SECULAR SANCTUARIES

I’m tired of hearing from Christians, pastors and lay people alike, who buy into the fantasy of the separation of church and state.  Sure they all can quote the First Amendment that says the government should stay out of a church’s business and all can rail about attacks on Christian beliefs by our government, but they are missing the point.  No where in the First Amendment does it say that churches should leave the battlefield to non-believers and politicians.

What is today’s secular sanctuary?  Where do the secular worship?  I’ll tell you where, it’s in the halls of government.  It’s in the Statehouse in Concord and in our Congress.  It’s in our schools.  It’s in a multitude of government institutions.  To use a familiar phrase, “What Would Jesus Do?”  We don’t have to speculate.  All we have to do is read the story of Jesus rampaging through the temple and over turning the money changer’s tables.  If he were alive today (and when he returns), I believe that’s what you would see him do.  He’d rampage through all these secular sanctuaries, overturning the tables and chasing the scoundrels out.

So what are our pastors and lay people doing?  We are called upon to be Christ like, but what do we do?  We hide in our homes and behind our pulpits, not engaging and rampaging in the secular sanctuaries.  We rant about the horrible politicians and what they are doing to our freedoms and our families, but for the most part, we do this behind our Christian walls.  We’ve ceded the battlefield to the enemy and the enemy is having a great romp!  Maybe we should think, “What WILL Jesus Do?”  What WILL he do when he returns and sees that all we’ve done is wait for his return behind our walls?

In the recent elections, it was clear that we are playing it safe and staying home while non-believers are rampaging through the secular sanctuaries.  Our voting record, both in quantity and quality is abysmal.  It’s time that we do what Jesus did and rampage through the secular sanctuaries!