The Hamilton Corner

August 28, 2024 · 48:47

George Barna released a new study that shows Evangelicals are more likely to be shaped by the prevailing culture than we are to influence it.

Politics & PolicyBible & TheologyCulture & Media

Show notes

0:00 - 15:00. Matthew 5:13-14. Is the church in America salt of the earth or have we become lightly salted? 15:00 - 31:00. A pre-recorded joint interview with Tim Walz is how Kamala Harris wants to present in her first interview as the Democratic presidential nominee? 31:00 - 48:00. George Barna released a new study that shows Evangelicals are more likely to be shaped by the prevailing culture than we are to influence it. Dr. George Barna’s Christian Evangelicalism Study (PDF) To donate call : 877-616-2396 Video Clip Links Dr. George Barna

Phone lines mentioned

Full transcript Auto-generated · 7,431 words

Transcribed with OpenAI Whisper (base.en). Timestamps are approximate. Lightly cleaned for readability; quotations from on-air callers may include filler words. Use the audio player above for the authoritative recording.

  1. 0:00Darkness is not an affirmative force.
  2. 0:03It simply reoccupies the space vacated by the light.
  3. 0:07This is the Hamilton Corner on American Family Radio.
  4. 0:11It should be uncomfortable for a believer to live as a hypocrite.
  5. 0:15Delivery people out of the bondage of mainstream media.
  6. 0:18And the philosophies of this world.
  7. 0:20God has called you and me to be his ambassador.
  8. 0:24Even in this dark moment.
  9. 0:26Let's not miss our moment.
  10. 0:29And now the Hamilton Corner.
  11. 0:33Good evening, everybody.
  12. 0:34Welcome to the Hamilton Corner here on American Family Radio.
  13. 0:37I am your host, Abraham Hamilton the third.
  14. 0:41Thank you for tuning into the program today.
  15. 0:44We are ready to rock and roll during the program.
  16. 0:50I am joined by the corner contingent right across from me.
  17. 0:55He's back.
  18. 0:56He's been slacking, but now he's back macking.
  19. 1:01My man, a hundred grand, Mr. Bobby.
  20. 1:03is in the building and we have in the screening room produced extraordinary often imitated, but never duplicated y'all know what it is the real J Mac ladies and gentlemen and we are ready to rock and roll with today's edition of the program at this very moment many of you if not most of you are making your transition from your part time jobs where you generate an income to your full time jobs your full time jobs where you cultivate an outcome just like I do and as you.
  21. 1:32And as you make your transition, I want to encourage you to remember the primacy of the
  22. 1:39God places on the family.
  23. 1:41Before there was ever an order of prophets before, the iterations of modern iterations of
  24. 1:47civil government, the first institution that God established was the family with marriage
  25. 1:52at the center.
  26. 1:54It is very easy, especially during this time where a little something is going to happen
  27. 2:01in November. It's easy to become distracted. It's easy to allow what should be prioritized
  28. 2:11to be relegated to a second position. I want to encourage you to resist that temptation.
  29. 2:17I want to encourage you to make sure that you keep as primary what God has established as
  30. 2:23primary. First and foremost, this our personal commitments to the Lord, our personal commitments
  31. 2:30to the Lord I've been talking on repeated programs about the significance of living lives of holiness
  32. 2:39personally.
  33. 2:40We're almost chapter 12 verses 1 and 2.
  34. 2:44The Apostle Paul is writing to Christians in Rome saying, do not conform to the world around
  35. 2:51you.
  36. 2:52And man, what that statement is really, really, really significant when we get into what we're
  37. 2:56going to talk about during today's program.
  38. 2:58Do not conform to the world around you, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind.
  39. 3:03Then you will be able to discern what is the good, acceptable, and perfect will of God.
  40. 3:15One of the amazing realities is that the converse is true.
  41. 3:19If we profess to be believers, yet we are conformed and conforming to the world, guess what happens?
  42. 3:25Our discernment capacity is blunted.
  43. 3:33Discernment is not something as optional, something as vitally necessary.
  44. 3:37Our first commitment is personally to the Lord.
  45. 3:41Secondarily, our most immediate outpost
  46. 3:44in which and through which we are to do ministry
  47. 3:47is in our families.
  48. 3:50I'm not ignoring foreign missions,
  49. 3:51I'm not ignoring things outside of the home,
  50. 3:54but we certainly should not sacrifice our homes
  51. 3:56in an effort to win the world.
  52. 3:58And too often, too often,
  53. 4:00that is exactly, exactly what transpires.
  54. 4:03Well, I am here by God's grace
  55. 4:06in an effort to help us to recalibrate appropriately.
  56. 4:09So we keep the main thing, the main thing
  57. 4:10and keep the first thing, the first thing.
  58. 4:14So as you make your way home today,
  59. 4:16let today be a day, if you've never done this before,
  60. 4:21if the words of worshiping the Lord with your family
  61. 4:25doesn't resonate with you,
  62. 4:26you have no idea how to do that,
  63. 4:28let today be the day where you venture out into that.
  64. 4:31And it doesn't have to be,
  65. 4:34you know, this drawn out liturgical enterprise,
  66. 4:37I encourage 10 to 15 minutes, sing a Psalm together, read through the scripture together.
  67. 4:43It doesn't even require extensive teaching. It doesn't require extensive, read the scripture
  68. 4:48together. Read the scripture together. Pray together and make this a consistent feature
  69. 4:55of your daily life. One of the most important things that will be the result of this is that
  70. 5:00your family will learn what their priorities should be. We had a lot going on in our families.
  71. 5:07But this one thing we need to make sure we don't miss.
  72. 5:10We're showing the Lord together.
  73. 5:12You've never done it before, let today be the day.
  74. 5:13And if you already do it,
  75. 5:15by God's grace, do not become weary and well-doing.
  76. 5:19Do not become weary and well-doing.
  77. 5:20To the Word of God we go.
  78. 5:23Matthew chapter five, Matthew chapter five.
  79. 5:28Get myself together here.
  80. 5:31Matthew chapter five, verses 13 and 14 is where we're gonna go.
  81. 5:36go versus 13 through 14. And this is a part of the sermon on the mount, the longest recorded sermon
  82. 5:48that Jesus taught. It's a very familiar passage of scripture, but it's one that we should visit
  83. 5:58often. And we certainly, we certainly should make a central feature of our lives for a number of
  84. 6:08reasons. But one of the most important reasons is that the simplicity of the word of God is
  85. 6:16deep when it is applied. The simplicity of the word of God is oceans deep when it is applied.
  86. 6:27One of the major reasons for this is that when you read the scripture, you're not merely reading
  87. 6:33the scripture. The God of the scripture reads you. The God of the scripture reads me. Matthew
  88. 6:4125, Jesus makes these statements.
  89. 6:44You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste,
  90. 6:51how shall its saltiness be restored?
  91. 6:55It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's
  92. 7:00feet.
  93. 7:02You are the light of the world.
  94. 7:05A city set on the hill cannot be hidden, nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket
  95. 7:11but on a stand and it gives light to all in the house.
  96. 7:20In the same way, let your light shine before others
  97. 7:22so that they may see your good work
  98. 7:24to give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
  99. 7:26And I say, verse 13 to 14, I read all the way to 16.
  100. 7:29Sorry, Jeff.
  101. 7:35The Greek for the word you in verses 13 and 14
  102. 7:38is actually plural, all right?
  103. 7:41So Jesus in delivering this sermon on the Mount,
  104. 7:43he is addressing it to the people who were physically present
  105. 7:46before him at that time in the first century,
  106. 7:48but its application extends to the people of God today.
  107. 7:56Jesus conveys this notion of being the salt of the earth
  108. 7:59in a time period that predates the modern wonders
  109. 8:02of refrigeration in central air and heat.
  110. 8:06Salt served two primary purposes.
  111. 8:08It's one served as a preservative agent
  112. 8:11for major protein compounds.
  113. 8:15In order to preserve fish, that fish in when we catch
  114. 8:17they was salted immediately.
  115. 8:19Hang it, let it dry, they were preserved various meats
  116. 8:21salting it to preserve. An additional component is obviously as a seasoning feature. The question
  117. 8:31I want to pose to us rhetorically today concerning the Church of the Living God in America, and I
  118. 8:36want everybody to understand that I understand that there's a difference between the Lord's remnant
  119. 8:40and the visible professing church in our nation. But concerning the visible professing church in our
  120. 8:45nation, have we been salt in light in our nation? Or have we become lightly salted? When Peter
  121. 8:58Proclaim the sermon on the day of Pentecost.
  122. 9:01You'll find there was no altar call,
  123. 9:03there was no invitation to respond.
  124. 9:06It was because of the conviction that the Spirit of God
  125. 9:09wrought through the preached word that the people responded
  126. 9:13in light of what you're saying, Peter.
  127. 9:15What must I do to be saved?
  128. 9:20We live in a time period.
  129. 9:22Well, instead of what must I do to be saved, we have a people saying,
  130. 9:26How much can I do and still be saved?
  131. 9:31I mean, how close to the line can I get?
  132. 9:34And I mean, what exactly is sin anyway Abe?
  133. 9:37You know what I mean?
  134. 9:38And can it, can it, you know, you know,
  135. 9:42you know what I mean, you know, I got a look.
  136. 9:44I told you guys that was a real conversation
  137. 9:45I had with a person one time.
  138. 9:47No, isn't it true Abe that, you know,
  139. 9:48you may be godly men, but even godly men
  140. 9:50who have wondering eyes, won't they?
  141. 9:54I said, no man, I don't see anywhere in scripture
  142. 9:57where the Lord uses biology as an excuse to have
  143. 10:01lust reflected through your eyes.
  144. 10:03How you use them?
  145. 10:08No, no, no ma'am.
  146. 10:11I'm not trying to condemn anybody, but there's no way
  147. 10:14in scripture where you should tolerate certain levels
  148. 10:15of worldliness just because we're in the world.
  149. 10:23Because when there is a heart of regeneration,
  150. 10:27there's a heart that reflects itself.
  151. 10:29Now we conduct ourselves, and I'm not saying,
  152. 10:31you know, I understand everybody's on their journeys,
  153. 10:34at various, various stages of sanctification,
  154. 10:36we have to be very intentional about refusing to allow the world to reestablish
  155. 10:41for us what our standards should be.
  156. 10:42Instead of recognizing God has already told us what our standards should be.
  157. 10:47That already told us.
  158. 10:49What, what, what our standards should be.
  159. 10:53And I know the reality that we're saved by grace through faith.
  160. 10:57We have a faith that is not, but we don't enter eternal life through works.
  161. 11:03What I am talking about is a people who instead of being the pillar of ground,
  162. 11:09pillar and ground of truth in the world, simply put, we become
  163. 11:15worldly by and large. I'm going to get to some data later in the
  164. 11:21in the program that our brother George Barna just releases 2024
  165. 11:26World Inventory Report, where his conclusions are, it's more
  166. 11:30likely for professing evangelical Christians to be shaped by the
  167. 11:34world and the culture around us that it is for us to shape and to
  168. 11:39influence the culture is providing empirical data that
  169. 11:46affirms and confirms what many of us experience on a daily basis.
  170. 11:50Are we salt and light or have we become lightly salty?
  171. 11:59The number of instances where we've seen, and I'm not going to go through some of the greatest hits,
  172. 12:09which are not great at all, but the score is a professing
  173. 12:13believers and large churches and things that are capitulating to things in the world.
  174. 12:18And it's just, it's sobering to read the data
  175. 12:27and in reading it immediately,
  176. 12:29the Lord will immediately remind me of the scripture.
  177. 12:33A city set on the hill cannot be hidden.
  178. 12:37You know, the call to be peculiar is not one,
  179. 12:40to where we just, let's find out just how different
  180. 12:42from everybody else we can be.
  181. 12:43That's not the call at all.
  182. 12:45The reality is if you've been captured by Christ,
  183. 12:47just keep living.
  184. 12:49Your peculiarity will be made evident
  185. 12:54When you start to hesitate,
  186. 12:56and we say, well, sure, well, surely Abe,
  187. 12:58I mean, you understand children have to be raised
  188. 13:01to reject the gender that they've been assigned at birth.
  189. 13:04Well, what would you say?
  190. 13:07This is another real conversation I had in a lift.
  191. 13:12You know, I don't tend to use Uber as much
  192. 13:13if I'm traveling, I use Lyft more than Uber.
  193. 13:17I say, right?
  194. 13:17The gender assigned at birth,
  195. 13:20that's why did you get that terminology from it?
  196. 13:21And I look, I know what happened in the culture.
  197. 13:22So you know, that's the way we describe it now.
  198. 13:25I say, who is we?
  199. 13:28That's not how I describe it.
  200. 13:33I said, man, do you realize sex?
  201. 13:36We talked about that, the difference between using term,
  202. 13:38gender to apply to human beings versus inanimate objects.
  203. 13:43I said, sex is discernible at a molecular DNA level
  204. 13:48that predates birth.
  205. 13:51Why do you think, wait for this,
  206. 13:53why do you think, who use sonograms?
  207. 13:58He was sautograms often to confirm what it is that mommy is carrying in her tummy before the baby is even born
  208. 14:04That's not an assignment made at birth and the guy's like oh
  209. 14:08I hadn't thought about that and I'm just like what do you mean?
  210. 14:11So we'll go off and spout these things and won't even think about what we're spouting
  211. 14:21Salt and light are lightly salted the greatest and most enduring need for the United States of America is
  212. 14:30Repentance
  213. 14:33One of the things we're gonna get into this study,
  214. 14:37that Dr. Barna says,
  215. 14:39believe is not even endeavoring to share the gospel.
  216. 14:42By and large with people who don't agree with him.
  217. 14:45Again, I know that's not everybody,
  218. 14:48but that's a generalized cumulation
  219. 14:51based on his empirical data collection.
  220. 14:53We'll get into it, we'll get back.
  221. 15:00Deuteronomy six verses four through eight direct us
  222. 15:03to display scripture in our homes and other places.
  223. 15:07It says you should decorate with the word of God
  224. 15:09and that you are to fill your hearts and minds
  225. 15:12with these words.
  226. 15:13There's no greater cause than for those of us
  227. 15:15who know Christ to share Him and God's word.
  228. 15:18Get the full article, God's Word on display
  229. 15:21by Joseph Parker on the stand.net
  230. 15:24and join the movement to put God's word on display
  231. 15:27at 10laws.us.
  232. 15:35Shiting light into the darkness,
  233. 15:37this is the Hamilton Corner,
  234. 15:39on American Family Radio.
  235. 15:41Welcome back to the Hamilton Corner, Abraham Hamilton.
  236. 15:44The third here.
  237. 15:52Got a lot on my heart today, man.
  238. 15:53A lot on my mind.
  239. 15:54I'm processing things as I'm speaking on the air.
  240. 15:59We're at a pretty significant juncture.
  241. 16:02We're at a very, very significant juncture
  242. 16:04in our nation's history.
  243. 16:09It's now been announced and confirmed that Kamala Harris
  244. 16:14will make her first interview appearance.
  245. 16:20Oh man. Tomorrow night at 9 p.m. Eastern APM Central Time on CNN. She will not however be
  246. 16:31interviewed live. Oh, no, no, no. Can I do that? Can I do that? She also will not be interviewed alone.
  247. 16:38Oh, no, she will make a joint appearance with Tim Walz. This will be her first appearance
  248. 16:45as a DNC standard bear and she's made the decision to have this prerecorded, certainly campaign approved, video, air tomorrow.
  249. 16:59It has not been disclosed when the recording will take place.
  250. 17:03There have been lots of people who have said that this certainly doesn't project leadership quality.
  251. 17:11is if your first interview is going to be a joint interview.
  252. 17:17And there's no problem with joint interviews,
  253. 17:22generally speaking, but this is your first one?
  254. 17:29And are there any others that are planned?
  255. 17:34People in the live stream saying,
  256. 17:36we thank you for watching The Force Abe.
  257. 17:38Ha ha ha ha ha ha.
  258. 17:41I'm here for y'all man, I'm here for you, I'm here for you.
  259. 17:46,
  260. 17:56, actually I won't be able to watch it live I am going to come and catch it with it later, but I'm not going to watch what you
  261. 18:02,
  262. 18:05this is not an interview. This is a paid campaign ad.
  263. 18:09That boy, y'all is sharp. Y'all is sharp, but it's true.
  264. 18:13It's true. So it's not going to be live as prerecorded.
  265. 18:15I guess she didn't want another one of those Lester Holt moments when
  266. 18:20you haven't been to the border. I haven't been to the border.
  267. 18:24And I haven't been to Europe. What is what is
  268. 18:34this is one of the things I'm processing, guys.
  269. 18:36I've said it before and I'll say it again,
  270. 18:40Regressives despise the American people.
  271. 18:43So you have the reality of according to the prevailing
  272. 18:53narrative, right?
  273. 18:55You have the most popular president in American
  274. 18:57electoral history.
  275. 19:00According to the reports of 81 million votes,
  276. 19:02this is the objective facts.
  277. 19:05The 81 million vote total is the largest vote total
  278. 19:09of any American presidential candidate in our nation's history.
  279. 19:14You have that popular president who had his entire campaign largely from his basement,
  280. 19:22square that circle for me, if you will, who then was observed by Nancy Pelosi saying she's
  281. 19:29never been impressed by his election operation.
  282. 19:32Hmm.
  283. 19:34Again, square that circle for me.
  284. 19:37Then got another nearly 15 million votes in the Democratic primary process.
  285. 19:43One that the Democrats were feverishly to keep RFK junior away from as well as any other candidate.
  286. 19:49And then when the world learned what they all knew for years that the man did not have the capacity to do the job of the president,
  287. 20:02that they dispatched him quickly and installed the selected candidate.
  288. 20:08I believe by and large the major reason why is financial because of the federal elections rules that she was the only one
  289. 20:16that would have access to all of the money that was raised under the proverbial Biden-Harris campaign.
  290. 20:23But yeah, I mean, people ask, you mean to tell me Biden's vote total is more than Obama's vote total?
  291. 20:28Yes. Yes. Go on, look it up for yourselves. Yes. So she is installed as a nominee
  292. 20:39and commences to refuse to have any public engagement at all. Fodz, no need to explain anything
  293. 20:48to any of the American people, as I mentioned to you, early voting is already for all intents
  294. 20:54and purposes underway, literally days from now, early voting begins in some states.
  295. 20:58So, for people to say, yeah, this is an interview and a run-up to the election, the election has
  296. 21:05started, folks.
  297. 21:06We realized this.
  298. 21:07I said, no, I don't need to interview you.
  299. 21:11I don't need to interview you.
  300. 21:12I played the audio for you earlier.
  301. 21:14I mean, maybe I'm an ass, Jeff, and we could pull that back up.
  302. 21:18We played it Monday.
  303. 21:19We didn't play yesterday, but it's not on the rundown right now.
  304. 21:22I'm asking, we can find it.
  305. 21:23I played it Monday, but she had one of our surrogates.
  306. 21:26Who came out and said, oh, no, no.
  307. 21:27We think it's the winning strategy for her as a Democrat.
  308. 21:30She didn't need to be the one explaining her policies.
  309. 21:32Let the journalists explain their policies.
  310. 21:40That's the winning strategy for us.
  311. 21:42What?
  312. 21:45And then you have a pretty significant
  313. 21:46contingent of Americans that are like, yeah.
  314. 21:49I'm like, y'all are cool with that?
  315. 21:51You don't find it the least bit disturbing,
  316. 21:55yet you have a person vying to be the next holder
  317. 21:58of the nuclear codes for our nation
  318. 22:00and don't feel obligated to talk to the American public.
  319. 22:10Yeah, some states start early voting early September.
  320. 22:14There's some depending on mailing balance
  321. 22:15and other kind of stuff that may start slightly early,
  322. 22:17but yeah, early voting is about to start in some states.
  323. 22:21We've gone from election day to election season, you see.
  324. 22:28And in our first interview is gonna be pre-taped.
  325. 22:36And part of the reason why I'm wrestling through this
  326. 22:40is that the political calculation that they're making
  327. 22:43is that the body politic in America
  328. 22:44has devolved as such a degree
  329. 22:46to where the people won't demand more.
  330. 22:49The people won't demand more from those who would be,
  331. 22:55when's the last time you heard this phrase, public servants.
  332. 23:00Y'all got it?
  333. 23:01Now, I'm sorry, I didn't give them any advanced warning that I wanted to do this.
  334. 23:10Which one is it, Jeff?
  335. 23:12Seven.
  336. 23:13All right.
  337. 23:14Clip number seven.
  338. 23:16Go.
  339. 23:17Talking about policy.
  340. 23:18In fact, I think vice president Harris has been incredibly brave to roll out an ambitious
  341. 23:23economic agenda because we all know how this works.
  342. 23:26The more details you share, the more your policies are going to get picked apart.
  343. 23:30But she's saying, I trust the American people.
  344. 23:32I trust the journalists to explain these policies and our values to folks.
  345. 23:38And I think when that happens, it will be successful for Democrats.
  346. 23:42These are very pro-worker, pro-middle class policies that people have been waiting for.
  347. 23:47You get that?
  348. 23:48Oh, shit, I need to explain it to anybody.
  349. 23:52I trust you people can figure it out.
  350. 23:56I trust the journalists to explain it for me.
  351. 24:04And has our populace degraded to the place to where the people, sure, that's fine.
  352. 24:11Sure.
  353. 24:12That is outrageous.
  354. 24:16That is outrageous.
  355. 24:22And I'm thinking about the dumbing down of our society consistently, irrepressibly, continually.
  356. 24:32We've gone from a nation of producers to a nation of consumers.
  357. 24:39Is that truly a reflection and accurate, a reflection of where we are?
  358. 24:43Again, I'm not trying to paint with a broad brush.
  359. 24:45I know there are exceptions.
  360. 24:46I know that does not apply to the people in this audience,
  361. 24:49but I'm talking about beyond this audience.
  362. 25:01That is, that is amazing.
  363. 25:07And so you have this recorded interview,
  364. 25:14can't get caught saying anything live, you know?
  365. 25:18And I understand the reality of campaigning.
  366. 25:19I'm talking beyond campaigning.
  367. 25:20I'm talking about, you know, maybe something wrong with me,
  368. 25:24but I appreciate people who wanna be serpent leaders
  369. 25:28country who have some type of investment, some type of skin in the game, so to speak,
  370. 25:33to interact with the American people. Not not. Don't appear to be very interested in that.
  371. 25:45So that'll be tomorrow. And soon thereafter, September 10th is supposed to be the first debate
  372. 25:55between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. But Kamala Harris is now squawking about the rules for the
  373. 26:03the debate that she agreed to now says she wants to change the rules. You know, you can't make this
  374. 26:09stuff up. You know, I could be wrong, but what I think is happening is that trying to have as
  375. 26:15little exposure to the American people as possible, because they know as well as we do that this is
  376. 26:23a repeat of the basement Biden strategy. You know, in the 2020 election, Schmovet was the reason for
  377. 26:32the basement by the Biden strategy, right? What's the reason now? What's the reason now? I'm gonna
  378. 26:42to move on because I feel myself getting worked up.
  379. 26:48If you're watching this show, I'm holding in my hands the report from my brother, Dr.
  380. 26:53George Barna, Director of Research from the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian
  381. 26:57University.
  382. 27:00This is another piece of information that is concerning to me.
  383. 27:10Dr. Barna is a researcher.
  384. 27:12In my view, the most reliable researcher, poll taker, statistician in our country is a blessing
  385. 27:23to the nation.
  386. 27:24He's a blessing to the body of Christ.
  387. 27:27And he's willing to boldly assess where others are willing to just tip toe to kind of,
  388. 27:31kind of, through the tulip, so to speak.
  389. 27:36His American worldview in of inventory.
  390. 27:38Can I say the word inventory?
  391. 27:40His American worldview inventory.
  392. 27:44Not good news.
  393. 27:47good news, not good news. In his inventory, he discusses how events from recent years have
  394. 27:56caused millions of Americans to realize just how depraved American society has become corrupt
  395. 28:03politicians, dishonest journalists and media outlets broken social institutions, immoral
  396. 28:09religious leaders, unconstitutional government programs, policies, and more have generated nonstop
  397. 28:15headlines highlighting the decadence of American society and the demise of the United States.
  398. 28:23He goes on to contain, quote, the depth of the depravity is shocking and it is indisputable
  399. 28:31that the decline is a direct result of the collapse, the spiritual collapse of Christianity
  400. 28:37in the nation, particularly in the way in which the evangelical community has changed over time.
  401. 28:47Now, a clip of Dr. Barnard describing the result of his study, this is clip number five.
  402. 28:59Go.
  403. 29:00So, when we look at what evangelicals do and believe, yeah, they get some of the big picture
  404. 29:08things that the Bible teaches.
  405. 29:10And so, they'll believe in the biblical notion of God.
  406. 29:14They will believe that God is the basis of all truth.
  407. 29:18They'll believe that the purpose of life is to know love and serve God with all their
  408. 29:22heart, mind, strength and soul.
  409. 29:24They believe the universe was created by God.
  410. 29:27They believe in the reality of Jesus Christ that he lived on earth.
  411. 29:32They believe that Satan exists.
  412. 29:34So they get those things.
  413. 29:36But once you get away from those kind of Sunday school 101 teachings, that's where things get
  414. 29:43pretty murky.
  415. 29:44And so when we start talking about the nature of moral truth, when we start talking about
  416. 29:50the application of moral truth, when we start talking about our responsibility to other people
  417. 29:57in terms of sharing the gospel, what is the gospel?
  418. 30:01Did Jesus live a sinless life?
  419. 30:04These are things that don't get talked about quite as much in our churches, and those are
  420. 30:08kinds of issues that relate to not only our lives, but also the political issues of the
  421. 30:15day when we look at issues such as abortion, transgenderism and so forth. That's where evangelicals
  422. 30:23really struggled to make the connection between biblical truth. Who am I in America? What's
  423. 30:29my influence supposed to be here if I'm trying to honor Christ and advance His kingdom?
  424. 30:35I want to ask, can we make sure we have a link to Dr. Barna's study in the show notes because
  425. 30:42I want everybody have access to this study.
  426. 30:46One of the major observations he made was that most of the prevailing researchers put the number
  427. 30:53of evangelical Christians at about 40% of the American population to somewhat close to 100
  428. 30:59million Americans.
  429. 31:00Dr. Barna says, when you dig deeper than superficial assessments and you start to evaluate solely
  430. 31:08answers to more detailed theological questions that number may be closer to only 10% of the
  431. 31:16population.
  432. 31:17So that's a major observation because I've said it, many of you have said it, that man,
  433. 31:25it seems like the law is church and I'm in our country, not as big as most people think
  434. 31:28it is.
  435. 31:31It says when you come to just having an orthodox belief system, it's really only about 10% of
  436. 31:36the population that has an orthodox belief system.
  437. 31:39Notice, I didn't say a biblical worldview because those numbers plummet even more.
  438. 31:46He's just saying they know those basic Sunday school answers, but the real problem comes
  439. 31:53in when you actually apply God's Word.
  440. 31:58Because you have some who will give the Sunday school textbook answer responses, but then
  441. 32:02when you start applying that.
  442. 32:04So, for example, if marriage is exclusive union between one man and one woman, then by
  443. 32:09by implication is a homosexual person,
  444. 32:14sinful and going to hell unless they repent.
  445. 32:19According to Dr. Barnard, many of the responses are,
  446. 32:21oh well geez, I mean, I don't know.
  447. 32:24What's the definition of is?
  448. 32:29You can't set this election out.
  449. 32:30I know a lot of Christians do.
  450. 32:32This is true that God is sovereign.
  451. 32:33I tell you that all the time.
  452. 32:35But they fancy that somehow that is separate
  453. 32:37from their personal responsibility.
  454. 32:40We are his hands and feet.
  455. 32:42And so that's why we have to do what's right.
  456. 32:44The Bible says to him that Noah could do good
  457. 32:48and just doesn't do it.
  458. 32:49To him it is sin.
  459. 32:51Sandy Rios 24-7 with your host Sandy Rios.
  460. 32:55Listen on the podcast page at AFR.net.
  461. 33:03Hamilton Quarter Podcast and One-Minute Common Terrets
  462. 33:07are available at AFR.net.
  463. 33:09Back to the Hamilton Corner on American Family Radio.
  464. 33:14Welcome back to the Hamilton Corner.
  465. 33:15And of course, I mentioned, you know, homosexuality just as one of the issues.
  466. 33:20The Bible is clear, you know, heterosexual fornication, adultery,
  467. 33:25thievery murder before litany.
  468. 33:28But you don't have cultural protestation to these other areas.
  469. 33:31And this is what Dr.
  470. 33:32Marner was pointing out.
  471. 33:34And then the sum total of his assessments, assessment is that as things
  472. 33:39stand currently, that is more likely that professing evangelicals would to be
  473. 33:44shaped by the culture, then it is to influence the culture.
  474. 33:49One of the observations that was just from the,
  475. 33:56from the world we study, Dr. Barna says,
  476. 34:02the research shows that evangelicals are significantly
  477. 34:05unlikely to speak to people who hold different opinions
  478. 34:08than them, which includes unlikely to share the gospel.
  479. 34:19Sharing the gospel is kind of the root word
  480. 34:23of being evangelical, you know, evangelism, evangelize, that there's been a reduction in
  481. 34:39the willingness to share the gospel concerning the impact this lack of spiritual engagement
  482. 34:47is having on our current cultural climate.
  483. 34:50Dr. Barnard says that it has allowed the media to become the evangelists of America, rather
  484. 34:58than disciples of Jesus being the evangelist of America.
  485. 35:02It's the disciples of Jesus who are called to go out
  486. 35:04and do everything that we can to share the love
  487. 35:07and saving grace of Jesus with lost sinners.
  488. 35:09But in reality, what's happening is that there is now
  489. 35:12an evangelistic vacuum in American society
  490. 35:16where both evangelicals and the rest of society
  491. 35:20are taking their cues from the media.
  492. 35:25It's by the way, I don't know if you noticed this yet,
  493. 35:27but one of the major voices, sorry, major forces
  494. 35:30that is attempting to silence Christianity in the country
  495. 35:37is the medium.
  496. 35:40And that hit me, that hit me like a ton of bricks.
  497. 35:46That hit me like a ton of bricks.
  498. 35:49And again, I wanna reiterate the fact
  499. 35:50that I know this is not everybody.
  500. 35:51I know there's a remnant,
  501. 35:53but this is a question that I ask often,
  502. 35:55when was the last time you shared the gospel
  503. 35:56with an unbeliever?
  504. 36:00When's the last time?
  505. 36:02Are we still, and I know there's some,
  506. 36:04I know brothers who go door to door sharing the gospel.
  507. 36:06I know there are some, but we need more.
  508. 36:11God places bride in the church to be salt and light.
  509. 36:17Not to be lightly salted, man.
  510. 36:19In an effort to, there's so much more in this.
  511. 36:24That's why I posted the show notes that I could spend four shows in a row just going data entry
  512. 36:30point by data entry point by data entry point showing you the percentages showing you the
  513. 36:33numbers at where we are in the state of affairs in our nation.
  514. 36:40We haven't gotten here overnight.
  515. 36:41has been the product of a combination of disobedience and negligence over time over time.
  516. 37:02That's heavy. That's heavy. I shared with you yesterday that
  517. 37:11the State of Oregon has a taxpayer funded grant program where they want to provide $30,000
  518. 37:20down payment assistance to, but it only it's only available to non-US citizens.
  519. 37:26not to be outdone the state of California right on their heels. They have various programs
  520. 37:35at the state level. They want to expand the programs to now allow additional homebuyer
  521. 37:41assistance in the state of California to illegal aliens. At the exact same time, there's a fight
  522. 37:48happening in Congress over the Save Act. Save Act simply says illegal aliens cannot vote
  523. 37:57in federal elections. The response there is often where illegal aliens already cannot
  524. 38:03vote federal elections, which I would simply say, and what's the problem?
  525. 38:07If they're not voting, then what's the problem with passing the laws?
  526. 38:10Make sure they're not voting.
  527. 38:12If they're not voting.
  528. 38:14If they're not voting.
  529. 38:16Now again, square the circle.
  530. 38:20We have all these programs like Oregon and California, and that's just a couple of states
  531. 38:24I'm highlighting.
  532. 38:27And you determined whether or not a program that's providing $30,000 in down payment assistance
  533. 38:32exclusively for non-US citizens with that incentivized or disincentivized illegal immigration.
  534. 38:39would it make him want to come or not want to come? All right. Oh goodness gracious.
  535. 38:55I know we're coming to the end of the end of the program but this is, can I make this stuff up?
  536. 39:02Many of you are aware that yesterday, Jack Smith, into this superseding indictment concerning
  537. 39:13President Trump in January 6th, it's the same fact pattern, it's the same for alleged offenses.
  538. 39:24It is obvious that Jack Smith is attempting to a side step, the U.S. Supreme Court's decision
  539. 39:32in Trump versus U.S. concerning presidential immunity where the Supreme Court, in my view,
  540. 39:37got it absolutely correct.
  541. 39:40U.S. presidents, and this is where we have to have mature, objective, and wise citizens,
  542. 39:46because this is something that has to do with the office of the presidency.
  543. 39:50It's not confined to an individual.
  544. 39:54So this would apply to all US presidents, okay?
  545. 40:01Supreme Court simply concluded that official actions taken by president during his time
  546. 40:06of office are immune from criminal prosecution, absolutely immune.
  547. 40:14Non-official acts, private acts, don't.
  548. 40:18That is the proper reading of the US Constitution.
  549. 40:21Not saying anything you do ever for the rest of your life, you're immune from prosecution.
  550. 40:25No.
  551. 40:26official acts taking an office because our founders envisioned an energetic executive fulfilling
  552. 40:31His constitutionally mandated duties in article two of the u.s. Constitution. All right
  553. 40:42So a lot of people asked me about this case
  554. 40:46And I'll say it here just like I said in other places. I really think Jack Smith is trying to save face
  555. 40:51You know
  556. 40:52Because the facts are still the same one of the major is it's nine pages shorter than indictment is one of the major differences
  557. 41:00is that it no longer includes Mr. Clark,
  558. 41:03who was the Department of Justice official,
  559. 41:05who Jack Smith denied it initially,
  560. 41:07along with former President Trump,
  561. 41:09because Jack Smith, as a member of the Department of Justice,
  562. 41:12was working with President Trump.
  563. 41:14He gives the indication he's operating
  564. 41:17in a government capacity because a president
  565. 41:21has a vested interest to ensure the lawful discharge
  566. 41:26of federal elections.
  567. 41:29Guess who is tasked ultimately with the enforcement
  568. 41:33of federal law, the president,
  569. 41:37guess who's tasked with enforcement of the US Constitution?
  570. 41:41Guess who takes an oath to protect
  571. 41:42and defend the Constitution, the president?
  572. 41:48So, what Jack Smith is attempting to do
  573. 41:49is to edit the indictment to say
  574. 41:53that all of these things that he's attempting
  575. 41:56to accuse President Trump of were pursued
  576. 41:59in his personal capacity and has no bearing
  577. 42:01on his official capacity.
  578. 42:03That's what he's attempting to communicate,
  579. 42:05which I think he's going to have a difficult time articulating because he just presents
  580. 42:09another opportunity for the argument made by Justice Clarence Thomas in his concurring
  581. 42:14opinion to be brought to the fore. The exact same argument that Judge Eileen can and adopted
  582. 42:18when dismissing Jack Smith's documents case against President Trump. Justice Thomas raised
  583. 42:26the issue that Article 2, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution includes the Appointments
  584. 42:31Clause that we have a constitutional process that includes a U.S. Senate for the appointment
  585. 42:36of a federal office has that process been followed with the appointment of the special
  586. 42:44prosecutor's office currently.
  587. 42:48The answer to that is obvious.
  588. 42:50Someone said, well, hey, how is this different from other special counsel?
  589. 42:53When you have the attorney general who's been appointed by the U.S. president confirmed
  590. 42:59by the Senate, that process is followed when one of his lower level U.S. attorneys, because
  591. 43:06you have the Attorney General who is the head of the Department of Justice, you have US
  592. 43:11attorneys in each of the states when they are used as special prosecutors that would flow
  593. 43:18from the appointment.
  594. 43:20So, it presents an opportunity for that issue to come forward.
  595. 43:27Now, the other thing that is just noteworthy is that there's no way any of this stuff is
  596. 43:33going to be addressed before November 4th.
  597. 43:36And in my view, it's just the X-Men trying to say face.
  598. 43:39He wants to keep the issue up during this election season.
  599. 43:43It's kind of like, oh, I'm not going home yet.
  600. 43:45It's kind of like that.
  601. 43:48You know.
  602. 43:50And it's just the thing that's really weighing on me, man,
  603. 43:55it's just the deterioration of our body politic.
  604. 43:59You know, our people, it bothers me.
  605. 44:04How many regular people I meet on the street,
  606. 44:05they have no clue what our US Constitution is
  607. 44:07nor what it says.
  608. 44:09It bothers me.
  609. 44:10When you recognize that our founders
  610. 44:13drafted the constitution to be digested at a level,
  611. 44:17to be conversation fodder at dinner tables
  612. 44:20between moms and their children.
  613. 44:26And yet we're at a,
  614. 44:31you ever see these men on street interviews?
  615. 44:32I randomly do my own men on the street interviews.
  616. 44:36I just talk to people,
  617. 44:37hey man, what do you think about what's going on here?
  618. 44:40You know, maybe I might need to bring this to the show, Jeff.
  619. 44:44Maybe you start recording some of these things.
  620. 44:47You know.
  621. 44:48Hey, you know what's going on in November?
  622. 44:50Yeah, yeah, we got an election.
  623. 44:53I'm voting for Trump.
  624. 44:55Man, can you tell me why?
  625. 44:58I'm voting for, can you tell me, I'm voting for Kamala.
  626. 45:00Can you tell me why?
  627. 45:03Oh, yeah, me.
  628. 45:08The number of people I run into who I've met
  629. 45:11who don't even know that Kamala Harris
  630. 45:13is Vice President now bothers me.
  631. 45:20Then you have that as a civic assessment,
  632. 45:21and then you come into Barna Studies saying,
  633. 45:23hey, you know, it's more likely
  634. 45:24that evangelicals are being shaped by the culture
  635. 45:26instead of influencing it.
  636. 45:28You can see it's kind of a bookends, you know, sandwich bread, you know.
  637. 45:38Like, come on, man, where are we?
  638. 45:41But thanks be to God that He warned us and He is faithful to uphold us even in the face
  639. 45:49of all of these shenanigans and the transpiring.
  640. 45:54To my encouragement to you is very similar to what I've said repeatedly that you don't
  641. 46:00forfeit your own communities, your own neighborhoods.
  642. 46:02Man, you're listening to me now.
  643. 46:05Serve your families well.
  644. 46:08If you're a parent, if you have young children in your home,
  645. 46:10proclaim the gospel to your children.
  646. 46:12Make sure your children understand the gospel.
  647. 46:18Make sure you understand the gospel.
  648. 46:19Make sure we understand the gospel.
  649. 46:21Proclaim it regularly.
  650. 46:24One of the great aspects of teaching
  651. 46:25is we demonstrate to our children
  652. 46:27what Christ Father looks like.
  653. 46:28Man, take them with you.
  654. 46:30And share the gospel with your neighbor.
  655. 46:31Obviously, if it's safe,
  656. 46:32don't put your children in danger.
  657. 46:34I'm not saying that.
  658. 46:37But get to know your neighbors,
  659. 46:39share with them the love of Christ,
  660. 46:40show them the hospitality that flows
  661. 46:42from the love of God.
  662. 46:46But God's grace man, the Lord can have an outpouring
  663. 46:48of his spirit right in your own community,
  664. 46:50right in your own neighborhood.
  665. 46:52I share with you guys my story.
  666. 46:53I knew nothing about conservative politics.
  667. 47:00What I knew is that God saved me.
  668. 47:03And he laid out standards that I was to ascribe to
  669. 47:07because he'd captured me.
  670. 47:09He'd capture my soul.
  671. 47:12I shared with I shared years ago about not killing the baby
  672. 47:15because babies are,
  673. 47:18bearers of God's image.
  674. 47:22You can learn a lot about a person
  675. 47:25when you consider how they view and treat
  676. 47:28the most vulnerable among us,
  677. 47:31the most innocent among us.
  678. 47:37The guy in the conversation with the guy,
  679. 47:38you knew I'm more,
  680. 47:39you know, I got a vote for the black woman.
  681. 47:40I said, wait a minute, now wait.
  682. 47:43Now do you think,
  683. 47:44you know, use that term when they, you know,
  684. 47:46do you think skin color based partiality is bad or not?
  685. 47:49What do you mean?
  686. 47:50Let me ask you this question.
  687. 47:51What do you have to go to?
  688. 47:52Man, I'm only gonna fight and vote for Trump if he's white
  689. 47:55because I'm voting for the white guy, white man all the time.
  690. 47:57No, so you try to twist my words, hey,
  691. 47:59but I try to twist your words.
  692. 48:01I'm just saying if it works for you,
  693. 48:02why can't it work in the opposite direction?
  694. 48:03If it works, what if it's wrong?
  695. 48:07That's the man that's wrong,
  696. 48:08this wrong should be wrong all the time, shouldn't it?
  697. 48:15Mm-mm, mm-mm.
  698. 48:16This is where we are, folks.
  699. 48:19But it's not a time to be despondent.
  700. 48:25It's time to remain confident in the King of glory.
  701. 48:27Let us be about our father's business.
  702. 48:29As much as it pertains to you and me, let's be about our father's business.
  703. 48:39The views and opinions expressed in this broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of the American
  704. 48:43Family Association or American Family Radio.

Transcript indexed for search. Open the panel to read along.

Share this episode


Subscribe and never miss an episode.

Pick Your Platform All Episodes
Call (888) 589-8840 Book Abe