Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
SUBJECT- TRUTH TO POWER?? MY FOOT!!
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Say it loud, I'm black and I'm proud!!! No justice, no peace!!
Two prevalent sayings, that are hallmarks in the black community. They were used as rallying cries, to raise the pride of the black community.
It was the late James Brown, that coined the first phrase, in his song by the same name.
Before that song, the black community was like a ship, on the sea, being driven by every wind that society put on us.
They said we were lazy, shiftless, no account, stupid, and always looking for trouble. We couldn't be trusted to do anything but get high, party, and commit crimes. The jails and prisons, bore that out, because if you look at our percentage of the population in this nation, then look at our percentage in the prisons and jails in this nation, and you could say, 'See, they are right!!'
If you keep telling someone that they are no good, and a failure, and no one counters that, then, the person will slowly begin to believe it, and become the personification of that impression.
When that song came out, and its words began to resonate in our community, we began to straighten our backs, lift our heads, and begin to walk like men, rather than, the animals, people associated us with.
From there, we began to look at our situation, and how we had been mistreated, and walked on, by those that profited off of our misery. They kept us underfoot, because it was profitable for them, to keep us that way. And, when we complained about it to the ones, whose job it is to watch over all of our freedoms, and to punish those that violated our rights, talking about the courts, congress, and the presidency, there seemed to be no willing ear, to hear our protests, and address our problems.
It was about this time, that, Jesse Jackson, I believe, started what could best be described, as a peaceful protest, that carried with it, the warning that we were not going to keep silent, while our rights were being systematically violated, by the law enforcement community, referring to the police, and the courts. That is where the phrase, 'no justice, no peace', was birthed.
The message was, as long as we, the black community, continue to be disrespected, and neglected, we will continue to voice our grievances, and concerns, to the courts, and to our representatives, in Washington. We were not going to remain silent, any longer.
There was a time, when we would suffer in silence. But, many took that silence, for fear and weakness. We had to show those that looked to take advantage of our silence, and apparent weakness, that we weren't going to take it, anymore.
That, in a nutshell, is how those phrases came in to being. And, without them, there is no telling where we would be today. Most certainly, we wouldn't have a black man, as president elect, like we do today.
However, while those two sayings, were necessary, and had a positive effect on us, as a community, the new phrase, whose origin, I have no idea as to who started it, is one that I really have to take issue with. That being 'truth to power.'
Lately, over the last year or so, I have heard many of our black leaders, especially preachers, using it, as some sort of rallying cry.
One of being victorious in a battle. One that, I guess, says, that, when you have the 'truth' on your side, nothing can stop you. It might take some time, but, the truth, will always prevail, in the end.
Well, while that sounds good, and is, true,
the problem is, just what is it, that you are calling 'truth'?
You see, there is 'truth'[small 't' represents man's idea of truth], and there is 'Truth'[capital 'T' represents what God says is the Truth].
The truth, that is being upheld, and promoted, by black leaders, many of whom, happen to be preachers, is truth, as they see it. It is reality, based on what an individual that sees things as, through the eyes of a flawed, carnal mind, that has no concept of what is the Truth.
The bible tells us, that man, operating on his own intelligence, is doing so with a 'carnal' mind. That means, it is one that has no recognition of God, and the Spiritual reality that we really live in. It is being engaged in foolishness.
Yet, these people, tend to go merrily along, chests stuck out, heads held high, giving high fives to each other, and encouraging one another, with the new mantra, 'truth to power.' They see themselves as obtaining the type of deliverance, freedom, and power, that they have sought for hundreds of years, by following the 'truths' that they believed in.
Now, here is the problem.
If you notice the subject scriptures above, you will see that Christ, is making a statement, that is Truth, and has stood the test of time, and that is, if a person knows the 'Truth', then the 'Truth', will be the One, that will deliver, or empower them.
Therefore, if you are not operating according to 'Truth', then you are out of touch with Christ, and therefore, you are actually going against God. And, if you are going against Him, you will lose, if not immediately, then down the road. He will see to it.
Any time man gets to the point, that he ceases looking to God, and relies totally on himself, no matter what the area of his life is being addressed, he puts himself, and those around him, in peril.
How??
Picture yourself, in a jungle, within a walled fortress, surrounded by all sorts of wild animals, and enemies, that want to destroy you. And, as long as you stay within that fort, you are totally protected.
Now, everything you need, is within that fort, so you have no real reason for going outside of it. But, there is a door, that you can go out of, if you want to.
However, once you go outside, you are, on your own, and you have put yourself in great danger.
Well, God is the same way. He, and His Word, are the Fort. Every thing you need is provided by Him. However, you are not His prisoner, and are free to go outside of His Truth, but you do so at your own peril. It is not that He has left you, but you have left Him.
Anything that a person pursues in life, that is not based on the Truth, will eventually end up costing them, dearly.
If you look at the state of the black community in this nation, especially after following this 'truth', you will see what I am talking about.
This 'truth', has placed one particular political party in this nation, as the one that is the 'friend' and 'deliverer', of the black community.
This 'truth' also says that things like abortion, gay rights, environmentalism, affirmative action, and animal rights, all of which, God hates, as being the things that are more important to them than following the 'Truth' , of the Word of God. Even when warned about their precarious positions on these, and other issues, they call those that are warning them, 'the religious right', homophobes, self righteous, fear mongers, and a few other choice names. Then, they set about to destroy them.
Let me tell you what the bible says about these people. [Mat 21:33-41]Is a parable, that in essence, says that God sent His servants, to people that He had given favor to, to get from them, the things He required from them, and they attacked them, and sent them away with nothing. After several times, of this, He finally sent His Son, and they conspired to kill Him. In the end, God decides to destroy them.
What the black community is involved in, and what is happening to them, is exactly the same thing that these men did. The men that were given favor from God, were preachers.
If you want to know why the black community is in the mess it is in, just look at your preachers.
And, what kind of mess are we in??
Quoting the late Coleman A. Young,
'When America gets a cold, the black community gets pneumonia!!' This is not by chance, but by design.
God always sends people to those that have strayed from the path of righteousness, to get them to repent, and turn back. If they repent, then they are safe
[2Chron 7:14]. If, on the other hand, they refuse, He may try several more times to get them to repent, but ultimately, after a while, He will punish, or even destroy them
[Prov. 29:1].
How is this punishment manifesting itself??
In things that are good for everyone, we are 'dead last' on the list. In things that are bad for everyone, we are at the 'top' of the list. Unemployment, crime, children dying or getting killed, health issues and disease, poverty, illiteracy.
Detroit, Motown, home of the Big 3, the first major city to be majority and controlled by blacks, is now the poorest city in the nation. Michigan, whose condition, depends on how Detroit fares, is the poorest state in the nation. Wayne county, the largest county in the nation, that has a majority black population, has the highest incidence of criminal activity, and deaths by oral cancer (over 50%), of all the other counties in the nation, combined. That, my friends, spells, 'curse.'
The cause for this, is, the fact that without the support of the black community, none of the things that God hates, would still be an issue today, because they would've ended, or been severely curtailed. This puts the black community, squarely at the top, in who it is that is responsible for keeping these things going. And for that, we are paying the price. And the black preachers, that most of you put your total trust in, are responsible.
It's not
'Truth to power', that you are involved in but,
'truth to destruction.'
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