The last week of June 2015, the Supreme Court issued several decisions that are as disastrous for the Christian since the Roe vs. Wade in 1973 that has caused about sixty million babies to die as a result of abortion since then. In June, the Obama packed Supreme Court found in the Constitution the rights for same genders to have the right to "marry" just as heterosexuals always have. However, the fight has been only joined as they are determined to erase the Christian culture in America and drive all semblance of the Christian religion underground. On the horizon is not only the attempted eradication of the Bible, but also polygamy, group marriage, pedophilia, and every perverted sexual activity that one could possibly imagine! We can expect to see lawsuits against churches, with efforts to destroy churches that refuse to bow before the gods of perversion and cause churches to lose their tax-exempt status or force them to accept their perversion. We recently read that the Episcopal Church voted to permit their "clergy" to officiate same sex marriages. That ought not to surprise any!
This writer believes that one of the great reasons that the moral decline has progressed so rapidly is because of the apathy and lack of commitment of most of those who claim Jesus as their Savior! Many folks claim to believe in Christ and the Bible, but practice all kinds of adultery, divorce and live ungodly lives wholly unlike anything that Jesus taught. Laziness is rampant, as nearly half of our population lives on government handouts (2 Thessalonians 3:8-10)! Many young (and older) folks make no pretense at living pure lives, but do their thing however and whenever they want. Drugs and alcohol are consumed regularly; illegitimacy is at an all-time high. Among all citizens in America, the average percentage of illegitimate children is about 40%. Among blacks, it is about 70%. Can there be any wonder why so many of us have no sense of right and wrong? Many do not even know what gender they are regardless of their biological heritage. Frankly, to us it is amazing that it is not even worse than it is!
For the Christian to face persecution is not a new concept. Even during biblical times, they were persecuted terribly. Read the apostle Paul's account of his sufferings (2 Corinthians 11:20-27). History is clear how the early church was persecuted during the first three centuries of its existence. The Bible also teaches that Christians WILL, not MAY, be persecuted. 2 Timothy 3:12 reads, "Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution." Jesus said, "Remember the work that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also" (John 15:20, italics mine, ER). The apostle Paul was a persecutor before his conversion to Christ. As he was first known as Saul, he consented to Stephen's death (Acts 7:59-8:1) and when he met the Lord in a vision, he was on his way to Damascus to imprison and persecute Christians (Acts 9:1-6). In Acts 26:9-12 he says he not only persecuted Christians before his conversion, but even voted to put them to death if they refused to renounce Christ!
Friends, brothers and sisters, the homosexual movement in America today has some of the most strident opponents of Christianity ever and they will not compromise until we are dead or cowering in hiding. If you have the courage to deny them anything, they will come after you with a vengeance. However, as a Christian, we are to love them and pray for them. Difficult, yes, but we must follow God (Acts 5:29; Luke 23:34; Acts 7:60).
Ed Rodgers, Forney, TX