The inauguration of Jakarta’s first Christian governor in 50 years has been delayed to allow for a presidential decree on his appointment, another setback on his contested journey to power.

Deputy Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama had been scheduled to be sworn in today. He succeeds Joko Widodo, who last month became President of Indonesia.

However, it is not the first obstacle Chinese Christian Purnama, who is known by the nickname Ahok, has faced. His rise to power has been contested by religious hardliners who have held multiple protests in Jakarta.

In September, around 200 members of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) staged a demonstration in front of a regional legislative building in the capital city. One of the group’s leaders told news agencies that it is “forbidden to have an infidel as the head of Jakarta”.

“Ahok Basuki Tjahaya Purnama, we reject him to be the governor of Jakarta because he has no moral ethics,” the spokesperson said.

Another protest was held on October 3, which became violent and resulted in the injury of 16 police officers.

A further demonstration on November 10 saw FPI members and those from other Muslim groups, this time numbering over 2,000, march to Jakarta city hall, again to call on the government to stop Ahok’s appointment. The rally was thought to be organised by Islamic scholar and activist Muhammed Rizieq Shihab, who founded the FPI. The group has declared that it remains “a faithful support of the Islamic Jihad Movement all around the world”.

However Ahok has suggested that the protests could be politically swayed, rather than as a result of his religion or ethnicity.

The Indonesian constitution guarantees freedom of religious belief, and the country is predominantly moderate, however Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) reports that militant Islamists have been able to push through a number of measures in recent years which could have “serious, long-term implications” on minority rights.

A report released in February of this year found that rising religious intolerance across the country “poses a threat…to all Indonesians who value democracy, human rights, peace and stability.”

Political parties have “pandered to the Islamist narrative, perceiving a need to appeal to religiously conservative constituencies at a local level,” CSW said, and “a variety of radical Islamist organisations have emerged and gained a disproportionate influence over policymaking and implementation.”

“Indonesia’s pluralism is in peril, and almost all of Indonesia’s different religious communities are affected… Religious intolerance, once thought to be confined to specific regions, now appears to be spreading nationwide,” the organisation warned.

Source and Original Content by Christian Today

The parents of an American aid worker beheaded by Islamic State militants after his abduction in Syria asked for prayers for other captives in Syria and Iraq in a brief public statement at their Indianapolis church on Monday.

Abdul-Rahman Kassig, whose name was Peter before his conversion to Islam, was the fifth European or American captive killed by the militants. His severed head was seen in a video that was released on Sunday and also showed the beheadings of at least 14 men.

In a brief public comment at Epworth United Methodist Church in Indianapolis, Kassig’s mother, Paula Kassig, read words written about her son by one of his former teachers.

“If a person can be both a realist and an idealist, then that’s Peter,” she said. “Peter has earned the right to be both… Peter’s life is evidence that he’s been right all along; one person can make a difference.”

Kassig’s father, Ed Kassig, said: “Please pray for Abdul-Rahman, or Pete if that’s how you know him, at sunset this evening. Pray also for all people in Syria and Iraq around the world who are held against their will.”

In early October, Islamic State had threatened that Kassig, 26, a medic and former US Army Ranger, would be the next American or European captive the group would behead after killing British aid worker Alan Henning…Read More

Source and Original Content by Christian Today

God expects us to lay hold of what belongs to us.

Now we do have an enemy who tries to stop us. He sets up roadblocks in an effort to keep us from receiving from God. Jerry Savelle calls them “blessing blockers.”

Many of these obstacles to God’s best in our lives fall under the category described in Mark 7:13: The tradition of men makes the Word of God of no effect. Traditions are demonic error-really lies-to keep the Church in the dark. For years traditional ideas and interpretations of Scripture have kept people from receiving healing.

So I’d like to expose some of those lies of the enemy and explain why they are wrong. As we go through them, make a note of any that have become part of your thinking. Then replace those lies with what the Word really says.

1.“Miracles have passed away.”

I grew up in a church in which we frequently heard statements like these: “Miracles have passed away” and “Healing has passed away.” But the truth is that in order for miracles and healing to pass away, God would have to change or pass away. And that can’t happen. He has already declared, “For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed” (Malachi 3:6).

He has also said, “I am the Lord that healeth thee” (Exodus 15:26). Sickness and disease were never God’s will for man. Sickness only came when man disobeyed God, sinned and died spiritually. At that point man became subject to the evil one. But even then, God made a way to provide healing for His people. If He ever healed anyone, He is still that same healer today. God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34). But we have to do our part and give Him something to work with by exercising our faith.

2.“God gets glory from sickness.”

Sickness doesn’t bring glory to God. Healing does.

As Jesus healed the multitudes, Matthew 15:31 says, “When they saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the blind to see…they glorified the God of Israel.”

3.“All things work together for good…”

A scripture that is often taken out of context and misunderstood is Romans 8:28: “All things work together for good to them that love God.” If you believe this means sickness is somehow for your good, you won’t resist it. But the Bible is very plain in what it says about sickness. The curse spelled out in Deuteronomy 28 includes “every sickness, and every plague” (verse 61).

Curses do not come from God. He is good to everyone (Psalm 145:9). Acts 10:38 says, “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.”

When you read Romans 8:28 in context, its meaning becomes clear:

Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose (Romans 8:26-28).

This is not saying everything that comes along is working for your good. This is about those who love God. Those who love God obey His Word: “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous” (1 John 5:3). When we obey God we enjoy the blessing of God.

The will of God is always good, but not everyone is in the will of God. This scripture is talking about the things of the Spirit working for our good. The Spirit makes intercession on our behalf when we pray in the spirit. When we obey God all things work together for good.

Everything that comes your way does not come from God and does not bring good into your life. You have the authority in you to obey or disobey. For instance, cancer does not work for your good. Car wrecks do not work for your good. They come to steal, kill and destroy. If you think these things come from God you will receive them instead of resist them.

4.“God puts sickness on you to teach you something.”

Sickness is not good. So when people say, “God puts sickness on you to teach you something,” that is totally unscriptural. The Bible says God uses His Word to teach us. He has sent the Holy Spirit to teach us. In Deuteronomy 28 God says if you don’t obey Me, all these curses will come on you. That’s not the will of God. God’s will is your redemption from the curse in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:13). Through ignorance, unbelief or rebellion and disobedience, we open the door to evil in our lives.

According to 2 Timothy 3:16-17, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.”

God sent the Holy Spirit to be the teacher of the Church (John 14:26). He will guide you into all truth (John 16:13). God also placed teachers in the Church to instruct us (Ephesians 4:11-12). He doesn’t use sickness to do that.

Many believers labor under the misconception that whatever happens to them is God’s doing. As a result, they take no responsibility for anything and put up no resistance to the enemy when he brings sickness and disease.

If you don’t resist sickness, it won’t go away. The enemy will continue to rule and reign in your life. You must resist the devil if you don’t want him to live with you. James 4:7 says resist him, and he will flee.

Jesus delivered people from sickness everywhere He went. He rebuked it! He was never a friend of sickness and disease. He always did the will of God and you never saw Jesus instructing anyone to stay sick.

5.“Lord, if it be Thy will…”

A traditional prayer that will help you die young is “Lord, if it be Thy will, heal my body.” Praying this shows you have not been reading your Bible and you don’t have a clue about God or His will. It’s always His will to heal.

Perhaps you’ve been going to the wrong church. You should come out of a church service with your faith more built up than when you went in. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17). But if you don’t hear and believe what the Word says, your faith won’t be strong.

6.Unbelief

Even Jesus couldn’t heal those who were in unbelief. In His hometown of Nazareth, “he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief” (Matthew 13:58).

Unbelief is the major blessing blocker. That’s why it’s imperative for you to know what the Word says and believe it enough to act on it. All the traditions I’m talking about are the result of unbelief.

Unbelief comes by hearing just like faith comes by hearing. It’s dangerous to your health to listen to unbelief.

There is no good reason to sit under teaching that’s full of unbelief if you desire to live and live well. Go where the uncompromised Word of God is being taught. Your life depends on it.

Galatians 3:11 says, “The just shall live by faith.” That means believers are to live by believing what the Bible says. You are healed by believing and acting on what the Word says about your healing. It takes believing and acting to fulfill the word receive!

Source and Original Content by KCM