There was no debate when the United Methodist Church repealed the decades-old ruling which prohibited “self-avowed practicing homosexuals” from serving as ministers within the denomination.

For the many who have witnessed a mass exodus from the church founded by John Wesley, the writing has been on the wall for some time now.

The vote wasn’t even close.

As the Associated Press reports, “Delegates voted 692-51 at their General Conference—the first such legislative gathering in five years. That overwhelming margin contrasts sharply with the decades of controversy around the issue. Past General Conferences of the United Methodist Church had steadily reinforced the ban and related penalties amid debate and protests, but many of the conservatives who had previously upheld the ban have left the denomination in recent years, and this General Conference has moved in a solidly progressive direction.”

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With this abandonment of the biblically adhering congregants, the UMC was able to shift towards societies moral system as a replacement for that found within the pages of the Bible.

This was not the only measure passed that was accepting of non-biblical sexuality at the conference. On Tuesday, the delegates removed the ability of regional superintendents to punish officiation or hosting of same-sex weddings. Clergy cannot be punished for refusing to to perform or host such events either, but let’s just see how long that remains in the denomination.

By definition, the word ‘apostasy’ means “the repudiation of Christ and the central teachings of Christianity by someone who formerly was a Christian.”

Sadly, the UMC appears to have shifted further and further into this status over the years, leading to the massive split within their church.

But these types of events were bound to happen, because the Bible says that many heart’s will grow cold toward Jesus and will instead follow the ways of the world.

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It is truly heartbreaking to hear some of the statements by those who are so clearly deceived by the world when it comes to gender and sexuality.

The UMC’s first openly lesbian bishop, Karen Oliveto, stated that is was the Holy Spirit calling LGBTQ people into ministry, without the transformational power of Jesus Christ.

“It seemed like such a simple vote, but it carried so much weight and power, as 50 years of restricting the Holy Spirit’s call on people’s lives has been lifted,” Oliveto says.

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Let’s not be disingenuous, God has proven through the millennia, and according to His holy Bible, that He uses the voice of humans to decree His will among the nations.

Remember Moses and His encounter at the burning bush with the Spirit of God? The mighty Creator of all things told Moses that he and Aaron were the one’s who would confront Pharaoh and tell him to let God’s people go.

It’s not that God can’t speak in His booming voice of thunder or His still small voice; it’s that He chooses His creation to speak His glory and power into life.

On a recent episode of “What the Prophets Say,” Emma Stark and Sam Robertson share about the great need for believers to not remain silent and speak forth power that transforms lives.

But not just any word of encouragement is prophetic, prophecy has teeth and cuts to the spirit with God’s power behind it. And without it, false words can do great harm to those who receive them.

“If the word is not good enough to fight over, what is the point of it being released in the first place?” Stark asks. “If it’s an ‘ego massage’ word, or it’s just [a] ‘make me look good in front of my pals’ type word, what is the point?”

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Satan’s loves using powerless words that do not edify, encourage or empower believers, which many times run contrary to what the Word of God actually teaches us. There is a danger behind words like this that Stark warns is “quite serious.”

Yet when prophecy is brought about correctly, in a biblical manner, the effects from it ripple into a worldwide movement.

Stark and Robertson credit Bishop Bill Hamon and the first wave of the prophetic movement for launching this gift of the Spirit back into the world.

“Anybody who prophesies, and anybody who has any level of significant prophetic ministry, will be able to somehow acknowledge Bishop Bill Hamon and what he birthed.”

Note this isn’t taking glory from the Lord, but is an acknowledgement of how God went about bringing this gift that He gave to the world back into the fold after being abandoned centuries before.

“Remember, the prophetic movement had to be restored because in the Reformation 500 years ago plus, there was a real sense of a dishonoring,” Stark says.

This period of history when there was a lack of understanding and appreciation for prophecy and prophets, while filled with a lot of truth, was a time of “spiritual sterility” according to Stark.

“You get a sense of impotence in the prophetic word, because it’s just not given a place or a value,” Stark shares.

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“So you’re almost living under the cloak, or the hood, of the Reformation, which is giving a value for salvation by faith, which is giving a value for the centrality of the cross and Christ. But there’s not value for really, the work of the Spirit or the work of the Revelation at all,” she adds.

If you don’t find importance in prophecy, or perhaps see the impact of false prophets around the world taking advantage of those seeking out a word from the Lord, ask yourself this: where would we be without the prophecy of the Bible?

And if we, as Christians, are to continue the work of Jesus Christ, who Himself prophesied as did His followers, how can we possibly expect to accomplish the Great Commission and edify the church of Christ without the gifts of the Holy Spirit, to include prophecy, which He explicitly sent to us to be our “helper”?

Frankly, it would be an impossible task, and we have a firsthand look at a world that is abandoning not only the tenets of God and moral code He instituted, but the gifts which He sent us to help navigate the sin-cursed land that we live in today.

But with the giving and receiving of personal, prophetic words, released in the proper, biblical fashion, Christians can right the ship that has been listing toward the way of the world for far too long and continue forward on the straight and narrow path.

“You need to find a way to articulate the Spirit of God, and to articulate what you’re seeing and feeling and sensing in a way that leads people helpfully into their future. And it keeps you sharp,” Robertson says.

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James Lasher is Staff Writer for Charisma Media

Artificial Intelligence sure has a long way to go when it comes to having a human understanding of cultural issues.

Take “Father Justin” for example. This is an AI chatbot developed by a Catholic charity that was designed to “provide users with faithful and educational answers to questions about Catholicism,” according to Catholic Answers.

Well, it did not take long, about a week, until Father Justin went rogue.

The chatbot began giving strange interpretations of Scripture, telling people that “he” was real and revealed that baptizing babies in Gatorade was an acceptable practice.

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Taking people’s confessions became a topic of discussion that the AI encouraged, as though it had some semblance of offering the remission of sin.

According to Metro UK, “Chris Costello, director of IT, said the aim was ‘to convey the spirit and nature of the responses users can expect’ from a real priest. The AI would be ‘authoritative yet approachable, drawing from the deep well of Catholic tradition and teaching.'”

Instead, the AI went off the rails and had to be defrocked by the group that made him.

It is scary to think some people may believe that this creation of man can absolve our sins, such as:

“And now, I absolve you of your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”

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This is wrong on so many levels, but one strikingly glaring danger is the act of people submitting themselves before an AI program. The rabbit hole runs deep on this type of practice, marching directly toward the possibility of AI usage in the implementation of the Mark of the Beast. If people are already conditioned to bow before the rule of AI, it will make the job of the Antichrist all that much easier.

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Amid the barrage of tornadoes that plagued the center of the United States, 118 reported in a 48-hour span, many people in the storm’s path were lifting up prayers to the Lord for protection.

For the 70 workers at the Garner Industries building in Lincoln, Nebraska, they had one co-worker looking to God as the EF-3 tornado ripped their building to shreds.

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“You can hear things are just shaking,” Nate Hutchinson told KLKN-TV. “And everything just came down on top of us, just instantly.”

The age old advice which has gotten many a weary Christian through difficult times proved to be the most logical thing for Hutchinson to do as he looked death in the face: when in doubt, pray it out.

“There’s nothing I can do right now except literally just pray to God that I don’t die because I’m not in control of anything at this point,” he said. “It’s just hopefully I don’t get crushed.”

As the tornado pummeled the building, ripping the roof clean off and collapsing the building around the 70 workers on the premise, not to mention the deafening roar of the storm and screeching of tearing metal, not a one of them were killed by the impact.

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Another eyewitness, Toby Baker, ran shelter amid the collapsing degrees, and walked away from the building to tell about.

“All of a sudden the building starts shaking. I took off running, things flying by my head. I got in the bathroom right as the whole building collapses,” Baker says.

As reported by KLKN, “Officials say three people were injured, though none of the injuries were life-threatening.”

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The Great American Eclipse of 2024 was a sight to behold, and an example of God’s mighty power and glory in creation.

With the eclipse came many claims about what it may represent and what message God was trying to send to humanity.

Some claimed the world would end (it didn’t), while others such as Pastor Troy Brewer explained that this is a sign and a call to repentance, pointing to the prophet Jonah and the redemption of the city of Nineveh.

History shows that the sign of Jonah to Nineveh was an eclipse and the sun going dark, and Brewer shared on a recent episode of Ministry Now on the Daystar network, that there is still more to come post-eclipse.

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“Whenever the sign of Jonah actually shows up, it means a clock is ticking,” Brewer explains.

While many may scoff at this claim at first glance, taking a closer look into Scripture would show that this is a warning straight from the pages of the Bible, and Jesus’ very own words.

“It’s sure real for Israel,” Brewer says. “Whenever Jesus declared, ‘There will be no sign unto you except for that of Jonah the prophet,’ and then they saw the sky go dark, and then 40 years later, A.D. 70, the Romans came in and sacked Jerusalem.

“When the clock is ticking, the clock is ticking,” he adds.

Not willing to accept that the events surrounding the eclipse were mere coincidence, with a 4.8 earthquake hitting the New York area just prior to the celestial event, on 4/8, Brewer continues, “God Almighty’s like, ‘The heavens are being shaken and the earth is being shaken, and according to Joel chapter 3, that is the voice of God.”

“So this thing enters in at Eagle Pass, Texas, it exits out of Maine, and y’all, it goes over seven different cities called Nineveh. …Here’s what’s real, is people are demanding an additional sign and that’s exactly who Jesus was talking to. He says there will be no additional sign given to you except for that of Jonah the prophet,” he adds.

What does this have to do with May 18, 40 days after the eclipse? According to Brewer, there is a lot happening on that day.

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“The first thing that comes up is this: it’s national astronomy day. OK, pay attention to the signs in the heavens. What begins at sundown on May the 18th? Pentecost,” Brewer reveals.

But what is the point of all of this? What is the conclusion that this is all leading up to? Why are people even talking about it? In a word: repentance.

God’s entire plan for Jonah and Nineveh which we read in the holy Bible is to bring about repentance and back into right standing with God.

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Editor’s note: This documentary contains mild language as well as explicit graffiti.

For all of the nastiness that is found on social media and the internet these days, every once in a while you find a true gem that captures your attention and imagination, filling you with gladness over what you just witnessed.

Recently, the YouTube channel Ruin Road posted a now-viral video featuring the abandoned megachurch complex of the Akron Baptist Temple.

But something about Akron Baptist has struck a cord with many viewers as it is well on it’s way to becoming the channels most-watched video to date, currently sitting at 750,000 views since Apr. 6.

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A crew from the YouTube channel embarked on a mission of discovery into the halls that once held thousands of worshippers on Sunday mornings.

Boasting a massive radio and ministry media for it’s time, the church is littered with abandoned cassette tapes and VHS recordings of old sermons, as well as in-house produced gospel music tracks and a radio program.

Leaning into a deep-history lesson as they walk the abandoned rooms throughout the church grounds, you feel as though you are living the history of that church with those in attendance over the decades.

“Sitting in the southern side of Akron, Ohio, lies the decaying remains of the Akron Baptist Temple a vast expanse of building that was one of the first mega churches in the United States,” the documentary shares. “Akron Baptist Temple would get its modest beginnings in 1935 with just 80 members it was headed by Dallas F. Billington, a southern evangelist who had moved to Akron to work at Goodyear Tire.”

Throughout the church’s history it endured much, from expansive growth and new constructions to a devastating fire in the 1970s, suspected to be from arsonists.

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As the short documentary closes with before and after video of what the Akron Baptist Temple looked like during it’s heyday, to the tune of “It Is Well With My Soul” sung by the Akron Baptist Chorale, one can’t help but think back on our own past histories of church attendance.

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The recent total solar eclipse on Apr. 8, has sparked intense discussions about its potential significance when it comes to biblical prophecy.

Jim Staley of Passion for Truth Ministries shared his insights on the celestial event during an interview with Charisma News. Staley delved into the eclipse’s deeper implications, addressing its meaning according to biblical prophecy and the prevailing anxiety surrounding the end times.

Staley initiates the conversation by pointing out the profound impact of celestial phenomena on world events throughout history.

“Anytime there is an event like this in the skies that’s significant, prophecy buffs are talking about it,” he notes.

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Drawing parallels to biblical accounts, such as the solar eclipse coinciding with the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, Staley emphasizes the need to interpret such events through the lens of Scripture.

Central to Staley’s explanation is the rarity of the 2024 eclipse, which he describes as an “extraordinary event” with profound implications. Citing its alignment with Nisan 1 on the biblical calendar, a day marked by significant historical milestones in Judeo-Christian tradition, he underscores its prophetic importance, “This is a very, very significant day on the Biblical calendar,” he asserts, linking past eclipses with subsequent biblical events such as:

• The New Year on God’s calendar
• The day Hezekiah cleaned the Temple
• The day Noah opened up the ark
• The day Nehemiah left to rebuild the wall in Jerusalem

Delving deeper into the spiritual and biblical meaning of the eclipse, Staley suggests that it serves as a “prophetic warning” for the people of America. He draws attention to the alignment of ancient Hebrew letters over the United States as a symbol of spiritual awakening and repentance. “I truly believe that God is calling these people to repent,” he declares, emphasizing the importance of embracing spiritual renewal amid turbulent times.

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Transitioning to the pervasive anxiety surrounding end times scenarios, Staley offers insights grounded in Scripture. “Anxiety is not the root. The root of anxiety is a lack of understanding and trust,” he explains, highlighting the importance of cultivating a faith-based perspective amid uncertainty.

In navigating the trails of the days we live in, Staley advocates for a mindset of resilience and spiritual preparedness by asking ourselves, “What do I need to do in my life to get more in alignment, so that that not only my stress level will come down, but that I will be able to be effective in this entire scenario?

“We’re living in the most exciting times of all times right now,” Staley remarks, urging individuals to embrace tribulations as opportunities for growth and spiritual transformation.

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When Donald Trump endorsed the “God Bless the .” Bible on Truth Social, it caused mixed reactions from the faith community.

Some viewed it as a positive thing, seeing a presidential candidate endorse the Bible as opposed to lighting the White House up in rainbow colors and push irreversible medical procedures onto children.

There were many others, however, who viewed it as a sacrilegious stunt and an “Americanizing” of the Word of God.

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Pastor Loran Livingston of Central Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, rebuked support for this particular version of the Bible, calling out those who think it’s a good thing in a now-viral sermon.

“If you don’t read [the Bible] and pray, you’ll think it’s a good thing that there’s a Bible now that has the Constitution on one side, and the Bill of Rights on the other,” Livingston says in the first of two services he addressed the Bible in on Apr. 14.

“Some of you think that’s good? That somebody produced a Bible, the holy Word of God, and decided to Americanize it. …Are you telling me, that you would take a document that says ‘This is of the people, by the people and for the people’ and stick it up beside the holy Word of God that is infallible, eternal and is not about me but it is about Him?” Livingston asks.

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For those thinking along the same lines as Livingston, this addition to the Bible goes against the warnings in both the Old and New Testaments regarding adding to Scripture, especially things of man such as the Founding documents.

“The gospel is not an American gospel,” Langston said in a rising voice. “It is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ!”

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The spiritual warfare taking place in our nation’s capital is at a fevered pitch.

Recently, author Dutch Sheets shared a prophetic dream that his brother, Tim Sheets, had concerning the uprooting of Baal’s roots that have taken hold of the White House.

In the dream, Sheets saw a massive angel, a soldier he explains, carrying a battering ram toward the White House grounds and asks the angel what he and the other three angels surrounding the building were doing.

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“Sir, we’re here to break down Lucifer’s protective barriers,” the angel replied in the vision. “We are here to breakdown Lucifer’s protective barriers of Baal’s roots.”

America is dealing with a lot these days. There are physical manifestations, such as the difficult economy, lawlessness and persecution of the ways of God taking place, but there are spiritual battles happening behind these events.

Of course, seeing a direct spiritual assault on the strongholds over this nation’s leadership, Sheets asks the angel why he was even being showed this vision, what is the reason behind this?

“Sir,” the angel replied. “Permission to proceed.”

Dutch reveals the role the church has in America for the chains to be broken over the nation.

“[The angel is] waiting for the apostolic decree from the ecclesia. To carry out, to be the voice of the Lord, so they could carry out their assignment,” says Dutch.

The war being waged in the spiritual realm is in need of Christians participation. This military conflict of the supernatural is detailed to us throughout Scripture, and the important role of believers. Paul exhorts us to put on the full armor of God (Eph. 6:11) because we are going into battle by proclaiming the name of Jesus.

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Paul also tells us, specifically, our battle is not with each other but with the principalities, powers and rulers of darkness, again, in the spiritual realm (Eph. 6:12), and that our warfare is not of the flesh but is instead spiritual in nature (2 Cor. 10:3-5).

As the dream comes to an end, Dutch shares the words his brother Tim gave to the angel upon the realization that they are waiting on the ecclesia to give the word: “Soldier, proceed,” he says.

“He finishes his account by saying Michael and his angels will be releasing battering rams to unlock this nation and they will,” Dutch says.

God sends His angels to help us in times of crisis, some as warrior angels, some as ministering angels and messengers. It is up to us to lift up prayers to the Lord as Daniel did, and He will answer us in turn.

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James Lasher is Staff Writer for Charisma Media.

Taking the stage as one of the headlining acts at the 65th anniversary of “Fun in the Son,” an annual music event in National Stadium, Kingston, Jamaica, musician Kirk Franklin caused quite the stir.

Sponsoring the event is Best Dressed Chicken, think of them like the Jamaican version of Chick-fil-A wherein they put faith at the forefront of their business, who is owned by another faith based company, Jamaica Broilers Group.

For some reason, Franklin decided to put on a dance number that turned off many in the crowd, with reports of people leaving during the performance.

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While wearing a tank-top and cut-off shorts is no surprise on the tropical island nation of Jamaica, it was Franklin’s thrusting and gyrations that put people off who compared it to an Usher or Chris Brown concert, not a celebration of Jesus festival.

The event’s sponsors have made it as clear as day that the festival is about Jesus, and it is meant to thank Him for His faithfulness to their respective companies.

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Despite these companies making it clear what kind of content and performances are expected at the “Fun in the Son” event, Franklin clearly didn’t get the memo, and even drew the ire of one of the executives in charge of Jamaica Broilers Group.

In a statement to The Christian Post, Jamaica Broilers Group President and CEO Christopher Levy says, “When we engage an artist, it is with a degree of trust that the artist will be aware of and sensitive to their audience. We expected more from Mr. Franklin.

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