Someone called in arguing Islam has nothing to do with the recent terrorist attack and said Allah and God are the same. They are not. One is the one true God, the other is a false god. If you don't acknowledge this, you're headed down a dangerous path.

Welcome to Politics by Faith, brought to you by the Patriot Gold Group. Happy Friday. I read Matthew 10 this morning. It says, And do not fear those who kill the body, but who cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. We spent a lot of time this morning, as we always do,

honestly, on my SiriusXM show, but I spent especially a good amount of time this morning on the show about the soul. I want to always be introducing that into the conversation, every political conversation, every cultural conversation that's happening in America.

Everyone else is talking about it, they're not talking about the soul aspect of it, and I think it's the most important aspect of anything. And I said the line that we are not a body with a soul. We're a soul with a body. Most people don't even think we have a soul.

Even those who think we do have a soul, they think it's a part of our body or our body is most important and the soul is a part of it. No, no. We are a soul, everlasting, who happens to have a body at this very moment. But the body dies, the soul lives on. So important to get that right.

We have everything backwards. Everything's backwards in our country, in our culture, in our world. It's a fallen, broken world. Everything's backwards, literally backwards. That's why the motto of my show, my thesis is, perhaps the opposite is true.

It very often is. I have to say perhaps in case something's not exactly the opposite of what is true. Some things are just a little bit off. But some things are straight up opposite. And that's one of them.

People think we're a body that has a soul, but no. And we're very, we spend so much time on our body And it's gonna be healthy, of course, but we've neglected the soul And if we could only see it if we could only see the soul It would be as darkened and black as a lifetime smokers alone But it is God who can destroy both body and soul in hell so you better fear him above all else.

Charles Spurgeon said that man can only wound our inferior part, the body, but they're not able to kill the soul. But if we disobey God, the Supreme Lord of life and death has power even to destroy both parts of our being by casting them both into the death and darkness of hell. We can't worry about anything that may come to our bodies. That's all fleeting, but the souls are eternal. That's where our priority needs to be. So I want to throw that out there. Someone called into the show, this is my main

point of the day, someone called into the show the other day, a gentleman who wanted to make the point that we shouldn't necessarily blame Islam for the terrorist who killed 15 people in New Orleans. Okay, I'll hear it out. I mean an ISIS flag. But okay, ISIS, Islam, perversion of a religion, blah, blah, blah. All the excuses you've heard for 20 years about, it's not really Islam. But he made the point that God and Allah are the same.

To which I said, no, they're not. And he said, yes, they are. And I said, okay, let's just move on so you can make your bigger point. But they're not. But anyway, go ahead. And I said, I'll address it more on the podcast. So here we are. There's two different types of atheists. One says, maybe I guess atheists wouldn't be the correct term. There's two different types of non-believers.

There's the ones who say there's no God. There's no God and there are no gods. And then there's another group that says, they're all the same God. These are the coexist people. This is a coexist person. They're all the same God. Can't we all get along? But Allah and the Christian God, Yahweh, are not the same. So first just a vocabulary lesson. Allah is the Arabic word that means God. And if you are a Christian or a Jew who speaks Arabic, you will say Allah referring to the Christian God. But if you're Muslim, the word Allah is also the proper name

of God. You with me? So an Arabic speaking Christian would say Allah, but they're referring to Yahweh, the one true actual God. But they'll say Allah. But if you're a Muslim speaking Arabic, you'll say Allah and you're referring to Allah. Like Allah, a God who's very different than Yahweh, the one true God. So you say, well, Seder, what do you mean they're not the same? Well, the biggest difference between the two religions, Christianity and Islam, when it comes to God, is the Trinity. In Christianity, it's God, the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit.

Each person of the Trinity is fully God in every way. God's Son, Jesus, is God. And for God so loved the world, that he gave us one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

So whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. That's John 3.16. It's important to read not just on 316, but also 17 and 18. Muslims believe that Jesus is a prophet, but not the son of God.

Okay, we've got a big problem here, because Yahweh, in the Bible, says Jesus is my son with whom I'm well pleased. The Muslims worship a God that says Jesus is a prophet. Christians worship a God that says Jesus is my son and part of the Trinity. The same God can't be saying two completely different things. Now we can spend a lot of time doing a comparative

religion analysis on Christianity and Islam, and that would be a good use of time. But I just want to focus on this one aspect of this, this one specific question. Is Allah and Yahweh the same? No.

Why is it important to mark this difference. To root out cultural relativism, or in this case it would be like religious relativism, but we've lived through an era of cultural relativism and we see the fruit of that. And we've also lived through an era of religious relativism and we have to stop both of them. We see the cultural relativism everywhere. It's all multiculturalism is our strength.

Diversity is our strength. And we need more of all cultures and all cultures are wonderful except ours ours is terrible, but every other culture is great That's cultural relativism. We've had it for decades now and religious relativism same idea, right? All religions are wonderful They all teach everyone to be better people are our religion terrible in Christianity. They're hard found in our religion America That's a battle, but all the other religions are great

and If you go down this road They're all the same, there's no difference between, oh sure, we may be interpreted different ways, but there's no real distinction, and it's all good, it's all the same, whatever works for you, we all worship the same God, I don't know. One true God. Everything else is a false religion and wrong.

And if you don't believe me, well, Matthew 10, you can work it out in hell. Mike Slater, should we not be ending podcast episodes with, you can work it out in hell? I don't know, that's what it says. It says right here, just right here. Those, do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him.

If you don't, okay, work it out with him there, later. I wish you don't, though. I don't want you to figure out. I want you to be saved. Christians want everyone to be saved. 1 Timothy 2 says, this is good and pleases God our Savior,

who wants all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. Maybe that's a nicer way to end this episode. We should end it here. Mike Slater, dot locals, dot com. Transcript and commercial free. That's what you get on the website.

Transcript, commercial free. Transcript, commercial free. Mike Slater, dot locals, dot com.

Whenever a tragedy occurs we look for answers. How could this happen? Who could do such a thing? What ideology led him to do this? When people are trying to get to the root of this, we can't forget the ultimate root of all evil.

Welcome to Politics by Faith, brought to you by the Patriot Gold Group. Thank you for being here. Excited to be back for the new year. Unfortunately, and I hated doing this on the SiriusXM show, we had to come out with the terrorist attack. Oh man, not the way we want to start, but fortunately it might be the way, might be

a poetic way to start this year that is coming. I'm optimistic for the future, I always am, but I know there's gonna be a lot of forces at play trying to derail the good things that we're gonna be working for. Let's talk a bit about the terrorist attack.

Lot of details still coming out. We have more of a mental place for the ISIS terrorists in New Orleans, but then you throw in the white guy from Colorado at Trump Tower on the same day, and you're like, wait a second, I don't know what to do with all these things. First, I have an observation and then

we'll get to a theological point. By the way, someone called in today and mentioned Allah and God. And I said, Oh, they're not the same thing. And he's like, Yes, they are. And it's like, I'll save it for the podcast. So we will get to that one of these days very soon. I promise Allah and God are not the same. But specifically on this terrorist thing, I've noticed that I've sort of

been stuck in a way of thinking about terrorism that I formed back in 2001. Whatever framework that I and we all came up with for making sense of things back in 2001, whether it be the words that the media used or government used or motives or whatever. My brain is still stuck with that thinking. And I don't know how relevant that is anymore or how relevant it ever was, honestly,

even in the first place. Like, even just the word of it, like the name of it, the war on terror, that doesn't make any sense. Terrorism is a tactic. You don't declare war on a tactic. Like World War II, we didn't declare war against the U-boat or submarines or something.

We never declared war on surprise attacks from the rear flank or something. No, you declare war against Germany. So this idea of the war on terror, no. And I feel like there's probably a lot of those types of things that we need to reevaluate and haven't. I just need to update some of this stuff.

And even the words we use now, like ISIS, Al-Qaeda, extremist, fundamentalist, all these words, I think we need to really think differently. I don't know what to do with that, by the way. I don't have an answer to that.

I just want to throw that out there, but I'm very open for suggestions on new ways of looking at all of this. Here's what I want to throw here. My unpopular opinion on all of this, and I'm throwing this out everywhere I can because I want to be

rebuked on it. I want to be proven wrong. I'm not even proven wrong. I just want to make sure I understand this clearly. I'm not sure if I do, but this is where I'm at right now. I think there's a lot of similarities between the radicalization slash recruitment, that's a good word, recruitment of ISIS, and the recruitment of Mexican drug

cartels and the recruitment of gangs from gangs, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, doesn't matter, and the recruitment of any left-wing cult, whether it's pro-trans, eco-violence, like a pro-abortion violence, like any of these violent left-wing things, I think they're all the same. I think the motive of it is all the same. And there's two points. Let me just make this point, they look different.

If you look at someone who's a member of ISIS from Afghanistan, they're gonna look different than the left-wing environmental terrorist from San Francisco, who's gonna look different than the drug cartel leader from Mexico. They look different, and they may have

different socioeconomic statuses, that's irrelevant. They can have different education statuses, that's irrelevant. But really I put these all in the same family. I think they're all in the same family. Two things that tie them together. First, from a secular standpoint, there's an innate human desire for belonging. And if you don't have it, then you're gonna go look for it. Now Christianity has an answer to this. You belong to Christ. The Bible uses that word over and over. Paul in Romans 1 says, hello, including you who are called

to belong to Jesus Christ. If you are a Christian, you are no longer of this world. You don't belong to this world anymore. You belong to Jesus and you belong to a church. So the Bible and Christianity speaks of this innate desire that God put in us. So I think all these people who join these different gangs or cults think they want that sense of belonging. They don't have it in their lives for whatever reasons.

So this gang or cult or terrorist group gives them mission and purpose and belonging. And I think that's part of it. That's the secular reason I give. The other reason that I just want to introduce here, not introduce to you, I don't know if you think of it this way, but most people don't think of this.

I don't hear it. I don't hear people talking about this. The root of all this is sin.

We have this desire to make sense of things in our brain.

So when something terrible happens, we have to make sense of it. We got to explain it. And we got to, you know, we look at this group and then we find this ideology and we do deep dives here and there and all this place. And that's all fine and good. I get it. And I'm part of it. I like it. I like doing it. We do it.

But don't ever forget the deepest root of them all. And that is the unredeemed human heart, which hates God. The unredeemed fallen sinful heart hates God. When Adam and Eve rebelled against God, Romans 5, 12 says, sin entered the world through one man. And every man, woman born from that point forward was born sinful.

People don't like to hear this because it's mean, but it's true. And the Bible says you were enemies to God. You were an enemy to God. So God is love. If you hate God, then you hate what He loves, and you love what He hates. Proverbs has a list of seven things that God hates, and one of them is

the shedding of innocent blood. So if you love God and you're aligned with His will and desire, then you hate what He hates, and you hate the shedding of innocent blood. If you hate God, which most people do, then you will love what he hates and you will love the shedding of innocent blood. You may even do it yourself. The human heart is totally depraved. That's the theological term. Total depravity. Now this worldview is important for two reasons. First, theologically, if you think you're born

good, then you don't think you need saving, so then you don't need a savior. You only think you need a savior when you realize how desperate you are and how much you're drowning and dying. Then you're like, wow, I need someone to save me. So that's important.

Oh, I'm not that bad. Well, we have a savior for you. Eh, not interested. What do you mean you're not interested? I'm like, oh, I'm doing pretty good. I'm not that bad.

No, no, you're totally depraved. Ah, no, I'm good. I'm born good, and I got it good. I'm better than that guy. So, you know, I don't need a savior. So that's the first thing.

But even from a secular perspective, if you understand total depravity as our founders did, then you'll realize that there's a need for systems to keep people in line. We need just governments that punish evil and reward good. It's Romans 13.

If you understand total depravity, you'll believe that systems need to be put in place, whether government or cultural, to keep people in line. If you don't believe in human depravity, then you'll either be inclined towards anarchy or like this libertarian, like, oh, like live and let live, whatever.

It's all good.

No, you do whatever you want, that kind of worldview. Or you'll lead to a dictatorship, and you'll be okay with a dictatorship and giving all this power to one person because you don't fully understand how evil people can be. If you understand these things, you'll never go anywhere near dictatorship or giving a lot of power to one person because you know that that person is corrupt and has an unredeemed, sinful, wicked heart. So from a secular perspective this is why it's

really really wonderful that our founders understood total depravity because they didn't give a lot of power to a person and they understood the need for a just proper government and the role of culture and the church in society. So what do we do with this? I don't know. I just want to introduce it into the conversation as you're hearing people talk about, trying to explain and make sense of this and the other.

Don't lose sight of evil. Evil in the human heart and soul. And it can never go away. Terrorism will be here forever. There's always been wickedness and evil. I mean, those are the first brothers.

One of them killed the other. So we need to protect people and punish people and prevent when possible like maybe we don't have open borders and let a bunch of would-be terrorists come in like simple things like that we could do but don't forget the root of it all which is to pray. If Satan is the problem then the solution is God. Mike Slater, MedotLocals.com is my website.

What do you get at the website? This podcast with no commercials and the transcript. This podcast with no commercials and the transcript. MikeSlater.Locals.com.

Our freedom of religion doesn't need to be extended to "Satanists". Let's not be ridiculous. Also, the greatest news in the world is found right on the piano.

Welcome to Politics by Faith, brought to you by the Patriot Gold Group. I'm sorry, I'm supposed to start, hello, hello. I'm not going to make that a thing, I promise. It is the day before I go on vacation, and I have very high hopes for doing this podcast over the next two weeks, and it probably won't happen, just being honest. But I'll try.

If we don't meet again until Christmas, Merry Christmas. And I would like to present to you here what I like to do every year on the radio. By the way, someone sent me a note. I did a statement on the radio. It wasn't even that religious. It was about, let's see, I'll find this guy's note.

Here it is. When did Breitbart News become a religious program? Did I miss the announcement? I don't know, sorry man. That's the way it goes. But it wasn't even a religious segment.

I did a quick short little segment on how Satanism is not a religion. Every year around this time of year there's always some Satan display at some local courthouse or something around the country. And there was one in, I think, New Hampshire, Vermont, whatever. And someone knocked it over. And the people who put it up are always like, oh, we need Satanism

because freedom of religion. And don't be ridiculous. Satanism is not a religion. It's not, it's not a religion. Right?

If you're an originalist, you go back to the words that were written and what the words meant when they were written by the people who wrote them. And you go to the Webster's Dictionary 1828, go online Webster's Dictionary 1828.com. Religion is a belief in the being and perfections of God. And you go back earlier, Samuel Johnson's 1768 Dictionary of the English Language. Religion is virtue as founded upon reverence of God. And the Britannica Dictionary 1730. Religion is a general habit of reverence towards the divine nature, by which we are both enabled

and inclined to worship and serve God. Religion is God, not Satan. That freedom of religion we have, as written by the people who wrote it, our founding fathers, was not referring to Satanism, and does not need to be extended to Satanists. Let's not be ridiculous. Okay? That's my argument. Stop being ridiculous. And don't let ridiculous people trick you. Like, oh, you got me. Oh, I guess we have

to have the Satan display next to the negativity. Oh, darn it. Oh, freedom of religion got me. I guess we got to let the Satanists be here. No, you don't. Okay. Satanism is by definition of the people who wrote it, not a religion. No way did our founding fathers seek to protect Satanism. So stop letting them make a mockery of that freedom of religion and of course of Christianity. It's not on par. Knock it off.

Stop entertaining these people. Anyway, so the guy wrote me, he's like, when did Breitbart become a religious thing? It's like, listen man, you want to solve the problems of this world? That's what I'm here to do.

There's only one way to do it. So anyway, we ended the show with my segment that I've done the last couple years on Christmas, and that is that the best news in the world can be found on the piano. I want to thank Igniter Media for this story.

That it's right there on the piano. I don't know how to play the piano. My kids are doing piano. It's an incredible skill. I don't know how people do it. I can't help my kids anymore with it

because they use two hands.

Grace the other day asked me to help her.

I was like, Grace, I don't, I don't know how to use the left hand. I don't even know what that note is. It's up to you now. You're on your own. I can't do it.

And I see people play with two hands without music. Like these unbelievable people. It's like, what do you do? How does your brain do that so I can't do it but no matter how good or bad you are at the piano the greatest news in the world is found right there and you know it it's a scale and you

can play it so you just start on C and you play all the white keys until you get to the next C and just the white keys you don't do now you know I was like I don't know what to see it okay so there's two black keys and three black keys and two and three. So find two, two black keys and go down to the left. And there's your C. I know that. So go C to C and you have yourself the best news in the world. Pretty good. Anyway, hold on. I don't, I didn't hear it. What's how's that the best news okay sorry my fault you gotta play it backwards

sorry it's C to C down the scale my my here here here there you go greatest news in the world you didn't hear it you play the right notes, but you have to put in the pauses. Alright, Slater, I told you I can't play the piano. I don't know, you don't have to be Mozart to hear the good news or play the good news. You have to play the pauses. First second, fourth, sixth, seventh.

One two four six seven. Play the pauses. And then you'll hear it. Simple scale. Down, C to C. Play the pauses.

1, 2, 4, 6, 7. And you have just discovered the greatest news in the world. You can play it yourself. You can know it yourself. Dare I say you already know it.

It's written on your heart. Just have to accept it. So next time you see a piano somewhere give it a go. Start at C, go down to C, and pause. 1, 2, 4, 6, and 7. And you will then hear the greatest news in the world. Joy to the world! The Lord has come.

Merry Christmas.

Now I should end the segment here.

And I normally do. On the radio when we do it, we end it right there.

It's called a hard out. You go out hard, boom, right there on that powerful note. And it's very nice. But it's a Christian podcast. So I'll just throw one little thing in there. This is my most snobbish Christmas carol take? And that is a joy to the world is not a Christmas

carol? Because the gentleman who wrote it, Mr. Watt, Isaac Watts, excuse me, Watts, he was writing about Psalm 98. And Psalm 98 is about Jesus's second coming. It's not about the birth of Jesus, it's about his second coming. Psalm 98 says, He cometh to judge the earth with righteousness he shall judge the world and the people with equity. So it's about the second coming, not the birth. So I'm not saying don't sing joy to the world this Christmas. In fact, I'm saying we should sing it every day.

Mike Slater dot locals dot com is the website transcript and commercial free on the website. Mike Slater dot locals. And we give you an email every day when it gets published and we send an email and everything before it gets everywhere else. before it gets everywhere else. Mike Slater dot locals dot com.