Jan 19

The End of Good Faith?

Everyone is crying out for unity, but there is none. Why? It’s simple. We’ve lost our North Star, the one shining light that led us all in the same direction toward that more perfect union. It is expressed clearly in the motto, “One Nation Under God.” That is the stabilizing factor that allowed us to express different opinions and points of view while mutually pursuing a common goal, a life and a national character submitted to the mighty and gracious hand of the God of the Bible. That’s why our national motto is not in “We the People” we trust, or even “In the Constitution We Trust,” It is “In God We Trust.” This the essence of “good faith.”

Unfortunately, as we have moved away from personal submission to, and public acknowledgment of God, we have also removed His standard of right and wrong, of truth and untruth. If there is no god, then anything is permissible and can be justified in one’s own mind since the absence of the God of the Bible leaves one open to imagine their own god, one that suits their own purposes, and their own standard of right and wrong, their own “truth.”

There is no longer a “North Star” to which we can all set our sights without bias. There is no longer the assurance that we are all submitted to the same standard of honesty and integrity. There is no longer “good faith.”

There is a remedy, however.  George Washington stated it at our very founding,

Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor…”—(Oct 3, 1789 National Day of Thanksgiving)

And again, by Abraham Lincoln who reminded us that

“ Whereas it is the duty of nations as well as of men to own their dependence upon the overruling power of God, … and to recognize the sublime truth, announced in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history: that those nations only are blessed whose God is the Lord”—(March 30, 1863 Appointing a National Fast Day).

As for those who reject the counsel of our founders, America can no more reject our foundation than a skyscraper can continue to stand without its own.

So we must call people of faith to openly proclaim that we are “One Nation Under God,” and that must be our unifying standard, our North Star. We may debate what it means, but we must all agree that our common pursuit is to understand God’s will for America and work together to live it out. If we reject this pursuit there will be no unity, no common goal, no good faith, no “United States of America.” God have mercy on us.

Today, the leftist movement rejects any appeal to God and His rules for order and right. They follow another star, the star of Secular Humanism or Situational Ethics. Human Judgment is the ultimate arbiter of right and wrong. In their world “Might makes Right,” and that is our present danger. Because the left controls all the levers of national government they have the power to advance their agenda without considering another point-of-view which they deem to be not worth listening to because conservative views are, after all, backward and unenlightened. President Woodrow Wilson—not exactly a Conservative—warned us.

“The history of liberty is the history of the limitations of power, not the increase of it. When we resist, therefore, the concentration of power, we resist the powers of death, for the concentration of power always precedes the destruction of human liberties.”

So this is where we are today. If we cannot agree on our North Star, and live out our national motto, “In God We Trust,” we will never come together in good faith. It will be a battle of ideologies. There can only be one winner. In short, this is the timeless battle between God and Satan. Who will win? I pray for America that this will not be the end of good faith. God help us.

Nov 09

NOW WHAT?

Dear Friends and fellow warriors,
I haven’t made any public statements concerning the elections until now, because I wanted to be sure I wasn’t reacting in the flesh, and so I waited to be as certain as I can be that I’m hearing from the mind of Christ, the heart of God.

First of all, it is not over!. I was one of the prophets who said Trump would win the election. It’s clear, either we were all wrong, or God’s plan is to show up in a way that will cause us all to stand in awe, in amazement at His wonderful work–That’s what I’m believing!

The word to all of us at this particular time is Psalm 46:10, “Be still and know that I am God.” When God spoke those words to His people in Jerusalem they were facing conquest by the Assyrians who had been ravaging towns of Judah and subjecting the people to the harshest of violence and torture. The Barbarians were literally at the gate! Yet, God said, “Be still…” It’s like He’s saying, “Don’t worry; I’ve got this.”
Yet, being still doesn’t mean being complacent. It means to know He is God and is able to deliver us. We will continue to pray, fast and work to defend our faith, our families and our freedoms, but yet with a stillness of soul, a manifestation of the abiding presence of the Prince of Peace in our hearts and minds. God is an awesome God and He delights to show up in ways that are absolutely unexplainable. Remember the three Israelites who were facing the fiery furnace? They told King Nebuchadnezzar that their God is able to save them, but even if He didn’t they still wouldn’t bow the knee to anyone but Him, (Daniel 3).

And so it is with us today. We will continue to pray to see the words of God’s prophets come to pass until we see the awesome miracle-working power of God make fools of His enemies. We will also be listening for our personal marching orders as we enter into 2021.

And so, I invite you to join us as we resume our monthly Faith & Freedom meetings on the third Saturday of each month. This month it will be November 21st. I will relay to you what I believe our Commander-In-Chief is directing as we move forward toward revival in our land. One thing I can tell you right now, is that we need your support and your active engagement. Yes, the battle is the Lord’s but we still need to show up. If you haven’t already done so, I need you to join up by logging onto this link and subscribing to donate at least $15 a month. If you prefer you can make a single annual donation ($180 or more) to be counted as a member of the New York Faith & Freedom Coalition. I would be personally grateful as that is the only way we can stay in the field to do battle. We receive no funding except what comes from New York believers who understand the call and the mission before us.
So, in closing:

1. Be still; be at peace; chill; He’s got it! (Psalm 46:10)
2. Pray and fast to see the words of the prophets come to pass.
3. Join us, Saturday, November 21st at 6:30 PM to learn where we go from here.
4. Join the New York Faith & Freedom Coalition and recruit others to join us.

JOIN OR DONATE HERE

For King and Country
Rev. Bill Banuchi
Executive Director

Therefore you kings be wise;
Be warned you rulers of the earth.
Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling.
Kiss the Son, lest He be angry and you be destroyed in your way.
But His wrath can flare up in a moment.
Blessed are all who take refuge in Him.
–Psalm 2:10-12

Oct 28

2020 Elections -Pre and Post

In the New Testament, the Apostle Paul tells us to
“…fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”–2 Cor. 4:18:

In just a few days we will choose leaders of our nation for another four years as well as leaders for state and local elections for their respective terms.

This will be, without question, the most consequential election in the life of this nation since perhaps the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860, and even that is questionable. So I want to talk to you briefly about the significance of this election and how we, as Christians need to vote. Then I want to share what I believe is God’s word to us for the period following the election.

We must look beyond what is seen in the natural. As disciples, we ought to see beyond the natural, and not get caught up in arguments that are meaningless from an eternity perspective. I’m not talking about getting political. Paul tells us in his second letter to Timothy:

“No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in the affairs of this life, but rather tries to please his commanding officer.”—2 Tim. 2:4

I am talking about being Biblical and pleasing our commanding officer who commands us to occupy until He comes. First of all I want to make clear what this election is not about.
• It’s not primarily about a contest between Donald Trump and Joe Biden
• It’s not about a contest between Republicans and Democrats
• It’s not even primarily about the U.S. Supreme Court
• It’s not even about the conflict between Black Lives and Blue lives as real as that conflict is

No, if we were contesting for those issues we would be entangled in the affairs of this life. It is much bigger than these temporal issues. It’s about which worldview will dominate our institutions and culture for the coming generations of American life.The Republican worldview as reflected in its platform presumes there is a God, and it is in the God of the Bible that we place our trust, thus our national motto. Public policies must reflect values that originate in God’s mind and heart as revealed in the Bible and interpreted by our imperfect understanding even with the help of the Holy Spirit. As we acknowledge our overruling dependency upon God we affirm that there is an absolute standard of right and wrong expressed in the Holy Scriptures. The platform of the Republican Party reaffirms our belief and trust in God while the platform of the Democrat Party discounts the idea of God and presumes to place human wisdom as the ultimate authority in American life. The danger there is as Dostoevsky told us, “If there is no god than anything is permissible,” including the sacrifice of more than 60 million babies since Roe V. Wade, including defiling the holy institution of marriage by re-defining it to mean what God has called an abomination.

HOW WE HAVE COME TO THIS POINT
Since the 1960s when the Supreme Court—not the people– took God out of our public schools we began the systematic removal of the knowledge of God from all our public and private institutions. We have been slowly but steadily turning away from the God of our Fathers, and by default coming under the god of this world. Like the classic illustration of the frog in the kettle that stays in the water while the flame is turned up one degree at a time, he never feels the difference until he is ultimately boiled alive. His goose is cooked, (I know it’s a mixed metaphor, but you get the idea). And so it has been in America for the last 60 years,
But Donald Trump, the most unlikely vessel, is leading the way back to God. That’s why the opposition is so animated, and even violent because that’s what Satan does. We, who serve God know who our Master is. Those who oppose us believe they are their own bosses while never having a clue about who is really pulling their strings, because he is, after all, the Prince of Darkness, Lucipher, the Deceiver.

President Trump repeatedly reaffirms that we are One Nation Under God, and that must be the rallying point for all our citizens. That is the answer to our racial issues and our economic disparities. Identity politics only serves to divide us. The minute one says “Black Lives Matter” or for that matter, even “Blue Lives Matter” you are dividing us and a house divided cannot stand.

SO WHAT IS GOD’S WORD TO US IN THESE DAYS BEFORE THE ELECTION?
First, we must pray like it all depends on God, because it does. Secondly, we must work like it all depends on us, because it does that too. America has already lived way beyond the average life expectancy of a free republic – more than 230 years under One Constitution, unheard of in all of world history. If we lose it, it will be on us. John Adams reminds us that “Liberty once lost is lost forever.”

So let us today, once again as our forebears did for us, let us pledge our lives our fortunes and our sacred honor, first to the One who gave His life for our eternal freedom, Jesus Christ, the Lord of Lord and King of all Kings.  And secondly, to pray like it all depends on God and work like it all depends on us to get out the vote, every member of your family, every friend you might have to be sure we preserve the gift of liberty for our children and our grandchildren and live out God’s formula for revival.

WHAT IS GOD’S WORD CONCERNING THE DAY AFTER…OR THE WEEK AFTER…
President Trump will win re-election, but that will mark only the beginning of birth pangs preceding a period of great trial followed by a period of revival and reformation like has never been seen in the history of our nation.

The Church will rise out of its complacency and become relevant once again—not the whole church. In fact, it will be only a faithful remnant of pastors and Christian leaders who will step up to the plate to lead. The prophets will speak to the king once again. The royal priesthood will take its seat of authority at the city gates to rule in righteousness according to the precepts of nature’s God as revealed in the Holy Scriptures. Yes, we will debate what the Word says, but we will not debate that we are all committed to the fact that the law of the Lord is perfect, and our quest is to pursue a more perfect union as we come to better understand God’s perfect law and His plan for America.

We will be One Nation Under God rejecting the idea of a hyphenated American for we are all Americans, “E Pluribus Unum,” Out of many One.

As President Trump opens the door for the Church leading the way, we must occupy with evangelistic Biblical teaching to make disciples of our nation. Every local church, every Bible school and seminary will be called to teach its students the principles of faithful stewardship of the gift of liberty. We will prepare disciples to occupy the seats of government at every level from dog catcher on up. Yet, this will not be without resistance and sacrifice. The powers of Satan will oppose us at every move as we advance the cause of love, virtue and Biblical morality. We must be prepared to give all we have for the One who gave all for us.
Pastors must lead the way, or their lampstands will be removed. We must no longer be intimidated into silence, but be willing to speak of God wherever decisions are being made for our children. God must be mentioned whenever the thought comes to mind without fear of offending but yet with gentleness and respect. God must be an ever-present part of our speech as he is an ever-present part of our lives.

So as we prepare for the year 2021 prepare to go public with your faith. Your personal faith must find public expression to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Prepare for a season of opposition like we have never known here in this country, but also prepare for a season of revival and reformation to bring this nation back to the God of our fathers. Pastors must lead, or get out of the way. Though not every believer is called to be an evangelist, every believer is called to be a witness. Prepare to be an effective, courageous witness to the saving grace of Jesus Christ. No more fear and intimidation; 2021 is about courage, loving courage. We will live out the promise of 2 Chronicles 7:14:

“If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray, and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from Heaven, forgive their sin and heal their land.” –It’s coming. Get on board!
To be part of God’s plan of redemption you must be born again and filled with His Spirit. It will take power, courage and determination until we see America Bless God!

Aug 30

“ONE NATION UNDER GOD”

We’ve all heard the phrase, “One Nation Under God,” but do we know where it started and what it really means, and does it have any relevance to American life today, or is it just some trite saying made up by some old white men, that is totally meaningless in today’s “progressive” society? In the answer to these questions we find the solution to our nation’s most current and pressing issues.

Let’s first take a look at where it started.
Though the phrase, “under God” can be found in many of the writings of our founding era, we can make particular note of Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg address where he dedicated a burial place of fallen soldiers to a new birth of freedom, “under God.” Here’s an excerpt:

“…that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

Then, in 1954 the phrase “under God” was added to our Pledge of Allegiance after President Eisenhower was inspired to do so by a sermon he heard in church.

Next, we can go to the motto stamped on all our coinage, “E Pluribus Unum” or “Out of Many, One.” This first appeared on the great seal of the United States in 1782. It has since been one of the traditional mottos of our land.
From these two ideas we get the ideal—One Nation Under God.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN?
The word “nation” signifies a group of people. According to dictionary.com: “a large body of people, associated with a particular territory, that is sufficiently conscious of its unity to seek or to possess a government peculiarly its own. The idea that we are one nation suggests that we are a group of people that identify as Americans. It is that name, symbolized by one flag that unites us.

Teddy Roosevelt gave a speech to the Knights of Columbus in New York City at a time when many were migrating to the U.S. from Europe, (Oct. 12, 1915). Roosevelt said:

“There is no room in this country for hyphenated Americanism. When I refer to hyphenated Americans, I do not refer to naturalized Americans. Some of the very best Americans I have ever known were naturalized Americans, Americans born abroad. But a hyphenated American is not an American at all.”

This is just as true of the man who puts ‘native’ before the hyphen as of the man who puts German or Irish or English or French (or African, or Hispanic1) before the hyphen. Americanism is a matter of the spirit and of the soul. Our allegiance must be purely to the United States. We must unsparingly condemn any man who holds any other allegiance. But if he is heartily and singly loyal to this Republic, then no matter where he was born, he is just as good an American as anyone else…The one absolutely certain way of bringing this nation to ruin, of preventing all possibility of its continuing to be a nation at all, would be to permit it to become a tangle of squabbling nationalities…”

The idea that we identify as one people above all others does not negate our cultural or ethnic differences, but it makes those differences subordinate to the unity we find as Americans committed to the ideals expressed in our founding documents.

Abraham Lincoln reminded us, and world history confirms the Biblical truth that a house divided cannot stand. The term “Balkanization” has been entered into our modern lexicon to describe what happens when this unity is lost. The natural state of societies is in fact, Balkanization or “tribalism.” The fact that we have progressed as one nation for over four hundred years is the exception, not the rule, and in that regard, we are, in fact, an exceptional nation.

Foreign enemies like China and Russia whose systems are antithetical to liberty understand what Abraham Lincoln noted as a young man, that this nation will never be conquered by an outside force; if we fail as a nation it will be because we have committed national suicide.*

The “American” banner must be the banner we rally around. The American identity must be the one we all identify with. We must be “one Nation, not many nations or groups, or tribes.

UNDER GOD
The phrase “Under God” has been part of our nation’s DNA from its very founding. The signing of the Mayflower Compact was the first time in world history that a nation was formed by mutual agreement of free people. In that first organic document, the new arrivals stated why they came here: “For the glory of God and the advancement of the Christian religion.” Throughout our history, it has always been a given fact that our liberties have derived from God’s laws. In that sense, we have always been “under God,” accountable to Him and responsible to live according to His instructions as we come to understand them in the Holy Bible. Even Thomas Jefferson, one of the least religious of our founders warned us when he said,

“Can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are the gift of God? That they are not to be violated but with His wrath? Indeed, I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that His justice cannot sleep forever.”

Thomas Jefferson recognized that we must remain, “under God” if we are to continue as a nation of free men and women. We may debate what it means to be under God; we may debate what God’s will is for us; we may debate how His laws should apply to modern life, but we dare not debate whether we are, in fact, under God and subject to His sovereignty unless we are ready to surrender our liberty.

CONCLUSION
So there you have it. The answer to so many of our nation’s ills. It is the answer to our racial and ethnic strife. It is the answer to our sexual and moral confusion. It is the way to continue to grow into that more perfect union envisioned by our founders. So let us raise the banner of our unity above the banners of our diversity, reaffirming once again, that we are One Nation Under God, and we will find that peace and prosperity promised to us by the Author of life himself so that we may pass it on to the next generation.

“Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, The people He has chosen as His own inheritance.”—Psalm 33:12

* Young Men’s Lyceum

Aug 12

KNOW YOUR ENEMY

First of all, anyone seeking to bring down our institutions in order to replace them with a Communist/Socialist System is in every sense of the word, an enemy of the American people. It’s important to note that these attacks on our way of life didn’t come out of nowhere, but they are the product of decades of godless indoctrination in our public institutions.

It’s been reported that some radical activists are rather proud of the Chicago looting, claiming it was “reparations.” As one BLM activist put it, “Anything they wanted to take, they can take it because these businesses have insurance.”
We must understand their thinking if we are to respond with effect. Dostoevsky told us in the Brothers Karamozov, if there is no God than anything is permissible. Without God anyone can establish their own system of right and wrong. This is what our children have been learning for decades in our public/government schools under the guise of “Values Clarification.” You know, you have your truth and I have my truth. So, the looters are justified when they loot because this is their truth. Justice is reparations for the sins of our ancestors, (even if your ancestors had nothing to do with slavery). After all, these businesses have insurance, so we’re really not taking anything away from them. Again, justified. We’re simply taking what is rightfully ours. It’s interesting that the word, “stealing” is nowhere to be heard even by reporters on the scene. After all, the idea of “stealing” comes from the Ten Commandments; God forbid we call it that; the irony!

As long as God is kept out of the conversation there will be no resolution until this nation is destroyed, as President Lincoln warned us, by national suicide. We must come to reassert the only standard that has a chance of drawing all Americans back to some sense of civility, the idea that we are “One Nation Under God.” That must be the neutralizing standard to which we must all ascribe. Outside of that, it’s anyone’s guess if we will have a nation ten years from now. The Word tells us, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,”(Psalm 33:12). Well, the opposite will also be true: Cursed will be the nation whose god is not the Lord. Let’s do all we can to bring God back into the national conversation. Every responsible Christian must pray like it all depends on God and work like it all depends on us to see this nation come back to God.

Jun 05

STATEMENT CONCERNING GEORGE FLOYD PROTESTS AND RESULTING RIOTS

The New York Faith and Freedom Coalition condemns the misuse of authority as seen in the video recording the death of George Floyd by Minneapolis Police officers.

We also condemn the lawlessness we have seen throughout the nation resulting in the destruction of private property as well as injury and death to civilians and law enforcement officers. All illegal activity must be condemned without rationalization or justification.

The death of George Floyd as appeared in the video does not, in itself, speak to systemic racism or prejudice in the nation’s law enforcement institutions.

As of this writing, there has been no apparent evidence that this crime was racially motivated. The victim and his accused murderer were reported to have worked for the same employer at one time, so it is possible that they may have known each other, and there may have been other reasons for the murder. We don’t know. All the information has not yet been made known. Jumping to the conclusion that it was motivated by racism, is in itself, a racist judgment. It presumes that racism is the default motive when a white police officer kills a black man. This is unfounded prejudice, and must also be condemned.

Racism and prejudice is not a group sin. It resides in the heart of men and women of every ethnic background and has throughout the ages. It is part of the innate sinful nature of man generated by pride and envy. Every ethnic group that has immigrated to this country has overcome racism and prejudice to adequately assimilate into our American family. Black Americans should be particularly proud that their forebears have overcome more than other groups. They have a rich heritage.

As we have continued in our journey toward a more perfect union, overt racism has been, for the most part, legally eliminated from our civic institutions. Ongoing racism is found in the hearts of individuals and must be addressed as such. In this nation we do not identify the sins of an individual with the group they belong to. That may be true in nations that practice collective punishment; that is not America.

Lawlessness and riots simply perpetuate the lie that there is a separate group of Americans that have been denied the opportunities of other Americans of a different color. We are one nation under God, and any attempt to foster division is evil at its core. President Lincoln reminded us of the Biblical truth that a house divided cannot stand. President Theodore Roosevelt reminded us that in this nation there is no room for what he called “hyphenated Americans,” for we are all Americans. President Trump has repeatedly reminded us that we are one nation; we salute one beautiful flag; we serve one Almighty God.

We must put away divisive and accusatory labels, and continue our march together toward a more perfect union by celebrating our unity. Magnifying unity will displace the division and polarization that the enemy of our souls and of our nation thrives on. Let us live up to the creed of our motto: One Nation Under God!

Rev. Bill Banuchi
Executive Director