The Prime Minister has fired the starting gun: what he calls 'the debate of our lifetimes' has begun. Politicians on both sides of the Referendum debate have been falling over themselves to give TV interviews and write newspaper articles.

With the date now fixed as 23 June 2016 we face something like 120 days of wrangling, during which the public is likely to get bored - especially if the debate descends into personal abuse similar to the Presidential Election Campaign in the USA.

In this magazine we have already raised a banner stating our belief that the Referendum offers a unique opportunity for Britain to take a bold step of faith in shaking off the shackles of the European Union and regaining our ability to shape our destiny as a nation.

One thing we do promise our readers – we will not be trotting out the same old arguments week after week, or entering into the minutiae of 'The Deal' negotiated by David Cameron, or debating whether in fact Britain will be 'safer, stronger and richer' by staying in the EU.

No Real Reformation

We acknowledge that the PM has worked extremely hard for many months in trying to persuade the leaders of all the European States to back his proposals. We do not doubt the PM's sincerity and commitment, but in his reports to the House of Commons and numerous other statements it cannot be claimed that the EU have made any significant concessions that could justify asking the country to endorse an agreement with a 'Reformed' European Union.

There does not appear to be any significant reformation! There is no change to the Common Agricultural Policy which is strangling the life out of British farming, such that farmers have the highest rate of suicide of any occupation and the dairy farming industry is likely to be wiped out.

There is no change in the Fisheries Policy which forces our fishermen to throw thousands of fish back into the sea in order not to exceed their quotas, whilst we buy fish caught by foreign fishermen in our own waters. Britannia certainly does not 'rule the waves' around our shores since we gave away our sovereignty to the EU. And there is no change in the predominance of the European Court of Justice, that takes precedence over our own legal system (itself developed over the past 800 years, since Magna Carta).

In this magazine we have already raised a banner stating our belief that Britain should take a bold step of faith in shaking off the shackles of the European Union.

Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire/Press Association ImagesMichael Gove said last week "EU rules dictate everything, from the maximum size of containers in which olive oil may be sold (five litres) to the distance houses have to be from heathland to prevent cats chasing birds (five kilometres)."¹

He said, "Individually these rules are comical...As a Minister I've seen hundreds of new EU rules cross my desk, none of which were requested by the UK Parliament, none of which I or any other British politician could alter in any way and none of which made us freer, richer or fairer".²

Speaking of his personal frustration with the restrictions placed upon us he said "Every single day, every single minister is told: 'Yes Minister I understand, but I'm afraid that's against EU rules'."³

Our Greatest Concern

Our greatest concern in this magazine is with the spiritual state of the nation and whether or not decisions regarding its future destiny are in line with the word of God and are likely to have his blessing.

We were greatly concerned during the prolonged negotiations leading up to the Maastricht Treaty, when there were a number of attempts to get some reference in the Treaty to the centuries-long Judaeo-Christian tradition shared by all the nations of Europe. This was vehemently resisted by the secular humanists who have gained power among the unelected officials in the European Union.

Attempts to get the EU to recognise the continent's Judaeo-Christian heritage have long been resisted by secular humanists.

Their atheist values have had a fundamental effect in promoting the secularisation of Britain. A recent example is a 2010 case law challenge to the EU 'Charter of Fundamental Rights' (that became binding in December 2009) from Austria which, though unsuccessful, did lead the European court to affirm same-sex relationships as a valid form of family life protected by fundamental human rights:

61. Regard being had to Article 9 of the Charter ["The right to marry and the right to found a family shall be guaranteed in accordance with the national laws governing the exercise of these rights"]...the Court would no longer consider that the right to marry enshrined in Article 12 must in all circumstances be limited to marriage between two persons of the opposite sex...⁴

This opened the door for a challenge to the law in Britain restricting marriage to persons of the opposite gender, paving the way for the Same-Sex Marriage Bill.

UnGodly and Repressive System

When nations deliberately reject the truth of God's word, they put themselves outside the blessing and protection of God. This is what has happened in Europe, which has gone from being the most Christian continent in the world to the most secular.

Today the nations of Europe are facing multiple problems as they struggle to cope with a vast influx of migrants, high unemployment and growing social discontent, compounded by the desperate attempts to maintain the Euro (which are causing incredible suffering to the poor in countries such as Greece, Spain and Portugal).

Of course they all want Britain to stay to help prop up this ungodly and repressive system, which is why all the leaders spent so much time trying to shuffle together a few crumbs for our Prime Minister to take back to London and claim it as a new deal in a "reformed Europe". This is so far from the truth as to be laughable if it were not so serious.

The Prime Minister's 'new deal' is so far from genuine reform as to be laughable – if it were not so serious.

Politicians and leaders of big businesses are combining to try to scare the voting public into remaining in the EU. But the greatest fear is not in leaving, but in staying within a failing organisation. The warning signs have been there for a long time. Now we have the opportunity of escaping before the collapse comes - like Lot getting out of Sodom, or Abraham leaving Ur.

Of course it leads us into unknown territory, but this is where trust in God is far more important than making pacts and treaties with other nations. Jeremiah had to warn the politicians in his day that making treaties with other nations would lead to disaster. He said "The Lord has rejected those you trust; you will not be helped by them" (Jer 2:37). Sadly, the leaders and the people refused to listen and only a few years later Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians who had invaded the land.

The big question facing us today in Britain is whether or not there is sufficient trust in God for him to be able to lead the nation into ways of righteousness and prosperity.

A Faithful Remnant

God is not dependent upon numbers! He loves to work out his salvation with just a handful of people who are totally committed to him like Gideon's 300; and like the 120 disciples on the Day of Pentecost who shouldered responsibility for the 'Great Commission', taking the message of God's salvation to all the world.

God is mobilising the faithful remnant in Britain today to intercede to save the nation. As the prayers of the faithful saved the nation at the time our soldiers were rescued from Dunkirk and our airmen won the Battle of Britain against the might of the Nazi war machine, so too faithful believing prayer has the power to influence the destiny of the nation.

God is mobilising the faithful remnant in Britain today to intercede to save the nation.

We are being offered just such an opportunity to put our trust in God. Even though we will be treading unfamiliar paths; if we are doing this through trust in God, he will respond and ensure that blessing will come upon the nation.

God is Faithful

The God of Creation, who holds the nations in his hands, is faithful to keep his promises. He says:

I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. (Isa 42:16)

He also promises when we put our trust in the Lord, "Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, 'This is the way; walk in it'" (Isa 30:21).

The faithful remnant of believers in Britain today have the opportunity to bless the nation through their prayers and through their witness; that if we put our trust in the Lord he will lead us, not only into ways of righteousness but into times of prosperity and happiness.

References

1 Apps, P, EU Referendum: Michael Gove's full statement on why he is backing Brexit. The Independent, 20 February 2016.

2 Ibid.

3 Ibid.

4 Schalk and Kopf v. Austria (case), European Court of Human Rights. A summary can be found on Wikipedia.

Clifford Hill responds to the Irish vote for same-sex marriage.

"You can fool some of the people some of the time but you cannot fool all the people all the time." It looks as though the Irish have disproved this platitude. The campaigners, a small group of homosexuals who joined forces with a determined army of secular humanists, themselves said that this could not have happened five years ago. In an incredibly short time they have succeeded in creating a social revolution in Ireland. But what they hail as a "victory for equality" is in fact a victory for deception!

Victory for Equality?

Same-sex marriage has nothing to do with 'equality'. You can have equality in the law of the land simply by legalising same-sex partnerships; but you cannot 're-define' marriage, which is part of God's act of creation, any more than you can redefine the moral law of truth, or the natural law of gravity. The state may call a same-sex relationship 'marriage', but it will not be marriage in the sight of God.

Amidst all the campaigning for 'equality', there has been a huge cover-up of the health risks associated with actively gay lifestyles."

It is amazing how the campaigners have been able to deceive the nation. At the public celebrations a number of Government Ministers were interviewed – all hailing the result as a victory for 'equality'. The Minister of Health welcomed the result: but he did not acknowledge the great deception – the cover-up of the health risks, that by encouraging boys to engage in homosexual practices they are reducing their life expectancy by over 20 years because the human body is not designed for penetrative anal intercourse.¹ But the medical facts are ignored.

Discrimination Unacceptable

In my work in the community over many years I've had countless conversations with both men and women with homosexual tendencies or in active relationships. I have a great deal of sympathy for their desire to be accepted on the same terms as everyone else. All discrimination is totally unacceptable. But most of the people I have talked with are not simply concerned with equality: even if they are not practising Christians, they want their relationship of love to be both recognised by others and blessed by God. The blessing of God is the one thing of which I have never been able to assure them.

All discrimination is totally unacceptable. But we cannot assure people that God blesses homosexual relationships as marriage"

A true love relationship between two people of the same gender is not wrong and can be blessed by God who is the very essence of love. But the Bible emphatically states that homosexual acts are wrong. It says, "Do not lie with a man as one lies with a woman; that is detestable" (Lev 18:22).

Most of these sexual regulations relate to the health of individuals and society: for example, to prevent inbreeding in a small community. But the teaching of the New Testament is equally clear on what is regarded as sexual deviance, "Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God" (1 Cor 6:9).

SSM and the Church

In biblical terms, 'marriage' is between one man and one woman and can never be redefined- whatever laws are passed by human parliaments. I have a great love for the Irish people, but I recognise that many of them have a very limited knowledge of the Bible because the Catholic Church in Ireland has never encouraged people to study the word of God for themselves. Most people have just left 'religion' to the priests.

There have also been many cases of abuse of children and of harsh treatment of single mothers in care homes. In fact, this huge vote in favour of homosexual marriage may well be an expression of the way the ordinary people in Ireland have reacted against the Catholic Church for the way the hierarchy desperately tried to cover up their sins. The same-sex marriage vote may be an anti-church vote as much as a vote for social change.

The same-sex marriage vote in Ireland may be an anti-church vote as much as a vote for social change"

The Tide of Secular Humanism

Sadly what has happened in Ireland will affect other nations in the Western world as it adds force to the tide of secular humanism sweeping Europe and undermining the Judaeo-Christian foundations of the nations. As I watched the scenes of rejoicing in Dublin I remembered the warning given to Abraham "the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure" (Gen 15:16).

The sin of the Amorites began with homosexual practices and degenerated into all kinds of sexual perversions. In several Western nations, pressure groups are already lobbying for the age of consent to be lowered- and some even for the legalisation of some form of paedophilia.² They say that young people below the present age of consent at 16 are increasingly engaging in sexual activity and it is wrong to criminalise them. They argue that society should recognise the social revolution that has taken place and therefore all forms of sexual activity for any age group should be legalised.

Once again their argument is based upon 'equality'; but once again it is deception, as they ignore the immense harm they are doing, not only in weakening family life but also in endangering the physical, mental and emotional health of every individual caught up in the so-called 'social revolution'.

References

1 Eg Cameron, P and Cameron, K, 2007. Federal distortion of homosexual footprint (ignoring early gay death?), Family Research Institute, CO. Please note that this research is largely rejected by the pro-LGBT community.

2 Age of consent reform, Wikipedia