When Tolerance Trumps Truth and Morality

I tend to be bullishly positive about the blessings of being an American
and living in this great land. With our 232nd birthday on the horizon this week I’ll be waving our flag and cheering for the men and women who serve our country. What a heritage we share of courage, freedom, opportunity and blessing. Indeed, “America,” God has “shed His grace on thee.”

But it’s with this in mind that I’m increasingly troubled by the moral and social changes sweeping across our land that threaten to fundamentally reshape our identity as a nation. Almost daily our newspapers report the far reaching implications of our state’s recent high court decision to open the doors on same sex “marriage” on the grounds that to do otherwise would be practicing unfair discrimination. Again and again, public advocates champion the decision as one of progressive civil rights, not unlike the hard won freedoms of women and African Americans to vote. Increasingly public opinion polls reflect a growing acceptance of the change as a compassionate embracing of legitimate diversity. Now, legal challenges are being raised against businesses and religious groups who “discriminate against” same sex couples based on moral principle or religious belief. And unless the state ballot initiative for a constitutional amendment to define marriage as it has been historically understood as the union between a man and a woman is passed, we can expect a landslide of legal action against those who resist. You’ve heard the argument, “What right do these religious moralists have to impose their narrow beliefs on everybody else?!”

The fact is, however, that the shoe is on the other foot. It is a vocal minority of same-sex practioners who are pushing to impose their “narrow beliefs” on our culture as a whole. And the tragedy is that our society is increasingly lacking the moral discernment to see the issue clearly and so to answer the challenge. Where is the voice of those who understand that the moral boundaries on the family unit are the very glue that preserves its integrity? And that when these boundaries are broken down we lose one of the key foundational building blocks of a healthy American society? Has the fear of being viewed as intolerant so muted our voices that we’ll no longer speak our convictions? Or can it be that even we who have stood for the traditional family on biblical grounds are losing our moral resolve as the salt and light of our society?

This past month the findings of a survey conducted by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life in America were released. Surveying more than 35,000 respondents and with attention given to broad representation, the study has been touted as the most accurate current picture we have on religious life in America. And most surprising to many is the tolerance of all religious groups for the legitimacy of other religious beliefs as being equally valid expressions of truth. Even 57% of so called “evangelicals” agreed that other paths than the teachings of their own faith could lead adherents of those paths to eternal life. Incredible. The majority of those who once defined themselves by their commitment to the uniqueness of the gospel of Jesus Christ to give life are now waffling on this very foundational tenet. So, here we have it. If tolerance trumps truth on the most foundational element of our Christian faith, then why should we be surprised if our culture, once rooted in a biblical worldview, now abandons its commitment to a morally defined boundary on marriage? The roots of this drift are closer to home than I like to admit.

“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how will it be made salty again?... You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.” Would you join me in strengthening your commitment to letting the light and truth of Jesus Christ shine through you as we face this challenge to our culture’s very foundations.

For the God blessed future of America,
Dave
Pastor Dave