Recent political news tells me it won't be long before some things that are taught publicly in the pulpits across this country will be scrutinized, criticized, ostracized, and maybe even outlawed altogether. You may have heard that a recent bill passed out of the House Judiciary Committee, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act (H.R. 1913), and may soon be put to a House-wide vote. This bill's supposed intent is to add certain classes to the federal hate crimes laws.

One supporter has said that even words that certain individuals deem hateful should be prosecutable. As we could have predicted, those hateful words include Scriptural condemnation of such sins as homosexuality and other sexual perversions. [I say that because such terminology is already being used to describe word-for-word Scripture readings that condemn homosexuality and other sexual perversions.] I expect if this bill passes, it will not be long before someone records a sermon that condemns homosexuality or uses an article published in a bulletin or religious paper to bring charges against the one who spoke or wrote those hateful words.

I could spend some time reminding some readers that their political choices [or even their indifference] brought this about and how many devout people tried to warn us that choosing political leaders whose stand on moral issues was contrary to God's laws would lead to this; I could spend some time chastising those who openly supported political leaders based on hopes of material gain, rather than on moral issues; or, I could spend time talking about the inconsistency of thought and outright hypocritical actions involved in justifying support for such political leaders. But I won't do any of that. Not today.

I believe brethren waste too much time arguing about political solutions to this country's immorality, far too little discussing what we are going to do about it personally, and far too little showing that our faith is in God--not a governmental institution or party. You see, it is one thing to run to our governmental leaders for relief or protection when someone or something threatens our Constitutional right to free exercise, and another to simply follow God's ways without regard to possible consequences. What happens when our government stops defending our rights? What happens when our rights become the source of our persecution? Who will we run to, and what will we do when the government agency or organization that is supposed to defend and uphold our rights ceases doing so? What will we do then?

With that in mind, I have a few questions I would like to ask you about what we are going to do about the matter of this country's lack of morality and the certainty that some things now taught from the Bible in public places will be prosecutable as federal crimes.

Will You Continue to Speak the Truth?

In the first century, Christians had to face the fact that their leaders were not, in fact, going to defend their right to practice their faith according to God's word. From the beginning, when the apostles healed the man who had been lame since birth (Acts 3:1-10) and they began preaching Jesus and the resurrection to the people (3:11-4:2), they faced opposition and persecution from the Jewish leaders (4:2-21; 5:12-40). But in these cases, they did not seek government intervention or bring lawsuits. They simply strengthened themselves (4:23-32), let it be known that they would follow God (4:19, 20; 5:29), and went out and preached the truth (4:31; 5:41, 42).

That is not to say that we cannot use our government's processes to further the spread of the truth or to defend ourselves. We know that the apostle Paul appealed to Caesar and used his right as a Roman citizen to make God's word known wherever his captors took him (Acts 21-28). But Paul did not trust the government to defend his right to practice his faith. He trusted in God, and he was willing to accept that he might even have to die because of that trust (cf. Acts 21:13; Philippians 1:20-26). He certainly desired to be free and to live, but he didn't rest his hope in man's whims. He knew that, with Christ, all things were possible, and with Christ, he could find reasons to rejoice in whatever situation he found himself.

So, what will we do? Will we continue to stand for the truth and answer as did the apostles, "We must obey God rather than men?" Will we continue to preach the truth within earshot of others, though we could save ourselves from trouble (prison or fines) by simply doing it quietly? Daniel, when he heard the new prohibition against petitioning anyone other than the king for 30 days, went to his home, opened the window, and prayed to God, as was his custom (Daniel 6:10). He could have left the window closed, and possibly, no one would have known what he was doing, but he chose to continue praying to God as he always had. Consider the difference Daniel's actions made in the lives of others!

Will You Love Those Who Persecute You?

I find it somewhat ironic that those who preach God's message of love for mankind have been accused of speaking what is now being labeled as hate speech by those who despise the message. (Could we accuse them of hate speech because they freely admit to hating the message of repentance?) At the same time, I must admit that the way some preach God's message does SOUND hateful! I honestly wonder if some who preach the truth actually love those in sin because of HOW they present the message. Some who profess belief are so repulsed by those who live without restraint that it appears, from their words and deeds, they would rather they burn in hell than be saved in heaven.

Let's not forget that God's word tells us, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. (John 3:16, 17) and "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8) While we were sinners, God loved us and gave His Son to die for us. If we are to become like the Father, we too, must love those in sin, but hate their sinful conduct.

When others accuse us of hate speech because we speak God's word, will our accusers and any who may be watching see that we are, in fact, people of love? Will we, as Jesus said we must, "...love our enemies and pray for those who persecute you." (Matthew 5:44) Will we follow our Lord's example? Please read 1 Peter 2:23. Remember, if we claim to be His followers, we had better respond in such a way that we convince the world we mean it.

As the likelihood of government persecution or prosecution increases, let us also make sure that if someone accuses us of speaking hateful words that we can go to the Scripture and show without a doubt that our words come from God and are not just opinions. Far too many simply preach their distaste for certain sinful activities, but couldn't defend what they're preaching from the Scriptures if their lives depended on it.

Now is the time to take a stand for the truth-to teach it, to defend it, and to live it. We should not fear what others may do to us as long as we are standing with God! (Edited-KMG)