“Does your church preach from the Gospel of Judas?” That question was posed to me on the phone a few days ago. The Gospel of Judas is one of the ancient books commonly referred to as the Gnostic Gospels.

This particular question came to me from a Christian friend who was joking. The Gospel of Judas figures prominently into the plot of “The Da Vinci Code” book and movie.
The Gnostic Gospels are ancient manuscripts written during, or just after, the period the books of the New Testament were written. Unfortunately, “The Da Vinci Code” tells only part of the story about them. And the part it tells is not accurate.

Most of the Gnostic Gospels were reviewed by the scholars who canonized the New Testament. They were rejected because they did not fit the very narrow criteria required to be included into the Bible.

New Testament books had to have been written by an apostle who had actually seen the Lord Jesus. They also had to agree with the principles of faith. The Gnostic Gospels were rejected because they did not meet either of these requirements set up by early church leaders.
In fact, it was the widespread circulation of these spurious writings that prompted the church to solidify the cannon of Scripture. The Gospel of Thomas, written in the mid-second century, was the most well known, and widely rejected of the writings.

Gnosticism was the first major heresy to threaten Christianity. Paul’s letter to the Colossians and John’s epistles were written, in part, to combat early forms of the teaching. Gnosticism taught that Christ did not really come in the flesh and live on earth as a human being. Instead, Gnostic teaching said Christ was a heavenly apparition, like a ghost, who only appeared human.
This heresy completely undermines Christ’s sacrifice for our sins. It was vehemently rejected by the early Christians and true Christians continue to denounce it to this day. The Apostle John stated, “Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world, (1 John 4:2-3).”
“The Da Vinci Code” book and movie have simply revived an old heresy that has been repeatedly rejected by Christians for two millennia. Assertions that there was some kind of grand conspiracy or cover-up are simply ridiculous. Even a cursory reading of church history will reveal that this controversy was debated and settled in very public forums.
Gnosticism continues to appeal to people because it promises a secret way of salvation to a select few who know “the truth.” That kind of secret club salvation will always find a hearing among those who want to fashion their own faith or justify their own sin.
True Christianity is just the opposite. God doesn’t hide anything. The Bible is by far, the most printed and widely read book in the world. Christ suffered for our sins in a prominent place outside a world population center on a holiday that brought hundreds of thousands of visitors to the city.

His resurrection was a public event known throughout the entire region within hours after it occurred. He was seen alive by over 500 people. God even asks for a public confession of sins, and a public water baptism from those who choose to become His followers.
It’s no secret.

Pastor Steven G. Dyer

“Marriage is the most fundamental institution of civilization, and it should not be redefined by activist judges.” Those were President Bush’s opening words as he expressed his support for the Federal Marriage Amendment.

Debate on the amendment begins in the United States Senate this week. The amendment would forever settle the debate over marriage making it impossible for any state to recognize or sanction gay marriage.

Right now approval by the Senate does not seem likely since it requires a two-thirds majority. Senator John McCain of Arizona does not support the amendment. The senator (whom I personally admire but sometimes politically disagree with) says this is an issue to be left to the individual states.

That sounds fine if it were possible. 19 states have voted to amend their state constitutions to ban gay marriage. 26 more states have passed laws protecting marriage. If that were the end of the debate we would all agree with Senator McCain and put the issue behind us.
But the problem, as President Bush pointed out, is judges. Several state courts and one federal judge have already overturned the laws in five of those states. The President calls them “activist judges,” I can think of a few other names.

Ultimately this will end up in the United States Supreme Court. The Nebraska law is now winding its way up through the courts system. When it gets there, the Supreme Court will almost surely use its 2003 Lawrence v. Texas ruling as the precedent. In Lawrence, the court ruled that a law against sodomy was bigotry. Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote the opinion.
In a blistering dissent, Justice Scalia railed that the decision “dismantles the structure of constitutional law that has permitted the distinction between heterosexual and homosexual unions.” In other words, the Supreme Court has already ruled ANY prohibitions against homosexual freedom are going to be struck down. It will be only be a small step to say that gay marriage is permissible under their skewed view of the Constitution.
President Bush knows this. Senator McCain knows this. All of the United States Senators debating the amendment know it.

The only way to permanently protect marriage in the United States is to amend the Constitution. In order for that to happen, both houses of Congress have to pass the amendment by a two-thirds majority. Then the amendment must be ratified by at least 38 state legislatures.

The U.S. House of Representatives will probably have no problem approving the amendment. Since votes on this issue in the various states have passed by an average 71% across the country, it seems likely the amendment will have little problem being approved by the states.
So the only real hurdle, and it’s a big one, is the U. S. Senate. We voters thought we had spoken decisively when we voted on this issue last year; but we’re not finished. The Senators need to know that Americans want marriage protected.

Pastor Steven G. Dyer

Every once in a while I find myself embarrassed by my relatives; not my blood relatives, my spiritual relatives. I’m referring specifically to the activist members of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas.

For over a decade, they have been picketing various public events protesting homosexuality and calling down judgment from God. The protestors hold up signs that read “God Hates Fags” and other such disgusting slogans.

In the past couple of years, the church members have escalated their tactics to include military funerals. Their convoluted reasoning is that the Iraq War is judgment from God for America’s sin of homosexuality. They say that American soldiers and their parents are sanctioning this sin by fighting in the military. Even more egregious is their claim that all American soldiers killed in combat are in hell.

These outrageous statements are so far from anything resembling Biblical truth that I almost feel nauseous addressing them. By the way, I really did feel nauseated when I visited the church’s official web site. No, I won’t give out the address.

It is certainly true that the Bible condemns homosexuality (Leviticus 18:22, Romans 1:25-32). However, the Bible equally condemns other sexual sins such as fornication, adultery, bestiality, and incest. In short, the standard of sexual conduct is that it is to be practiced within the holy covenant of marriage. Homosexuality is no greater sin than any other.

The contention that God is judging American soldiers because of the sin of homosexuality is such a ludicrous breach of rational thinking that I can’t even address it. I can, however, expound some very sound Biblical principles about America’s brave men and women who wear the uniform of our armed services.

The Bible tells us that God ordains governments (Romans 13:3-7). There are numerous scriptural examples of governments engaging in warfare and each of them fielded armies. The Bible exalts soldiers who fought for just causes such as Samson, Saul, Jonathan and David. In fact, King David was a prolific soldier who killed thousands in battle and he is the only person in scripture honored with the title “a man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22).”
That does not mean that God is blood thirsty or bent upon killing people. It means that God understands the existence of evil in this world and sanctions extreme means to resist that evil. Soldiers who protect our freedoms and rights are fulfilling the ultimate act of love that Jesus described in John 15:13 when he said “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”

Congress recently outlawed the protests at military funerals. Several states are in the process of passing similar laws to cover non-military cemeteries. Rev. Fred Phelps vows to continue the protests despite any laws to the contrary. Fine, put them in jail.

I’m ashamed of the members of the Westboro Baptist Church. I’m proud of the men and women who serve this country in the armed forces. That’s truly a Christian viewpoint.

Pastor Steven G. Dyer