They are burning Bibles in Portland, along with the American flag. What has been dubbed as “peaceful protests” has been hijacked by violent voices. What started as a movement to proclaim the value of black lives has become an aggressive campaign against God. What, exactly, is the present movement protesting?
They are protesting America’s spiritual heritage. There is a push to amend any mention of God or His Word in our history. There has been an all-out effort to push alternative stories that blemish the reputation of the founders. Today an Illinois congressman introduced a bill to discontinue the teaching of history in Illinois schools and to remove all history books.
The effort to revise our Christian heritage is both shameful and harmful. Yes, the founders of our nation were imperfect. But also, we were founded as a nation upon God and the Bible. The founding documents, quotes and historical records reflect that faith. The United States Supreme Court stated in 1892, “Our laws and our institutions must necessarily be based upon and embody the teachings of the Redeemer of mankind. It is impossible that it should be otherwise; and in this sense and to this extent our civilization and our institutions are emphatically Christian.”
They are protesting biblical morality. They do not like what the Bible says about how we should live. In my brief lifetime our culture has moved further and further from biblical standards. Television shows and movies now display scenes at which previous generations would blush. Today’s language is fraught with words once considered obscene. The perversion of sex is not just accepted, but celebrated. The endorsement of same-sex marriage is encouraged, not just by our government, but also by many churches. This verse describes our present culture: “There is no fear of God before their eyes” (Romans 3:18, NIV). The burning of Bibles reflects the attitude of Psalms 2:2-3, which says, “The kings of the earth prepare for battle; the rulers plot together against the Lord and against his anointed one. ‘Let us break their chains’, they cry, ‘and free ourselves from slavery to God’” (NLT).
They are protesting Christian influence. There has been a growing resistance to the Christian church in our land. America was the nation from which the modern missionary movement spread across the world. But now the message of the gospel of Jesus is mocked. The trend of the culture toward the church has been, first, embraced; second, ignored; third, tolerated; and now, resisted. We are living in the days when neither our message nor influence is welcome. “Believe what you want, “ they say, “but keep it in the building.” As the salt of the earth, Christians cannot keep our culture from corrupting, but we can delay the process.
Let us raise the flag and the Christian heritage it represents. But even more so, let us raise the Bible and the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ while we have the time. And let us pray fervently for one more spiritual awakening in our nation.