These three
words encompass almost everything that determines the quality of our
lives. Don’t we all want a “better world?” Who doesn’t want “good health?” And “good organization” is as much valued as “mother”
and “apple pie.” Put them all together,
and bingo! We have the “World Health
Organization,” the WHO.
The WHO was founded in 1948 within the United Nations for the good purpose of “connecting nations, partners and people to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable.” Many believed it would play a valuable part in improving human health around the world. But the current WHO mission statement is much more ambitious as stated on the WHO website (emphasis added): dedicated to the well-being of all people and guided by science, the WHO leads and champions global efforts to give everyone, everywhere an equal chance to live a healthy life. Had the WHO been able to achieve this mission during its nearly 75-year history, some would think the world would be nearing a state of utopia. Indeed, for many years, the WHO was respected as an organization that could provide accurate health information on a global scale and devise approaches to health concerns that would save lives. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has unmasked the troubling fact that the WHO has been hijacked by unsavory elements that are playing for keeps at the international level.
In recent months, many Americans have become more aware that policies of the
WHO in the name of a “public health emergency” only pretended to “follow the
science.” Instead, they “followed the
money and the politics” as is evident in the centerpieces of the WHO recommendations
to address the COVID-19 pandemic. These
centerpieces included (a) strict lockdowns; (b) vaccine mandates in spite of possible
adverse collateral health effects while opposing use of more time-tested therapeutics
such as hydroxychloroquine; and (c) mandates for wearing masks in spite of the fact that extensive
scientific research has revealed that forced masking produced no significant
decrease in the spread of coronavirus. [See HERE (SCIENCE Journal with faulty analysis of data), HERE (critique of SCIENCE article with corrected statistical analysis).] Thankfully,
in recent months large numbers of Americans are realizing that all
three centerpieces of the WHO’s COVID policy have caused great harm while
failing in many cases to protect the most vulnerable.
Americans have demonstrated amazing patience in the hope of saving lives, even in spite of news reports of the suspicious origin of the virus, lockdowns that have cost the lives of many of our elderly, retarded educational progress in our schools, threatened small businesses, furthering the disadvantage of struggling minorities, threats to religious freedom, and daily news of governments moving further and further toward tyrannical control of its citizens. However, now is not a time for freedom-loving Americans including this writer to spike the ball and say, “We told you so.” Rather, it is a time in which we should all pause in sober reflection and new resolve to adopt policies that will work to protect human health while also protecting or cherished freedoms. A recent development underscores this need for vigilance.
Surrender of National Sovereignty
In what many see as a threat to the sovereignty of the United States and other nation states, the Biden administration in cooperation with our Department of Homeland Security is about to hand to the WHO a series of amendments to the current International Health Regulations. When the 75th World Health Assembly convenes at the United Nations (U.N.) headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland this week, delegates from 194 nations will vote on the Biden administration’s amendments.
Some analysts, including Brett MacDonald, maintain that the Biden amendments stop
short of ceding US national sovereignty to the WHO [Click HERE.] Others, including the Liberty
Counsel argue that the amendments would grant the WHO and its director,
Tedros
Adhanom, the unrestricted power to declare ‘international health
emergencies’ at will in any nation, and then to implement WHO interventions that
override national sovereignty and restrict human freedom, all in the name of
protecting human health. For example, the
WHO could declare an “international health emergency” for any perceived threat,
including energy usage practices that are believed to contribute to “climate
change.”
Eric Schmitt, Attorney General of the State of Missouri articulated his concern about the proposed amendments in a May 20 interview on Tucker Carlson Tonight. [Click HERE.]
What Can We Do?
We strongly recommendation that you read the proposed amendments and the sources cited above representing both sides of the issue. Those who conclude that the Biden amendments are threat to our freedom may choose dutifully to write to their U.S Senators. However, amazingly U.S. Senate is powerless to stop the amendments because President Biden does not require Senate approval by a 2/3 vote. Therefore, appeals to our Senators must aim at requesting that the U.S. Senate consider every effort to remove the United States from the WHO, an action already taken by President Trump in July, 2020 but reversed by President Biden. Anything short of separation from the WHO would seem to fall short as an effort to protect our national sovereignty.
Surrender to the Real Sovereign
The COVID-19 pandemic with its associated mandates and lockdowns has brought major changes to our lifestyles. Then, there is the increased emotional burden that has arisen from our personal health concerns, concern for loved ones, fear of the growing government overreach into our constitutional freedoms, and frustration over the apparent corruption, confusion, and political rancor that is institutionalized within our federal government. Many have begun to feel powerless, vulnerable, and disregarded by the leadership and policies of the current administration. What are we to do aside from keeping informed and voicing concerns to our leaders?
Bleak Times? Look to God
Times when things look most bleak are often the very times when we come to realize where our true source of freedom lies. The Bible, from cover to cover, speaks of the One who is the ultimate Sovereign of all creation—Almighty God. The God revealed in Scripture is Creator, Sustainer, and Sovereign ruler over the universe.
King David honored God with the following words to the great assembly of Israel on the occasion of the dedication of materials for the construction of Solomon’s temple:
Blessed are You, O LORD God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power
and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens
and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as
head above all. (1 Chronicles 29: 10b-11)
Savior, Helper, Comforter
In the New Testament Letter to the Colossians 1: 15-17 we read about Jesus Christ who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.
This Jesus, King of all creation, just before He was crucified, buried, and rose again in victory over death: But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper (Comforter) will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you (John 16: 7).
Take a few minutes to meditate on these Scriptures that speak of the Sovereign God in three Persons: God the Father is so well described in King David’s praise as LORD over heaven and Earth. God’s Son, Jesus Christ in whom the whole universe holds together gave His life as a sacrifice for our sin, rose again, and ascended to Heaven; then, sent His Holy Spirit as our Helper and Comforter. It is God through Jesus who invites us to surrender our “personal sovereignty” and yield to Him as King, Savior, and Comforter when He invites us to come unto me all of you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my load is light (Matthew 11: 28-30).
How to Yield Your Sovereignty
What does it mean to surrender our personal sovereignty over our lives to the Sovereign of the Universe? As we often do, we offer this link to a Cru publication called “Have You Made the Wonderful Discovery of the Spirit-Filled Life?” This resource explains how you can yield the “throne of your life” to God’s authority and find meaning and purpose through New Life in Christ with His Spirit as your Helper. Then, as the Apostle Paul wrote in Colossians 2: 6-7 (emphasis added):
Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord,
so walk in Him,
having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him
and established in your faith, just as you were instructed,
and overflowing with gratitude.
God’s invitation to receive Christ includes our surrender of sovereignty to the most gracious King Jesus who invites us into His yoke and thereby to walk in Him daily. Somewhat ironically, as we learn to “walk in Him” we become “firmly rooted” and “built up in Him, established in our faith.” This requires that we daily feed upon His Word, the Scriptures of the Bible. My friend and brother in Christ, Dave Garver, has shared with our church small group an excellent resource from Calvary Chapel, South Bay, Gardena, CA called “How to Rest in God’s Promises Every Single Day” [Click HERE.]. Of special value from this resource is its three daily activities to “Rest in God’s Promises Every Single Day:”
Step #1: Have a Devotional Life
Step #2: Remember What God’s Already Done
Step #3: Self-check to See What Exactly it is You’re Carrying
Check out the above website to read the rationale for each of the three
steps. The benefit of walking daily with
Christ is that no matter the challenges and fears that confront you (and they
will), you can be overflowing with gratitude as Paul wrote (above) and
His Joy. King David’s words of worship
in 1 Chronicles 29: 14-15a continue when he praises God as Giver of all things;
whereas, he as king and his subjects are all simply stewards of what really
belongs to God (emphasis added):
But who am I and who are my people that we should be able to offer as generously as this? For all things come from You, and from Your hand we have given You. For we are sojourners before You, and tenants…
When we rest in God’s gracious and generous sovereignty, and recognize we are simply stewards of His creation and the provisions He grants to us for our needs, we can rest secure even in frustrating and fearful times when we see threats to our political and religious freedom, and even our national sovereignty on a global scale. The World Health Organization is a human creation that offers “health.” But as we have seen, the choice to surrender American sovereignty to a world organization may not be a “healthy choice.” Far better to be sure we have surrendered our personal sovereignty to the Sovereign God and seek His provision of spiritual health through daily disciplines of feeding on His Word that in turn strengthens our mind, heart, and soul. As such, we can be light and salt in our homes, churches, schools, communities, and government in a confused and darkened world where the only human hope is to yield to the Sovereign God who loves and provides for now and eternity.
---------------------------
RESOURCE:
The Yoke of Jesus
Relevant to our spiritual application of the notion of sovereignty in this article is a message given this morning at West Hill Baptist Church, Wooster, OH by Pastor Eric Fairhurst. In his message from Matthew 11: 28-30, Pastor Fairhurst states, “The yoke of Jesus can ultimately be none other than the fulness of the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. To come under His yoke is to surrender yourself to His Lordship in all matters. To strain against or refuse His yoke is to show that we do not truly love and trust Him to do what is best in and through us." Listening to this message will give you much spiritual insight. Click à HERE to watch online.
The WHO was founded in 1948 within the United Nations for the good purpose of “connecting nations, partners and people to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable.” Many believed it would play a valuable part in improving human health around the world. But the current WHO mission statement is much more ambitious as stated on the WHO website (emphasis added): dedicated to the well-being of all people and guided by science, the WHO leads and champions global efforts to give everyone, everywhere an equal chance to live a healthy life. Had the WHO been able to achieve this mission during its nearly 75-year history, some would think the world would be nearing a state of utopia. Indeed, for many years, the WHO was respected as an organization that could provide accurate health information on a global scale and devise approaches to health concerns that would save lives. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has unmasked the troubling fact that the WHO has been hijacked by unsavory elements that are playing for keeps at the international level.
Who Controls WHO?
The WHO is greatly influenced if not controlled by the Chinese Communist Party
(CCP). The CCP is the third largest
donor to the WHO followed by the United States.
The Bill Gates Foundation comes in third. Not surprisingly, the CCP is implicated in
the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the early outbreak of the virus, and its
rapid spread in the following weeks. We
have discussed the reasons why many suspect that China was deliberately
responsible for these events. The WHO has
also injected contradictory and unscientific recommendations for how to combat
the COVID-19 pandemic. [See
“If We Had Only Known: But Why Didn’t We?” CLICK HERE.]
Americans have demonstrated amazing patience in the hope of saving lives, even in spite of news reports of the suspicious origin of the virus, lockdowns that have cost the lives of many of our elderly, retarded educational progress in our schools, threatened small businesses, furthering the disadvantage of struggling minorities, threats to religious freedom, and daily news of governments moving further and further toward tyrannical control of its citizens. However, now is not a time for freedom-loving Americans including this writer to spike the ball and say, “We told you so.” Rather, it is a time in which we should all pause in sober reflection and new resolve to adopt policies that will work to protect human health while also protecting or cherished freedoms. A recent development underscores this need for vigilance.
In what many see as a threat to the sovereignty of the United States and other nation states, the Biden administration in cooperation with our Department of Homeland Security is about to hand to the WHO a series of amendments to the current International Health Regulations. When the 75th World Health Assembly convenes at the United Nations (U.N.) headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland this week, delegates from 194 nations will vote on the Biden administration’s amendments.
Eric Schmitt, Attorney General of the State of Missouri articulated his concern about the proposed amendments in a May 20 interview on Tucker Carlson Tonight. [Click HERE.]
What Can We Do?
We strongly recommendation that you read the proposed amendments and the sources cited above representing both sides of the issue. Those who conclude that the Biden amendments are threat to our freedom may choose dutifully to write to their U.S Senators. However, amazingly U.S. Senate is powerless to stop the amendments because President Biden does not require Senate approval by a 2/3 vote. Therefore, appeals to our Senators must aim at requesting that the U.S. Senate consider every effort to remove the United States from the WHO, an action already taken by President Trump in July, 2020 but reversed by President Biden. Anything short of separation from the WHO would seem to fall short as an effort to protect our national sovereignty.
The COVID-19 pandemic with its associated mandates and lockdowns has brought major changes to our lifestyles. Then, there is the increased emotional burden that has arisen from our personal health concerns, concern for loved ones, fear of the growing government overreach into our constitutional freedoms, and frustration over the apparent corruption, confusion, and political rancor that is institutionalized within our federal government. Many have begun to feel powerless, vulnerable, and disregarded by the leadership and policies of the current administration. What are we to do aside from keeping informed and voicing concerns to our leaders?
Bleak Times? Look to God
Times when things look most bleak are often the very times when we come to realize where our true source of freedom lies. The Bible, from cover to cover, speaks of the One who is the ultimate Sovereign of all creation—Almighty God. The God revealed in Scripture is Creator, Sustainer, and Sovereign ruler over the universe.
King David honored God with the following words to the great assembly of Israel on the occasion of the dedication of materials for the construction of Solomon’s temple:
Savior, Helper, Comforter
In the New Testament Letter to the Colossians 1: 15-17 we read about Jesus Christ who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.
This Jesus, King of all creation, just before He was crucified, buried, and rose again in victory over death: But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper (Comforter) will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you (John 16: 7).
Take a few minutes to meditate on these Scriptures that speak of the Sovereign God in three Persons: God the Father is so well described in King David’s praise as LORD over heaven and Earth. God’s Son, Jesus Christ in whom the whole universe holds together gave His life as a sacrifice for our sin, rose again, and ascended to Heaven; then, sent His Holy Spirit as our Helper and Comforter. It is God through Jesus who invites us to surrender our “personal sovereignty” and yield to Him as King, Savior, and Comforter when He invites us to come unto me all of you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my load is light (Matthew 11: 28-30).
What does it mean to surrender our personal sovereignty over our lives to the Sovereign of the Universe? As we often do, we offer this link to a Cru publication called “Have You Made the Wonderful Discovery of the Spirit-Filled Life?” This resource explains how you can yield the “throne of your life” to God’s authority and find meaning and purpose through New Life in Christ with His Spirit as your Helper. Then, as the Apostle Paul wrote in Colossians 2: 6-7 (emphasis added):
Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord,
so walk in Him,
having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him
and established in your faith, just as you were instructed,
and overflowing with gratitude.
God’s invitation to receive Christ includes our surrender of sovereignty to the most gracious King Jesus who invites us into His yoke and thereby to walk in Him daily. Somewhat ironically, as we learn to “walk in Him” we become “firmly rooted” and “built up in Him, established in our faith.” This requires that we daily feed upon His Word, the Scriptures of the Bible. My friend and brother in Christ, Dave Garver, has shared with our church small group an excellent resource from Calvary Chapel, South Bay, Gardena, CA called “How to Rest in God’s Promises Every Single Day” [Click HERE.]. Of special value from this resource is its three daily activities to “Rest in God’s Promises Every Single Day:”
Step #1: Have a Devotional Life
Step #2: Remember What God’s Already Done
Step #3: Self-check to See What Exactly it is You’re Carrying
But who am I and who are my people that we should be able to offer as generously as this? For all things come from You, and from Your hand we have given You. For we are sojourners before You, and tenants…
When we rest in God’s gracious and generous sovereignty, and recognize we are simply stewards of His creation and the provisions He grants to us for our needs, we can rest secure even in frustrating and fearful times when we see threats to our political and religious freedom, and even our national sovereignty on a global scale. The World Health Organization is a human creation that offers “health.” But as we have seen, the choice to surrender American sovereignty to a world organization may not be a “healthy choice.” Far better to be sure we have surrendered our personal sovereignty to the Sovereign God and seek His provision of spiritual health through daily disciplines of feeding on His Word that in turn strengthens our mind, heart, and soul. As such, we can be light and salt in our homes, churches, schools, communities, and government in a confused and darkened world where the only human hope is to yield to the Sovereign God who loves and provides for now and eternity.
---------------------------
The Yoke of Jesus
Relevant to our spiritual application of the notion of sovereignty in this article is a message given this morning at West Hill Baptist Church, Wooster, OH by Pastor Eric Fairhurst. In his message from Matthew 11: 28-30, Pastor Fairhurst states, “The yoke of Jesus can ultimately be none other than the fulness of the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. To come under His yoke is to surrender yourself to His Lordship in all matters. To strain against or refuse His yoke is to show that we do not truly love and trust Him to do what is best in and through us." Listening to this message will give you much spiritual insight. Click à HERE to watch online.
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