Faith, storms and actions to be taken

Today it is very windy. Storms are coming over West Europe. With winds up to 150 km per hour and hail going against the windows we do hear a lot of noise.

In the past Jesus once stilled a storm and got the other men in the boat surprised, wondering who such a man could be that he had control over the weather. they were afraid of the storm but we can imagine that they also could get some fear from that man who could use his voice in such away that even wind and sea obeyed him. (Mark 4:41).

We have already read in Mark of Jesus doing many marvellous healings; a paralysed man, a leper, a man with a withered hand, etc., so that “his fame spread everywhere” (1:28): yet when he stills the storm and “the wind ceased and there was a great calm” (4:39) the  disciples of Jesus then asked each other “Who then is this?”.

Jesus had asked those fishermen to follow him and they had trusted him, being convinced this was a special man sent from higher regions, namely the promised Messiah. though at that time they probably still thought he would come to fight the Romans and get them liberated from this worldly oppression.

Knowing the risks at sea, that storm seemed to have come like not foreseen or not announced. They were very familiar with the lake, so we can imagine that they also knew how the water was behaving. But that time it seemed so different and they were really frightened. Surely they had learnt when there was a risk of weather of this this nature they would not venture out. Matthew, Mark and Luke all record this dramatic event, it was etched in their memory. It is described as “a great windstorm” and the “waves were breaking into the boat”.

As Jesus dramatically stills the storm, he asks, “Have you still no faith?” (verse 40). Faith is something which seems difficult to blend with mankind. People seem to have faith in lots of things, like being it dangerous to walk under a ladder, or to live on the 13th floor, having faith in a lot of people even making some of them into their gods. But having faith in God is a total different matter. who wants to believe in some one or something which can not be seen nor heard, nor felt?

Abraham is one example of faith we do have who showed what happens when a person has the right faith and does the right works. Lots of Christians do not want to believe we need to have works of faith, but in the Holy Scriptures we get many examples of people who showed their faith and got called righteous also because their works. We even find people like the prostitute Rahab and king David who had killed some one to have sex with his wife.

Though at moments going into the wrong the Old testament (and the New testament with Peter for example), shows us how they were taken by faith and regretted their wrongdoing. They repented and took the path of God.

Today we also see lots of people who live like the nation of Israel which had witnessed miracles, the plagues, walking through the sea on dry land and the destruction of the Egyptians armies at the hands of their all-powerful God – the one whose name / reputation was being established by these events, grumbling like their ancestors did against Moses [because of the lack of food (verse 2)]. Moses then could have said, “Have you still no faith?” and we also could ask those who got to know about those miracles and who received so many blessings if they still have no faith.

When we look at how the world is going we can see many who call themselves Christian, but have a life which is not worthy of a Christian. so called Christians do enjoy having sex with more than one person of the opposite or even same sex. Lots of them do not mind telling lies (so called for the good), or taking things from others (it is from work and as such does not belong to a person or would not do any harm, they say as excuse). They use public transport trying to avoid paying for their fair. They look for the cheapest bargain,no matter if their had to be children or other slaves working for it. they do not mind using articles with a big ecological footprint. Many of them also do not mind bullying others at work or in their club. They think they have to live today and not to worry about tomorrow.

Such attitudes we can hardly call an attitude of a real Christian.
Jesus in his parables also warns his listeners about the danger when we do not do the right works that we can miss the entrance of the gates of the Kingdom of God.

Are we willing to here that story or do we prefer to enjoy our life like we have ever done before? do we prefer to follow those teachers who mislead the world saying Christians are saved for ever?

We better listen to what is written in the Holy Bible and see that the storms of God’s judgements are starting to break out on this world. They are going to get worse. News bulletins are full of the detail of countries with problems and catastrophes.
We all need to really get to know our Lord and develop such a measure of faith that makes us certain God is in control whatever may come on this earth.

Meditate on James 1:5-8 and on the second chapter about faith and works.

Please also look at our series on From Guestwriters:

1. Leading people astray!
2. Restitution
3. Comments to James remarks, about Faith and works
4. Luther’s misunderstanding
5. January 27, 417, Pope Innocent I condemning Pelagius about Faith and Works
6. Our life depending on faith
7. Romans 4 and the Sacraments
8. Is Justification a process?
9. Justification – salvation is by grace through faith – JI Packer
10. Faith itself not the cause of justification – Louis Berkhof
11. Letter to the Romans, chapter 3
12. Letter to the Romans, chapter 4
13. Additional comments to the 3rd Letter to the Romans
14. Additional comments to the Letter to the Romans 4
15. Which is worse–works without faith, or faith without works?
16. James 2:14-23 — Justified Dynamic Faith & works
17. James 2:24 – You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.
18. James 2:25. Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?

and read also other articles as:

1. A god who gave his people commandments and laws he knew they never could keep to it
2. Our relationship with God, Jesus and eachother
3. Christ’s ethical teaching
4.  Being Justified by faith
5. Faith Alone Does Not Save . . . No Matter How Many Times Protestants Say It Does
6. A Living Faith #3 Faith put into action
7. A Living Faith #6 Sacrifice
8. Faith and works
9. Bearing fruit
10. Observing the commandments and becoming doers of the Word
11. The first on the list of the concerns of the saint
12. Be holy
13. She who sows thistles will reap prickles
14. Love for each other attracting others
15. Outflow of foundational relationship based on acceptance of Jesus

Related articles

• DIG for Wednesday the 3rd of February.....yes, even in a grace church there is need for repentance.....Romans 2 v 4
• Pelagianism, abundant sex, no works and refugees
• Romans 4:22-25
• The Thorn and The _nd
• To die is gain, no. 1
• Scripture Of The Day - February 5th
• Pefect. One Thing At Which Christians Are Perfect.
• Luther's misunderstanding
• Daily Devotion - Tuesday, January 12, 2016
• The Mountain: Radical Obedience

More Muslim children than Christian children growing up in our cities

England has to come to face what can be seen already in many cities at the continent.

• Statistics from 2011 Census show more Muslim children than Christian growing up in Birmingham 
• Of 278,623 youngsters, 97,099 were registered as Muslim compared with 93,828 as Christian  
• A similar trend has emerged in the cities of Bradford and Leicester
• Experts said more must be done to ensure that society does not become polarised along religious lines 

English: More crowds on Brick Lane (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This frightens many Christians. What I do find strange is that of those scared Christians nobody wonders why so many Caucasians coming form a Catholic or protestant family (Anglican, Church of England)  wanted to convert to a religion which was not for a long time originally present in their surroundings.

In England’s second* city of Birmingham, of 278,623 youngsters, 97,099 were registered as Muslim compared with 93,828 as Christian. The rest were of other faiths such as Hindu or Jewish, or none.

A similar trend has emerged in the cities of Bradford and Leicester, the towns of Luton, in Bedfordshire, and Slough in Berkshire, as well as the London boroughs Newham, Redbridge and Tower Hamlets, where nearly two-thirds of children are Islamic.

writes Paul Alexander in his article Children in many UK Towns and Cities now more likely to be Muslim rather than Christian. 

I do agree with Professor Ted Cantle, of the ICoCo Foundation who said:

‘What we are seeing are several trends running together. There is a long-term decline in support for the established religions, notably Christianity; continuing immigration from the Asian sub-continent; and higher fertility among the Muslim population, which has a considerably lower age profile.

But to me it is not only by deepening segregation exacerbated by the loss of white population from cities, which the professor and many white people say. It is not only in the cities where we can find more intensive concentration of black and minority ethnic groups as a result of replacement, that we do find Muslims. In Belgium for example there are a lot of Belgians, with Belgian Caucasian ancestors, who converted to the Islam.

It is far too easy to point the finger to a so called "pace of demographic change" and saying that the Government has no policy to combat segregation 

"because it inevitably reduces understanding and tolerance on both sides of the divide."

We should more come to see that we are going to a secularization because lots of people are not anymore interested in relgion and have no message in the god of others.

Why do not more people come to see that the churches in the West lost their flock? Churches are running, even so much that many churches already became closed and that in many villages there are not any more weekly services. For Sunday Mass people now have to go a few kilometres out of their doorstep, but this is perhaps demanded too much for them. So where is their connection with their faith and what do they want to do for their faith. The same can be said for their clergymen, are they really going out preaching, proclaiming the Word of God? How many Christians are willing to testify for their faith and do go out preaching the Gospel of the Good News?

Do Christians not have to see in their own bosom, to find that not many Christians really have a true faith?

There is still hope for the Christian community to have it back growing or not diminishing any more.

The figures show that Christianity is still the dominant religion in every local authority area in England and Wales, even in the most culturally diverse towns and cities.

Of the 45.5million participants, 27.9million subscribed to Christianity, compared with 1.8million Muslims, the second largest grouping.

However, among dependent children – defined as those aged up to 15, or between 16 and 18 and in education and still living at home – the gap is narrower.

Of 12.1million youngsters, 6.1million were Christian and 1million were Muslim. And in some places, the balance has now tipped towards Islam.

In Bradford, 52,135 children are Muslims (45 per cent) next to 47,144 Christians; in Leicester the figures are 22,693 and 18,190 respectively.

The widest gap is in Tower Hamlets where 62 per cent of children are Islamic, outnumbering Christians by 34,597 to 8,995.

writes Paul Alexander.

Sughra Ahmed, president of the Islamic Society of Britain, said:

‘Britain’s Muslims make up just 5 per cent of the population but have a younger demographic profile than other faiths, as these figures show. It matters to us all that this next generation of young British Muslims develops a clear and confident sense of their British identity alongside their Muslim faith. It’s important that schools teach all of our children the values of respect and tolerance.

For every Western country it is important that all children learn to respect all other cultures and religions.

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Note: *The Daily Mail, Sept. 15, 2014, denotes Birmingham as England’s “second city” but some estimates rank Birmingham as the third largest city by population, below Manchester and London.

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Related articles

• Children Now More Likely to be Muslim than Christian in Some British Cities (seattle.thedailydigest.org)
  There are now more Muslim children than Christian children growing up several British towns and cities. Figures from the 2011 census show that in places such as Birmingham, Bradford and Leicester, a child is more likely to be raised in Islam than Christianity as Britain's demographics radically change.
• Britain: Muslim Kids Outnumber Christian Kids in 2nd Largest City (cnsnews.com)
  A Sept. 15 report in the Daily Mail on the “changing face of Britain,” shows that in Birmingham, the second largest city in England by population, there are 93,828 children registered as Christian and 97,099 registered as Muslim, out of a total child population (age 18 and under) of 278,623.
• 'Trojan Horse 2' in London (schoolsimprovement.net)
  The Sunday Times is reporting that as many as a dozen schools in the east London borough of Tower Hamlets face investigation after claims they have fallen under the influence of Islamic fundamentalists…
  According to government sources, officials at the Department for Education (DfE) are concerned that the situation may be worse than that uncovered in the “Trojan Horse” scandal earlier this year, in which Islamic fundamentalists attempted to infiltrate secular schools in Birmingham. Emergency inspections of 21 schools in the city by the schools regulator Ofsted resulted in five schools being placed in special measures.
  “Tower Hamlets is expected to be the next Birmingham, but even worse, because the problems surrounding Muslim fundamentalists imposing their views on education seem to be more embedded,” said a senior Whitehall source.
  Both secular state schools and private Islamic schools are under suspicion, and there are concerns that non-Muslim teachers are staying silent for fear of losing their jobs.
  “The DfE will rely on whistleblowers to come forward about non-Muslim teachers being sidelined by Muslim fundamentalists in the borough,” the source said. “But potential whistleblowers fear they may be bullied, further sidelined or fired if they raise concerns.”
  
• The changing face of Britain: A child in Birmingham is now more likely to be a Muslim than Christian (dailymail.co.uk)
  
• "Christians flee Muslim-dominated areas for fear of being stoned to death" [Darleen Click] UPDATED (proteinwisdom.com)
  Christians with Middle Eastern backgrounds in Denmark experience harassment, verbal attacks and in some cases direct violence from Muslims. TV2 News has been in contact with a number of Christians here in Denmark who tell of violent experiences.
  
  Christians with Middle Eastern backgrounds in Denmark experience harassment, verbal attacks and in some cases direct violence from Muslims. TV2 News has been in contact with a number of Christians here in Denmark who tell of violent experiences. - See more at: http://proteinwisdom.com/?p=55193#sthash.DiVRmF25.dpuf
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  Christians with Middle Eastern backgrounds in Denmark experience harassment, verbal attacks and in some cases direct violence from Muslims. TV2 News has been in contact with a number of Christians here in Denmark who tell of violent experiences. - See more at: http://proteinwisdom.com/?p=55193#sthash.DiVRmF25.dpuf
• Islamist extremism spreads to London schools? (economictimes.indiatimes.com)
  Allegations about the imposition of extreme views in Tower Hamlets classrooms come as UK schools inspectorate Ofsted prepares to publish the findings of emergency inspections of 40 schools in England in the past fortnight.
  The prospect of a new Trojan Horse-style scandal in Tower Hamlets will alarm ministers.
  The original plot, first revealed by The Sunday Times, resulted in the removal of several head teachers and boards of governors in Birmingham.
  A report into the scandal by Peter Clarke, a former head of counter-terrorism at Scotland Yard, found evidence of a "sustained" attempt to impose hardline Muslim views, with female staff bullied and Christian assemblies scrapped.
  
• Into the blast furnace (voxday.blogspot.com)
  The UK's demographics are illustrating the truth of GK Chesterton's observations concerning the human disinclination to believe in nothing:
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  If he thinks segregation is a problem, just try desegregating those communities. Because communities that can't peacefully segregate will always eventually find another, less palatable means of doing so.
  
  Well done, secular Britain. Out of its desire to weaken Christianity's societal dominance, it imported Islam. That's like leaping out of the frying pan and into the blast furnace.
• Archbishop of the Anglican Church Says It's Acceptable to Have Doubt, and Still Be a Christian (nollywoodmagazine.com)
  Some are coming for his head but I totally agree with the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby who has said he sometimes has doubts in his belief in God.In an interview with BBC, Bristol the leader of the Church of England said he doubted in “lots of different ways”.
  
  Some are coming for his head but I totally agree with the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby who has said he sometimes has doubts in his belief in God.
  In an interview with BBC,  Bristol the leader of the Church of England said he doubted in “lots of different ways”.
  - See more at: http://www.nollywoodmagazine.com/2014/09/archbishop-of-the-anglican-church-says-its-acceptable-to-have-doubt-and-still-be-a-christian.html#sthash.8O3gHcp6.dpuf
  
  
  Some are coming for his head but I totally agree with the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby who has said he sometimes has doubts in his belief in God.
  In an interview with BBC,  Bristol the leader of the Church of England said he doubted in “lots of different ways”.
  - See more at: http://www.nollywoodmagazine.com/2014/09/archbishop-of-the-anglican-church-says-its-acceptable-to-have-doubt-and-still-be-a-christian.html#sthash.8O3gHcp6.dpuf
• Vicars 'Set to Report Confessed Crimes to Police' (ibtimes.co.uk)
• (Telegraph) Some Anglicans in the same-sex marriage debate sign 'love letter' to Bishops (kendallharmon.net)