You may recall how recently a
Presidential aid, named Sidney Blumenthal, referred to a congressional aid as a
religious fanatic. After some public scrutiny, he said, "I didn't mean to offend
Mr. Ewing." I wonder, what exactly did he mean to do? It sure didn't sound like
he meant to apologize (2 Cor. 7:10). Apparently, the modern message of
‘tolerance' has it's limitations. This attack on a religious man is not a lone
incident, and so, it should be a matter of concern to us all. The political
elite of our day have successfully branded anyone, who is audacious enough to
insist that there is an objective and definable moral code, as a ‘radical'. It
is troubling to wake and find that you fall under such politically incorrect
labels as ‘judgmental', ‘homophobic', ‘intolerant', and ‘radical right'. Why?
Simply because we are Christians. Suddenly, the words of Jesus become more
applicable,
"Blessed are you when {men} cast
insults at you, and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, on
account of Me." – Matthew 5:11
Besides the subtle and ever-increasing
attacks that are coming from government spokesmen and from the media elite, anti-Christian
messages are coming from the entertainment industry as well. The ignorance and disrespect
being displayed is alarming. A recent "sensual" pop song uses several phrases
from the Lord's model prayer (Matthew 6:9ff). The song is a not-so-subtle tale of sexual
immorality. And yet, the lyrics were praised and lauded on a national syndicated radio
program. When entertainers take such liberties with God's word, they make the words common
and show disrespect for Christian teachings. Another popular song on the Country charts
tells how heaven's floor has holes in it so that the departed can watch their loved ones
on earth. One verse of the song says that the falling rain is mother's tears because she
wishes she were still here. The writer forgot to read what the Bible says about heaven;
there are no tears in heaven. The naive person might say that such a song is innocent and
harmless, but this is not so. The message is false and young minds are being shaped by
such.
Another force that is working against
the Christian is found on the modern college campus. In a recent class on Interpersonal
Communications, the teacher handed out a sheet that listed several words that were not
proper to say in a speech. I was stunned to see the name, ‘Jesus,' was listed among
improper words like "guys, gals, umm," etc., I suppose the idea could be to not
use it in a casual, or vain manner, so that the audience isn't prejudiced against the
message. But that is just an assumption, and I fear that younger, more impressionable
minds in the class might not make the distinction and find themselves prejudiced against
the precious name.
As Christians, we must never be ashamed
of Jesus' name or of his cross. As persecutions arise, we must remember that Jesus, as he
was reviled, did not revile but entrusted himself to the Father. This is an excellent
example for us.
And when they had summoned them, they
commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John
answered and said to them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to
you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking what we have seen
and heard." – Acts 4:18-20