in most cases. So Eli Lilly hired Interbrand, who came up with brand names such as Microsoft, Kinect, BMW, Procter & Gamble, and Wi-Fi; and Interbrand proposed Prozac as a sellable name. So after spending millions in advertising, Eli Lilly made Prozac so widely known that it had over 50 million users worldwide, and of course, billions in profits. The story is similar with the other antidepressant manufacturers. According to the U. S. Health Department, in 2010, Americans alone spent about $ 90 billion on antidepressants alone; and it reported very little was spent on alternative choices. Yet, sales – after increasing 400% from 2005 to 2009, began to decline as many consumers learned that they or their children would do just as well on sugar placebos.
Then there were the lawsuits, according to Zoloft’s own website (2008), their attorneys had them state, ‘antidepressant medicines may increase suicidal thoughts or actions in some children, teenagers, and young adults…’. Prozac’s website statement was nearly identical. Suicides and birth defects were the primary reasons for the suits. At that time Prozac’s stated, ‘PROZAC and other antidepressant medicines may cause serious side effects, including: suicidal thoughts or actions… acting aggressive or violent… worse depression… trouble sleeping… nausea… trouble breathing… abnormal bleeding… headaches… weakness… changes in appetite or weight…’ And Zoloft’s stated, ‘Drinking alcohol while taking ZOLOFT is not recommended.’ The U. S. Health Department in one report said that as many as 50% of people taking antidepressants would be better without them; and that only about 20% actually improve due to the drugs. And that nearly 6 out of 10 studies show that antidepressants don’t work at all. (end of The Last Trial; hope to publish by 2017).
i am only saying, seek the Lord as much as you do doctors; the mere fact so many in our nation don’t seek the Lord is also not only directly related to our nations morals, but also its sicknesses. One more example, again yes many children and adults need good psychiatric care, i recall when doing my hundred hours’ worth of research one teen male who was struggling with the issue of homosexuality and before killing himself he wrote his psychiatrist and stated that the drugs and encouragement to ‘accept who he was’ brought him no solution after months and months of the same he could not see that the depression and confusion would change. Moreover, the Obama administration has basically made conversion therapy (see PATH; NARTH) illegal. They were moved by people and organizations and thus put out to the schools things like: Just The Facts Coalition and as stated by APA’s Task Force, that ‘parents and …their families (should) avoid sexual orientation treatments that portray homosexuality as a …disorder and instead seek psychotherapy… and educational services that …increase family and school support.’ That is telling the parents that they do not know what is best for their children and that they can’t recognize moral wrongs or rights?
Ok, So anyway, before concluding: two letters for you; first letter from a 16 years old, before attempting suicide (shorten and slightly edited from rated R – tell me if your kid is about to kill themselves do you really care about their spelling and vernacular or the heart of their message and the passion behind it):
“I am sorry to the people that I love but I cant f…… take it anymore. So I am gay. Why dooes everyone hate me becaus of that. .… them. I have been punched and spit and called faggot, queer, loser, p…., fag boy. Some a…… painted faggot on my locker. Some people do not talk to me. .… them (more…) I hate this ….… life know. I am so ….… tired of the s… I hve receved hate letters telling me to leave school telling me that faggots aren’t welcome and that I am a fag.’
‘I am scared and I am tiredand I cant take any more. Yesterday in the locker room some a……. said steven is such a p…. and faggot. He is an ugnly stupid faggotand we should kill him. And they knew that I could hear them. Idont know what to .…… thing now. Is it better that they kill me or I kill myself I don’t .…… know. Ijust what to die (more words…) I need to kill myself I love many people mom and dad I love you and you didn’t do anything bad I hat e life and this is why I have to die I am sarced and iam tired of being laughted at made fun of beaten up and threatened and s… and feeling like .… .… .… .… .… I just need to die. Don’t be mad. Be happy that alit he bad .… I feel is goint fo be over finaly forever. God will understand, and I know that. Maybe jesus was gay (more words…) Maybe god is gay…”
He wrote a lot more words, but hope you get the point. In part that there are moral problems in every direction. On the non-Christian’s lack of knowledge of God and His love and care and word; and on the part of the Christian – young and old – in Christian instruction and discipline and how we are to as Jude says, save some with ‘love and others with fear…’ But it takes care and wisdom and discernment to do so.
Second letter (this soul did kill his body):
“I’m 22 years old. I don’t trust anyone. I am diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, major depressive disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder. I rely on medication to keep me happy enough to stay alive. I forgot to pray. I haven’t prayed in a year.
Why would God want to hear from a wasted miserable loser like me? When I was a child, I used to pray to be allowed to die. It didn’t happen.”
More than 32,000 Americans commit suicide every year and over a million suicides occur worldwide or one person every 40 seconds. Attempts are estimated at over ten times that amount. As Jeremiah says in Lamentations, look at the ‘…affliction and wandering …Jerusalem has sinned greatly… her fall was astounding… all her people groan… (some say) ‘Look, Lord, and consider, for I am despised.’ IS IT NOTHING TO YOU, ALL YOU WHO PASS BY?” Well dear Christians, dear parents and ministers, look at America and consider also our children and their future and more so the judgment to come on all flesh and every nation? i want to dance, i want to sing and worship; but where is the ‘weeping between the foyers and the alters (Joel 2:17)?’ Many of you still think revival is coming as it did in the days of the circuit riders and open-air preaching. Are you kidding me? First, they can’t compete against today’s entertainment – movies and video game releases – the big ones make a billion dollars each. Did not say all of them are wicked and through them away – use good DISCERNMENT.
Second, nearly all Christians priest, preacher, layman alike – are not willing to be circuit riders or missionaries. Third, it is a moot point; for worldwide judgment and tribulation will come soon after the Temple is built and not worldwide revival – it is the word of God. As Joel says, ‘the day of the Lord is near; it will come like destruction from the Almighty.’ So what do we do? We have a care for the word of God; we have a care for morals and ethics and encourage and petition our ministers and representatives to ‘good what is right’ – bring back reasonable censorship and make illegal at least abominable wickedness and destruction; we instruct the young and try ourselves to walk worthy before God and mankind.
The TRUTH SOURCE 