In a recent article, Michael Bresciani, editor and publisher of new.americanprophet.org wrote “Make America Holy Again, has never been a political slogan.” This one sentence resonated with this writer as few sentences ever have. In high school, the line from Wm.Shakespeare’s play Macbeth states, “Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow creeps in this petty pace from day to day ‘til the last syllable of recorded time,” and these words became stamped indelibly in my mind and remain so to this day more than six decades later. The absence of holiness as a common goal for Americans will likewise remain imprinted in my consciousness forever.
As I thought about this statement, it became clear that there are seven words that have gradually been disappearing from our churches, and are never used in evaluating any piece of news, any event, or any political or social aspiration in any public venue whether that venue be a TV show, graduation ceremony, political convention, gatherings of mens’ or womens’ organizations, or on radio talk shows. Those words are holy, salvation, sanctification, providence, sin, repentance, and the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Even assuming that it is possible to have freedom of religion and separation of church and state at the same time, how is it that those on the religious side of the equation can be bombarded with transgenderism, homosexual relationships and marriage, child and adult pornography (a billion dollar industry), wife and husband swapping, drag shows for grades K-3, four letter expletives on TV and social media, adulterous scenes enacted on TV and movie screens, proliferation of greed through casinos and slots, state lotteries, horse racing, and the stock market, people shacking up instead of marrying in greater and greater numbers, drug addictions and alcoholism on the rise, assaults and robberies increasing in metropolitan areas, millions of babies aborted, and parents disobeyed and cursed by increasing numbers of restless and rebellious teens?
It seems then that with this “separation of church and state,” the unfaithful, unbelieving citizens set the direction of society, and the truly Christian citizens are allowed to be victimized by these godless trends. It is apparent that the so-called “separation” is a one-way street. “Separation” for thee but not for me say the sinful and worldly keepers of “the Law” as they regularly – nay, daily – slam their doors in the faces of God’s children!
Under the weight of this tidal wave of sin, many churches have stopped thinking of themselves as promoters of holiness but as social agencies trying to ameliorate some of the effects of this deluge of sin that has flooded our American culture (and the entire Western Civilization). They have moved away from their essential mission which should include as their purpose the implementation of the seven words noted above in paragraph two.
As an example, a church I have passed many times has a sign in front with a message, but none of the seven words listed above is included in the church’s appeal to the public.
The church expresses concern with our spiritual cravings. Shakespeare referred to “words full of sound and fury signifying nothing.” First, it must be said that no church fulfills the cravings of our souls. Only the Holy Spirit fulfills whatever that deepest “yearning” might be. And the Holy Spirit only is given unto us if sent by the Father and Son when we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Thus, this claim on its face is false.
The church states that it Is there for all nationalities, people of every political persuasion, all orientations, and all educational levels. Is this not then a church “for all” in the sense of extreme sociability and “acceptance” as the liberal church pretends to be or is it for all who aspire to repent, admit their sinfulness, and become “born again” (John 3:7)?
That church claims to teach us how to be Christians in a “global community defined by its brokenness.” Again, this is a form of obscure language. Here, “broken” is a softening of the problem since the problem for Almighty God is the sin of the world and our so-called “brokenness” is a result of the sin. To this writer, this word broken is used to avoid the word sin.
At one point in my career, when teaching in a public high school, I wrote a column for the union newsletter and in it used one phrase “our sick and sinful world.” One lady teacher with a Ph.D. in microbiology came to see me to complain about my use of the word “sin.” She said, “I just wanted to tell you that there is no such thing as sin.” I asked her what she would say about sexual relations between humans and animals, and she said, “different strokes for different folks.” I asked her about the rape and murder of a four-year old and her answer was, “It’s a crime, but not a sin.” So, clearly, without faith in Almighty God, there is a repudiation of the word sin. Therefore, this pastor/writer concludes that the church’s avoidance of the word sin in favor of “broken” is a movement away from the word sin which itself depends on the existence of Almighty God to have meaning.
Lastly, the church sign speaks of service to the neighborhood. Here we see an avoidance of the essence of our reason for worship, that is, salvation. In worship, we give thanks for salvation and express our understanding that only by embracing the Holy One – Jesus Christ – as our Lord and Savior can we be holy. His life, death, and resurrection transforms us and sets us on a path of holiness. It is not by our own efforts that we become holy. Rather, we are on a path of holiness because of the Lord Jesus Christ, and our striving in the Spirit leads us on a daily path of sanctification. He has told us, “sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” (Matthew 6: 34)
With the gradual disappearance of the above seven words from churches and even more so from the general society, we can see clearly that there is trouble ahead. Sadly, judgment is on the horizon. Politics can solve certain social and political ills, but in an ultimate sense, a society that resists the requirements of holiness is in deep trouble.
Jeffrey Ludwig
To read more articles by Jeffrey Ludwig click here.
