The headlines that Louie Giglio will not pray at President Obama's inauguration didn't surprise me. Why would it? Addie Whisenant, the committee’s spokesperson stated "As we now work to select someone to deliver the benediction, we will ensure their beliefs reflect this administration’s vision of inclusion and acceptance for all Americans”** (emphasis mine) What she really should have said, "We want someone to say a prayer to a god that accepts what we have defined or undefined as sin. We don't care what God defines as sin. We have taken homosexuality off the list. We want everyone to accept it now."
Also with this controversy, I suppose Addie Whisenant should've added a parenthesis to her quote regarding "vision of inclusion and acceptance for all Americans." It should say, "vision of inclusion and acceptance for all Americans (except for Jesus followers who accept the Bible as truth and agree with God that homosexuality is sin: you are not accepted). With Louie Giglio's withdrawal from praying in the inauguration, Bible believers are obviously excluded.
The administation must realize that Louie Giglio did not define homosexuality as sin, God did. They are not against Lou Gigio's beliefs, they are against the God of the Bible. They, however, agree with God that sex trafficking is wrong and want to make a stand against it (Louie Giglio's stance against sex trafficking drew the commitee to ask him to pray in the first place).
I'm kind of confused. So does the administration's "vision of inclusion and acceptance for all Americans" include the sex traffickers? Many of them are Americans, right? We should include and accept them? What about the murderers? Many are Americans that we must include and accept? I suppose the administration gets to pick and choose which Americans are included as "all Americans".
Now what?
As Jesus followers, we must
1) Stand for truth even if:
We lose the popularity vote.
The truth of the Bible has not and will never change.
Isaiah 40:8 says, "The grass withers, the flower fades,
But the word of our God stands forever".
People will always have a choice to accept the Bible's truth, or reject it. But truth is not democratic. We can't vote on what we believe is truth, or not. God defines truth. He IS truth. Jesus said, "I am the way, the TRUTH, the life...(emphasis mine)" in John 14:6. The majority vote doesn't change this truth., or any other truth.
We are persecuted for the truth.
The morals the Bible teach will always be misunderstood by our society. When people choose to ignore one part of the Bible, they reject the whole Bible.
"If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the spirit of glory and of God rests upon you." 1 Peter 4:14
"If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of this world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you." John 15:19
2) Pray for ourselves.
You may not be a homosexual or a sex trafficker, but we all have sin that separates us from God.
We are not perfect. We need God's forgiveness. Ask God to point out personal sin. 1 John 1:9 says, " If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness".
3) Pray for our nation.
2 Chronicles 7:14 says,
14 "and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
Even though God spoke these words to the Israelite, His chosen people, He cares that all nations obey Him.
What are your thoughts on Louie Giglio's controversy?
Linked with my friend Kathy Gossen at cornerstoneconfessions and Time Warp Wife and The Better Mom
