Recently, I was reading the news online, and discovered a
story about a newly appointed Chief of Police in our city who believes in
prayer. A former chaplain, he said that
he believed prayer would decrease the crime rates in the city. A couple of
university professors responded to the effect that they didn’t think “religion”
should have anything to do with politics.
Most people who commented responded favourably and I would assume most
of them were dedicated Christian believers.
In fact, the naysayers were far outnumbered. I went back to the article a couple of hours
later, and noticed that the online newspaper had completely changed the article,
and seemed to be trying to capitalize on just the religious aspects of the
article. In fact, they had deleted all
the previous comments, most of them being from the believers who were pleased
with the new Chief’s stance on prayer.
In this second article, the naysayers were trying to take over the
comment forum, and were making typically snide, insulting, disrespectful
comments about the new Chief of Police’s stance on prayer.
All of this brought to mind our current freedom of speech in
Canada . The Chief of Police, or anyone else for that
matter, currently has the right and freedom to speak their beliefs. But alarmingly, for Christians, the door
seems to be narrowing more and more, and we know where this is coming
from. Satan is on the rampage and wants
us to keep our mouths shut! For this
reason, I believe we need to be more and more vocal, and get the Word of God
out there any way we can. There are
several ways to do this: directly from
our mouth, tracts, online forums, books, articles, blogs, wherever media is
involved. In addition, many believe we
are in the last days, and false prophets and false doctrines will be more
common, and they will try to lead as many astray as possible from the Truth of
God’s Word. Notice verse 3 and 4 in the
following:
2Ti
4:1 I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall
judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;
2Ti
4:2 Preach
the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.
2Ti
4:3 For the time will come when
they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap
to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
2Ti 4:4
And they shall turn away their
ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.
2Ti
4:5 But watch thou in all things, endure
afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.
It’s time to speak up, and not shrink back! The time is so short, and we must take every
opportunity, and not get too busy or too tired to do the Lord’s work.
Mar
8:38 Whosoever therefore shall be
ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him
also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father
with the holy angels.
And when we speak, we need to speak the powerful Word of
God, and it will not return void.
Heb
4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper
than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and
spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Isa
55:11 So shall my word be that goeth
forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall
accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
Let’s remember we are not of this world, and we are only
here temporarily on special assignment for the Lord of Lords and King of Kings.
2Co
5:18 All this is from God, who
reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of
reconciliation:
2Co
5:19 that God was reconciling the world
to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has
committed to us the message of reconciliation.
2Co
5:20 We are therefore Christ's
ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on
Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. NIV
Today, may we seek to be faithful to this important calling
while we can still do so with freedom of speech.
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