Every Sunday I have the privilege of being in the company of people who are consumed by love — people who love God more than they love themselves. People who give sacrificially of their time, talents and finances to help others.
Over the years I have watched many of my fellow church members pour their hearts into such wide-ranging efforts as storm relief, inner city literacy and support for victims of human trafficking abroad. I have never heard anyone mention hate as the motivation for any of this work.
As you look at the larger Christian community the numbers relating to dollars and man-hours given to those in need boggle the mind. For instance last year a total of 59,583 days of work were provided by Southern Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers.
In addition to those who actively engage in missions there are vast numbers of Christians who quietly live out their faith by working hard each day, obeying the law, paying taxes, telling the truth, respecting others and their property and teaching these same values to their children so that America’s future may be stable and prosperous.
It is for this reason it doesn’t seem to make sense that certain media outlets are engaging in coverage of the recent federal court ruling on same-sex “marriage” that could only be described as pubescent, mocking and disrespectful to those who are peaceful, love their communities and hold fast to the same 2000-year-old Judeo-Christian beliefs that have been both the bedrock of and a compass for this country. It seems illogical that there are those who would take such pleasure in presenting a seemingly endless stream of articles, images and cartoons they know are distressing to older Christians who have selflessly invested in America during both times of war and times of peace.
It seems illogical, but it isn’t because the type of religious liberty we enjoy in the United States is unique in history. In ancient Rome, Christians were crucified, tortured and fed to lions. In modern-day Pakistan they are used as slave labor in brick factories. In Iraq believers are being hanged, raped, buried alive and the list goes on.
Although persecution is foreign to American Christians it has by no means been uncommon in history or in other lands. In fact there were an estimated 45 million Christian martyrs in the 20th century alone, more than all the other centuries combined.
Contempt for Christians has been spreading across the nation with frightening momentum as the government has taken an increasingly active role in upending traditional moral standards for the sake of tiny minorities and forcing believers to participate in practices that violate their consciences, in some cases under penalty of law. A mere 10 years ago a scenario in which a Christian in America would be forced by the government to choose between his job and his faith would have been unthinkable but now bakers, proprietors of wedding chapels and probate judges are having to do just that.
Persecution in America
In America, Christians have been largely insulated from persecution but the time has come to accept that Christian values are no longer a guiding light in this country and when the day comes that the U.S. is no different from any other nation we will no longer be able to avoid the types of trials and tribulations experienced by our brothers and sisters around the world. Persecution is not here but it is coming.
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