"This is something that, you know, we’ve talked about over the years and she, you know, she feels the same way, she feels the same way that I do. And that is that, in the end the values that I care most deeply about and she cares most deeply about is how we treat other people and, I, you know, we are both practicing Christians and obviously this position may be considered to put us at odds with the views of others.
But, you know, when we think about our faith, the thing at root that we think about is, not only Christ sacrificing himself on our behalf, but it’s also the Golden Rule, you know, treat others the way you would want to be treated. And I think that’s what we try to impart to our kids and that’s what motivates me as president and I figure the most consistent I can be in being true to those precepts, the better I’ll be as a as a dad and a husband and hopefully the better I’ll be as president."
This is of course last week's statement from President Obama about his support of same-sex marriage. This recent stand has rocked our country in the last week and has polarized an already divided nation. The stand that President Obama made has caused us to have to make a stand as well; either for his stand or against it. Honestly, many of us have already made this stand but because of the publicity surrounding this historic statement from a United States President it has forced many of us to respond publicly as well.
Never before has a President made such a statement. It is historic because of it's content and because of it's implications. Never before has a President publicly backed such a sensitive issue which 5-10 years ago would have been impossible. And what has made it possible? Is it because we as a nation have become more progressive and modern in our tolerance and in our world view or is it because we have lost complete bearings of what used to be the moral compass of our nation? Many, if not most people (based on recent polls) would believe that we have "evolved" into a more caring and loving people who simply want everyone to have equal rights. It's pretty hard to logically argue against granting equal rights. Especially when equal rights and the "Golden Rule" become the pinnacle of what is of utmost importance.
But there are many other people who see the continuing decline of morality as the barometer that indicates that we have not been evolving at all but have been become even more morally depraved than ever. The fact that we live in a world that not only accepts behaviors and attitudes that a short time ago were considered immoral and depraved but now celebrates has become extremely alarming to many. For the President to embrace same sex marriage in the name of "doing unto others as they would do unto you" is in my opinion, the death knell of morality as we used to know it. Many, many people applaud the sounding of this death knell and once again, believe it to be mankind moving progressively and lovingly into the future. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Or rather, from The Truth.
President Obama stated that, "in the end the values that I care most deeply is how we treat other people". He then goes on to say about himself and Michelle Obama that, "we are both practicing Christians". And then, "but, you know, when we think about our faith, the thing at root that we think about is, not only Christ sacrificing himself on our behalf, but it’s also the Golden Rule, you know, treat others the way you would want to be treated.
First of all, I never like trying to figure out who is a Christian and who isn't. I've seen others do that and it's a foolish and dangerous practice. God alone knows the heart and condition of salvation. But the Bible does tell us that "you will know them by their fruit" Matt 7:16. Obama calls him and his wife practicing Christians and they just might be. But what is glaringly obvious is that their theology is far from Christianity.
To place the Golden Rule above Christ sacrificing himself on our behalf is paramount to placing religion and legalism above the all in all of Christianity which is Christ sacrificing himself on our behalf all by it's self. Nothing whatsoever about the Bible, Christianity or any take on God's word supersedes the sacrifice of the cross. It doesn't matter what well intentioned preachers have preached about the "social gospel" of the Golden Rule and how many church goers have placed more emphasis on social programs nothing; absolutely nothing overshadows or replaces the thing that makes the Golden Rule possible! The atoning work of Jesus Christ is it! To minimize the sacrifice of the cross the way President Obama did by placing the Golden Rule as the thing at the root along with the cross is not of God. It is of God's enemy. And it is exactly what makes his support of same sex marriage possible. Whenever we place anything alongside of or above the cross we can then make room for calling evil good and good to be evil. President Obama displayed his fruit and his heart for all to see when he stated that, "in the end the values that I care most deeply about is how we treat other people". He cares more about how we treat one another than he does about the sacrifice of the cross. When anything else other than the cross becomes the primary focus of our minds, our lives, our very being then we have placed whatever that is above God.
It appears noble and wonderful to place the Golden Rule above all else. It's hard to argue with a politician as he is kissing the baby and is feeding the homeless for the maximum photo op. Didn't Jesus care about His people? Absolutely. Isn't that a large part of what it means to follow Him? Absolutely. Didn't He say that the greatest commandment was tied to loving others as yourself? Absolutely. What is wrong about wanting to treat others as we would want to be treated? Absolutely nothing.
What is wrong though is calling sin and evil right and good. Homosexuality is a sin. As is fornication, sex outside of marriage and people "shacking up". It is also sinful to steal, to lie, to cheat, to envy, to disrespect parents or those in authority, to engage in gluttony, to gossip, to do anything that falls short of the holiness of God.
President Obama acknowledged that Christ sacrificed himself on our behalf. Mr. President, what exactly was that sacrifice on behalf of? To give us the ability to endorse, encourage, accept, applaud and to legislate sin in the name of doing unto others or was His sacrifice about Him taking upon Himself the penalty and wrath of our sin in order for us to be saved from our sin? Mr. President I mean no disrespect but you are wrong. If you have really been affected by His cross I doubt you would have said what you said. Imagine yourself standing before that cross and getting His approval of what you have said and done. It's just not possible.
He died for and because of your sin. And mine too. He did not die in order for you or anyone else to make a mockery of His suffering and death by calling what is evil good and good evil. I am afraid that you and those who agree with you have brought unimaginable destruction and horrors upon this country. I pray that you reconsider your stance. Repentance is a wonderful opportunity. I wish you, your family and the whole country well.
But some things come first. And it all begins at the cross.
"How horrible it will be for those who call evil good and good evil, who turn darkness into light and light into darkness, who turn what is bitter into something sweet and what is sweet into something bitter." Isaiah 5:20.
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