The Duck Dynasty / Phil Robertson topic has received tons of attention, and deservedly so. But the bigger issue is how the pro-LGBTQ groups aren’t satisfied with merely redefining marriage in an anti-biblical way, but how they won’t rest until they have completely stamped out religious freedom and forced churches to affirm their activities. The A&E issue is a sad commentary on our society, but the New Jersey issue is about the power of Big Government to suppress religious freedom.
Via Duck Dynasty Star Fired Over Remarks on Homosexuality:
Earlier this week state Senate Democrats in New Jersey pulled from consideration a bill that would write gay marriage, already legal in New Jersey by court order, into the law books. The reason: the bill contained religious exemptions. Loretta Weinberg, the Senate Majority Leader, said she pulled the bill after pressure from an LGBTQ legal group, Lambda Legal.
“They don’t want any kind of religious exemption, so out of respect for that, I will (pull the bill),” Weinberg said.
Re-read that carefully: They don’t want any kind of religious exemption. None. It isn’t about their freedom to do what they want. They’ve had that for years. No one is preventing their relationships and/or promiscuous sex, or even doing anything to stop 62% of men who know they are HIV-positive who have unprotected sex with men. This is about silencing Christians and forcing them to violate their religious beliefs.
“There’s a disparate group of people and it’s hard to follow what they want, so I’m following Lambda Legal.”
The decision by New Jersey Democrats and A&E are similar. When pressured by LGBTQ groups, organizations and politicians will choose to silence Christians who oppose the normalization of homosexual behavior.
Many Christians have assumed that they would be allowed reasonable exemptions and accommodations based on religious liberty. But LGBTQ activists have made it clear (and have said so from the beginning) that unconditional acceptance of homosexuality is the only option. Normalization and public support, rather than mere legal recognition, is the end goal.
Religious believers who think they can avoid the issue are deluding themselves. While we may not have a hit reality show that we can get fired from, we will be pressured in numerous ways to make it clear that we will not speak or act publicly in a way that supports the biblical view of homosexuality. The objective of the activists is to marginalize Christian views on sexual norms until they can be outlawed in the public square. Many Christians have already and will continue to gleefully work to ensure this becomes a reality. But for faithful Christians, allowing our biblical witness to be silenced is not an option. Like Phil Robertson we must all say, “My mission today is to go forth and tell people about why I follow Christ and also what the Bible teaches, and part of that teaching is that women and men are meant to be together.”
Make no mistake: Satan won’t rest until he has silenced Christians. That will never happen completely, of course, but there is a rocky road coming up. Many of us have warned of these logical consequences for years, but too many Christians thought they could sit on the fence. There is no fence.
But be encouraged! God always wins in the end. Don’t be afraid to stand up for the truth.
“Make no mistake: Satan won’t rest until he has silenced Christians. That will never happen completely, of course, but there is a rocky road coming up. ”
If you haven’t read the book of Revelation lately, you should do so.You will see that God warned us of this movement, it won’t be stopped, there will be a rocky road, and GOD WILL WIN IN THE END. So will we if we stay the course.
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People need to ask themselves why the government is behind this agenda so much so that they are spending billions of dollars promoting it in other nations. In my opinion I think it is because wherever homosexual equality pops up, other peoples rights are decreased and this is just a segue way to doing it. Look at the AFTAH video about what homosexual marriage did to Massachusetts. Seriously ten years ago they only secretly said they wanted to silence church people, now they are getting bolder. We are on the slippery slope to communism and they are using tactics like homosexual rights to get us there.
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Do you ever feel like Bible-believing Christians are getting it from both sides?
On the one side, you have all the flavors of militant atheism fighting against us – pro-aborts, militant homosexual groups, the ACLU types trying to stamp out religious expression (getting a judge to order the destruction of a cross monument, etc), Darwinists getting ID’ers fired from their teaching jobs, on and on….
…and on the other, militant Islam actually persecuting Christians in the countries where they hold sway, and in some cases even in Western countries?
Do you ever feel caught in the middle? And do you find yourself wondering why these two disparate groups – who have absolutely no reason to consider us as a common enemy – can’t just go-at-it and leave us alone?
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No I feel as though I already know the answer in the bible previously before their dealings with Jesus, Pilate and Herod weren’t associates, but when it came time to persecute Jesus they spoke from that day forward. They are acting like their father and we have to keep acting like our heavenly Father…..
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I’d like the quote Charlton Heston by saying, “Political correctness is simply tyranny with manners.” We are being told what is and what is not acceptable to say. If we are Bible believing Christians who point out that homosexuality is a sin, and is NOT supported in the Bible, we get censored and scolded for being intolerant. Those that call us intolerant, are completely hypocritical. They forget that tolerance is a two way road. They forget that there is a difference between tolerance and acceptance. We all share this planet and we can’t help but tolerate each other if we want to live semi-peacefully. What we shouldn’t have to do is accept other beliefs that are in complete violation of our own moral and spiritual beliefs. I love to quote the book of Mark 12:30 &31 “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” I follow these commandments to the best of my ability. Sexual orientation, spiritual belief, etc. do not make me love my neighbor less. This does not mean I have to agree with everything my neighbor does. I genuinely care for others and try to emulate Jesus, but I know I fail him daily. Unlike what many false teachers teach, Truth does not change. If it did, it would not be truth. The Bible remains steadfast and true in its teachings. Trying to twist the scripture to fit your wants and desires, can only do harm and cause confusion. I am amazed at how quickly people negate or twist things in the Bible to suit them. Picking and choosing things from scripture to believe in, while discarding the tough, hard to follow rules and laws is becoming more an more common these days. The Progressive Christian movement is doing so much harm, and people are blindly accepting the teachings as Biblical truth. I know I am getting far afield from the current discussion, but I have so many concerns with the many wolves in sheep’s clothing clergy members that are popping up everywhere. I know Paul warned us, but it is more baffling to me that people that seemed to be solid Bible believers are being wooed by these characters and turning away from the Truth. I am supremely grateful to, “Eternity Matters,” for pointing these things out and staying steadfast in a World of wishy washy, fence straddlers or blatant non-believers.
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Excellent points, Trisha! Thanks commenting and for your support.
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