Current Events

I hope you’ve seen the pictures. Three-year-old Aylan washed up on the shore, drowned while escaping. Masses of refugees crowding streets under the shells of bombed out buildings. Inflated rafts spilling over with people fleeing war-torn Syria. The seventy-one suffocated bodies found in a refrigerated truck, all victims of human trafficking. Refugee camps stretched out acre upon acre of makeshift tents.

It is obvious that our world is confused about what is right and wrong. Of all the places in the world that one would think his faith has value and that he could practice it without fear of intimidation, it would be here in the United States of America.

The recent decision from the Supreme Court has raised many questions regarding the religious liberty of churches and Christians, including Christian businesses and schools, in America.

As a Christian pastor, I’m deeply grieved at the Court’s decision to ignore biblical revelation and redefine God’s institution. Indeed, marriage is God’s institution, and He has clearly defined it for us.

2 Timothy 3:1 states, “In the last days perilous times shall come.” The word perilous means “difficult to deal with.”

Pro Aris et Focis—it’s the motto of many military regiments and an oft-adopted motto for military families. It’s a Latin phrase meaning “For God and Country.” The English translation is the motto for the American Legion.

Have you looked around our country recently? America is in deep water morally. For the first time in our history there are more unmarried households than married, and divorce is a real problem in our world. More and more children are being reared in single parent homes. Too many children in our country are living without the guidance and direction of their fathers.

For nearly a century, the United States Supreme Court has upheld the right of Christians to go door to door along public streets presenting the Gospel to home owners and leaving religious literature at their doors. Unfortunately, local police are not always aware of their responsibility to protect that constitutional right.

The Word of God states, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance” (Psalm 33:12). We must not forget that God is the sustaining power of our republic.

As our nation is engaged in a time of getting ready to once again vote for our nation’s leader, it is important to remind ourselves what a blessed privilege it is to be able to let our voices be heard. We have the honor and the biblical responsibility to stand for what the Scriptures command.

Homosexual advocates continue to make gains in their efforts to legalize same-sex relationships. President Obama has decided not to defend the federal Defense of Marriage Act in court. DOMA is the 1996 federal law signed by President Clinton that allows states to refuse to legally recognize same-sex marriage, including those marriages performed in other states. Without a federal DOMA, the “full faith and credit” clause of the United States Constitution would require every state to legally recognize gay marriages performed in another state.

Syria’s “Arab Spring” has become much more than an internal political unrest. With other nations taking sides in the conflict, Syria becomes another link between Iran and Russia—a force prophesied to strike against Israel in the last days.

“Is that all?” newly elected Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou asked his budget committee in 2009 during a meeting to find out exactly how much the government was spending. A series of financial scandals led to the ousting of the incumbent party and ushered in a new Greek government—one which would count the money it spent instead of assuming they spent what they had budgeted.

For a nation that has adopted a mantra of tolerance, someone seems to have missed the memo. In the 9/11 commemorative services at Washington National Cathedral, representatives from several religions will be leading—including a Buddhist nun, an Imam, a rabbi, and a Hindu priest—but no Protestant or evangelical Christian.

Bible believing Christians were shocked when they heard President Obama call for the re-establishment of pre-1967 borders for Israel with some adjustments. While many U.S. Presidents have tried to negotiate peace agreements between Israel and the Palestinians, President Obama’s position (which he has since softened) may signal a shift in U.S. policy toward Israel—one that is dangerous to our prosperity as a nation.

I’ve never been more thankful to be an American. I’m thankful for the men who pledged their “lives, fortunes, and sacred honor” to sign the Declaration of Independence and then gave of themselves in unspeakable sacrifice to birth this great nation.

Sean and several friends were peaceably distributing Gospel tracts in front of a bank when a city police officer approached and told them to leave.