Liberty

In times where we find that there are those who would denigrate Biblical Christianity, we can be challenged to be faithful in our devotion to Christ. 1st Peter chapter 3 says:
15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;
16 having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed.

As Christians, our faith will be mischaracterized and we may find ourselves misunderstood.  Our love for Christ and devotion to His Word will be branded as intolerant.  Our desire to see people won to the Lord will be ridiculed.  But, that can just motivate believers to try harder, to stand stronger, to persevere with a greater level of passion than ever before.  Jesus told His disciples in John 16 that when they encounter persecution to be of good cheer - ultimately, He will overcome.

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God wants us to be prepared to face the challenges we encounter - that comes through prayer,
dedication to the Word, and anticipation of what we may experience. 1st Peter 1 says:
13 Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
14 as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance;
15 but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct...

This week, I will be bringing coverage from Proclaim 16, the National Religious Broadcasters International Media Convention.  Many will refer to it as simply "NRB."

One of the threads of last year's event, and what will be addressed this year as well, is the threat of religious freedoms being diminished.   I look forward to providing updates in that and other arenas during the course of my NRB coverage.

I came across a piece on the Baptist Press website which provides a digest of some of the areas where religious liberties are threatened.  The article is an examination of a 2015 year-in-review report by Andrew Walker of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention.

He wrote that some of the challenges to religious liberty in the coming year will be:

-- A Supreme Court decision on the objection by religious, nonprofit organizations to the Obama administration's abortion/contraception mandate;

-- The election of a new president, whose judicial appointments will "dictate the future of religious liberty jurisprudence for generations to come;"

-- The effort to force Congress to consider "problematic causes" such as the Equality Act, which would establish "sexual orientation" and "gender identity" as protected classes under civil rights law.

Walker said that the Equality Act, introduced in 2015, is "the most sweeping, anti-religious liberty measure" he has seen proposed by lawmakers. He stated that, "Were this bill ever to pass, it would end public debate and designate the beliefs of any individual with a moral and/or religious objection to the federal statute, regarding an entirely new sexual ethic, as discriminatory."

Of course, Walker wrote that the U.S. Supreme Court decision on same-sex marriage was "no doubt the biggest religious liberty event of the year." He said that the high court's majority displayed an "unscrupulous regard for religious liberty," and the minority strongly criticized the majority's treatment of defenders of traditional marriage.

The decision's effect "on culture and religious liberty cannot be overstated," and its "full scope" remains uncertain because the country is still in the "immediate aftermath" of the opinion, Walker wrote.

Walker described these encouraging developments last year:

-- Unanimous Supreme Court decisions -- Reed v. Town of Gilbert and Holt v. Hobbs -- that protected the free speech rights of a church and the religious free exercise of a prisoner, respectively.

-- The defeat by Houston voters of an ordinance approved by the City Council that would have expanded non-discrimination protections to encompass sexual orientation and gender identity.

We are now over 7 months since that Obergefell decision on same-sex marriage.  How will that affect our lives?  As Walker says, we are still in the "immediate aftermath."  But battle lines are being drawn, even in Congress, where there are some lawmakers who want to force people to accept views and practices of those with whom they disagree.  And, there is the First Amendment Defense Act, which would protect those that have deeply held views and strengthen people's rights to free exercise of religion.

And, that gets us right back into electoral politics.  The leaders we select this year will have the opportunity to make decisions regarding our freedom to live according to our faith.  So, we need to participate - in prayer and in the casting of a ballot.   We can exercise strength of conscience in the leaders we select - and in other actions we take concerning living out our faith.

We do not need to be captivated by fear, and we certainly do not need to be complacent in our practice.  I would even suggest that we examine our beliefs and determine how we will respond if we face harassment or persecution because of our faith.  

And, in the meantime, we are called to uphold a Christian example.  We should be outspokenly devoted to strong marriages and encouraging others to make their marriages a priority.  If we are dedicated to our mates and to living out the God-ordained institution of marriage, that can bring a compelling case to a culture that possesses elements that would redefine it.