According to a new survey from LifeWay Research, the ‘culture war’ may well
be lost, and ‘religious liberty’ might not be far behind. The survey revealed that 70% of senior pastors
at Protestant churches say religious liberty is on the decline in the U.S., and
59% of Christians believe they are losing the culture war. As many as 11% consider the culture war is already
lost.
The survey results are staggering –
indicating grave concerns about the moral direction of the nation … from both
the pulpit and the pew. Ed Stetzer, the
president of LifeWay Research said, “Ten
years ago we were talking about who would win the culture war and now we’re
talking about how will Christian rights be protected after the culture war. We’ve lost our home field advantage. There are going to be some things that are
different.” Stetzer said it’s a big
shift. “And it’s a shift I would not
have guessed,” said Stetzer.
Over the past year, I’ve posted
numerous blogs documenting dozens of instances of religious persecution in the
U.S. … primarily waged against Christians. The attacks on Christians go from students
ordered to stop praying in front of the Supreme Court to military chaplains
being told they could no longer pray in the name of Jesus.
I’ve written several entrees on gay
rights activists against Christian-owned businesses who cater to the wedding
industry. Christian bakers, florists and
photographers have been hauled into court and brought up on state
discrimination charges for declining to participate in same-sex weddings. And in every instance – lower courts have ruled
that ‘gay rights’ trump ‘religious rights.’ So perhaps the survey results should not be a
surprise.
Robert Jeffress, the pastor of First
Baptist Church of Dallas, TX, says, “The primary reason Christians are losing
the culture wars is that pastors are AWOL when it comes to informing and
energizing their congregations.” Unless
Christians stand up and engage the political process, Jeffress said he fears
there may come a day when religious liberty is extremely curtailed. “A religious leader once said, ‘my successor
will see the tax exempt status removed from churches and his successor will go
to jail,’” Jeffress said. “That is
probably on the horizon.” Jeffress said
the church must involve itself in the political process. “There are 50-80 million evangelicals in
America,” he said. “Only half are
registered to vote and only half of those voted in the last election.” Jeffress said it’s imperative for people of
faith to engage the culture. “Every time
we go to the voting booth we are casting a vote for righteousness or
unrighteousness,” he said.
Stetzer said he hopes the survey will
spark a “fruitful national conversation about religious liberty concerns.” “The perception was that the culture war was
once a winnable war,” Stetzer said. “But
it’s switched from an offensive battle to a defensive battle.”
President Ronald Reagan once said, “If
we ever forget that we are one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone
under.”
Listen my Christian brothers and
sisters: Remember again that portion of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount when He said
– “Blessed are those who are persecuted
because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you,
persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your
reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were
before you.” (Matthew 5:10-12)
Rev.
Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain
(Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor,
Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel
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