I’ve been reflecting on the recent incidents regarding the LGBT
community’s attacks against Chick-fil-A because its president Dan Cathy expressed
his belief in “the biblical definition of the family unit,” which also I
believe in—without apology. Why would anyone be surprised that Mr. Cathy responded
this way during an interview with the Baptist Press on last month? Long before
that, it was no secret that he was a Christian. Moreover, his belief is
consistent with the Christian faith.
Several mayors have joined the LGBT community’s cause by publicizing that Chick-fil-A is not welcome in “their” cities.
As a voice in the Christian community, my concern here is that many Christians will allow these recent events to intimidate them to the point of fearing to express their faith. Nothing would make many in the LGBT community happier. The same is true about many of our politicians. But hear me friends, fear to express our faith is not the will of God for His people. “God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7). Based on this verse, if you are feeling a sense of fear as a result of the recent events, know that this is not from God.
In America, each person has the right to express his personal beliefs. Even if he is a businessman, he can have religious beliefs, and he can express the same. This basic right to freedom of speech applies to every American citizen--including Christians.
I find it rather troubling that high-ranking city leaders would be so bold as to say—even if they can’t make good on their threat—that a company cannot locate in “their” city because they disagree with the religious beliefs of the company’s leader. If this mindset were to become the order of the day, America would cease to be the country we know her to be.
This issue with Chick-fil-A is not an isolated case. Sad but true, it is just one more example of a growing intolerance in America for true Christian convictions.
Freedom of speech is not reserved for some sectors of our society at the expense of the others. More importantly, the will of God is that we Christians boldly live out and express our faith. This we must do, if we are to carry out the Great Commission commanded by our Lord. We know there is much work yet to be done. For America today is not getting closer to God but she is moving farther from Him. And Jesus said He will be with us even until the end of this present age (see Matthew 28:20).
Copyright ©2012 by Frank King. All rights reserved.
Several mayors have joined the LGBT community’s cause by publicizing that Chick-fil-A is not welcome in “their” cities.
As a voice in the Christian community, my concern here is that many Christians will allow these recent events to intimidate them to the point of fearing to express their faith. Nothing would make many in the LGBT community happier. The same is true about many of our politicians. But hear me friends, fear to express our faith is not the will of God for His people. “God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7). Based on this verse, if you are feeling a sense of fear as a result of the recent events, know that this is not from God.
In America, each person has the right to express his personal beliefs. Even if he is a businessman, he can have religious beliefs, and he can express the same. This basic right to freedom of speech applies to every American citizen--including Christians.
I find it rather troubling that high-ranking city leaders would be so bold as to say—even if they can’t make good on their threat—that a company cannot locate in “their” city because they disagree with the religious beliefs of the company’s leader. If this mindset were to become the order of the day, America would cease to be the country we know her to be.
This issue with Chick-fil-A is not an isolated case. Sad but true, it is just one more example of a growing intolerance in America for true Christian convictions.
Freedom of speech is not reserved for some sectors of our society at the expense of the others. More importantly, the will of God is that we Christians boldly live out and express our faith. This we must do, if we are to carry out the Great Commission commanded by our Lord. We know there is much work yet to be done. For America today is not getting closer to God but she is moving farther from Him. And Jesus said He will be with us even until the end of this present age (see Matthew 28:20).
Copyright ©2012 by Frank King. All rights reserved.
2 comments:
In regards to freedom of speech, I think that many christians are fearful of the backlash they may receive if they spoke out against an action they were not happy with. There is also an issue of christians not knowing how to speak out in a proper manner or should I really say eloquently enough to get their message across. It's very easy to say that something is wrong, but it's not easy to back it up with good sound fact, or explain it properly using biblical principals.
I also think that because there are so many different denominations, it makes it very hard for christians to come together as a group to oppose a fundamental wrong.
If you look at the muslims, they seemed to have almost mastered this in the UK. People will mock Christ, the bible and make disgusting jokes BUT try mocking anything to do with the Koran (even if they interpret it differently)..... you will see a togetherness, a firm opposition with one voice protecting what they believe in and it's not always accompanied with violence.
Good points. Christians must be willing to stand up for what they believe based on biblical principles, but also they must know how to express themselves in a way that our present day world can understand and receive what they are saying. Furthermore, I believe that our ability to do this is becoming increasingly more difficult because we live in an increasingly pagan and post-Christian era.
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