YOU MIGHT BE A COWARD IF...
By Lydia Goodman
March 24, 2015
NewsWithViews.com
Anger. Some of us, most of us, can claim to have experienced a palpable and undeniable fury at one time or another in frustration at the decline of our country and the loss of its values, morals, and traditions it was founded upon. Cherished ideals have become a side-note, the butt of mean-spirited jokes, and characterized as something that only “those right-wing extremists” could possibly revere. There is a stench of evil perversely labeled “tolerance” twisting all that is good into something ugly and sinister. How did it happen and how did it happen so quickly? I’ll tell you how. We Christians allowed it when we chose to keep our heads firmly planted in the sand as we superglued our mouths shut in a desperate attempt to not offend. I suggest that the complacency, political correctness, and an irrational fear of being called “intolerant” within the church of believers allowed this downward spiral of our country into the abyss. There’s a whole bunch of cowards operating under the guise of Christianity, not only allowing evil to flourish by keeping their mouths shut, but doing absolutely nothing to advance the Kingdom of God.
If you call yourself a Christian, but you exhibit an unholy tolerance for the sins of yourself and others, tolerance for the brutality of other religions, tolerance for the warped teachings of secular humanists that have successfully infiltrated our educational system and our youngest minds, and if you believe that being tolerant of those who attack everything you believe in will somehow be pleasing unto God...
You might be a coward.
When called upon to defend your faith do you do so without hesitation or do you choose to keep silent in an attempt to avoid being “typecast” as one of “those fundamentalists”? When was the last time you were willing to stand firmly on your Biblical foundation even when those around you were wilting in the face of ridicule? If you shrink from sharing your convictions wrought by the love of Christ within you so that no one will call you a name...
You might be a coward.
You have taken the easy way out, the coward’s way out, because you have chosen not to offend anyone. Have you forgotten that the Cross, no matter how “sweet” you are, is an offense to all those who choose not to believe? Just where has “tolerance and love and peace for all” gotten you personally? I bet you want to be (and probably are) known as “loving and compassionate” for all your good works. Give yourself a pat on the back. I bet that everyone just loves you! I also bet that, on the inside, you are a hot mess because you know and I know that to be called a “Christian” means much more than being “sweet, loving, and compassionate” to all. I know that of which I speak. I’ve tried the “live and let live” route and I’ve tried to see and understand all the “gray matter” between the black and the white. For all my fleshly understanding and compassion, I did nothing but make excuses to justify bad decisions and bad choices. Out of my own cowardice came doubt and confusion which warped and twisted my beliefs. I, myself, became a hot mess. In other words, I had to confess and repent for compromising my beliefs out of a misguided sense of the meaning of the word “tolerance.”
Here’s a question for you. What has light to do with darkness...unless the Light that is within you is poking holes in the darkness? Blurry lines enable darkness to flourish. By refusing to take a stance against the corruption of your faith lest you offend someone, I can almost guarantee that you are offending Jesus. If you’re that type of Christian, count me out. No more. It does not take one ounce of courage to be you.
Let me tell you what offends me. I am offended that Christianity has been turned into a popularity contest. I am offended that so-called Christians would rather “get along to go along” than tell the truth and lead others to Jesus. I am offended that pastors in pulpits across this nation are so cowed by political correctness that they will not even read out loud the scripture they purportedly claim to believe in. I am offended that mega churches with million-dollar medicine men at the helm are duping countless numbers of Christians about the nature of our one true God and the only Way to salvation. I am offended that one’s Christianity is judged by many on nothing more than an emotional feeling or a “supernatural” experience.
Oh, and by the way, I understand that if you’re a secular humanist and have bought into all this moral relativism jumbo and you just happen to be reading this, I know you are saying to yourself right about now, “Who’s truth? Truth is all relative. My truth is not your truth.” Coward. You believe only in your own logic and reason. Not to insult your intelligence, but to quote an old country song, “That don’t impress me much!”.
Please do not misunderstand me. We are to see and love others as Jesus does. We have been given a higher spiritual understanding and compassion for others that enables us to reach those who are dying in their sins. However, compromising one’s beliefs to avoid ridicule or to avoid being pigeon-holed out of fear of what others think will only lead to misery, deception, and bondage. Fear will stymy the work of Christ within you.
When there are moral absolutes in your life, when there are boundary lines in place that you would dare not cross because you understand that every action has a consequence, and when every decision you make is weighed by how it effects someone else and whether it is pleasing unto God, there is a life of freedom and courage awaiting you. You must know that the freedom to live, freedom to choose, and freedom to explore your individuality always comes with a price. The good news for those of us called “Christian” is that the price for our liberty was paid through the redemptive work of our Lord and Savior.
So, do we believe Him when He says His yoke is light? If we truly believe that, then why are there so many of us still not satisfied? Why do so many of us quake at the thought of taking a stand for His Name’s sake? How many of us are still meandering carelessly down paths filled with traps and snares that work overtime to deceive us in a calculated ruse to render our personal Christian walk ineffectual? Is your faith based on emotions and feelings that don’t deserve to be trusted or is it based on what you know to be true--God’s truth?
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How do you conquer the fear and insecurity within you and be the brave warrior that Christ would have you to be? You must know what you believe, you must know why you believe it, and you must stand firm in your beliefs-- no matter the cost.
That, my friend, is true courage...the courage of your convictions, the courage of your faith, and the courage that He that is within us gives us today to recognize and to speak out against the evil that is eroding our country.
© 2015 Lydia Goodman - All Rights Reserve
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As a writer and commentator, Lydia Goodman is passionate about speaking out against progressive policies that threaten to erode our personal rights, freedoms, and traditions. Lydia has also written numerous articles on world human rights issues, in an effort to focus attention on the atrocities perpetuated against people of faith.
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E-Mail: lydia1goodman@gmail.com
