Will We Pay the Price?

For the first two hundred and twenty three years of our republic, the United States has been a relatively safe have for the practice of Christianity as it is biblically understood. The passage of the First Amendment of the Constitution put to an end the state-sponsored church monopoly that was carried over from Great Britain, and, supposedly, ensured citizens full liberty to practice the faith of their conscience.

Because of theses conditions, persecution of Christians in America was hardly ever heard of. There were the occasional incidents where sects or cults rooted in a “form” of Christianity were attacked, such as the Mountain Meadow massacre involving the Mormons, as well as isolated individual incidents. For the most part, however, the story of America has been one of relative peace for the followers of Jesus Christ. Preachers have been able to proclaim the gospel of Christ with relative safety and protection by law, save for the occasional scoffer of the street corner preacher in your nearby city.

Those days may be coming to an end….and soon.

Two recent stories have alerted us to this fact. First cam the stunning news from our friends in England that a Baptist preacher, Dale McAlpine, was arrested for preaching that homosexuality is a sin, as well as stating the same in a related conversation .

Not long after that came the “disinvitation” of Franklin Graham to participate in a National Day of Prayer event at the Pentagon. The reason: someone in the Pentagon took offense at Graham’s statements concerning Islam.

There is no doubt of the chilling effect of these incidents on the proclamation of the Gospel. Yet, we should not be surprised. Persecution is part of the game. Jesus warned us of such. And the chickens are coming home to roost.

Nobody wants to be disliked, and surely no one desires to be persecuted for their beliefs. But, these incidents should lead all of those who proclaim the Gospel – whether they are a preacher, elder, or teacher – to ask themselves the following: Would I be willing to give up my liberty, and, perhaps, my life, for the sake of the Kingdom?

Not far from where I live is the birthplace of Augustus H.F. Payne. If there was a martyr of the “restoration movement”, Payne was it; he surely was a martyr for the cause of Christ. His desire to preach the Gospel without fear or political favoritism cost him his life in pre-Civil War Missouri. Are we willing to do what Bro. Payne was willing to do? If not, then we need to find something else to do – and sooner rather than later.

Advertisement