The Supreme Court today has issued its ruling, and although most of us probably are not terribly surprised, it is still a blow to the gut for those who believe that a biblical view of marriage is one man and one woman. As Christians, how should we respond?
We should continue to live by faith. The Lord is still on His throne. Heaven is not in crisis-mode. God's sovereignty is not trumped by the will of man, whether that will is executed in the voting booth or from the bench. That the world would choose to bow before self rather than God is no surprise. But as those who willingly bow the knee to King Jesus, we need not cower in fear nor quit in defeat. Rather, we exalt in hope, because our God reigns!
We should continue to live the gospel. The gospel of Jesus Christ is the only means of true identity for men and women. Without the gospel, man's identity is just a twisted version of what God originally created. The gospel restores this identity by making all things new, and as Christians we should live resurrection lives before a world desperately in need of the restoration accomplished at the cross.
We should continue to proclaim the gospel. Because the gospel is the only answer to the sin issue that plagues mankind and twists our understanding of what it really means to be men and women, we must be heralds of this message. Now more then ever, you and I need to declare to the world, in gentle words and in compassionate deeds, one simple thing: Jesus Christ, crucified and resurrected.
We should continue to invest in our churches. The church is a place for coming together to worship our reigning God, for encouraging one another to be faithful, for helping to bear the burdens of those who are struggling to do just that. We need to continue to build into the church by attending, utilizing spiritual gifts for the building up of the body, and ministering to one another as well as to those outside. Our churches will be ground zero for the coming wave of broken people that will soon be looking for answers and healing, but in order to minister to them tomorrow, we must be investing in our churches today.
We should continue to invest in our marriages and families. The greatest testimony to a biblical view of marriage and family are biblical marriages and families. We cannot stand in the public square and disavow other's households if our own is in disorder. No one will listen. Our marriages and homes must be built upon the gospel, steeped in truth, and overflowing with grace and love.
We should continue to pray. And if we haven't been praying, we should start. We should ask the Lord to protect His people, churches, and ministers in the days to come. And if He chooses to permit us to suffer, let us pray that He will provide us with the strength to stand firm. We should entreat Him to break our hearts over our own sin as well as soften them towards those whom sin has crushed. We should implore Him to give us opportunities to tell others what true redemption and liberty really are, and we should beg Him to give us gentle boldness when those opportunities present themselves.
There are times in history when God permits events to occur that rouse His slumbering children, that causes us to shake off the comfortable blankets of apathy and wipe the sleep from our eyes. The days of mediocre, comfy Christianity in America are gone. Today we step into a new world. May we do so firmly entrenched in the gospel of Jesus Christ, newly aware of who we are in Jesus and of the power of His name. And may we never, ever recover.
