14: God’s Strategy For Civil Conquest 4 of 7 - MEDIA (a)

From the time of Christ to the invention of the printing press in the 15th century A.D., there were ONLY TWO kinds of media - speaking or hand-written. For most of this time Christians completely dominated media. That is why Christendom ruled most of the western world for 1500 years.After the invention of the printing press, the Protestant Christian Reformers dominated mass media. Historian and lecturer Art Crawford declared:“For 200 years after the invention of the printing press 99% of everything that was printed was about Jesus Christ or the Bible!”From the invention of the printing press until the beginning of the 20th century, the Christian worldview continued dominating media: books, pamphlets, and newspapers. This is why from the time of the invention of the printing press to the beginning of the 20th century, Christendom continued to rule the nations of the western world!Starting in the 20th century, electric forms of media were invented: radio, film, and television. However, after almost 2,000 years of Christendom dominating public communication and Christians ruling, within 50 years after electronic media was invented, Christians unwittingly relinquished media dominatance to non-Christians!This has happened slowly over my life. But historically it happened overnight! With the non-Christians dominating media they were able to promote and give cover for non-Christian civil governance in changing our godly moral laws to satanic immoral laws. Schools threw out prayer, the bible, and the Christian worldview to now teaching an all-out anti-Christian worldview.Christians will never be able to seize back the civil rule for King Jesus and God’s Law of any city unless Kingdom-minded Christians begin to seize back media dominance in their city. Why do you think that in the 20th century, when communists were taking over country after country, the very first thing they did was seize control of the major media? Once they had the major media, they always had the country. It was impossible then, as today, for any civil leader to remain in power very long if there is not adequate media to sustain them.The Bible also confirms this when referring to media in its day, which was then only speaking or writing righteous or unrighteous media (Prob. 11:11, 29:8):“By the blessing of the upright the city is exalted: but it is overthrown by the mouth [media] of the wicked.”“Scoffers [media] set a city aflame.”God’s Word is written media, and it too always produces results but with God’s Word it always produces good results (Isa. 55:10-12):“The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. It is the same with My Word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it. You will live in joy and peace.”What the apostle Paul addressed can also apply to media - good or bad (Gal. 6:7-8; 2 Cor. 9:6):“Whatever a man sows [via media], that will he also reap. Sow to the flesh and reap corruption. Sow to the Spirit and reap eternal life.”“Sow sparingly and reap sparingly, and sow bountifully and reap bountifully.”This is why sowing a little sermon once a week will NEVER compete for seizing a city for Christ against an unrighteous 24/7 mass media propagandizing the whole city day and night. This is why the early American culture was so completely Christianized compared to today.In early America for example, Benjamin Franklin printed in all his daily newspapers all the sermons of early American evangelist George Whitefield. And all media was strongly pro-Christian. Now you know why Christianity was the formal state religion in 9 of the 13 states and informally in all the other states and stayed that way after the Revolution and into the 19th century. As the mass media goes, so goes every nation, sooner or later. That is why Edmund Burke, the renowned English statesman in the 18th century, when parliament was in session pointed up to the reporter’s gallery and declared:“There is the Fourth Estate!”And the Fourth Estate news media is always the strongest part of any national government because it is always in power and always talking to all the people all the time.In 1938, Adolf Hitler said:“Without the loudspeaker, we would never have conquered Germany.”Formerly avowed communist and Special Advisory “Czar” for President Obama, Anthony “Van” Jones, said:“You cannot have an opposition movement without an opposition media.”And these unrighteous leaders remind me of what Jesus said (Luke 16:8):“For the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.”Mass MediaEvery Christian should witness, tell people about the gospel and the kingdom of God. But in both the Old and New Testament God also directs His people to also be in some form of mass media.Old Testament:“Wisdom shouts in the streets. She cries out in the public square. She calls to the crowds along the main street, to those gathered in front of the city gate” (Prov. 1:20-21).This verse in its time shows their form of mass media. Who would do it - those with “wisdom.” And the “city gate” was where the civil leaders met. “Wisdom” also directed their media to the civil leaders and government.“Listen as Wisdom calls out! Hear as understanding raises her voice! On the hilltop along the road, she takes her stand at the crossroads. By the gates at the entrance to the town, on the road leading in, she cries aloud, ‘I call to you, to all of you! I raise my voice to all people’” (Prov. 8:1-4).“The wise conquer the city of the strong and level the fortress in which they trust” (Prov. 21:22).Note again, God is talking about His people who are “wise.” Not only do they mass communicate to “all the people” but their mission is to conquer a city… and “The wise conquer the city of the strong.”Proverbs concludes in chapter 31 addressing the godly wife. And what kind of a husband does she have - a husband who is well known as a “civil leader!”“Her husband is well known at the city gates, where he sits with the other civic leaders” (Prov. 31:28).But if the wise don’t mass communicate to all the people in the city and conquer their city for the Kingdom of God… the wicked will!“The talk of the wicked tears a city apart” (Prov. 11:11).“Scoffers set a city aflame” (Prov. 29:8).“When the godly are in authority, the people rejoice. But when the wicked are in power, they groan” (Prov. 29:2).God’s fight is always for people, and when God’s people control the city “the people rejoice.” Also, the greatest number of people then come to know “the King of kings and the Lord of lords!”In the Old Testament, the “wise” used mass media – “I call to you, to all of you! I raise my voice to all people.” And God continued to mandate mass media (Hab. 2:2):“Then the Lord replied: ‘Write down the vision and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it.’”We’ll next see how the New Testament also mandates God’s people to use mass media in this age.Media - to be continued. Get full access to Jim McCotter LIVE at jimmccotter.substack.com/subscribe