The Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry Newsletter
&
Bible Study
|
UPDATED 11/23/2019
Fellow officers,
sheepdogs
(
servant-
warriors
all), spouses and supporters:
As I write this week's newsletter and Bible study (initially on November 19th), I am cognizant that it falls on the 163rd anniversary of President Lincoln's
Gettysburg Address
(and its nexus to the sad state of division in our Union today). I address this issue in the Bible study below (including its application for us in law enforcement): scroll down to "
A Nation Divided
."
Please take the time to review the
prayer requests
,
resources
and upcoming
events
I've shared for you below. If you have questions or need prayer, counsel or support, please
reach out.
Finally, and with
Thanksgiving
upon us (the subject of next week's Bible study), please know how thankful I am to be able to serve YOU and for your support for this ministry, be it prayer or financial. Be safe on the street but, as always, radically bold in sharing the hope we have in Christ with those who do not ("backup" with eternal consequences).
MC
_____________________
RESOURCES
I give my highest recommendation to Officer Jonathan Hickory's
Break Every Chain
(outstanding resource).
PRAYER REQUESTS
(1) Pray for our divided nation and it's leaders (see the study below). Pray for revival, restoration and God's mercy.
(2) Pray for our wounded and the families of our slain. The carnage continues.
(3) Pray for the lost and hurting, and then share the hope YOU have in Christ with those who are without that hope (Code 3 sense of urgency).
(4) Please pray for my State unit's Admin Asst. (
Shiela Gowan
) and her family over the sudden death of her husband. I will be attending Dan's memorial service.
(5) Prayer is requested for Arapahoe County (CO) Sheriffs Deputy
J
eff Manqueros
who had surgery this week pursuant to his battle with stage 4 prostate and kidney cancer. I normally don't post Go Fund Me stuff but this one is vetted. Jeff has a wife, kids and grandchildren. Click on
Jeff's Fearless Fight
. And please pray regardless.
UPCOMING EVENTS
(1) With CHRISTmas fast upon us, Tuesday,
Dec. 3
will be our last
FCPO-Denver chapter meeting
of the year (a time of Bible study, prayer and "
iron sharpens iron
" warrior fellowship).
Email me
to RSVP and get the 411 (when, what, where...).
(2) Also in the Denver metro area,
The Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry
continues to help get the word out about
The Shelter Foundation
and
two new Bible studies for officers AND our spouses in the south Denver metro area (click on the "
Bible Studies
" pages under the "
About
" link).
(3)
The 17th Annual
Cops Fighting Cancer "Joe Bumberger Long Blue Line"
event is set for Dec. 12th. See
copsfightingcancer.org
for more. Pray for Officer
James Seneca
and his team as well. I'll be there to serve again as well.
*Have a prayer request, event or announcement you would like included here? Need help/prayer?
Email me
!
I also post prayer requests on
my personal Facebook page
("friend" and message me).
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A Nation Divided
Understanding Lincoln's famous quote from a biblical perspective (and its meaning for us in law enforcement and in general).
"
If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand
."
(Mark 3:24-25)
_______
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Let me start by stating emphatically that this is
NOT a political post
! There is already plenty of that going around. On the contrary, this is, like always, first and foremost a Bible study and devotion that brings with it powerful application for us both in law enforcement (and for everyone in general). Stay with me here!
On June 16, 1858, then Senatorial candidate Abraham Lincoln said in a speech,
"A house divided against itself cannot stand."
This was a direct quote from Jesus Christ in
Mark 3:25
that Lincoln -- then likely unsaved -- applied to a very divided United States of America. The issue, of course, was slavery. Five years later (November 19, 1863), on a blood-soaked battlefield in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, President Lincoln, then by most accounts a Christian (as God alone gets to define it), uttered one of history's most famous speeches that ended with this:
"...that this government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."
Lincoln prophetically foresaw great peril for America. He knew it would take a major crisis for our country to learn that a nation divided against itself could not stand (survive). Sadly, that crisis came. The tension and division in America in the middle of the 19th century erupted into a horrific conflict lasting more than four years. The Civil War cost 620,000 American lives—more deaths than all other American wars combined until being eclipsed during the Vietnam conflict.
Nearly one hundred years after Lincoln’s message, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. drew on this same concept in a speech in which he stated, “
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.
” This is a message America needs to hear again. God help us, we are literally tearing ourselves apart. The
bitter and perhaps even demonically-driven division and evil in America today may very well be leading us into another civil war that may be many thousand times worse (and will very likely spell the end of our Republic).
Moreover, should such a conflict come, it will directly impact those of us who serve in law enforcement. Even now, mob rule, lawlessness and violence mar our political and national landscape. God's standards, God's servant-warriors and God Himself, are vilified by anti-Christian, anti-American and anti-police leftists.
Isaiah 5:20
("
What sorrow for those who say
that evil is good and good is evil, that dark is light and light is dark
...") is being played out before our very eyes. For example, the police -- God's ordained "
ministers for good
" are called "evil" and the lawlessness around us is now wickedly called "good" (see
Romans 13:1-4
). The evil practice of abortion -- murder of the unborn -- is celebrated as "good." God's standard for marriage -- one man and one woman for life -- is called evil (too "exclusive") while marriage between same sex couples has been given the approval of the United States Supreme Court (let's not forget that the Supreme Court -- a year before Lincoln's 1857 speech -- wickedly ruled in the
Dredd Scott Decision
that slaves were neither citizens nor "persons" under the law; or that the Court infamously and wickedly ruled in Roe v. Wade that it was lawful to murder unborn children). We are also seeing incredible pressure to open both our borders (lawlessness) and our prisons (letting vicious wolves out to prey on the defenseless sheep). Many crimes no longer have legal consequences while the law-abiding public is left to suffer without justice. Need I go on?
The U.S. is deeply divided politically, spiritually (growing persecution against Christians) and ideologically. This division, and our national sin (turning our political and cultural back on God and His standards) is leading America to a potentially violent and deadly outcome (the "perish" part of Lincoln's Gettysburg Address).
So what are we to do? And how should those of us serving in law enforcement respond?
The last paragraph is particularly insightful: "This fascinating passage further proves that the Pharisees were desperate to silence Jesus at any cost. They became irrational, liars, and were ready to murder Him. They were indeed exhibiting the works of Satan, while Jesus exhibited the works of God. It seems that Satan was working with them to oppose Jesus by having them accuse Jesus of being possessed. This is consistent with the deceptive nature of Satan, who "disguises himself as an angel of light" (
2 Corinthians 11:14
) and evidence that what Jesus said was true: Satan does not oppose himself, he opposes God and Christ."
Are we not seeing this in America today?
So where does all this take us? Should the Lord tarry in coming to take His faithful (born again believers) home to heaven (the
rapture of the Church
), Christians who serve in law enforcement, and Christians in general, will be faced with some very difficult decisions: Will we enforce laws that go against the Constitution we've sworn an oath to protect? That go against God's law? Will we obey sinful orders to allow lawlessness to go unchecked (some of this is already happening in Oregon, California, Washington, New York and more)? Will we stand firm for our faith (especially when faced with arrest or worse)?
Friend, a time IS coming in which it may very well be "illegal" or "against policy" to be a Christian in law enforcement or a Christian (the real kind) in general. While we know that this will be the case for those who come to faith during the
Great Tribulation
, we are seeing glimpses of it even now (and of course Christians are being imprisoned, tortured and slaughtered in many places around the world).
So again, what are we to do?
How about we start to radically live out our faith? How about we seek to promote and infuse our profession (and government in general) with sold out, "all in" Christian
servant-leaders
who will govern biblically and ethically? Who will uphold the miracle of our God-inspired founding documents (the Constitution and Bill of Rights)? How about we vote our biblical values and thereby replace those who go against God's standards? How about we obediently carry out our
Great Commission
mandate (a "call for service" from God Himself) and be used by God to lead the lost to repentance and genuine, life-saving/life-CHANGING faith in Christ alone (whilst we still have time to do so)?
And finally and perhaps most importantly,
let's PRAY
for God to intervene and heal our "great divide." Pray for our elected representatives; pray for our President (and against those who are wickedly seeking to destroy him); pray for our judges and courts (the SCOTUS in particular). Pray that those who spread lawlessness and division will repent and come to faith. And pray for those of us in law enforcement who are rightly seeking to obey God's call for us to be His "
ministers for good and a terror against evil
" --
Romans 13:1-4
.
Now some will quote
2 Chronicles 7:14
(
“If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will heal their land.”
) without understanding the correct context (see
What is the meaning of 2 Chronicles 7:14?
). But we CAN pray for revival and we CAN boldly and lovingly walk in obedience to our God and King (revival begins with us)! We can in fact allow the Holy Spirit to empower us to turn from our wicked ways and seek God's healing hand on our sin-sick nation.
Accordingly, and while I can find no
eschatological evidence in Scripture concerning the United States
in these last days (and as Christians, we are first citizens of heaven who are legal "aliens" called to occupy our "adopted" country that was birthed as a miracle of God), let's nevertheless radically live out our faith and be on our knees before God for the sake of our loved ones who will survive us. We were once "
One Nation, Under God
" and, unless we repent and wholeheartedly return to that, we'll see
William Penn
's famous quote again come to fruition:
"Those people who will not be governed by God will be ruled by tyrants
.
"
Short of that, "
Come quickly, Lord Jesus
" (
Revelation 22:20
)!
In closing, and with this study in mind, let me again ask the most important question that can be asked. Do YOU
know
Christ as Lord and Savior? Is He your one true King? Are you "saved" (a genuine Christian) as God defines it? If you died today, would you go to heaven or to hell? Why? And are you sure of your answer?
If not (you had BETTER be right...), then I plead with you --
backup/cover
of the eternal kind -- to scroll down to the
Know God?
section below.
Let's stay the course and finish strong (
2 Timothy 4:7
) behind Christ our Captain!
MC
____________________
KNOW GOD?
(1) Do you
falsely
believe that you can "earn" or otherwise "badge" your way into heaven and escape hell because you consider yourself to be a "
good
" cop or "good" person? That you can be "good" enough without God? That you "deserve" heaven because of your so-called "good" service? Take the
Good Person Test
and see how you do!
(2) Jesus' first recorded words in His earthly ministry were and remain, "
Repent and believe in the Good News
" (
Mark 1:15
). To
repent
is a "180" -- a complete,
radical
change of mind and heart as it relates to our sin (as God defines it). To "believe" (
pisteuo
in the original Greek) as Jesus intends it here is to wholeheartedly trust and
surrender
your life to Him in faith in the same way we have "faith" that our body armor will do its job against the rounds it is intended to stop; that a well-maintained weapon will function properly when used in defense against criminals intent on destroying us or others; or that our parachute will open when it is supposed to (we stake our very lives on it)! For more, see
What does it mean to believe in Jesus?
(3) This same concept of "
believe
" (the saving kind) is further revealed in
John 3:1-21
where Jesus says, "
... you must be born again
." Again, note our Lord's emphasis on the word "
must
" (not "may" or "should" or even "someday"): this is ultimately the life-saving AND life-changing personal relationship (and NOT "religion") with Jesus Christ that I stress here every week (see
What does it mean to be a born again Christian
? [hint -- there is no other kind]).
(5) Need more? Then check out this powerful, short video message from police servant-leader
Travis Yates
:
Cops and Salvation
(6) Have you now said "yes" to Jesus as Lord and Savior but are wondering what to do next? The "now what" is also an important part in dealing with the issues that can lead to suicide and sin in general. Click on,
Now what?
MC
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ABOUT US
The
Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry
is
a national, FCPO-affiliated, non-denominational,
evangelical
Christian outreach to our own in law enforcement. These newsletters and profession-focused Bible studies are part of this effort and past editions can be found on our website and our social media feeds. Our desire is (1) to be used of God to
WIN
the lost in our profession to a saving faith in Christ; (2) to
DISCIPLE
the Christian officer; (3)
SEND
out discipled (trained) officers to "repeat" 1 and 2; (4) to
SUPPORT
police marriages; (5) to transform our God-ordained profession by infusing it with all-in Christian officers; and (6) to
IMPACT
(reduce) police suicides and PTS with the
Cure
found in Christ Jesus alone. In keeping with these 6 points, please feel free to adapt these messages for your own individual or group use and
share
them with others.
The
Fellowship of Christian Peace Officers
(FCPO-USA)
exists to provide biblical support ("backup"), accountability and
iron sharpens iron
fellowship for Christian officers first in the U.S. and throughout the world as well. Our Denver-area FCPO chapter (
FCPO Chapter #217
) is a
Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry
affiliate. Locally, we meet approximately twice a month in the south Denver-Metro suburb of Highlands Ranch for profession-focused, sound (uncompromising) Bible study, prayer and servant-warrior fellowship (and spouses are both welcome and encouraged to attend with their LEO).
Contact me
for complete details.
The
Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry
and FCPO-Metro Denver (
Chapter 217
) are led by veteran Police Officer, Chaplain and Evangelist Michael "MC" Williams
.
MC is an active (32-years and counting) sworn police officer/investigator and sought-after instructor and speaker at churches (including the popular
Centurion Church Security Seminar
), retreats and both police and civilian training conferences and seminars around the country. Contact MC via
email
for details on how to book him for your event.
Finally, we covet your prayer and financial support for this vital ministry outreach. Reference the latter, you can give in two ways:
(1) Send a check to the address posted below.
or
(2) Go the the
FCPO giving page
and designate "
FCPO #217
" or the "Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry."
* All donations are tax-deductible.
The Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry
, P.O. Box 630854, Littleton, CO 80163 |
Email Address
| (720) 371-1022 |
Website
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