The Front Porch Swing

7/28/15 -

A Day that will Live in Infamy
When evil became "good"

How in the world did we get to this point in America where a small, but very vocal and militant minority, have forced their values upon the rest of us? When did evil morph into something good? When did what has universally been considered good for thousands of years suddenly become evil?

Only ten years ago who would have conceived we would ever discuss, let alone legitimize same sex marriage?

The 2015 landmark decision by the Supreme Court of The United States stating  that the fundamental right to marry is guaranteed to same sex couples by both the Due Process Clause and the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment of  our Constitution.

Five “progressive” (I choose that label on purpose as you will see later) justices declared same sex marriage was legal. Five justices dismantled the timeless institution of marriage. Five non-elected justices called same sex marriage normal and good.  But, what God ordained as good in Genesis chapter three remains good, and what God calls evil or remains evil.

We live in a new world where right is wrong and wrong has become right. We live in new culture where a fire chief in Atlanta was terminated for writing a book based on the Genesis account of marriage and sexuality. We read of a photographer in New Mexico being forced to pay a stiff penalty for refusing to photograph a same sex marriage ceremony. The list goes on. What about the Christian bakers in Gresham, Oregon who have lost their business and face severe harassment from “progressive” people who insist that everybody- except themselves-  must show tolerance. Then there is the pizza shop in Indiana and another cake baker in Colorado- each have faced litigation and harassment for following their convictions based on Scripture.

This is the brave new world we live in. How did we get here and what can we do? What I share in this blog is the result of years of my personal frustration over this militant takeover of our culture and my concern for the future of my grandchildren. My thoughts about these social earthquakes have been refined and strengthened through reading two books: You Will be Made to Care by Erick Erickson and Bill Blankschaen and Why God won’t Go Away by Allister McGrath.  Another book, The Prodigal Church by Jared Wilson, has confirmed my conviction that the contemporary “seeker friendly” Church with its pragmatic philosophy for “doing church” shares blame in the cultural morass we face today.

So, if I have not already turned you off, please grant me grace to continue to opine about the future of our culture, if not the human race. Yes, I am an old, retired preacher, but perhaps I still can speak with clarity and wisdom.

I believe there are moral absolutes that have and must stand the test of time if we are to survive. Consider the following statement, even though made by an ancient church leader centuries ago, Augustine of Hippo, it still resonates today:

                “Right is right even if no one is doing it; wrong is wrong even if everyone is doing it.”

If that statement is not true, then let the “progressives” have at it. Let them challenge and change every moral value we have always held including the biblical covenant of marriage between a man and a woman. Let them, as they already have, attack and dismantle DOMA- the Defense of Marriage Act signed by President Clinton. Let them force schools and businesses to remove all signage for men’s or women’s restrooms. After all, if everybody wants it, it can’t be wrong. But, not everybody is pushing for genderless restrooms. Truth be told, very few of us are comfortable with the idea and find it both absurd and terribly wrong headed! However, the militant “progressives” want to punish the State of North Carolina for even questioning or tweaking the new normal.

How did we get here? It began long, long ago in the Garden of Eden. But, in recent history, it found its footing in the sexual revolution of the 70’s. While much of the Church slept and enjoyed our privileged position, dark forces were actively using the arts and entertainment and higher educational institutions to sow the seeds. My blog is not the place to dig deeply so I recommend the books listed above.

Erickson and Blankschaen, in They Will Make You Care, share some interesting concepts such as the distinction between “freedom of religion” and “freedom of worship.” Have you noticed the new vocabulary coming from the Obama White house and other liberal institutions and the media? They affirm our right to worship as we please. But, our constitution and Bill of Rights guarantees the freedom to practice our religion. The new vocabulary says we have freedom to worship as we please. However, there is a big difference between practicing my religious convictions and expressing my worship. I can worship with or without music. I can dance or recite liturgy. It is my freedom according to the progressives, but they do not grant me the freedom to practice my religious faith and convictions 24/7 if I own a bakery or if I am a photographer who believes that I would violate my conscience and my core beliefs by using my skills to support a same sex ceremony. My religious freedom ends, according to the progressives, when I walk out the door of my church building.

So let me ask again, how did we get to this place? I believe some (perhaps much) of the blame falls on the church itself. The liberal Church has tossed aside the Bible in favor of social justice (that is a noble pursuit) and other lesser pursuits rather than the Gospel. Some Evangelical Churches have become virtually silent in speaking to the issue of sin and repentance. Pulpits no longer resonate with the voice of a prophet crying out for righteousness. We have lost our saltiness and prefer to appeal to the sweet tooth of our generation. Shouldn’t we apply Scripture to pressing issues like family, marriage and living Christ-like in the business world?

Some pastors have courageously addressed racial justice and prejudice. Movements like Black Lives Matter has made this a front-burner-issue, but do we pastors also remind our congregations about the grave social injustice of abortion and the dangerous challenges against the family and marriage? I suspect racial injustice is a politically correct topic. It is not be politically correct to address same sex marriage and abortion from the pulpit, but they are certainly wrong and do threaten our very survival.

I can hear somebody say that would be “preaching to the choir” to talk about abortion or same sex marriage. My response is somebody must speak to the choir (congregation) about these issues. If we don’t, the media will and already is molding the thinking of our youth and some adults in the church. I agree it is the parents’ responsibility to shape our children’s values, but many of our youth come from broken and non-churched homes. Sadly, many who sit in the worship centers week after week do not have a biblical worldview. There is a vacuum of solid biblical, theological teaching.

We are where we are today in our culture because what we believe shapes what we do. If this is applicable to us as individuals it also applies to the culture at large. When men declare that God is irrelevant or doesn’t exist- when men believe we are not created in God’s image but are the product of random chance (atheistic evolution) it not only affects our understanding of the origin of life, but can and has affected our morals and values.

If evolution is a process that is moving the human race forward- progressing us upwardly- than is it not also reasonable to believe evolution also guides and affects us socially and culturally? In fact, the case is made that one of the motivations behind the militant push to transform culture and throw off traditional values is based on the theory of social evolution. So the liberal progressive considers the Church and Christianity as archaic institutions that block social progress. These social engineers will not stop with same sex marriage. Already there are calls for polygamous, incestuous, and group marriages. The one who led the charge to be free from God in the Garden of Eden will not stop until he has been ultimately defeated by the only King who is sovereignly above all rulers and philosophers and social engineers in this world.

Remember the slogan behind Barak Obama’s first campaign? “Change you can believe in!” Few who voted in anticipation for the promised change dreamed it would include transforming our culture and removing traditional social values like the sanctity of marriage. Do you recall how the White House was lit up to celebrate the wonderful change in the definition of marriage after the Supreme Court decision? Also, by chance did you catch the promises about appointing justices to the Supreme Court in each of the recent political conventions ? One promised justices that would uphold the Constitution and traditional values. The other promised justices that dared to think outside the box and bring more social changes. Hmm! One anticipated “progressive” justices.

Meanwhile, we are in a battle for truth and for righteousness. We must not remain silent. When the Nazis moved to exterminate Jews and homosexuals and other “sub humans” many Germans remained silent because they were not Jewish but members of the Christian Church. Then Hitler came against the church, and there was nobody to cry out for them.

 Have we forgotten Jesus’ call to take up the cross and follow Him- in other words, to prepare to die? Every first Century believer understood what it meant to carry a cross. Someday, we who follow Jesus may also face severe persecution here in America as we become more and more marginalized. Now, is the time for us to be the voice in the wilderness like John, who dared to call wrong- wrong, and lost his head for it. What are we willing to lose?

I leave with a few Scriptures for your contemplation:

Mt. 12:30             Jesus said, “He who is not with me is against Me, and He who does not gather with Me scatters.”

Rom. 1:18-32      There is no clearer description of where we are today and how we have gotten to this place and why the social progressives are so militant. It is as if Paul was speaking to our culture today.

Psalm 37:12-13  “The wicked plots against the righteous, and gnashes at him with his teeth. The Lord laughs at him; for He sees his day is coming.”

By the way, never forget the words of a wise philosopher and baseball legend, “It ain’t over till it’s over.” God will have the last word in this struggle for truth and righteousness. Perhaps He will awaken His church and His prophets to help turn the ship around. Over and over throughout history God has moved in His mysterious to thwart the plans of the wicked. So we can sing “the wrong will fail and right prevail with peace on earth, good will to men.”