I recently read of a Christian church/ministry that was evicted from a municipal building they had leased from the city of Toronto for over a year. The reason? They engaged in “hate activity”: they preached on the street corner that homosexuality was a sin. They simply said out loud in a public space what the Bible says about homosexuality. That constitutes “hate activity” according the city’s laws. But that’s Canada, right? That could never happen here, could it? Did you know that just over 63% of Canadian citizens claim to be Christian. How can a majority of Christian voters vote for governmental leaders who will suppress their own religious beliefs?

 

                According to the Pew Research Council the number of Christians in the U.S. has dropped from 76% in 2009 to 65% this year. That’s within two percentage points of the number who claim Christianity in Canada. Already “hate speech” is being broadly defined and used as excuses for why some groups are chastised and even denied the right to speak publicly.   Right here in the good ‘ole USA. Federal judge nominees are being grilled about their religious beliefs (even though that is strictly prohibited by our constitution).

 

                Who is to blame? There is a lot of blame to pass around (and, yes, I’m pointing a finger at myself, too). We too often vote according to our pocketbooks instead of according to our religious beliefs. We vote for candidates that will clearly distance themselves from sound Biblical teaching. Listen, any politician who supports abortion on demand and who supports the LGBTQ demands for their agenda and says that their politics are driven by their faith is a liar. I know that is a strong word, but I do not believe they are merely misinterpreting scripture; they know exactly what they are doing.

 

                Parents shoulder a lot of responsibility because many let the government and the entertainment industry educate and indoctrinate their children. If the government says it’s good, then it must be good. If the TV shows they allow their children to watch normalize sexual perversion, then that’s best for the kids. Nothing is further from the truth. Parents are the most important part of their children’s lives, bar none. Moms and dads need to use some common sense as well as Biblical guidance.

 

                And the Church itself needs to recognize that as much as we love all those who God created, there are times when we have to show “tough love” to those who are lost in their sins. We don’t reach people for the Lord by normalizing sin. We may can fill a church building by doing that, but we will never fill heaven.

 

Say good things about your Savior and about His Church on the Bluff.