Jaderune Pen Pals

In our government in the USA we have been wrestling with the concept of morality. The validity of the Bible is being questioned in many circles. Morality is being undermined by the President of our United States of America. There is a letter addressed to Pastors, because I am a retired pastor, and ordained minister in the Assemblies of God churches, I received this, as I receive a lot of information directed to Pastors. Even though it is addressed to Pastors, I think it is good information for all of us who name the Name of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This is from the Family Institute of Washington. So here it is:

Pastors, I'd like to propose some hypotheticals for you.



Imagine a scenario in which the President of the United States used his bully pulpit to declare to the country that divorce was a good thing, beneficial to the spouses, and good for the kids who would be saved from contentious households. Certainly some people feel that way.



Or, imagine if the President of the United States told the country that monogamy was unnatural and that it was not actually our urges that needed to be overcome, but our petty jealousies over sexual exclusivity. I'm certain there are people who share those sentiments as well.



Now, imagine that he not only took these positions, but he said that his conclusions were informed by his Christian faith.



What would you do? Sure, these positions seem a little crazy. And you hope your congregation understands that he's wrong. But it is the President, after all. And that fact that he said it kind of makes it an issue for everyone.



Would you correct the record?



Of course the President did not condemn monogamy or encourage people to divorce. But he did tell the nation that his Christian faith helped inform his belief that marriage should be redefined to include same-sex couples.



But of course you knew that. It's been the lead story everywhere for several days.



We are in the process of a moral revolution. It is not a revolution on simply the issue of homosexuality, but sexuality in general. A moral revolution requires the thing that was once condemned to be approved and the thing that was once approved to be condemned.



The culture is assaulting every man, woman, and child in your church with the idea that the biblical realities about sexuality are not simply archaic, but that they are themselves immoral.



What are you going to do about it?



I know the answer for many to this point has been, "nothing". While many are choosing to take this on, we still get the emails and the phone calls from people who wish their church would address the single-most culturally, relevant biblical issue of this generation.



But many won't, because they're not "political". Meanwhile, some polls suggest that 39% of Protestants support same-sex marriage.



I think Dr. Al Mohler, President of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, was correct when he said "This is not an issue that politics is irrelevant to, but this is not basically a political issue."



Of course, getting this issue wrong, as the President has done, is not the disease but a symptom of it. For the Christian, the inability to get this question right brings into serious question your ability to get anything right, biblically speaking. You can't do calculus if you don't know how to add or subtract.



Sure, we want to make sure that we are welcoming to the world around us so we can have relationships with people and ultimately lead them to Jesus. But when 39% of the church gets same-sex "marriage" wrong, you have to look around and ask, "who is really leading whom, and to where?"



There are some in churches who reject the Bible as an authority of any kind. That's a different problem.



But for those who are on the reservation of Christian orthodoxy, we should be able to agree that it is the job of the leadership to train the church to think biblically about everything. Once we become aware of an area in which that is clearly not happening, we should prioritize fixing that problem.



But what of the decision to focus our efforts and energies on less divisive, more positive aspects of our faith? I'll defer to Martin Luther, who said:



"If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the truth of God except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ, however boldly I may be professing Christ. Where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved, and to be steady on all the battlefields besides, is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point."

Your current President should not win this coming election. No offense for pro Obama just telling my honest opinion.

Red, I agree, and most commited Christians agree with that also. Before his last election many people knew what he was like, and they still voted him in. He has done a lot of damage to our economy and the morality in our country. I have an aunt and cousin who are for him, and they are supposed to be Christians. My cousin has a son-in-law who is from Iran, I think, and they are militantly for Obama. They have gotten into extreme fights with our other relatives who are opposed to Obama. My older sister who claims to be a Christian also is for Obama. Her daughter, my neice gave Obama's welcome speech at the Boings' headquarters just outside one the the airplanes Obama was on. He came out, hugged and kissed her, and just made me sick. Some in our family thought it was so wonderful that she gave that speech, hugged and kissed him! It was on the news from Seattle, and also they put a Utube on it, on facebook. My younger sister was sucked into that streem and voted for Obama as well. That family and my two sisters will no doubt vote for him again, but most of the rest of our relatives will not, and they are talking about the kind of trouble we are in for if Obama gets re-elected. Obama stands for about eveything that is evil and morally wrong. I hate to think about 4 more years with Obama! If my neice had given the acceptance speech, hugged and kissed George Bush or Ronald Riggan, who were patriots of this country that would be something to be proud of, but not with Obama. Obama has gone so morally bankrupt with his decisions that our Assembies of God organization in this country has taken a stand against him, and that is really unusual, as our our organization usually doesn't come out that strongly against positions taken by Presidents of the United States. Well, I certainly hope he is defeated, but he does favors for whoever he thinks will vote for him, and then after the election is past he will turn on them, and oppose them.

Edwin, I understand exactly what you are talking about. Yes the president is wrong and it is the job of Christians everywhere to educate and defend our government from this perversion.

I want to take this opportunity to direct you to a sermon by one of the best pastors that I have heard and he is speaking to exactly this subject. He lives in Maryland and this sermon is a result of his research that he did to speak in defense of gay marriage being signed into law. It asks the question, "If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?" (Ps 11:3) He argues that even Godless nations are subject to God's rule and are accountable. Give it a listen... you might just enjoy it.

http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=221121443573

Another good education resource is Kirk Cameron's Monumental documentary.

Yes, DavidM, that is a good question, "If the foundations are destroyed what can the righteous do?" God does have expectations for everyone, Christians and non Christians alike, and He does hold them all acountable. In I Peter 4:17-20; we are told that "if the righteous scarcely be saved where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?" One part of me is very upset about the moral decay in our world and in our nation. The other part of me realizes that God has everything in control, and He will not allow it to go any further than He sees fit. Also God is going to, in time, bring an end to unrighteousness, and He will bring in a rule of righteousness, and that will be a wonderful day!

In dating, many christians do not live by the standard of what the Bible says. Many claim to be Christian but their approach to dating is selfishness. Not only in dating but the way they live are no difference with the Non-Christian. How can we make difference to our daily living and approach to dating? How many people got heartache because they are not careful with their intention? It is the time to ask ourselves if we are really living a Christ Like Character.

You are so right, Crisi! There is no substitute for living like God wants us to live, and being honest and above board/transparent with everyone. You are right, many in their approach to dating are selfish. They think only of themselves and what they want. Many of them are not even thinking about how the other person is being affected. Yes, heartache is what comes of being careless with intentions, deceiving the person, leading them on, stringing them along, or just plain being less than honest with them. When people claim to be Christians then you can't tell the difference between them and ungodly people, it is sad!