Bully Beatdown!

My father used to tell me that if a person walks into a bar and challenges anyone to a fight, one day someone just may take the person up on the challenge. Well, it's finally time to take off the gloves and slap down the barroom bully. Self proclaimed "authorities" such as Supreme Court justices, college professors, high school teachers, movie and television personalities, so-called religious leaders, and a host of other influential people have been embolden over the course of the last few years to ridicule, intimidate, and punish anyone who takes a social, political, or religious view different from theirs. Intimidation has become the order of the day and yielding a big stick and carrying it with cruel intent has been the modus operandi. The latest cover up by the Obama administration regarding the collection of U.S. citizens' personal information and the distribution of this material to various governmental agencies for political harassment has sent chills up and down the collective spines of liberals and conservatives alike and has indicated to all that there will be repercussions for any dissent. Or the recent Supreme Court ruling declaring federal law as unconstitutional the definition of the institution of marriage as between one man and one woman. Incidents like these have have stoked a fire in the hearts of many people and have caused them to educate themselves and get involved with challenging these people and their views. For too long, people have trusted their government to look out for their communities and personal welfare, protect their God-given rights, and provide strong leadership both internationally and domestically. That naive belief has now dissipated.

 

As Christians, the heat has been turned up significantly on our beliefs, definitions, and answers for mankind's problems. Having been marginalized to the outer limits of society, scriptural answers to today's problems are rejected outright because of their so-called "religious content" and unenlightened source! It is no wonder that the modern day church is content to remain behind its four walls, allowing the blind to lead the blind, or to join forces with the Philistines and their enlightened visions. Instead of confronting the culture with a John-the-Baptist rebuke, we sit mildly by on the cultural sidelines, allowing "the experts" to define and direct our society with their vision of righteousness and justice. Check out the following video to see that there are other "religious views" that are not taking this challenge lightly and are encouraged and determined to shout their "religious views" from the house tops. Oh, that we Christians would be so bold!

In this present hour, dominance for the culture and society will be won by someone with a "religious idea." Sometimes these "religious views" are hidden from sight through basic assumptions while other times they are plainly and boldly declared openly. Please understand this - there is no such thing as a society that is founded on something other than "religious ideas," no matter what the secularists say to convince us otherwise. Someone's "religious idea" will be enacted as THE foundational law of the land and all other laws will flow from this foundation. The job of Christians today is to lay a strong foundation (Ezra 6:3) by converting the culture, disciplining the nations with the law of God, and seeing righteousness once again established as the standard that brings freedom, prosperity, and safety to all who take refuge under its wings. Anything other than that is to surrender the precious gifts that God has given us and embrace the shackles of slavery and tyranny that accompany all other "religious ideas." May we face all the present bullies with courage, knowledge, and determination that God provides and never give up until our jobs are finished or until we are called home. Let us fight this good fight no matter what the cost.

Stay Holy, My Friends!

   

Pastor Don