March was quite a month for America! One would think April Fools’ Day would be a break from the insanity of current events. Unfortunately, what used to be considered a parody straight from the Babylon Bee or the Onion has often become reality—especially when it comes to society. Some may dismiss what’s going on, thinking there’s no point in fighting this depravity. The libertarian approach has been popularized by many on the right for the last decade. Has this approach been destructive?
“Just let everyone live their lives! If it’s not affecting you, why care what lifestyle choices someone makes?” Interestingly enough, the same individuals who share this sentiment will complain about how far society has fallen in terms of morality and values. Even Christians have taken this hands-off approach. It started with the progressives of the faith, but slowly conservatives adopted this paradigm. Some are reluctant to hold those who claim the same faith accountable when they’ve openly denied God’s power in certain aspects of their life. They openly live in sin while claiming God’s name, in a similar fashion to Will Smith after he slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars. An unrepentant life, with the individual as the gatekeeper of morality, instead of leaving it to God. And despite the obvious hypocrisy, the person who does call for accountability in accordance with God’s law is often vilified. A call to lift each other to a higher standard—the one God set before us.
Repentance is a vital component of this conversation. I’m not writing this article to suggest that those who are open and honest about their sins are to be judged. Much like the adulteress who was about to be stoned before Jesus stepped in, she recognized the law she had just broken. And many modern Christians today on both sides use this passage from John 8 to justify passivity—“Let him who is without sin cast the first stone” (v. 7). Here’s what’s overlooked: Jesus saw the adulteress’ heart. She knew she had sinned against God. And once she saw God’s mercy, she had a change of mind to turn away from the sin that got her into that situation. This eventually led Jesus to tell the woman, “Go on and sin no more” (v. 11). That’s repentance—a change of mind, with the willingness to surrender the flesh daily to live out God’s will.
Part of living according to God’s will is lifting people of faith to higher standards. Yes, there’s grace; however, what’s the point of grace if one isn’t willing to be truthful about the state of the individual? Believers in Christ have the responsibility to call out each other’s hypocrisy in the same manner Jesus did. There are people in my life that hold me accountable for the language I use, especially during recordings for a podcast. It’s an area that needs work; however not only do I see the need, but I want to encourage others to do the same. What I want for myself, I want for others, because I have observed how sin can bring destruction into someone’s life, including my own. If I’m struggling with a matter of my conscience, such as whether using Disney is contributing to their satanic agenda, guess what? That means I’ll also be challenging anyone who’s conscience isn’t being affected. Plot twist, the devil hates that!
The devil would love nothing more than to keep sin in the dark, unaddressed. That’s how we are seeing new levels of depravity reached, to the point where the normalization of pedophilia is at our doorstep. When left alone, that’s when sin gains momentum. It’s a slow cooker, as it starts with giving sin one inch. Society didn’t get to this point overnight. This was an accumulation throughout the years of rejecting God’s laws, in favor of our own understanding. This is the same circumstance that led to Eve eating the fruit. Not only did Eve favor her own understanding, but Adam watched idly by as the snake smooth-talked Eve into eating the fruit of knowledge. Adam took the hands-off approach in that situation; thus, sin entered the world. Sin—that’s been known to bring disease, natural disasters, genocides—was the result of Adam not calling Eve to a higher standard, as God commanded. The levels of depravity we’re experiencing now shouldn’t be a surprise, yet we should be convicted by it. The church failed, but there’s hope in Christ. As many times we may fall, Christ will command us to get up and walk again. We continue to walk in righteousness that’s covered by the blood of Jesus, doing our best to live out His will. Repentance from the church is the key starting point for the pattern of sin to break. Thus, maybe these headlines may become a parody once more.
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