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Continuing our discussion from part three, this leads us to a very important point I wish to share with you. It involves both a lesson, as well as a serious warning regarding the current administration which resides in the White House. Do you understand why the persecution against Early Christians eventually stopped? If not, let me tell you. It was due to compromise with the world, plain and simple. In other words, after suffering horrendous persecution under Roman emperors such as Nero and Diocletian for a period of several hundred years, during the early Fourth Century, Christians went from being persecuted and killed in the coliseums of Rome, to becoming an accepted religion under Emperor Constantine the Great, a.k.a. Constantine I.

In case you are not aware of it, there is considerable debate regarding how and why this occurred. The general story states that following a number of military victories, and an alleged miraculous vision in the sky, Constantine I converted to the Christian faith. Other sources state that he did not convert to the faith until he lay dying on his death bed. Personally, I strongly suspect that his conversion -- if it really even happened at all -- was due more to political convenience than to anything else. Whatever the case may be, during the last quarter of the same century, Christianity -- or better said, Catholicism -- became the state religion of the Roman Empire under Theodosius I, and all pagan religions were banned. I discuss this topic in the article entitled "Pontifex Maximus: Pagan High Priest to Roman Catholic Pope".

The point is, the bishops of that era -- who were in fact the progenitors of the Roman Catholic Church -- became very worldly. They enjoyed all the power, prestige, wealth and material comforts which came with living secular lives, all the while still pretending to be true Disciples of Jesus Christ. Just as both the political and religious leaders in Israel had ridden the Roman beast during the First Century, these worldly bishops were now doing the very same thing. It was spiritual adultery with the world once again.

Worse yet, once those misguided bishops did acquire all of that power, and became the state religion of Rome, they in fact began to persecute anyone who did not embrace the new Catholic faith. If you read the aforementioned article, you will see that the threat of persecution is mentioned in the edict which was signed by Theodosius I. Centuries later, it would result in the various Inquisitions. Various sources state that as many as fifty million people lost their lives as the so-called "Holy Mother Church" forcefully spread her influence across Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

So in case you haven't realized it by now, there is a very big difference between true Christianity which is described for us in the Scriptures, and the worldly Christianity which is practiced by so many people today. In fact, I would dare say that there is even a third kind of Christianity as well, which we might refer to as political Christianity. This kind of Christianity is very popular in the United States. It is a matter of public record that quite a few politicians have successfully climbed the political ladder -- including some American presidents -- as a result of embracing this kind of Christianity.

So how do we recognize it? Well, it seems that all that is required is that a candidate frequently mention words such as God, faith, blessing, prayer, etc., in some of their campaign speeches, and the gullible Christian voting bloc will rather enthusiastically embrace them as their own, no matter what kind of life that candidate may have lived previously or in private. If you don't believe it, just look at who is sitting in the White House right now: a very materialistic, worldly, vain, narcissistic man, who has openly committed adultery a number of times, and who has publicly debased women. Yet so many American Christians are totally infatuated by this man.

Now, please don't misunderstand me. I do believe that God raised up Donald Trump to lead the country at this current time, in order to fulfill His Divine Purposes. I mean, if God could use a pagan king such as Nebuchadnezzar -- whom He referred to as "my servant" in the Book of Jeremiah -- to punish the ancient Israelites, He can likewise use a proud, boastful man like Donald Trump to fulfill His Divine Will. It is not for us to question God's methods. As the Prophet Isaiah wrote:

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."


However, as I have mentioned previously, I am by no means convinced of Trump's sincerity as a Christian. I would like to be wrong, but as far as I can tell, Donald Trump is just playing to the crowds, and appeasing the Christian voting bloc, just like presidents before him. But if there is one thing which really bothers me, it is the way that some of my Christian brethren have become so mesmerized and blinded by this man, as if he is some kind of savior. In fact, I have come across online comments where some people refer to Trump as the "new Cyrus".

Well, one thing is for certain. Donald Trump and his family are certainly being manipulated by the Jews. Before some of my pro-Israel friends take offense, consider the facts. Not only did Trump recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel on December 6, 2017, but he also ordered the U.S. Embassy to be moved from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem as well. Most countries recognize Tel Aviv as Israel's capital, and likewise have their embassies there, due to Jerusalem's disputed status. The U.S. Embassy officially opened in Jerusalem on May 14, 2018. It is worth noting that three previous presidents -- Clinton, Bush, and Obama -- had all deferred moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem.

But there is more. Don't think for a minute that the current flare-up with the Islamic Republic of Iran is a coincidence. The Jews obviously realize that they're in a very comfortable position with the Trump administration. So I don't doubt for a minute that they are going to manipulate the situation in the Middle East to their favor, by using the U.S. government as their patsy and stooge, as they have always done. But as far as God raising up leaders, consider the following group of verses:

"Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation."


"Lift not up your horn on high: speak not with a stiff neck. For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another."


"Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are his: And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:"


"This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men."


"I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the ground, by my great power and by my outstretched arm, and have given it unto whom it seemed meet unto me."


"The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will."


"For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king. And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD, and thy words: because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice. Now therefore, I pray thee, pardon my sin, and turn again with me, that I may worship the LORD. And Samuel said unto Saul, I will not return with thee: for thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD hath rejected thee from being king over Israel."


"And upon a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat upon his throne, and made an oration unto them. And the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man. And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost."


It has occurred to me that some of my readers may now be a little confused. After all, in part three of this series, I explained by way of the Scriptures how Satan is the god of this world, and all political power is in his hands. But now the previous verses state that God raises up leaders. Isn't this an obvious contradiction? Not really, if you understand how God operates. Please recall exactly what Satan said to Jesus in the fourth chapter of the Gospel of Luke: "for that is delivered unto me."

You see, while Satan is the god of this present world, and while he controls all of the world's governments, it is in reality because God has given him the power to do so. So in essence, God has given the Devil permission to do certain things. We see the same thing happening in the Book of Job. Satan could not touch Job until God allowed him to do so. In similar fashion, Satan raises up these leaders with God's permission, because even the Devil is fulfilling God's Will. And to add one more twist to this explanation, consider that while God is ultimately the power behind the rise of these leaders, it does not necessarily mean that they will be good or even godly leaders, because they are still operating in Satan's realm.

If that is not enough, consider this as well. A leader does not even have to be a Christian in order for God to use him to fulfill His Divine Will. There are plenty of examples of this to be found in the Scriptures. For example, Pharaoh of Egypt was as evil as could be. One of them had all of the Hebrew children killed, and the other one, God hardened his heart in order to test the Hebrews, and to magnify Himself. Or look at Nebuchadnezzar. He was certainly a proud, pagan king, but God used him as His vessel of wrath to punish the Jews. Then there is Xerxes and Cyrus; both pagan kings who God used to liberate the Jews. Likewise King Herod who slew the children. Even General Titus fulfilled God's Will when he destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 AD. In short, God can use whoever He wants, whenever He wants, however He wants and wherever He wants.

Returning to our previous discussion concerning Trump, the question we need to ask ourselves is whether or not Donald Trump, Mike Pence and their associates are Christians in the truest and Biblical sense of the word. Do they really live by the Scriptures? Do their fruits bear witness to their faith? I suspect that we may not have long to find out. In previous paragraphs, I explained to you by way of the Scriptures why I am convinced that Christians are not to engage in any type of violence or war. I likewise briefly discussed Donald Trump's current dilemma regarding Iran. So for me personally, here is the litmus test insofar as Mr. Trump and his associates are concerned:

If the Trump administration declares war on Iran or North Korea, then in my opinion, I think that such a declaration will be a rather clear indication that they do not really live according to Christian principles. Such a declaration will expose them as being false Christians, warmongers, and no better than any of the leaders who have come before them, who also hoodwinked the voting Christian public. Seriously, my friends. How many more times will you allow yourselves to be deceived by these fast-talking tricksters who know how to push all the right buttons? You are so easy to read. They know exactly what to do and say, in order to win your vote.

My friends, it is really time for you to wake up and to stop drinking the Kool-Aid. It is time for you to face the truth. The fact of the matter is that you cannot change a single thing of real importance through your vote. I suspect that the older you get, like myself, the more you will come to realize this sad, inevitable truth. You will come to see what little good your many years of dutifully voting have actually accomplished. Let's face it. Christians have been voting for many decades; centuries in fact. Did Christians stop abortion from becoming the law of the land on January 22, 1973? Did the many years of Christians performing their "civic duty" stop same-sex "marriage" from becoming the law of the land on June 26, 2015?

Has the Christian vote stopped America from engaging in war after war, decade after decade? Regardless of which party is in office, it just never ends, does it? One war ends in some part of the world, and sooner or later, America finds herself engaged in a new one somewhere else. What about the plight of the common man? Has the fact that millions of Christians have gone to the polls year after year really changed the lives of the common working man so that his daily struggles are less? Or does he barely manage to make it financially from month to month? I could provide you with more examples to demonstrate how ineffective your vote really is, but I think I have made my point. Are you starting to wake up yet?

So you see, in reality, by voting, all you are actually doing is perpetuating a very evil, corrupt, incorrigible political system. This system is intentionally rigged so that it will always benefit the rich and the elite, while the majority of Americans are left to financially struggle and suffer on the lower rungs of the social ladder. As I explained to you just a moment ago, your vote is going to do absolutely nothing to change that.

As I point out in the controversial series entitled "Welcome to Greater Israel, USA", regular Americans are no longer in control of the nation, and haven't been for a long time now. It is my opinion that everything is a show and a circus, that is meant to generate the illusion of freedom and democracy. People are made to believe that their votes count, when in reality, the results of the most important elections are not determined by the people, but rather by those individuals who possess the most money. You see, one of the biggest reasons why your vote is so meaningless, is because some of the most powerful people in the nation -- such as the Chairman and the Vice Chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank -- are not even voted into office by the people. They are appointed by the President, and confirmed by the Senate, who themselves bow to the pressure of Jewish money and the AIPAC. Let me remind you of what Mayer Amschel Rothschild said so long ago:

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"Give me control of a nation’s money, and I care not who makes her laws."

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For those of you who may not be aware of it, the decisions of the Federal Reserve Board affect every single person in the United States. Their decisions affect the cost of living, the minimum wage, and so much more. And yet, as a Christian voting in America, you have absolutely no say when it comes to these matters. If you find that fact alarming, then you should also consider that according to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, "its monetary policy decisions do not have to be approved by the President, or anyone else in the executive or the legislative branches of government." This startling fact was confirmed in a 2007 interview that Jim Lehrer held with Alan Greenspan. As you may know, Greenspan was the thirteenth head of the Federal Reserve. During the interview that aired on PBS -- Public Broadcasting System -- Lehrer asked Greenspan what he thought should be the proper relationship between a chairman of the Federal Reserve, and the U.S. president. Following is how Greenspan responded:

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"Well, first of all, the Federal Reserve is an independent agency, and that means, basically, that there is no other agency of government which can overrule actions that we take. So long as that is in place and there is no evidence that the administration or the Congress or anybody else is requesting that we do things other than what we think is the appropriate thing, then what the relationships are don't, frankly, matter."

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Stated another way, the Federal Reserve Bank really amounts to a privately-run financial dictatorship. They are the ones to make the rules, and no one ever bothers to question them. We can say then that the Board of Governors is really just for show. In other words, it is to provide a false appearance of a democratic process. There is a reason why the head of the Federal Reserve Bank is referred to as the "money czar". His word basically amounts to financial law, and he in fact holds more power, and also more directly affects our lives, than the actual American president. Yet, we the people don't vote him or her into office.

The head of the Federal Reserve Bank is not the only person who exerts so much control over our lives. Earlier, I asked you how it is that despite so many Christians going to the polls every voting season, abortion and same-sex "marriage" became the law of the land. Those were actually rhetorical questions, because I already know the answer, and maybe you do too. The reason why these abominations became the law of the land despite strong protest from many Christians in the United States, is because once again, the decisions were not affected in any way by people going to the polls. Both rules were handed down by the nine people who sit on the bench of the Supreme Court of the United States. These nine justices are not voted into office by we, the people. As you may know, they are nominated by the president, and then confirmed by the Senate, as per Article II Section II Clause II of the U.S. Constitution. Thus again, your vote is powerless.

These are just two powerful examples where individuals who are not even placed in office by the American voting public, have such a strong, direct affect on our personal lives, and there is nothing that we can do about it. American banking institutions are the exact same way. Corporate America is also operates in the same fashion. Whether or not you can get a loan, or whether or not you can obtain a particular job at some big fancy firm, are both decided by individuals who are way above you on the social ladder. Your vote certainly did not put them there. There are many other institutions which have power over, and which directly affect our lives, even though we did not give them such power by casting our votes. A few examples include the mass media, the public education system, the insurance industry, the entertainment industry, the social networks, and many more.

The point of the previous paragraphs is to demonstrate that the individuals and institutions who most affect our lives as American citizens are totally immune to, and are not affected in the least by, the American voting system. You do not put them into office. Yet every decision they make, and every action that they take, can and will eventually affect your life to one degree or another. In reality, if you stop and think about it, the only place where your vote has any power at all, is in small, local elections, and even that is probably by design. As I said, it is to give the illusion of freedom and democracy. But as far as the major decisions are concerned, forget it. You have no control over them at all.

My friends, believe me; I know that it can be difficult to watch what is happening in the U.S.A.; particularly if you are an older American like I am. Like myself, you remember what things were like fifty years ago. They were far from being perfect back then as well; but in some ways, they were a whole lot better than they are now. Tragically, by her own choice, America has selected her current path, and it's not a good one. This tide of liberalism and rebellion against the Laws of God will surely be her doom, unless there is a great national repentance. Personally, I do not see it coming. It seems to me that America has already gone over the edge and is now in a state of free fall, just waiting to hit the bottom. As we read in the Second Book of Chronicles:

"If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."


The truth is that we older Americans have had our chance to shape the future. Some of us did our best to raise our own children in the knowledge and fear of the Lord. We gave them God's Word. But there is an undeniable truth which we cannot change. The future belongs to the younger generation, and the decisions which they make. Despite everything we have done as Christian parents, this younger generation which is now coming into power is a lot more liberal than you and I. They believe things and embrace things which we find utterly shocking, revolting and disgusting. There are very powerful, wicked spiritual forces at work which have grabbed hold of their hearts and minds. As I shared with you in part two of this series:

"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."


We cannot fight our children's battles for them. As the new generation of voters, they will make whatever decisions they will make, and there is very little that you and I can do about it. Given what we see happening now across the nation, I wouldn't be the least surprised if in another twenty years -- or maybe sooner -- America will become a nation which you and I will hardly recognize. It is already on its way there, and that is a very troubling thought. God help us all!

In conclusion, as I stated at the beginning of this series, it is important that we each find a proper balance between our participation in worldly affairs, and our faithfulness to the Kingdom of God. Whether or not you choose to vote is a personal decision which must be based on your own faith, your own personal understanding of the Scriptures, and what you believe is God's Will for your life. You obviously cannot decide for me, and I cannot decide for you. Even if you don't fully agree with my position as stated in this series, I hope that the plethora of Scriptures I have provided here will at least give you pause, and cause you to re-examine and reflect upon your own place in this present world, and how you relate to it.

With these thoughts, I will bring this article to a close. It is my hope that you have found it informative, enlightening, and I pray that it has been a blessing in your life as well. If you have an account with Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr or with any other social network, I would really appreciate if you'd take the time to click or tap on the corresponding link that is found on this page. Thanks so much, and may God bless you abundantly!

For additional information and further study, you may want to refer to the list of reading resources below which were either mentioned in this article, or which contain topics which are related to this article. All of these articles are likewise located on the Bill's Bible Basics web server. To read these articles, simply click or tap on any link you see below.

When You Gonna Wake Up?
America: Land of the Free . . . and Hypocrisy!
Civil Disobedience and Christian Persecution
Don't Ever Underestimate Our Spiritual Enemy
Going Down the Highway of Life
Jesus Christ's Return: Have We Been Deceived?
Killing and the Phinehas Priesthood
Killing, Murder and Military Duty
Many Are Called, But Few Are Chosen
Obama, McCain and the Bush Legacy
Oh Israel, Why Will Ye Die?
One From Beyond: Hebrew of Hebrews
Owning Guns: What Saith the Scriptures?
Pontifex Maximus: Pagan High Priest to Roman Catholic Pope
Who is Babylon the Great?
Saddam Hussein's Execution and the Euro Dollar War
Satan: King of Tyrus, King of Empires
School Shootings: The Second Amendment Controversy
Should Christians Engage in Doctrinal Debates?
The Fruits of Disobedience
The Heavenly Vision: Have You Got It?
This Little Light, Glory of the Lord and Our Bright Future
Welcome to Greater Israel, USA
What About the Poor?
What About the Wall?
Who Is The Real Terrorist?
You've Got It Wrong: Submit and Live!

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Please avail yourself of other areas of the Bill's Bible Basics website. There are many treasures for you to discover.