This letter came to me via the Hart list. It has no place on this list, and I suggest the sender be removed. C. Allen ---------- > From: [email protected] > To: [email protected] > Subject: [HART-L] Fwd: A whole new perspective > Date: Wednesday, September 16, 1998 12:16 PM > > This is a multi-part message in MIME format. > > --part0_905962582_boundary > Content-ID: <[email protected]_out.mail.aol.com.1> > Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII > > > > --part0_905962582_boundary > Content-ID: <[email protected]_out.mail.aol.com.2> > Content-type: message/rfc822 > Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit > Content-disposition: inline > > From: [email protected] > Return-path: <[email protected]> > To: [email protected] > Subject: A whole new perspective > Date: Wed, 16 Sep 1998 12:13:42 EDT > Mime-Version: 1.0 > Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII > Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit > > > read this please! this is pretty heavy! Interested in finding out > what you think..................Ciji > > WHO SENT THE SHIPS? In that day shall messengers go forth from me in > ships(Ez. 30:9). If you ever want to know the mindset of a black man, go to a > black barber shop. When you do you will hear discussions about politics, > religion, sports- and, of course, racial problems. One day after God healed > me on the airplane, I walked into one of the main black barber shops in > Orlando, Florida. The men in there were having a heated discussion about the > injustices of the American system. The brothers were venting and protesting > about how the white > man's system was totally against black progress. This particular day the > brothers were vehemently enumerating the many injustices each had encountered > during their lifetimes. One manwas going on about the lack of jobs, the lack > of recreational parks, the injustices of the school system, and the inequality > of whites and blacks in general. "Look at our neighborhood," he said. "There > are no parks in the neighborhood for our kids to play in like in the white > neighborhoods. There are no jobs for our black men. Why should they work at > McDonald's or Burger King for minimum wage when they can sell dope on the > corner and make more in one day than they can in a month at a fast food > place?" He got louder and louder, feeling justified in his rage. It was like > they were having church and he was the preacher with all the other brothers > saying, "Amen." Earlier in my life I would have joined in with them and stolen > the man's pulpit. But there is something about the truth. When you know it, > it will make you free-- and God had made me free on the airplane that day. I > questioned whether I should sit and listen to their heated dismay about the > system or if I should even enter the discussion. Then I heard this man say, > "We were over in Africa, minding our own business, when all of a sudden the > white man decided to enslave us out of his greed and hatred for blacks. They > brought us over here in the ships..." --Who's Really To Blame? That was all > I could take. So I stood up and said, "Brothers, we blame the white man for > everything." They knew I was a preacher, so they listenedto me respectfully. > "But our real problem is with God, not with the white man." That got their > attention. All eyes were on me, as they waited to hear how I would explain > this outrageous statement. "We were in Egypt," I continued, "in power for > three thousand years. We are indeed the descendants of Egyptians. We were > scientists and inventors, educators and writers." Well, they liked that. > Because whenever you talk about blacks being descendants of the great > civilization of ancient Egypt, you get our attention because we have been put > down so much and so long. Whenever we hear anything that gives us any > credibility or validation, we perk up. Then I added, "But that also means we > were the first slave masters. We enslaved Israel for four hundred years." Now > they were surprised. "We were on top, but now we're not because we picked a > fight with God." Now they were very surprised. Then I noticed a Bible on > thecounter, so I picked it up. Even with the Islamic influence in the black > community, most blacks still fear and respect the Bible. I started reading > some of the verses in Isaiah 19 thatspoke about God's judgement of Egypt > because of its idolatry, witchcraft, and sorcery. I talked about the idols we > worshipped in Africa. Then I showed them the first mention of slavery: And > the Egyptians will I give over into the hand of a cruel lord; and a fierce > king shall rule over them, saith the Lord, the Lord of hosts(v. 4). They > cried in disbelief, "You mean to say God permitted that to happen?"So I > responded, "Yes, because He did it before with Israel and any nation who > turned from Him." But the real bomb dropped when I got to the ship. I > flipped to Ezekiel 30 and read: In that day shall messengers go forth from me > in ships to make the careless Ethiopians afraid, and great pain shall come > upon them, as in the day of Egypt: for, lo, it cometh(v. 9). "The Lord sent > the ships to pick us up," I said quietly, waiting for everything to sink in. > "He raised up the white man to bring the ships to pick us up and enslave us." > How there was absolute silence in that barber shop. One of the men there was > in ministry and wanted to see where I read from. When I showed him, he > confirmed it to everyone. "It's in there," he said. So I decided to continue > in Ezekiel. Though they were shocked, The missing pieces of the puzzle had to > be added. The Vexed Heart of the White Man "I now want to tell you why the > white man can't stand us," I announced. Then I read: will also vex the hearts > of many people, when I shall bring thy destruction among the nations, into the > countries which thou has not known (Ez. 32:9). "God vexed the white man's > heart against us-- the black race," I said somberly. His heart is irritated at > us. "Well that was it. That was the knock-out punch. You could hear the > parking meters ticking outdoors. Because He Loved Us A black television > minister once said he was glad the ships came. So am I. They came because God > loved us too much to leave us in idolatry. When I look at the tribal warfare > that is going on in Africa and the multiplicity of problems there -- drought, > dissension and political wars __ I'm glad that the ships came. God used > drastic means to bring us out of a life of idol worship, darkness and > ignorance, > but He did bring us out into the knowledge of the one true God. Plus, the > black slaves in America eventually gained their > freedom. This historic struggle for liberation set a precedent for the whole > world. God sent deliverers such as Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King to > release the people -- both white and black -- from the horrid reality of the > curses on them. Freedom and deliverance for blacks everywhere > began in the United States. The struggle for liberation has now traveled > to other parts of the world, such as South Africa, like ripples on a pond. > Though the United States wasn't the original instigator of slavery, it became > a model for deliverance from it. Black people don't want to admit this, but > somebody needs to say it. Black people still believe this is a racist society, > and it is in a sense. But America is where God's deliverance began. it is a > paradox, yes. I'm sorry we had to be enslaved, but I'm certainly glad the > ships came. A Loving God Hates Sin It is hard to believe that a loving God > would allow such evil to happen to the black people. It shows us how > intemperate God can get when it comes to the sin of idol worship. We know > these things happened, and that they'restill happening because men need to > turn to the truth. If God is for you, who can be against you? (Rom. 8:31). But > if He's against you, the prophecy will continue. Because of the presence of > sin on earth, life isn't fair, and it won't be until sin is removed. So don't > expect things to be fair. The fact that God punished us so severely for > idolatry by raising up so terrible a slave master lets us know how serious God > is about sin. The wages of sin is death (Rom. 6:23). Not just sickness, but > death. Not just poverty, death. Not just suffering, death. There's > nothing worse than death. So, in order to rescue us from it, God sometimes > uses the executioner to carry out punishment. This is the other side of God > -- the side that punishes sin to rescue the sinner from death. He does all > this to curb our desire to go > afteranother God. God is a jealous God. He doesn't want us to have > any other gods but Him. Think about it. God allowed His only begotten Son to > experience death through the most gruesome way to die -- on the cross. Jesus > suffered for hours, to take on the sin of mankind, and none of us can imagine > what that was like. So if God was willing to give up His only Son because of > sin, you know He is willing to destroy anybody else who plays with it, > especially the sin of idolatry. For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and > scourgeth every son whom he receiveth(Heb. 12:6). God told me to, "Tell the > people that I did it. I did it because I oved them," because those whom He > loves, He chastises. And He won't back down from the reality of what He did. > God is a God of justice and a God of love. We provoked Him to the drastic > measure of grinding idolatry out of us, so now we can sing: "Father, I > stretch my hand to thee and no other help I know." Now we don't have to be > involved in idol worship any more. We don't have to serve any other god but > the true and living God through His Son Jesus > Christ. I don't apologize for God. I believe He told me not to. He is > God, Who does what He wants to fulfill His will. And I believe He wants > everybody to know that He sent the ships. But the prophecies didn't end with > the ships. They continued to follow black people today > > author: Rev. Earl Carter > > Again I encourage you to buy this book. > > Title: No Apology Necessary > Author: Rev. Earl Carter > > > --part0_905962582_boundary-- >