So when you pray for the persecuted church, don't just pray that God will protect them. Pray that they will remain faithful and proclaim boldly the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
TROUBLE CHRISTIANS FACE IN AMERICA
Christians in America don't face arrest, imprisonment or death. We face lawsuits, labels, political correctness, loss of tax exemption, media gibes, and derision from the intellectual elite. For example, a developer in our city paid for an advertisement in a local newspaper. The ad promoted his new housing project and noted that it was "near Southeast Christian Church." An executive from the Fairness in Housing Commission called him insisting that he not repeat the advertisement because it was discriminatory against non-Christians. The developer was threatened with a lawsuit if he didn't comply.
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We need to pray that God will give us the courage to face such opposition fearlessly. If our brothers and sisters in other countries can stand up for their faith when faced with nooses and steamrollers, surely we can refuse to cower when faced with lawsuits and letters to the editor.
One of the graduating seniors in our church was asked to have the benediction at the end of her baccalaureate service. She was warned it was to be an "inspirational moment" and she was cautioned not to pray. The ACLU tries to put the pressure on schools at graduation time, so attorneys of the public schools send out memos to principals saying things like, "If at all possible, please instruct your students not to pray. Instruct them to say something meaningful or read something inspirational. If they insist on having a time of prayer, make it a moment of silence." The ACLU is powerful because too many people cower to the opposition. We're terrified of legal entanglement. We fear the financial impact or the bad publicity such trouble can bring. Instead, we should be praying for the kind of boldness for which our brothers and sisters in other countries are famous.
Sometimes when I'm preparing a sermon, I'll be studying a Scripture or topic that brings to mind a "controversial" issue. I will sense the Holy Spirit leading me to deal with the issue from a biblical perspective. It might be the topic of abortion, homosexuality, divorce, women's role in the church, the exclusive claims of Christ as the only way to salvation, or any of the dozens of other controversial subjects. I'm often tempted to think, I don't want to appear anti-intellectual. I don't want the media ridiculing me. I don't want to make another pro-choice political candidate mad at me. I think I'll just avoid this topic. I'll skirt this issue. A voice in my head will whisper, Don't call it a perversion — call it a struggle. Don't tell them about divorce, tithing or abstinence — those are old-fashioned ideas. Don't call it sin — call it "morally challenged." You don't want to offend anybody.