The Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry Newsletter
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Bible Study
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Fellow officers, sheepdogs, warriors, spouses, supporters and ALL:
Let me start by saying that getting out this latest newsletter and Bible study has been no small struggle both in the natural and spiritual. On the former, there are just not enough hours in the day between my two full-time jobs (law enforcement and ministry). On the latter, the spiritual battle rages on but God sent me some extra "backup" from my bride Diana in cementing the approach He wanted me to take with this week's Bible study: scroll down to "Warriors for Christ" (applicable to ALL).
Then to all of this ministry's followers (be it via email or social media), let's be proactive in coming alongside one another in these tenuous times, and know that I'm just a call, knock or email away (scroll down for my contact info).
Finally, don't forget that I re-post these newsletters on my social media feeds, including Facebook (both my personal and Centurion Ministry pages and group sites), Twitter, and on our website as well (usually some delay with the latter). I also encourage you to share these newsletters with others (with a "Code 3" sense of urgency, mind you) as part of our Great Commission "call for service."
MC
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RESOURCES
(1) Here's the latest official newsletter of the Fellowship of Christian Peace Officers-USA: August FCPO Dispatch.
(2) While not a "Christian" resource, Dr. Ron Martinelli's best selling, The Truth Behind the Black Lives Matter Movement and and the War on Police is a "must have" (so much so that Amazon removed it...go figure). Written in 2016 in the wake of the Ferguson riots, Ron is almost prophetic about where we're at today. It is vital the we understand the enemy in order to effectively confront and defeat it.
PRAYER REQUESTS
(1) Continue to pray for our nation and our God-ordained profession in light of the "last days" issues we're facing.
(3) Prayers requested for COPS wife Amy Painter (widow of slain Chief Ralph Painter) who is again battling a very serious form of cancer.
UPCOMING EVENTS
*Have a prayer request, event or announcement you would like included here? Need help/prayer? Email me and I'll include them here.
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Warriors for Christ
God has given EVERY Christian a call to "warriorhood."
"Endure suffering along with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. Soldiers don’t get tied up in the affairs of civilian life, for then they cannot please the officer who enlisted them."
(2 Timothy 2:3-4)
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Gene Cunningham of Basic Training Ministries wrote,
"The battle cry of the Triarii Stete -- Stand firm! -- was adopted by the Apostle Paul to encourage Christians to steadfast devotion to the cause of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a cry that needs repeating today." AMEN to that!
Every one of us lives in a war zone. For those of us in law enforcement or serving in combat military roles, it is both physical and spiritual. For every genuine believer (Is that you?), we are most certainly in in a very real spiritual war: the angelic conflict, the struggle between truth and lies, right and wrong, good and evil; between the Lord Jesus Christ and the fallen realm. The moment we place our trust in Christ as Lord and Savior and receive not only eternal salvation but also the power of the Holy Spirit that indwells every genuine believer, we enter not only the Royal Family of God, but also become enlisted in the Royal Army of God through which we become combatants in this battle of the ages.
The elite rearguard warriors of the ancient Roman Empire were called the Triarii. When these battle-hardened warriors -- typically the last line of defense -- engaged the enemy, each man knew they had to do one thing: take one square yard of ground, clear it, advance, and repeat. The Triarii never retreated but rather held their ground until victory or death (they "endured"). As a Roman citizen, Paul no doubt was well acquainted with the Triarii and God clearly used that background when He inspired Paul to write, Be on guard. Stand firm [Stete] in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong. -- 1 Corinthians 16:13, added emphasis mine).
Teaching on this, the late Warren Wiersbe wrote, "...the Christian life is a battleground, not a playground..." (based in part on Ephesians 6:13 -- Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand).
Also on the concept of Stete (Stand firm!), Paul used a related word I shared above -- "endure" -- in addressing his "trainee" Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:3-4 (Paul being Timothy's pastor and "FTO" -- Field Training Officer): You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier (added emphasis mine). And who, ultimately, is "him" who "enlisted" us? Christ our Savior, King and battle Captain!
And then earlier in 1 Timothy 6:12, Paul instructs Timothy (and us), Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called." Now Timothy's calling was that of a pastor (shepherd), but this instruction in fact carriers over both to us in law enforcement and to EVERY Christian in general. On this, Pastor Charles Stanley wrote:
But this command isn’t limited to pastors; every believer needs to be a faithful soldier of Christ. That’s because we’re all in a battle—not against people but against spiritual forces of wickedness (Eph. 6:12).
This war began when Satan and other angels rebelled against God. Then Satan tempted Eve to disobey the Lord as well. As a result of Adam and Eve’s rebellion, the earth was cursed, and the entire human race was corrupted by sin. Ever since that day, the battle for truth and righteousness has raged.
Although we may often feel overwhelmed by temptations and deceptions, Jesus modeled the path to victory when He was tempted by Satan in the wilderness (Matt. 4:1-11). He used only one weapon to refute each enticement and falsehood—the Word of God.
This is the same powerful weapon our heavenly Father has given us to fight the good fight. When we view daily battles biblically with full reliance on the trustworthiness and authority of Scripture, we can flee sin, pursue righteousness, and stand firm on the truths of the faith.
So here's my encouragement and exhortation for us. If you're serving in law enforcement in these very difficult times, understand that we are the homeland Triarri -- the last line of defense -- against the very real evil/enemy of this age. And God Himself has called us to Stete -- stand firm -- to endure. So let's do that! Let's armor up (physically and spiritually) and hold the line behind Christ our Captain.
Yes, we must pray for our enemies (you can rest assured that these BLM and Antifa terrorists are NOT likely born again believers) but we must also stand up and be the "terror against evil" (Romans 13:4) God has called us to be as much as possible (yes, I'm aware that we're often handcuffed by cowardly leaders who are essentially siding with the enemy -- they need prayer as well).
In addition, it is vital that we understand the domestic terrorists we're up against are being influenced by a very real, wicked and determined enemy in Satan and his demon host (the spiritual enemy EVERY Christian faces).
And for Christians in general? Stete! Stand firm! Pray for us in law enforcement. Pray for our elected representatives. Vote your biblical values so as to remove from office those who stand against God and His standards. Boldly live out your faith. Pray for/love our enemies and be used of God to lead them to repentance and faith with the understanding that before we came to faith, we too were ALL enemies of God -- Romans 5:10.
Finally, what do we as both Christian officers and Christians in general have that enables us to stand firm and endure the enemy's attacks? The indwelling power of the Holy Spirit. As we should know, that power is NOT available to unbelievers (those who have not placed their trust in Christ as Lord and Savior -- a "Christian" as God alone gets to define it). So do have that? Are you using it?
So again I ask: Do you have the Holy Spirit living inside you (ultimate backup)? Are you in fact a "Warrior for Christ"? Do you know Him as Lord and Savior (a Christian as God defines it)? Are you a part of His triarri tactical team? If not, or you're not sure (you need to be sure), scroll down to the Know God? section below!
Amen? Reach out if I lost you or you have questions! Love you guys and standing firm with you!
MC
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KNOW GOD?
(1) Do you continue to hold to an utterly false hope that you can "earn" or otherwise "badge" your way into heaven and escape hell because you consider yourself to be a "good" cop or a "good person" (the "I'm good" mess)? That you can be "good" enough without knowing Christ as Lord and Savior? That mere "belief" is enough to "save" you? That you somehow "deserve" heaven because of your so-called "good" service in law enforcement? Take the Good Person Test and see how you do!
(2) Jesus' first recorded words in His earthly adult ministry included, "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 Christ 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 against criminals intent on destroying us or others; or that our parachute will open when it is supposed to on a combat jump (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 that also comes to us from 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 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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