The world needs people who love their enemies like Christ.

If you read the news or watch TV, you cannot escape the rise of extremism in the world. There are Islamic extremists, Hindu extremists, and even atheist extremists. Violence and hatred often mark the presence of extremism, but what if it was faced by something even stronger —love?

Maybe we need to see the rise of Christian extremists who use love to change the dark places. The world needs to be overrun with Christians who are driven, shaped, and compelled by Jesus’ words in Matthew 5:43–45: “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven” (NIV).

Christian extremists are those whose hearts are so filled with the love of Jesus that they supernaturally love their enemies. The apostle Paul describes this extreme love in Ephesians 3:16–21, saying:

“I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen” (NIV).

America and the world need Christian extremists who love so beautifully ...

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How the church can be a foretaste of heaven.

The purpose of a movie trailer is to give highlights of a forthcoming movie, creating “buzz” about it. And the ”buzz” compels people to see the movie. For example, the trailers for Avengers: Age of Ultron were incredible. They were so enticing that I couldn’t wait for the movie to arrive in theaters.

The church is a movie trailer

Did you know that the local church is to be like a movie trailer for the eternal church? The apostle John describes the eternal church in Revelation 5:6–12:

“And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne. And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, reach holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song, saying,

’Worthy are you to take the scroll

and to open its seals,

for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God

from every tribe and language and people and nation,

and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God,

and they shall reign on the earth.’

Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice,

’Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,

to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might

and honor and glory and blessing!’” (ESV).

The eternal ...

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(United States Ninth Circuit) - Reversed. The panel reversed the district court’s order suppressing evidence found on a laptop seized and searched pursuant to state and federal warrants. Although there was insufficient probable cause to seize the laptop, the court found the DHS special agent’s reliance on the state warrant was reasonable.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. Affirmed the district court’s dismissal, for failure to exhaust remedies under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, of claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act, and § 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed in part, reversed in part. The panel reasoned that requiring disclosure of information related to subtle and indirect communications likely to influence voters’ votes was critical to the State’s interest in promoting transparency and discouraging circumvention of its electioneering laws.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. Held that Division I football players were not employees of the NCAA because the economic realities for student-athletes do not match an employer/employee relationship. The district court’s dismissal of an athlete’s Fair Labor Standards Act claim is affirmed.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Denying an application for authorization to file a second or successive habeas corpus petition, held that the Supreme Court did not announce a new, retroactive rule of constitutional law in Riley v. California.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. Concluded that the term “individual” in the context of expedited Freedom of Information Act requests does not include animals as well as human beings. Affirmed the district court’s grant of summary judgement in favor of the USDA.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Reversed and remanded. Reversed the district court’s denial of a motion for a sentence reduction. Held that a district court may not sua sponte raise the issue of a waiver of rights and deny the motion on that ground.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Reversed. Finding the plaintiffs plausibly alleged interlocking agreements injured competition, the panel reversed the district court’s dismissal for failure to state a claim in an antitrust action brought by a class of subscribers to DirecTV’s NFL Sunday Ticket.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. The district court’s entry of a “personal money judgment” in Nejad’s criminal case affirmed, finding that Honeycutt v. United States does not bar personal money judgments in the criminal forfeiture context.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. Twenty-three defendants appeal the denial of their motions for sentence reductions based on retroactive Sentencing Guidelines revisions. The panel affirms, finding the district court was not required to grant their motions because the sentences were below the range in the Sentencing Guidelines.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. Pizzuto’s habeas corpus petition challenged the Idaho Supreme Court’s 2008 decision that his execution was not barred by a state law prohibiting execution of intellectually disabled offenders based on Atkins v. Virginia. Finding the decision did not contradict SCOTUS precedent, the panel affirms.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Petition denied. Finding that solicitation of a crime as serious as possession of at least four pounds of marijuana was as turpitudinous as the crime itself, the panel denied Romo’s petition for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ determination that she was inadmissible.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. Finding the defendant’s new argument was not waived, the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of the defendants in an action brought under the Truth in Lending Act was affirmed.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Dismissed. The government appealed the district court’s granting in part of a motion to enforce a 1997 settlement agreement guaranteeing minors in the custody of immigration agencies be held in facilities that are safe and sanitary. The panel dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction because the district court did not modify the agreement.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Sentence vacated and remanded for resentencing, where the district court held that delivery of methamphetamine in violation of Oregon Revised Statutes § 475.890 does not qualify as a “controlled substance offense” under U.S.S.G. §§ 2K2.1(a)(4)(A) and 4B1.2(b).

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Reversed. The district court dismissed an action brought by exotic dancers for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. Reversing, the panel held the statutory requirement that plaintiffs must be employees as defined in the FLSA is a merits-based determination, not a jurisdictional limitation.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. The panel affirmed the district court’s grant of summary judgment in an ERISA action challenging the denial of plaintiff’s request for early retirement benefits, holding that any procedural irregularities in the actions of the board were minor.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed in part, reversed in part. Minor league baseball players seeking class status in an action under the Fair Labor Standards Act appeal the denial of class certification in Arizona and Florida. The panel held certification is appropriate and consistent with “the great public policy” embodied by the FLSA.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Reversed. Because forensic cell phone searches require reasonable suspicion, the district court erred in denying the defendant’s motion to suppress evidence obtained from warrantless searches of his cell phone.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed in part, reversed in part. Defendant’s conviction for second-degree murder affirmed. However, because second-degree murder can be committed recklessly, it does not categorically constitute a “crime of violence.” Therefore, the conviction of discharging a firearm during a crime of violence is reversed.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. Concluding a witness was unavailable due to invocation of his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, the district court admitted prior civil deposition testimony. The panel affirms, finding any error was harmless because excluding the depositions would not have changed the outcome of the trial.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed in part, vacated in part. Finding the area where Tribe members received traffic citations was within the boundaries of the reservation, the panel held that San Bernardino County did not have jurisdiction to enforce California regulatory traffic laws within that area.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed a sentence for attempted illegal reentry after deportation in violation of 8 U.S.C. Section 1326. The “single sentence rule” in U.S.S.G. Section 4A1.2(a)(2) applies to the enhancements in U.S.S.G. Section 2L1.2(b)(2) and (b)(3).

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Reversed. The panel concluded that Amaro v. Continental Can Co., which held that ERISA claims are not arbitrable, is no longer good law in light of intervening Supreme Court case law, including American Express Co. v. Italian Colors Restaurant.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Remanded. Finding that non-citizens subject to expedited removal under 8 USC Section 1228 have a statutory right to counsel in reasonable fear proceedings, the immigration judge deprived Zuniga of his right to counsel by failing to obtain a knowing and voluntary waiver of that right.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. The panel held that the district court correctly instructed the jury to apply a “but for” causation standard, rather than a motivating factor standard; an ADA discrimination plaintiff must show the adverse employment action would not have occurred but for the disability.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. The panel held that even if Plaintiff’s obesity were an impairment under the ADA, or he suffered from a disabling knee condition, he could not show a causal relationship between these impairments and his termination. Summary judgement in favor of the defendant affirmed.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Reversed and remanded. A state prisoner’s in forma pauperis status was revoked because he had three prior strikes under the Prison Litigation Reform Act. The panel reversed, holding that because the prior cases were not dismissed on grounds enumerated in Section 1915(g), they did not qualify as strikes.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. Even assuming there was no reasonable basis for the state court to deny the claim as to the first two requirements under Napue v. Illinois, the panel could not say that it would be unreasonable to conclude that the testimony did not satisfy the materiality requirement.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed in part, reversed in part. The panel affirmed that continued detention for five hours after the shooting violated plaintiffs’ clearly established Fourth Amendment rights. However, because no analogous case existed at the time of the shooting, the district court erred by denying Gutierrez qualified immunity for this claim.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Vacated and remanded. The panel held that the district court erred by concluding it could not listen to the defendant’s allocution before determining whether a reduction of acceptance of responsibility was warranted under the Sentencing Guidelines, affecting the defendant’s substantial rights and fairness of the proceedings.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed in part, reversed in part. The panel affirmed Los Angeles County was not entitled to 11th Amendment immunity because the County was not an arm of the state when it administered the In-Home Supportive Services program. The court reversed on the collective period’s effective date.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Reversed and remanded. The district court’s order vacating a registered judgement is reversed, holding that a court need not have personal jurisdiction over a judgment debtor in order to “merely register” a previously obtained judgment.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Remanded. The panel held that petitioner’s reliance on his lawyer’s erroneous advice that he was not required to update his fingerprints was reasonable and constituted “good cause” to grant a continuance, and remanded.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. Plaintiff had knowledge of the injury by May 2013, and in applying Hawaii’s two-year statute of limitations the panel found her complaint is not subject to any exception from the normal discovery rule of accrual. Accordingly, her complaint filed in 2015 is time-barred.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. The panel credited the district court’s factual findings as logical and well-supported and held that the responsible prison authorities were deliberately indifferent to Edmo’s gender dysphoria, in violation of the Eighth Amendment.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. The panel agreed with the district court that the EB-5 investments in this case constituted “securities” in the form of investment contracts, affirming the district court’s conclusion that Feng was acting as a broker and violated the registration requirement.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Vacated and remanded. The defendant’s prior Nevada conviction for attempted battery with substantial bodily harm in violation of Nev. Rev. Stat. Section 200.481(2)(b) and 193.330 qualifies as a felony conviction for a crime of violence under U.S.S.G. Section 2K2.1.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. The panel held that the district court correctly interpreted the statute to allow for respondeat superior liability, and further held that the district court did not err in admitting the statements of Church leaders under the co-conspirator exception to the rule against hearsay.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Petition denied. Finding the record did not compel the conclusion that police officers did not persecute Singh on account of his imputed political opinions, the panel concluded his asylum claim fails.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed in part, remanded for resentencing. The district court violated the Ex Post Facto Clause when it sentenced the defendant to five years’ imprisonment under 18 U.S.C. § 3583(k) (2006) upon revoking his supervised release rather than sentencing him under the statutes as they existed in 2005.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Reversed. The panel held that, in the context of the restitution statute, “period of incarceration” does not include pretrial detention. The district court’s order to seize funds in the defendant’s inmate trust account is reversed.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Reversed. Because none of the defendant’s prior convictions had standard sentencing ranges exceeding one year, and none was accompanied by written findings of any of the statutory factors that would justify an upward departure, the defendant had no predicate offenses under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1).

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. The district court denied Plaintiff’s national-interest waiver petition for lack of jurisdiction. Affirming, the panel held that 8 U.S.C. § 1252(a)(2)(B)(ii) strips the federal courts of jurisdiction to review the denial of a national-interest waiver.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Reversed. The panel held that the FDIC’s appeal was timely filed within 60 days of entry of the district court’s judgment because, even though acting solely as a receiver, the FDIC was a United States agency under Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 4(a)(1)(B)(ii).

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Reversed & remanded. The panel held that a party need not satisfy the good cause or extraordinary circumstances standard provided in 28 U.S.C. Section 636(c)(4) in order to withdraw magistrate judge consent before all parties have consented.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. In a claim of negligence for secondary exposure to asbestos, the plaintiff failed to establish sufficient cause. The panel held that in the context of asbestos claims, the substantial-factor test requires “demonstrating that the injured person had substantial exposure to the relevant asbestos for a substantial period of time.”

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Reversed in part, affirmed in part. Plaintiffs have standing for a Freedom of Information Act claim because the removal of compliance and enforcement records from the USDA website harmed them in real-world ways, differently from the injuries sustained by other Americans.