Put out a nationwide APB! Call in the Guard! Hold a press conference! Do whatever it takes to get the word out. We’ve lost something in America, and we need to find it quick.
I’m talking about ethics. Our national moral compass has gone haywire. Somehow we’ve lost the values that made this nation great. We need to find it, fix it and steer this ship back on course.
Yes, Virginia, there is still such a thing as right and wrong, truth and falsehood, goodness and evil. I know we’re living in a day where the national motto seems to be: “If it feels good, do it.” I know we’re living in a time when tolerance of anybody and everybody’s ways is the buzzword. I know we’re living in a culture of relativism, where what’s right and true for me may not be right and true for you.
There seems to be no standards anymore in the modern-day mindset. But there are still some things that are moral and some that are immoral. And unless we figure this out, the good ‘ole US of A is in danger of crashing, and crashing hard.
Take, for instance, the issue of marriage. What used to be clear to everyone is now strangely confused. Marriage is the union of one man and one woman who devote themselves to one another for a lifetime of faithfulness and love. It’s always been this way. The biological nature of things teaches this. God’s Word makes this absolutely clear.
Yet our country, as others have done, has lost sight of this foundational fact. We’re bending over backwards trying to change the definition of marriage. We’re doing everything we can to accommodate and legitimize the sinful lifestyle of homosexuality. We glamorize it in the media. We’re teaching its acceptance in the schools. We pounce on those who object labeling them “homophobic.”
No matter what the current laws of the land may say, no matter which way the tide of public opinion may roll, there is still a higher standard that has declared homosexuality to be a sin. God’s Word is neither silent nor ambiguous on the matter. It’s not our place to define what’s right and wrong. God has the word on such things, and for man to ignore God’s truth and create his own is nothing but foolishness. In doing so we’re digging our own grave.
“There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death” (Proverbs 14:12).
But let me be quick to say that there is no sin that cannot be forgiven by the blood of Jesus, not even the sin of homosexuality. His mercy extends to whosoever will turn away from sin and trust in Christ, committing to following His ways and yielding their lives to His control.
And so that you don’t think I’m railing on this one issue, let me assure you that homosexuality is not the only sin destroying marriage and families. Many couples are choosing to live together rather than getting married at all. That’s wrong, too. In fact, any sexual activity outside of marriage goes against the way God designed this intimate expression of married love to be. Our culture laughs at the idea of waiting until marriage, and does all it can to encourage sexual promiscuity.
The prophet Isaiah issued a stern warning to Israel, and one that we desperately need to hear today: “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight” (Isaiah 5:20).
The Bible also declares: “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people” (Proverbs 14:34).
Listen, there are many other issues beyond marriage and sexual immorality that are disgracing this nation. I’m out of space to address them now. But I appeal to those rebelling against God’s ways to repent and come to Christ before His judgment falls. I pray for that our nation might find the godly, moral resolve we’ve lost. I appeal to the church to follow the Lord’s prescription for healing in the land: “If my people who are called by My name humble themselves, and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).
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