Agents of Shield

Psalm 3 was written in a time when David's kingdom was in peril - his son, Absalom, had taken over his father's throne, and David was on the run.  Talk about opposition!  But, David was confident in
the Lord, and wrote:
(1b) Lord, how they have increased who trouble me! Many are they who rise up against me.
2 Many are they who say of me, "There is no help for him in God." Selah
3 But You, O Lord, are a shield for me, My glory and the One who lifts up my head.

The "shield" he is referring to here is not one of human effort.  When we are facing trouble in our lives, natural wisdom or earthly means are not what we need.  If we are surrendered to the Lord, we can know that He is right there with us - walking with us...and in us.  In our times of opposition, He gives us strength, He lifts our heads, He enables us to see those times of challenges through spiritual eyes and gives us the resources to stand.  He is our help and He builds His shield around our hearts.

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In Matthew 10, Jesus is teaching about not only opposition that may occur, but the Spirit who goes
with us when we face it:
17 But beware of men, for they will deliver you up to councils and scourge you in their synagogues.
18 You will be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles.
19 But when they deliver you up, do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak;
20 for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.

It was called HERO, but the ordinance passed by the Houston, TX City Council was far from heroic - it was a brazen attempt to provide special rights for people based on sexual orientation and gender identity.  That would include access to public restrooms, according to a Baptist Press story that provides an update on new legislation relative to the ordinance.

The real "heroes" surrounding the ordinance were local pastors who rose up and fought the ordinance every step of the way.  The story relates that (then-Mayor Annise) "Parker and then-City Attorney David Feldman thwarted a repeal effort and the pastors sued. During the pre-trial investigations, attorneys representing the city served the subpoenas which requested material in 17 categories including 'all speeches, presentations or sermons related to HERO, the Petition, Mayor Annise Parker, homosexuality or gender identity prepared by, delivered by, revised by or approved by you or in your possession.'"  The request for sermon material was later withdrawn.

Oh, by the way, that ordinance is no longer in effect.  According to the Houston Chronicle, in July 2014, the Texas Supreme Court "ordered the city to either repeal the law or place in the ballot. By a 12-5 vote, City Council opted for the latter, officially unleashing two dueling campaigns." Tweets included in the story show that there was over 62% of the voters opposed to the ordinance.

This year, in the Texas Legislature, Senator Joan Huffman authored a bill that "protects clergy from government overreach in civil investigations. No governmental agency can force religious leaders to turn over their sermons or compel clergy to testify about their sermons according to the bill."

At a signing ceremony over a week ago at Grace Church, one of the area churches whose pastor's sermons were subpoenaed, Governor Greg Abbott said, "You will be shielded from any other efforts from any other government official anywhere in the state of Texas from having subpoenas trying to pry into what you are doing here in your churches..." He called the congregation members "freedom fighters," saying, "You realized that when subpoenas were issued on your own pastor, when you had to fight against your own government right here in Houston for your freedom -- your freedom of religion..."  Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick shared about their own Christian testimony in the service, and Patrick "cited several Bible verses to encourage the congregation to seek God's wisdom and then ask for the courage to act upon it."

On this day after Memorial Day, this is a great reminder to us about the men and women who have given their lives to defend the U.S. Constitution and the freedoms contained within, which includes free speech and freedom of religion.  Texas lawmakers have reinforced those freedoms for pastors within their state, shielding them from having to relinquish sermon material to overreaching governmental officials who do not respect pastors' free speech and religious expression rights.

This type of action taken by the Houston city officials could have had a chilling effect on pastors' sermons regarding policy issues.  Thankfully, the shield is in place now.  And, there are implications for each of us.

Jesus taught that there may be occasions when we are facing officials because of our faith.  And, He reminds us that we have a powerful friend who goes with us, the Holy Spirit.  He will give us His words and His confidence when we face tough situations.

And, we should always rely on the Spirit to speak through us, no matter what we might encounter. When we consider the power of the tongue and how it can be such a destructive force, we can surrender to the constructive resources of the Holy Spirit to teach us to speak in accordance with God's truth.

Finally, we have the Lord as a shield - now, we are not shielded from opposition or even persecution. Jesus promised that those who desire to live godly will be persecuted.  But, we have the promise that He will shield our hearts, He will shape our words, and He will empower us to be courageous in the face of danger.