I just read an article about James Dobson’s panel  discussing the events going on this week in the Supreme Court. I am outraged.

I’m not outraged that the highest court in the land is hearing a same-sex marriage case. I’m outraged at our response. The comments to this article and articles like it have left me scraping my jaw off the floor.

Here’s just a sample of what I mean:

 “It’s because of hateful leaders like Mr. Dobson that Christians will be hated. Drop the hate, leave the Old Testament behind and practice the teachings of Jesus and guarantee you will not be hated.”

“Gotta love the arrogance of these so-called Christians who think they actually have the luxury of judging others while ignoring their own shortcomings.”

”The Christians are finally beginning to feel how we’ve felt for 200 years.” “Christians are OK. Bigots like James Dobson are a hated minority”

“Everyone with an O.T. problem with same sex should be aware that eating shellfish or the cow’s milk along with a serving of cow is a big no no. But the church’s morality has always been a cafeteria based on societal tradition and not on Deuteronomy.”

Do these kinds of comments ruffle your feathers? Boil your blood like they do mine?

We have bought the lie. We have crawled into the pot of water and allowed Satan’s propaganda to simmer us down until all our beliefs are dead in the water. We chose this. How did we get here?

I believe it’s two-fold:

• As Christians, we have a history of hypocrisy.

As Casting Crowns “Friend of Sinners” says, “The world was on their way to you [God], but they’re trippin’ over me. Always looking around but never looking up, I’m so double-minded. A plank-eyed saint, with dirty hands and heart divided…Nobody knows what we’re for only what we’re against when we judge the wounded. If we’d put down our signs, cross over the lines and love like you did. Oh Jesus, friend of sinners, open our eyes to the world at the end of our pointing fingers…”

This world is tired of hypocritical Christians. Those of us who for years claim the benefits of Christianity yet deny its true power. Those of us who parade our family on the front row with our dresses neatly pressed, who all nod their heads on time but on the inside are full of ugly lies.

But here’s the deal, we’re all full of ugly lies, some of us just don’t try to hide it! We think we need to act like we have it all together. Then, because we think we have it together, we place this invisible, self-drawn ruler up against everyone else and see if they measure up. If not, we conveniently give them the “3 easy steps to look like me” speech.

Yes, we need to hold one another accountable. But where’s your heart?

Ok, there’s case #1. In our defense, even our greatest attempts of loving others gets twisted as illustrated in the article I referenced. So, here’s the other side to the problem…

• We have become a generation that sees the Bible as a mere History textbook only required for those who plan to purse a future in “religion”. If not, like World Book Encyclopedia, it’s considered boring and out-dated.

For years the Word of Faith movement has dabbled in scripture and if you don’t know your nuts and bolts from a corkscrew, you’re in trouble. Because at the end of the rainbow of “name it, claim it, frame it, it’s yours”, there isn’t really a pot of gold.  You’re left high on human hopes that leave you hung over in the morning with nothing but tear stains as evidence of your dreams. Then we blame God for not showing up how we wanted. Just as we thought to begin with – He doesn’t care anyway. Ask me how I know.

Then we circle all the way back around again and decide that Bible study must only be of value for the preachers and missionaries – they have it together.

Christians, wake up!

This is not true! People like Martin Luther and William Tyndale gave their very life so we could have the Bible printed in our language. It is for the common everyday people. God loves you that much that He sent a letter for us to read until He returns.

                                              ∞∞∞∞

Learning the Word starts at home, not in the pews and not in the schools.

“The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.”

Who is rocking our children?

The church is a wonderful place, but it’s not their job to teach our kids about Jesus. That’s ours! What we do Monday – Saturday either validates what is taught on Sunday or crosses it out.

Check out this interview of everyday people’s answer to who Hitler was- it’ll stop you dead in your tracks, or it should.

The textbook writers can re-write history any way they like, and if you’re not paying attention, you’d never know it. History has a tendency to repeat itself. It’s been doing it ever since the dawn of time. If you never know History, you easily fall victim to the same destructive tactics over and over again.

So as parents, how are we combating the agenda to seduce our children into the culture’s influence?

It goes back to this question: What do you believe? Do you believe the Gospel message? Do you believe it’s the infallible Word of God? Why?

We don’t have the luxury of re-writing what God says just because we don’t like it. Sometimes what God says is tough to walk out, but His Word still stands. Our opinion doesn’t change the fact of His Word.

Is your faith real to you or something you’ve borrowed from a friend or your parents? You will follow Jesus for someone else until it’s an inconvenience; you’ll follow Jesus because you decided to for a lifetime.

If you are following Jesus, then live it! Teach your kids, read the word as a family. Say NO to the extra – curricular stuff that’s stealing your time at the dinner table. Don’t leave it to your Pastor to teach you on Sunday or the Children’s Pastor/Youth pastor to teach your kids. It’s not enough. They need you to live it out beside them!

Fellow Christians, the comfortable days of living among the majority here in the U.S are waning, if not gone. We are entering a time in which it will cost us something to align ourselves with the name of Christ.

So who will you follow? Here’s a story of a family who chose to follow Him, no matter the consequences.