The Whirlwind of the Sexual Revolution

We are currently being made aware of one sexual scandal after another. We learn of new scandals among legislative leaders and entertainment icons. Should we be surprised at mass of revelations of sexual impropriety? Not really.

The prophet Hosea said a long time ago, "They sow the wind, and reap the whirlwind.” Mankind sows the wind when sin becomes a way of life. Sin may not be punished immediately so man continues to sin. If sin is punished, it is not that bad of a punishment, so man continues in sin. Eventually, a tipping point is reached and a harvest is reaped that comes in like a whirlwind.

What is unfolding before our eyes with the downfall of large numbers of men in power is the byproduct of the sexual revolution which began in the 1960’s.

In the 1960’s an all-out assault on sexual mores was undertaken. The sexual revolution was sold in our society as a good thing. Sexual freedom would allow people to remove the shackles of repressive, puritanical morality and experience freedom. People are sexual beings, and they need to explore their sexuality when they feel ready, without fear of guilt or shame.

This theme has been drummed into our heads continually, especially in movies and on television. Think of shows like Friends or Sex in the City, which casually promote the idea that you can have sex with multiple partners with no effect on a future marriage relationship.

A culture was built as a consequence of the sexual revolution. The revolution has been in progress for more than 40 years. Now that the whirlwind is hitting, people in favor of that revolution are shocked that there are casualties.

The reality is that when you remove the moral fences around human nature, human nature runs wild. The revolutionaries told men and women it was perfectly acceptable to pursue sexual fulfillment with abandon. With no limits, what is coming out, in our time, regarding sexual immorality should not be a surprise.

We as a society used to have standards of behavior in regard to sexual morality. However, the societal revolutionaries destroyed decent behavior among men.

Once you have torn down the wall of sexual boundaries, can that moral wall be re-established? It can be re-established if men and women are willing to turn back to the biblical standards that guided our nation throughout most American history.

Imagine if we turned back to a one sentence guideline: You shall not commit adultery. Putting this one boundary back in place limits sexual interactions between men and women to marriage only. If this limit were heeded, there would be no sexual harassment since men and women would be dedicated to their spouse or the one who will become their spouse.

It would be wonderful to see a return to the morality God revealed in His word.

The good news is there is coming a time when that will be a reality. As Christians our hope is that day will come soon.

Enjoy God’s Sabbath day,

Gary Smith

The "Success Sequence" - It's Biblical!

Sociologists apply themselves to looking at social trends in
order to understand more fully the human condition.

One societal trend that has been noted recently is “The
Success Sequence.” I came across this subject in reading a
National Review article of July 5 entitled, “What If Major
Causes of Poverty Are Behavioral?”

He points out that the major cause of poverty plaguing one
generation after another is “family disintegration.” He says,
“Some cause of this remain unclear, but something now seems
indisputable: Among today’s young adults, the “success
sequence” is insurance against poverty.” He then cites the
study that supports this conclusion.

The success sequence is defined in the study is: get at least a
high-school diploma, then get a job, then get married, and only
then have children. “Wang and Wilcox, who did the study,
“focusing on Millennials 28 to 34, the oldest members of the
nation’s largest generation, have found that only 3 percent
who follow this sequence are poor.” In other words, if a
young person wants to avoid poverty and be successful follow
this sequence.

Sadly, this sequence for success is being followed less and less
in 21st century America. To make sure this sequence
continues, Mr. Will advocates promoting this sequence in
various ways to ensure that we do not substitute supposed new
realities in old principles that worked well.

The question is where did these old principles that worked
well in America for most of its existence come from? Mr. Will
does not explain.

Another author, Melissa Mackenzie, addressed the success
sequence on July 6, 2017 in a piece, in the American
Spectator, entitled, “Church, Family Millennials, and the
Success Sequence.”

She agrees with George Will’s data, but she concludes the
values of “success sequence” have a very definite Christian
origin.

She writes, “Parents who believe that education, selfsufficiency,
and marriage before children are going to raise
their kids with those beliefs and more importantly, choose
environments that support those beliefs and strengthen those
beliefs. Their beliefs drive their reasoning which drives their
decisions.”

Ms. Mackenzie asks, “What institution reinforces lifeaffirming
beliefs and gives social and economic support to
people beyond their families? The State? No. The Church.”
We would agree because we know that the success sequence is
biblical and would be part of what the church would promote
for its young people.”

She further states, “The “old principles” that Will alludes to
are taught in church. Don’t fornicate or adulterate. Take care
of your children (I Timothy 5:8). Get married (I Corinthians
7:9). Work hard (Ecclesiastes 9:10). Don’t get divorced
(Matthew 5:31). Care for widows and orphans (James 1:27).
Take care of the hungry and needy (Matthew 25:35-45). How
quaint, right?”

The sociological study that points to the “success sequence” is
a recipe for a better life for all who follow the sequence.

As of July 2017, we find a diminishing number of young
people following this prescription primarily because of the
breakdown of the family and the trend away from church
attendance and adherence to biblical values.

As the Sabbath draws near, we can know that there is time
coming when the “success sequence” will be a worldwide
standard.

Have a pleasant Sabbath,

Gary Smith

Preaching the Gospel

As the Sabbath day arrives, I would like us to consider “the preaching of the Gospel.”

When Jesus began His ministry, He began to preach a particular message. Mark mentions this in Mark 1:14-15, “Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel."”

After His death and resurrection, Christ re-emphasized the work that the Apostles were to carry out, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen (Matthew 28:19-20). Clearly the Apostles were to carry on the work that Christ began in Galilee. They were to preach the gospel message of the soon coming kingdom of Heaven. They were to make disciples, which can only be done by teaching the truths of the Bible. These verses emphasize repentance since one can only have their sins washed away in the waters of baptism upon repentance.

Did the Apostles preach the gospel? We only have to look at what happened on the day of Pentecost in 31 AD. Acts 2:38-41 “Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call." And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, "Be saved from this perverse generation." Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them.”

The Gospel was preached. Disciples were added to the Church by God and congregations were established throughout the world. For a time, the Church of God enjoyed a relative freedom to preach the truths of the Bible and to meet the Roman Empire and beyond.

However, by the end of the 1^st Century, distortion of the truth and persecution upon the Church had begun. By 325 AD, with the decisions of the Council of Nicaea and Roman Emperor, Constantine, God’s people had to go into hiding for better than 1280 years. At the end of that time, the door was slowly opened for the Church to go forward to openly preach the Gospel.

For those of us associated with the Radio Church of God and its later manifestation, the Worldwide Church of God, we have lived in a remarkable time. A hundred years in which there has been relatively little suppression of the truth. It has been a time when the church could proclaim the Gospel to the world, over the airwaves, on TV, and in print. It has been an era in which the Church could meet in peace without fear of oppression.

On Friday, June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court decided a case legitimatizing something that is condemned by the scriptures. It opens the door for actions to be taken against those who wish to follow the scriptures.

Some questions:

• Will we be able to meet in peace while holding fast to the truth?
• Will we individually and collectively come under attack because our religious beliefs?
• Will we be able to hold jobs where we are forced to accept something we know to be in opposition to God’s way of life?
• Most fundamentally, can we continue to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ if we can no longer preach the message of repentance from dead works?

Pandora’s Box has been opened and there is no putting what has been unleashed back in the bottle.

Will we follow the Apostles admonition as we go forward in preaching the truth even if we are threatened and persecuted? Note what Peter and the other apostles said in response to the religious authorities seeking to suppress the truth, “We ought to obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by hanging on a tree. Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him." (Acts 5:29-32).

How the future will unfold exactly is unknown, but all of God’s people must be aware that on June 26, 2015 we crossed a threshold that can only bring challenges for God’s people.

We especially need God’s protection, wisdom, and guidance as we journey on to the Kingdom of God.

Stay focused on the hope we receive every Sabbath day and may God hasten the reality that the Sabbath portrays.

Gary Smith