Just Who Are We Talking About? (pt. 1)

     The media, Facebook, and Twitter have been abuzz this week with heated controversy over the Chick-fil-A CEO’s position on marriage and over the government’s mandate that insurance plans cover contraceptives and abortion-inducing drugs.  Comments on both sides center around our rights and freedoms—the right to choose our own lifestyle, the right to control our own bodies, the right to free speech, the right to conscience.

Those in favor of gay marriage say religion shouldn’t be forced upon them, and those that support Chick-fil-A’s position retort that they have the right to freely express their beliefs.  Those opposing the government mandate on insurance say they should have the right to choose where their money goes rather than go against conscience, while their opposition says they shouldn’t complain because they still don't have to take those drugs.

What about God?

Yeah, what about Him? This is my life we’re talking about.  My rights, my freedom, my choice, my happiness.

What makes these so preeminent? 

 Well, I would think if God exists, and if He’s as loving as you claim, He would want to see me happy.  But I don’t think He’s doing His job right.  The way things are today, it seems more like He wants to make things hard on us—we can’t say what we want or live the way we want to. The government keeps trying to control things and take away our freedom of conscience, speech, and lifestyle, which gets awfully uncomfortable. God’s looking out for His agenda more than my happiness.  What’s behind that?

What’s behind that?  Everything!

If we’re claiming that it’s all about our freedom and happiness, we need to step back and take a look at the big picture—especially those of us who call on God to protect those rights for us.  Who is this God whose name we keep invoking?  What is His nature?  

"Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory." (Isaiah 6:3)

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty…” 

“Holy, holy, holy” the angels cry before His throne.  “Be holy, because I am holy,” He says in His Word.  What does this mean, and what does it have to do with American freedoms?

Holiness means that God is sacred, set apart from everything else, unlike anything we know.  He is completely pure, and so anything, anything, impure is repellent to Him.  His holiness forbids Him to tolerate sin—any sin, whether it’s sexual immorality, theft, greed, self-righteousness, or jealousy.  As much as we would like Him to write off our bad behavior so that we can do as we please, He can’t.  It’s not in His nature.

God shows His mercy, not by ignoring our sin, which His holiness could not allow, but by providing a pure and holy sacrifice, Jesus Christ, the sinless Son of God. It is only His blood that cleanses us from sin and makes us blameless enough to stand in the presence of God. We can’t accept this mercy yet choose to keep sinning.  That would be spitting in the face of God and “crucifying the Son of God all over again” (Heb. 9:4-6).  We have to first choose to accept mercy and then choose His way of holiness ourselves.

If America wants the blessing of God, she cannot tolerate sexual immorality, corruption, greed, lawlessness, or anything else contrary to God’s laws.  Nor should she become full of self-importance, pride, and superiority.  To be righteous before God, the American people—and any people in the world—must come humbly before Him in repentance, then embrace His holiness and righteousness by reflecting them in their laws, judgments, and practices.  

What’s the purpose in that?  Why did God even make us if He’s not going to let us do what we want?

Come back in a few days for part 2.