BY RON BARTANEN ─ Christians are continually being demeaned in today’s world for what some call cherry-picking—choosing sins for condemnation that are less frequently condemned in the Bible, especially the sin of same-sex sexual relationships. We are especially chastised for not accepting the U.S. Supreme Court’s redefinition of marriage to include same-sex couples.
All that is written, whether in few passages of scripture or in many, should be equally accepted. The practice of many in condemning some sins while excusing others cannot be justified.
The Pharisees were rebuked by Jesus for omitting “weightier matters of the law”, such as “judgment, mercy and faith” while at the same time slavishly observing the law pertaining to tithing of the “mint, anise and cumin” in their gardens (Matthew 23:23). Jesus said, “This (the weightier matters) ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.”
“Christians” who often are judgmental of others’ opinions or conduct are often discovered to be deep in sin in other areas. Such cannot be excused.
However, the importance of a topic is not determined by how many verses specifically condemn a sin. If a sin is condemned only once, specifically or in principal, it is no less a sin than one frequently mentioned.
For instance, there are more scriptures against same-sex relationships, such as Lev. 18:22, Rom. 1:24-27, 1 Cor. 6:9, 1 Tim. 1:9-10, etc., than on the heinous sins of incest and pedophilia combined.
The fact is, there is no “cherry” on God’s “cherry tree” that should go unpicked. There should be no sin on which a Christian should remain silent, even in the name of tolerance.
When a society, such as our nation, ignores God’s laws, Christian citizens have the obligation to speak up. When “churches” are caving in to the world’s standards rather than choosing to stand firm on God’s word, it gives us some hope when some preachers and churches risk their popularity by speaking out, rather than compromising with the devil. Such “cherry-pickers” are to be commended, not criticized.
As churches, and as a nation, we are being called upon to tolerate what the Bible labels as sin, or be labeled as bigots, haters, homophobic, etc., while homosexual activists, with the assistance of the media, show intolerance of those holding Biblical values. In some manner we’re told to “Mind your own business.”
The thing, however, is that the church, spoken of as “the light of the world”, exists to promote righteousness by God’s standards. We are not here to be entertainment centers, and preachers are not to satisfy “itching ears.” The apostle Paul warned Timothy of the time when “they will not endure sound doctrine: but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears” (2 Tim. 4:3).
We need to wake up to what is happening while we sleep and heed the warning:
“The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God” (Psalm 9:17).
Ron is a gospel preacher who lives in a care facility in Florida. This article was slightly adapted from his email newsletter, “The Sower.”
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