By L.A. Williams, Correspondent
Christian Action League of North Carolina

RALEIGH - With gas prices up and the economy down, the Christian Action League of North Carolina is going the extra mile this year to make sure that Advisory Board Members and other annual meeting attendees don’t have to.

“This year we are offering three annual meetings - one in each region of the state - to make travel less burdensome,” said the Rev. Mark Creech, executive director of the CAL. “The legislative issues before us next year are both urgent and critical, so we need as many Advisory Board members and supporting churches as possible to be represented at our annual meeting.”

Traditionally held in Asheboro, the meeting is a golden opportunity for supporters of the ministry to get informed and inspired about legislative issues and the work of the CAL. This year’s three meetings will make participation more convenient than ever. Read the rest of this entry »

NC Family Policy Council

October 1, the North Carolina Family Policy Council publicly released its 2008 General Election Voter Guide and activated its 2008 Voter Guide website at ncfamily.org. The Council’s 16-page 2008 Voter Guide is an impartial and nonpartisan look at where candidates running for state and federal office in North Carolina stand on issues like abortion, the definition of marriage, gambling, educational choice, public prayer, embryonic stem cell research, and much more.

“We are pleased to offer this valuable service to the citizens of North Carolina,” said John Rustin, director of government relations for the North Carolina Family Policy Council. “Voters are often frustrated by the lack of information available on candidates seeking to represent them in state and federal offices, especially on the issues they really care about. We are hopeful that the 2008 Voter Guide will help to fill this void and enable citizens to be better informed before they go to vote on or before November 4.” Read the rest of this entry »

A Short Speech by Rev. Mark H. Creech
Executive Director
Christian Action League of North Carolina
Text: Matthew 5:1-16

Introduction. A couple of years ago, The Raleigh News & Observer reported that Rev. Stephen Davey, a conservative evangelical pastor and founder of Colonial Baptist Church in Cary, NC, believes the church shouldn’t engage in political action.” The mission, energy and investment of the church is not to clean up the evils of society,” says Davey. “The mission of the church is to evangelize society.”

Davey’s position is similar to that of renowned Bible teacher, John MacArthur, who claims in his book, Why Government Can’t Save You, that God has not commissioned His people to declare war on their culture, but instead to obey the government, whatever it demands. Evangelicals who hold this position often declare: “You don’t see Jesus standing up to the evils of the government or the decadence of His day; neither should Christians do it today?”

The statement begs the question: Was Jesus political?

The Political Ramifications of the Sermon on the Mount

Certainly Jesus’ ministry was not about establishing a political kingdom. Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36). On one occasion, Jesus perceived that a group of people were going to try and make Him a King. So He hid from them on a mountain (John 6:15). “On the other hand,” says Andrew Sandlin in Jesus and Politics, “it would be totally in error to hold that Jesus’ life and teaching had nothing to do with politics. All to the contrary, a politics that does not issue from a proper understanding of Jesus’ teaching will be a seriously misguided — and ultimately dangerous — politics.”   Read the rest of this entry »

New York Times

If you’re still wondering how the nation got into current financial straights, you might want to consider the following 1999 New York Times Article. The article clearly demonstrates the political philosophical differences of “progressives” and “conservatives” and their understanding of the role of government.

Progressives tend to think that the government should provide housing, food, child-care, health-care, etc. But to the chagrin of many, the Scriptures do not authorize the government to be involved in these areas. According to Romans 13: 1-7, the primary, if not exclusive responsibility of government is to bear the sword and protect the innocent – to suppress evil and to procure justice. When government’s role is expanded beyond the limits God gives it, there is always a serious price for the citizenry to pay. Read the article here

By L.A. Williams, Correspondent
Christian Action League of North Carolina, Inc.

RALEIGH — McDonald’s arches may still be golden, but the message the corporation is sending out is not one of value, at least not family values.

The Christian Action League of North Carolina is joining the American Family Association’s call for a boycott of the fastfood chain in response to its blatant promotion of the homosexual agenda.

“It’s a shame that McDonald’s would tarnish their family-friendly image,” said AFA Chairman Don Wildmon. “But the company has ramped up its support of the gay agenda and it leaves us no option but to call for a boycott.”

Not only did McDonald’s sponsor the San Francisco Gay Pride parade with a television commercial touting itself as a company that “actively demonstrates its commitment to the gay and lesbian community,” but McDonald’s spokesman Bill Whitman told the Washington Post that anyone who opposes homosexual marriage is motivated by “hate.” The company has also begun sponsoring training for homosexuals on how to aggressively promote their agenda inside the companies they work for.

“What people need to realize when they are buying that Happy Meal is that they are funding organizations like the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce,” said the Rev. Mark Creech, executive director of the Christian Action League. “We can’t stand by and let a company so link itself with the homosexual agenda without urging Christians to withdraw their support.”  Read the rest of this entry »

By L.A. Williams, Correspondent
Christian Action League

ROBBINS — Anyone who ever wondered if his vote really mattered should take a look at last week’s alcohol referendum in this tightly-knit Moore County town where residents turned down the sale of beer and mixed drinks and approved the sale of wine, by a margin of no more than four votes in any contest.

“Robbins’ alcohol election demonstrates what we are seeing across the state. These elections are either succeeding or failing by a handful of votes,” said the Rev. Mark Creech, executive director of the Christian Action League of North Carolina. Read the rest of this entry »

By Rev. Mark Creech, Executive Director
Christian Action League

Few issues are as explosive as homosexuality. Many evangelical Christians, I think, would rather not talk about it. But because arguments for “gay rights” have become so pervasive, it is no longer possible to remain neutral. To fail to oppose homosexuality is essentially to legitimize it. And those who are willing to battle against the practice must be prepared to do so from a strong Christian worldview.

Various myths about homosexuality have been espoused in recent years and none is more ubiquitous than the argument that homosexuality is genetically endowed. However, this position is not only without strong scientific support, Scripture also refutes it. The Bible is clear: our bodies can never make us sin. The ultimate cause of sinful behavior is always the sinful heart. Without a firm understanding of this fundamental teaching of Scripture, it is not only impossible to rightly interpret what homosexual activists say about being born “gay,” but also other theories offered to explain homosexuality.  Read the rest of this entry »

Are Multiple Denominations a Source of Vitality in American Christianity?
By Ed Vitagliano
AFA Journal, October 2008 Edition

Ever wonder why there are so many denominations in America? Ever think it might actually be good for Christianity that there are?

That’s one of the intriguing implications of What Americans Really Believe, a fascinating study of  Christianity in the U.S. It is the new book released by Rodney Stark, Baylor University professor of the social sciences.

The book relies on data mined over more than 40 years, but especially on that from three Baylor Surveys of Religion conducted in 2005, 2006 and 2007 by the Gallup Organization.

What Americans Really Believe presents a portrait of American Christianity that is encouraging, filled with data but understandable to the lay reader. But it is Stark’s approach to the subject of denominationalism that is perhaps its most unique feature.  Read the rest of this entry »

By L.A. Williams, CAL Correspondent
Christian Action League of North Carolina

WASHINGTON - Faith leaders from across North Carolina are making a passionate appeal to Sen. Richard Burr to end his opposition to life-saving legislation that would give the Food and Drug Administration authority over the manufacture and marketing of tobacco products.

“There is overwhelming support for this legislation across all political, demographic and geographic lines,” ministers stated in a Sept. 16 letter that, from its 30-plus signatures, shows the support also crosses denominational lines.

Working closely with Faith United Against Tobacco, the Christian Action League of North Carolina helped coordinate the effort to show Burr that his threatened filibuster of HR 1108 - the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act - is misguided at best and would put the special interest of tobacco ahead of the health of U.S. residents and the protection of America’s children. Read the rest of this entry »

By L.A. Williams, CAL Correspondent
Christian Action League of North Carolina

RALEIGH - It’s Nov. 4, you head to the poll, step into the voting booth and feel the weight of responsibility land squarely on your shoulders. Are you prepared to cast a ballot in all these races? How do you know where all the candidates stand on the issues?

The North Carolina Family Policy Council (NCFPC) can help you prepare now with its free 2008 Voter Guide, a nonpartisan, impartial look at the platforms of hundreds of candidates running for office in North Carolina.

“Often we find that voters are frustrated because, although they hear a lot about the issues that the candidates want to speak out about, sometimes the issues that families and voters really care about are not discussed very publicly by the candidates,” said John Rustin, the NCFPC’s vice president and director of government relations. He said the Council had a series of meetings to formulate and scrutinize the voter guide questions, and came out with three separate sets of inquiries for federal offices, state judicial seats and other state offices, with each set targeting areas that would relate to the candidate’s sphere of influence should he or she be elected.

The NCFPC surveyed more than 480 candidates during this year’s election season, including the primaries. The 16-page voter guide includes responses from 372 candidates to questions on topics including abortion, the definition of marriage, gambling, educational choice, public prayer, embryonic stem cell research and more. Read the rest of this entry »