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I love the U.S. as much as I love my own country.  I identify myself with the frustrations of my American friends because of Obama´s veneration for Islam and the Moslem countries, boldly quoting the Koran (“The holy Koran teaches…”) like a “Moslem Billy Graham” in his preaching style. (see http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=tCAffMSWSzY#t=28). B.G. we remember for his well known and powerful “The Bible says…” in his prime as an anointed, international evangelist.  -  And yet we should still pray for our apostate leaders and those in authority.  (1 Tim. 2:1-3)

But we in Europe shouldn´t be picking at America.  Our old continent had way back in history the gospel of grace giving us reformers and gospel prophets like Martin Luther, John Wesley, George Whitefield, Charles Spurgeon, and many, many others.  My own country and  Norway also had their chosen servants of God.  Strangely enough, many ministered within the frame work of the Lutheran state church and did have blessed awakenings.

But it´s all history now.  Europe, including my own country, has turned its back on God and His gospel which is now being mocked and laughed at. The result is a tremendous, spiritual vacuum.  Who´s going to fill in that vacuum?  Islam is  ready, we believe.  It has a missionary world objective.

In the local press some readers are carrying on a mini smear campaign against me since I´m not a registered member of our Lutheran state church (which more than 80% of our population is).  Shame on me as our old Lutheran church is part of our so called “cultural heritage”!  But I would have none of a “cultural heritage” that makes 80% of the Danes “born again” through their infant baptism which borders on a religious magic.  Almost none of the Lutheran priests would humbly acknowledge the Bible as God´s absolute truth (at the most as relative truth only).

What do I learn from that? I learn that my people still want religion in a convenient, non-committal way, financed by a godless state.  I´ve read that only abt. 5% of the Danes are declared atheists, even though they live and think as atheists.  At the same time many young people are turning to Islam for a spiritual answer to the disadvantage of an apostate Lutheran state church heading for its doom.

My advice here and abroad would be:  Don´t be just a conventional Christian.  I don´t ask you to leave your conventional church, but I do encourage you to get together with some or somebody with whom you may have true fellowship – that Christ-centered “fellowship of the Spirit” (Phil. 2:1) which is “in short supply” in the modern church despite its streamlined machinery.  For cheerful, loud programs may still be a disguised spiritual vacuum.

-jn-

June 9, 2010