Article

“But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith. Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him, And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand,”  Acts 13:8-11.

I am inclined to believe that this response by Paul to the evil withstanding of God’s message of mercy as he and Barnabas sought to win the deputy of the isle of Cyprus, Sergius Paulus, to Christ, was the cause of John Mark leaving the apostolic band and returning to Jerusalem and the eventual sad division between Paul and Barnabas (Acts 15:36-40).

Sad

Barnabas was wrong. I think that is evident from the fact that his name never appears again in the record of the Acts of the Apostles!

There can be no doubt that there was aggression in Paul’s response. Many feel that ‘aggression’ (a readiness to stoutly confront an opponent) is wrong in a Christian.

Sad Lack

Personally, I feel that there is a sad lack of ‘Christian aggression’ today on the part of some Free Presbyterians, in the face of the ever-increasing attack by the devil and his agents, against God and His Word and His honour is plainly visible! Where is the enthusiasm shown by David when facing Goliath? “And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hasted, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine,” 1 Samuel 17:48.

Something of a distancing of themselves from the zealous actions and protests back in the 1960s is somewhat evident within the ranks of Free Presbyterianism. Closer links with the camp of the apostasy and a putting of ‘clear blue water’ between themselves and the bold and zealous protests and witnessing of former days is the inexplicable desire of some!

The great prophet Elijah, he who was privileged, along with Moses, to appear with Christ on the Mount of transfiguration, said: “I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword,” 1 Kings 19:10.

The words, “I have been very jealous” stem from the Hebrew word meaning “zealous”. It must be remembered that the Lord says of Himself: “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me,” Exodus 20:4-5.

The Hebrew word used of the Lord in the above verse is from the same Hebrew source as the word Elijah uses of his attitude in 1 Kings 19:10.  The Lord is pure and holy in His jealousy, while Elijah’s would have been somewhat tainted by the sinfulness of his nature. As a son of Adam, he was, like David, born in sin and shapen in iniquity (Psalm 51:5).

Nevertheless, there is obviously a kinship between the feelings of the Lord and His servant with regards sin!

We are after all, commanded to be holy like the Lord. “For I am the LORD your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy,” Leviticus 11:44, (1 Peter 1:16).

Foolish

I realise that ‘zeal’ can lead to folly and we must guard against it. John and James, the ‘sons of thunder’, were guilty of such and rebuked by the Lord. “And sent messengers before his face: and they went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him. And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem. And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did? But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them. And they went to another village,” Luke 9:52-56. (more…)

Alf McCreary: Pope Francis – the world at large respected this man of deep faith and humanity

So runs the headline in the ‘Belfast Newsletter’ of an article written by the ‘arch-ecumenist’ and Presbyterian, Alf McCreary.

I grieve that the ‘Belfast Newsletter’ gives space to this man’s deceptions while, at the same time, it purports to attempts to combat the deceptions of Sinn Fein/IRA.

I freely admit that I detest this man’s writings for they have invariably been deceitful, anti-scriptural and ungodly!

He has been writing for many years in Northern Ireland and must be considered one of the chief architects of the theologically liberalising and apostatising influences within the ‘Protestant’ community.

He may consider that such a title coming from me is a wonderful compliment and endorsement but he will not think so when he will soon be called before the Judge of all the earth, to give an account of his deeds and words!

The above headline is an example of the wicked lies he has sown in the hearts and minds of the people of Ulster, over many years.

I. THE ‘RESPECT’ THAT THE WORLD PAID TO THIS MAN, OF WHICH HE WRITES, WAS AS LASTING AND AS REAL AS ‘DISNEYLAND SNOW’!

The Internet says of this ‘phenomenon’. “Downtown Disney snowfall happens nightly, every half hour, beginning at 6 p.m. The entirety of the snowfall lasts between two and three minutes.”

Apart from displaying themselves and squabbling behind the scenes as to who should get the best and most prominent  seats, the ‘mourners’ were more reminiscent of pop concert attenders than the sad and bereaved!

The showing off their latest fashion and defiance of convention by the ‘ladies’ was likewise an indication of the ‘sham sorrow’. The pretended ‘wearing sorrow on your sleeve’ was totally hypocritical of many at the funeral.

Taking a ‘mobile phone selfie’ was more important than shedding a tear! (more…)

I have just sent in to the Editor of the ‘Belfast Newsletter’, this response to a letter from a Mr Ferguson which appeared in yesterday’s edition.

I am replying because there are some matters in the letter that need correcting and also the issue dealt with needs a response from one involved in the controversy of Dr Paisley’s entering power-sharing arrangement with Sinn Fein/IRA from the very outset.

I think too that there is a need to highlight, for the present generation, details of events that were not made public at the time.

I trust that this will encourage those looking to the Lord for a restoration of the Free Presbyterian Church to its former stand for God, to continue praying for such.

Let us echo the prayer of the Psalmist.

“Turn us again, O LORD God of hosts, cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved,” Psalm 80:19.

Sincerely in Christ’s name,

Ivan Foster

---

Dear Editor,

In response to Mr Richard Ferguson’s letter of yesterday (22/4/25), I must first of all point out that the ‘headline’  — ‘Free Presbyterians accepted the abomination of sharing power with Sinn Fein/IRA, which has helped a minister to hold an Irish language event’ contains both a falsehood and a truth.

1. It is false to say Free Presbyterians accepted the abomination of sharing power with Sinn Fein/IRA. That implies a wholesale acceptance of the folly of Dr Paisley back in 2007.

I think the fact that Dr Paisley had to step down as Moderator in January 2008 indicates that a majority of the Presbytery were opposed to him holding the position of ‘First Minister’ in the power-sharing executive at Stormont and that of Moderator of the Free Presbyterian Church.

I believe the subsequent removal of him as First Minister and then as leader of the DUP, was an indication of heaven’s disapproval of the step he had taken.

I personally had told him, as a member of a Free Presbyterian Presbytery delegation, which met with the leaders of the DUP in November 2006, that his actions were akin to those of Jehoshaphat. The great king had acted foolishly and was rebuked by the Lord through his servant, Jehu, the prophet. (more…)