Clash of Freedoms

We are living in an age where morality and Christian virtue have seemingly less influence than ever.
And, we have to be determined to live godly lives and practice our faith without being trapped into compromise. Galatians 5 says:
13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh ; rather, serve one another humbly in love.
14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

We are called to free, for sure; but our freedom is never to be an excuse or enabling to commit sin, to do as we please.  We have the restraint of the Holy Spirit who will work through us to produce the fruit that God desires.  We have the ability, the freedom, to choose God's ways; and He has given us the freedom to disobey, as well.  So, we have to be careful that we exercise His freedom rightly. There are those who will exercise personal freedom - to do as they wish - in the area of illicit sexuality; we have to be careful to reject that notion, living truth to ourselves and speaking and living truth to a culture that needs to observe God's ways in action.

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The Bible offers us a template for holy living and having a holy influence.  We are not to use our
freedom in Christ as an excuse to sin, according to 1st Peter 2:
15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men--
16 as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God.
17 Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.

A new LifeWay Research poll addresses this concept, as the summary of the survey states:

When faith and sexuality clash, which side should prevail?

The conclusion: "Americans can’t decide."

Not good.

Here's the gist of the findings:

About half of Americans (48 percent) say religious freedom is more important in such conflicts when faith and sexuality clash, according to a new study from Nashville-based LifeWay Research. A quarter (24 percent) say sexual freedom is more important. A quarter (28 percent) aren’t sure.

“It’s clear Americans value religious liberty,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of LifeWay Research. “But when it comes to sex, they aren’t sure religion should have the final word. That’s especially true for younger Americans and those who aren’t religious.”

Of course, I keep my eye on what evangelicals are saying.  In this case, 9 out of 10 said religious freedom matters most.  Almost half of religious "nones" said that sexual freedom matters most.

Another question dealt with whether or not "the freedom they selected is always more important or usually more important." Only "one in 10" respondents said that "sexual freedom always matters most," with 14% saying that it usually does. 31% responded that "religious freedom always matters most," and 17 percent say religious freedom usually matters most.

Again, a large percentage of undecideds - 28%.

Finally, motivation was called into question.  In sexuality issues, is faith or hate the motivating factor.  Almost half said "faith," but about a fifth said "hate," with almost one-third unsure.

This survey clearly shows a division we are experiencing in America.  There are some that say the matters of religious freedom, which is guaranteed under the Constitution, and sexual freedom, which is promoted by the culture, will not be reconciled.  One of those areas, of course, deals with the LGBT agenda.  The Colson Center for Christian Worldview was involved in promoting a statement regarding the protection of religious freedom against the tide of these so-called SOGI laws, which is an acronym for Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity.

In a commentary on The Point, John Stonestreet stated:

Sadly, some in the Christian community want to compromise with SOGI laws by carving out exceptions for churches and some religious organizations. But this is bad news.

First, to say, as SOGI Laws always do, that sexual orientation or gender identity defines a different class of human beings is simply not true. We must tell the truth about human dignity and value.

Second, this kind of compromise leaves out Christians—like florists, bakers, doctors, lawyers—whose religious freedom also needs protecting.

Now I, along with nearly 100 religious leaders, have signed a statement to protect Americans’ religious rights from unjust SOGI laws.

But that's not to say it, reconciliation, can't be done, according to Stonestreet, quoting from Ryan Anderson of the Heritage Foundation in a later Breakpoint commentary. Anderson contends these SOGI laws are not even needed. The way forward, according to Anderson is, first of all, "we should identify real-world instances of discrimination and then tailor-focus responses appropriate for the need, rather than implementing sweeping SOGI legislation.

Also, Anderson contends that terms should be defined - "carefully:" For instance, "There is a difference, for example, between discrimination and making distinctions. Sex-specific bathrooms and locker rooms, for instance, are not based on discrimination, but upon observable physiological and common-sense distinctions."

Stonestreet goes on:

Ryan concludes, “if other policies are adopted to address the mistreatment of people who identify as LGBT, they must leave people free to engage in legitimate actions based on the conviction that we are created male and female and that male and female are created for each other. This would,” Anderson asserts, “leave all Americans—not just the lucky few who are sufficiently well-connected to be exempted from SOGI laws—free to act on those convictions.”

This is commonsense and Biblically-consistent material relative to the attempt to exalt sexuality over freedom to practice our faith.  And, it is true that there are those who want to force people of faith to accept a particular lifestyle that is anathema to our deeply-held convictions.  There is a tension, no doubt, and people of faith often seem to find themselves on the short end of the stick in light of the prevailing winds.  But, we should not be discouraged, but continue to trust in the Lord and live our lives in a manner that reflect those convictions.

We also should not become angry.  Words spoken in anger do not bring the necessary clarity that is needed to present a persuasive point of view.  We should be prayerful and measured in our response to trends in our culture that conflict with the Christian worldview.

Finally, we recognize that God has a plan for sexuality - it is a good plan, and it has been violated repeatedly.  We don't have to compromise in order to make it more palatable; if we do, we diminish the beauty of what He has intended.