I was once a Zombie...and maybe you still are??

The Zombies have taken over! With the current movie "World War Z", the most expensive zombie movie ever made, the popular culture is over-run with zombie images from popular films (Zombieland, 28 Days Later, Shaun of the Dead, Night of the Living Dead) to the AMC TV hit, "Walking Dead" where police officer, Rick Grimes, leads a group of survivors in a world overrun by zombies.

The typical zombie is a dead person who has come back to life. They are also known to feed on human flesh to sustain their life, which is part of their "creepiness". You don't want to get too close to a zombie.

You may be surprised to learn that long before any books or movies on "zombies", the Bible referenced zombies. Paul writes in Ephesians 2 that all of us are dead men because of our disobedience to God and our many sins. He goes on to say that you and I like everyone else, and they are enslaved to our master, the Devil. We are subject to following our passionate desires and doing whatever our sinful nature wants. While we are in this state, we are "walking dead men (and women)".

In Romans 1:21-32, Paul describes the lifestyle and behavior of the "walking dead" (all of mankind). He writes that those who are dead have no desire to worship God or give him thanks. Their minds are dark and confused. They claim to be wise but in reality, they are utter fools. They have abandoned God to do whatever shameful things their hearts desire. They have traded the truth for a lie, and instead of worshiping their Creator, they worship and serve created things including each other's bodies, men with men and women with women.

Paul goes on to describe these "zombies" as full of every kind of wickedness, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, gossip, etc. They will stab you in the back when you're not around, they HATE God. They are proud, boastful and totally disobedient to their parents. They think nothing of breaking their promises. Their word means nothing. These "walking dead" are heartless and show no mercy, and they are always on the lookout to convert others to their way of thinking and behavior

Paul informs us in Ephesians 2 that because of our being dead in our sins (Walking Dead), we were subject to God's wrath (his righteous anger). Roman 1 says that because of our behavior and hard hearts, we are daily storing up God's wrath (against each one of us) which will be unleashed on the day of judgment (Revelation 20:11-12). 

But here's the Good News. Paul writes in Ephesians 2:4-7 that because God is rich in mercy and because of his love for us, that even though we were zombies, walking dead men--he gave us new life when he raised the Messiah Yeshua (Jesus) from the dead. He raised us from the dead along with Yeshua (Jesus), and it is because of God's grace (His un-merited favor) that we have been saved (from being "walking dead men and women." By God's grace, we have been rescued from the domain of darkness where we were held captive, under the spell of Satan. Yeshua (Jesus) is our Deliverer! He has given us new life and adopted us into his family so that we could have a relationship with God, our Heavenly Father.

So I am thankful that I no longer live as a Zombie, seeking to please my own flesh as well as consuming the flesh of others. I am also thankful that I no longer living as a "walking dead man" with an appetite for wickedness, and a hatred toward God (maybe I never said I hated God, but my actions spoke louder than words). With the life of God flowing through me, I now want to worship God and give Him the glory and honor he so rightly deserves. My mind has been renewed and is no longer consumed with twisted thinking, deception, lies and unbelief.

You too can be set free from the world of the "walking dead." Start reading the Bible (begin with the Gospel of John, and ask God to reveal himself to you (He will), and then begin to talk to God and ask Him to change you and give you a new life (that He would begin to live in and through you) and deliver you from being a "zombie" and the "walking dead."

Liar Liar, Pants on Fire!

Is it just me, or does everything that I hear from this administration seems to be an outright lie? It's almost like a game of who can get away with the most lies and there's no concern about being caught because it now seems like a perverse joke: Who can tell the biggest lies and still keep a straight face? They tell lie after lie with no shame or remorse when they get caught.

Here's some of the evidence that I've gathered thus far:

• Almost all the IRS officials have lied about their unlawful targeting of conservative groups. It was not
  the sole work of a few misguided agents in Cincinnati. They were only following orders from higher ups in Washington.
• Attorney General Eric Holder has lied under oath to Congress. He swore that he had no knowledge of any effort to go after individual reporters. But an official Justice Department statement shows that Holder signed off on a search warrant to monitor the communications of Fox News reporter James Rosen. He LIED.
• Sen. Ron Wyden (D., Oregon) recently asked James Clapper, Dir. of National Intelligence whether the NSA collected the phone and email records of millions of ordinary Americans. Clapper said "NO, it did not." He LIED. 
• Last November, White House press secretary Jay Carney, was asked point blank whether the administration had altered CIA produced intelligence memos to fit it's narrative of a spontaneous riot
  
  in Benghazi fueled by a YouTube video. Jay Carney answered unequivocally that the Obama administration had made only ONE small stylistic change. That too was a LIE. In fact, we later learned that there were at least 12 different drafts that reflected substantial changes.
• The Obama White House lied about the deaths of four Americans in Benghazi just to get elected. Obama sent UN ambassador Susan Rice out on 5 Sunday talk shows with the official line that the attack on the Libyan embassy was sparked by a YouTube video. On the night of the attack, Beth Jones, acting secretary of state of the Near Eastern division, sent an email to the State Dept that the group that conducted the attacks on the embassy was Ansar al-Sharia, affiliated with Islamic terrorists. 3 days later the White House prepared talking points for Susan Rice to report that the attack on the Libyan embassy in Benghazi had nothing to do with terrorists. It was in response to a YouTube video. Lies. Nothing but lies.
• Arne Duncan, the secretary of education, on "Face the Nation" was caught in an out-and-out lie saying that because of the sequester, nearly 40,000 teachers would lose their jobs. A week later, he was forced to admit that he had lied.  
• Ken Salazar, Secretary of the Interior and his Energy Czar Carol Browner lied about and used fraudulent claims to impose an offshore drilling ban in the wake of the BP oil spill, then were rebuked by a federal judge.
• During 2008 campaign, Sen. Obama said, "Public Will Have 5 Days To Look At Every Bill That Lands On My Desk." Lie.
• During the same campaign, Sen. Obama promised that he would have the most open and transparent administration that Washington has ever seen. Lie
• In his attempt to distance himself from the evil Pres. Geo. W. Bush, Obama declared that there would be no illegal wire tapping of American citizens. Now we all know this was a lie.
• Here's an audacious statement from Obama:  "For the first time since 1990, American manufacturers are creating new jobs." Lie.
• "We've excluded lobbyists from policymaking jobs." The Tampa Times found at least four.
• Obama: "We import more oil today than ever before." Politifact reports that oil imports are down.

What is the point of this laundry list of lies (which is just the tip of the iceberg). As Victor Hansen writes in the National Review, deception and lies infect every corner of the executive branch, eroding the trust that is necessary for democracy itself. 

The arrogance in Washington is seen in the justification that any means necessary is "ok" even if one has to tell a lie to stop the Tea Party or Fox News, then it's not seen by this administration as a lie.

Where does God stand on the subject of lies? He hates lies and liars. One of the titles for God is the God of Truth (Isaiah 65:16). God says, "The one who does deceitful things will not stay in my home." The one who tells lies will not remain in my presence.(Psalm 101:7).

Proverbs 19:5 (GW) ⁵ A lying witness will not go unpunished. One who tells lies will not escape.

Paul writes 1 Timothy 1:10 (GW) that ¹⁰ Laws are intended for people involved in sexual sins, for homosexuals, for kidnappers, for liars, for those who lie when they take an oath, and for whatever else is against accurate teachings.

We all get caught in a lie sooner or later. The Lord is not looking for perfection, He's looking for those who have honest and contrite hearts, who are not lifted up with pride or conceit and who can admit their sins and ask for His forgiveness. The problem God really has is with those who practice the art of lying, and do so on a daily basis. They are in grave danger as far as their eternal destiny because they are in bed with the Devil, whom Jesus said is "the father of lies."