Freedom. Lost.

I just participated in a social media conversation about vaccines and religious exemptions and it struck me, that we may not be far from losing that option. Until now, my religious freedoms have not been called into question by the government. But there is a day coming, not long from now, when we will be made to choose.

Do I attend a true church or a state church marked by compromise? Do I host that gay wedding or lose my business? Do I abort my baby because the government says I have enough already? Do I inject vaccines laced with aborted fetuses, DNA from animals and other poisons into my child because my religious exemption has been revoked? 

So what do you do then? What’s the right answer? Quite honestly, I don’t know at this present moment. Well, maybe I have an inkling, but it’s painful and I want to know for sure. And so I am writing as I research and decide. Because if they come knocking at my door, I need to know what I believe and why? I need to know where I stand, how I will stand and what I will do. And so do you!

I am going to suggest that the first thing we need to do is pray. But pray NOW! In Matthew, Chapter 24, speaking of tribulation when Israel will have to flee, it says, “Pray that your flight will not be in winter or on the Sabbath.” So, why? In Judaism, law states that they may not work on the Sabbath and walking more than a certain amount is considered work. So, fleeing on the Sabbath would be a terrible thing. Now, it is interesting, that seeing as God knows this, he would not just make it so that it will not occur on the Sabbath or in Winter. But instead he tells them to pray!

Persecution is coming to America, folks and God is not merely going to wave a wand at it and make it an easy path for us to walk. He demands we pray! Losing the freedom to make decisions based on our beliefs is coming. Religious persecution is coming. We can choose to pray and be spared or for him to remove certain obstacles which will make our journey lighter.

Recently, one of our children was cleaning the wounds on our pet dog, who had been attacked by a raccoon. It turned out the raccoon had rabies and the suggestion was to have her receive the Rabies vaccine. She has never been vaccinated for anything. She has never had a shot in her life! And here we were faced with Rabies! Immediately, we were dropped into a conversation based on fear.

Rabies is a terrible disease. The only hope is the vaccine. If she develops symptoms its already too late. She was likely exposed. She had had a cut on her hand which interacted with the dogs saliva…. And on and on…

After about 24 hours of fear overtaking us, I felt God whisper, “Do nothing out of fear,…” Then immediately my husband asked, whether the Rabies vaccine contained anything that would compromise our beliefs. We researched it and the answer was yes, it does. The vaccine is created using aborted human tissue.

And I am proud to say, that was enough of an answer for us. The vaccine was off the radar. Our daughter ended up being just fine. And we were thrilled with our decision, and so thankful that God led us to it. We had not prepared ourselves for that one. But now, we must!

With a number of bills being pushed to make vaccinations mandatory, even from so-called Christian presidential candidates, we believers will have a difficult road ahead. Do we obey God, or the government. Do we have a tipping point? A point at which we compromise for another reason because the consequences are too great. Do we have an answer ready? A decision at hand. What are standing for? What are willing to give up to make that stand?

Do we risk losing our children? Do we risk death? Do we risk our homes? Do we leave the country? Would leaving the country even accomplish anything? What is the plan? Is it worth it?

I think it is. I think obedience to God will cost us. Dearly. It may cost us everything. And we need to know if we think it is worth it. And we need to be strong in our faith, know what God’s word says and be able to stand in the day of tribulation. Because it’s coming.

Separate. Not of this world.

 You know, all my life I heard that I was to be separate, set apart; in this world, but not of it. I never truly understood what this looked like. I sort of just went on with my life assuming I was accomplishing that, even though I really couldn’t tell you a single way I was doing it. In fact, the people who often quoted it to me, didn’t seem to be doing anything much different than me either, so we must be getting it right. Right?

And this was the core of my problem with Christianity. The Bible says lying is a sin. But it also says consuming pork is an abomination. Pass the bacon, pastor! Hot crab dip anyone? The church says drinking alcohol is a sin, but Jesus made wine. Hmm. How is a young believer supposed to reconcile this! Why do we obey God’s word in some ways, but not in others. And why do we make new rules that God didn’t make?

So, here is my disclaimer. You’re going to hate me if you read this article. And I’m not sorry.

For much of my life, I figured we got to obey the things that were culturally relevant. Eating pork and shellfish is ok because it’s ok in my culture. While perhaps my pastor thinks drinking alcohol is wrong, it’s ok for me because in my sub-culture, it’s acceptable. In fact, coffee is as much a drug as wine, and my pastor always has a cuppajoe in his hand, so, what’s right to you, is what’s right. The old argument, “maybe that is your conviction, but not mine,” seemed like the status quo in the church.

As a result, I made a lot of colossal mistakes in my life. Tragic and reckless forays into sin. But when it only matters what is culturally relevant or what I decide is sin, (i.e., what I personally am convicted of), then who cares. It’s all relative. I hope you can at least see that this is a slippery slope. If you can’t, you’re not ready for this article.

But wait, isn’t the Bible supposed to be our source of truth? If the Bible says it’s sin, is it? Ok. So what if God said it was a sin in the Old Testament, but says nothing of it in the New Testament? Is it sin then? What about God changing his mind. Does he do that? Or do we even have to worry about sin at all anymore? Can we interpret his commandments however we choose? Jesus died for all our sins, so it doesn’t really matter anymore right? Are we going to sidle up to God on judgement day, swing an arm over his shoulder and say, “hey bro, it’s all good! I know you get it, so thanks for letting me live it up and have fun on earth!” Seriously, I had a self-proclaimed believer tell me this in these exact words one day. No joke.

So, what is sin anyway? Which commands do we have to obey? What does living a life of holiness even mean? Is it something we should even aspire to?

Exhibit A.Romans 6:1-2
What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?
 Exhibit B.Malachi 3:6-7
"For I, the LORD, do not change; …. "From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from My statutes and have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you,"…

And if you agree that God has not changed, nor can he change, do you truly believe he changed his mind about what is right and wrong? Do you think you can interpret his commands however you want? Do you think holiness matters? I am not going to go into detail on all the many various topics that this can be applied to. But in your own mind, there is already something penetrating. Conviction, perhaps. Questions most certainly. Seek Him! Seek to truly obey Him, to truly do what God desires. To truly live set apart for Him.

As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.