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Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Standing for the faith - my take on the Kim Davis story

Note: I'm a little late in posting this article. The news moves on. But for what it's still worth...

I guess I’m a sucker for controversy. Honestly, I intentionally try to not write about a lot of things I could write about because (1) I think you probably tire of hearing it, (2) I get sick of it myself, and (3) really there are other good things to discuss.

But neither can I stick my head in the sand and pretend like the vultures circling overhead doesn’t mean something’s dying here. And since you can’t count on the mainstream media to tell it straight, I feel like occasionally I need to expose some of the bosh. At least for the both of my readers who might be interested. 

So, you’ve heard about the county clerk in Kentucky who was actually sent to jail for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. To some she’s a hero. To others she’s a criminal. Whatever your opinion about whether she was right or wrong, the fact that she was sent to jail over this ought to be very troubling. 

If you’re easily offended, you probably better stop reading now. It’s been fun being friends, but come back next week and we’ll talk about how the Bears are doing, or the weather, or something. Talking religion and politics at the dinner table doesn’t always lead to harmonious relationships. 

Here’s my take. I admire Kim Davis for standing firm for her faith. The woman was willing to go to jail before compromising her conscience. I believe her conscience is in the right. As a Christian, she simply could not give her recognition and approval for that which is an abomination to God, no matter what the court says. The Bible is clear. Marriage is the union of one man and one woman bound together in a lifetime covenant. Homosexuality is a sin. There are times when it is right to obey God rather than man. 

One could argue that Davis should have simply resigned her office, as a number of other county clerks throughout the U.S. have done since the Supreme Court’s ruling regarding same-sex marriage. That’s exactly what the liberals would love to see happen. If all Christian influence would disappear from the public sphere, if we’ll just keep our faith to ourselves and go away quietly, then the march to a godless culture, government tyranny and suppression of religious freedom can proceed unchecked. 

The directive is clear: If you don’t bow down to the golden statue of homosexual affirmation, then you’re going to be thrown into the fiery furnace. The day will come when writing this article or preaching the biblical view of marriage will land me in jail. The opposition to Jesus and His followers is mounting quickly, and the heat is rising. 

If I had the space I’d insert here a short digression concerning the “rule of law” comments made by White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest. You know, the one where he said that “no public official is above the law.” I could only wish that the same principle applied evenly across the board. But I guess the President not following immigration laws doesn’t count, nor does Hillary’s disregard for classified information laws, nor the IRS’s illegal targeting of conservative groups, etc., etc., etc. But a county clerk from Kentucky goes to jail when she refuses to serve the gods of this age. 

I’ll close with this. Jesus spoke very plainly concerning the cost of following Him. Hatred, persecution, and even death for His name are sure to come. But listen to this: “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? For whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels” (Mark 8:34-38). I’d rather lose my life here and save it for eternity than forfeit my soul and have Jesus be ashamed of me when He comes. 

Let us stand unashamed for the faith with faith, love and courage in Jesus’ name.

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