"It doesn't matter what rights you have under the Constitution, if the government can punish you for exercising those rights. And it doesn't matter what limits the Constitution puts on government officials' power, if they can exceed those limits without any adverse consequences. In other words, the Constitution cannot protect you, if you don't protect the Constitution with your votes against anyone who violates it. Those government officials who want more power are not going to stop unless they get stopped." - Thomas Sowell.
Everyone professes to have courage except when they have to do courageous things. There is no conflict of interests in wanting what's best for your neighbor and families under the laws of the land in which you live. If that means morally upholding such documents or foundations that enable you to live in peace and share the gospel then that's what we're commanded to pray for. Usually when we hear the Scripture say in 1 Timothy 2:1-4, "First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth" we pray for individuals and rightly so. But what if we have been sinfully negligent, led astray even by religious leaders, who ignore the authority of our land we are to pray for? What if in neglecting to pray for this authority we are damaging our ability to live in peace and freely share the gospel that saves?
How many of us pray for the preservation, upholding, and defense of our Constitution? Beneath the LORD, it is the authority above all human institutions in our land and we let it perish at our peril. In our days, we are seeing an outright attack on this authority by godless violent Marxist individuals and parties. We are told by false teachers to just go along to get along. We are being told that it is a fictional sin of "Christian nationalism" to want to ensure the tranquility and just foundations of our Republic. In the words of Mordecai to Esther when Haman was seeking government power through deception and violence, "Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, “Do not think to yourself that in the king’s palace you will escape any more than all the other Jews. For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (4:13-14). I believe to the very depths of my soul that this is the day we are called to take a stand. This is the time, this is the church's time, if she will shake off the voices of false teachers who tell us that acceptance with the world will make us safe. It will not.
We become bold and fearless when we realize that our freedom in Christ is a dangerous freedom that carries with it joyous responsibilities not merely for us, but also towards our neighbors as well. They are ignored at our own peril, our families, and our neighbors. We have come to such a time as this to be bold, to accept and stand upon truth, to walk into the presence of earthly powers, and defend the lives of others, "Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai, “Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish” (4:15-16). Would that the entirety of the modern church had an ounce of the courage of this young woman! Compared to her, the failed leadership of the SBC, our entities, and teaching institutions are spineless cowards when it comes to confronting tyranny or laws against the Christian conscience. They remain silent if it makes their lives easier. They would side with Haman if it meant avoiding the gallows. They masquerade themselves with pragmatism thinking they are secure because they the world accepts them. The teach
That way is not for us! We must pray, we must fast as we can, and even if it be against the laws of man, we must be willing to accept whatever consequences come to us knowing that by His sovereign pleasure this is our time to go forth and save the land, save the people of this land, in which we live and the Document that is the God given authority over it. People of God, pray and then get up off of your knees and go forward expecting our great God to go with us no matter what may come. We have to use our time, or it will pass us by to the hands of others who by their honor, integrity, and selflessness will preserve the founding Authority of this land and by doing so preserve its citizens. That honor should be ours.
Grace and peace, Bro. Charles Johnson
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