ANYTHING GOES

ANYTHING GOES
By Cole Porter, Justin Burford 
WB Music Corp., Emi Music Publishing Australia Pty Ltd. 

The world has gone mad today
And good's bad today,
And black's white today,
And day's night today,
…
I know that I'm bound to answer
When you propose,
Anything goes

The debauched Cole Porter probably never thought his song Anything Goes was a prophecy of the 21^st Century. And yet his prophecy was fulfilled, thanks to at least five equally ill-advised Supreme Court justices who decided in June 2015 to legalize same-sex marriage and the Affordable Health Care Act. At that time in our republic we had no moral compass, no safeguard in place to avert the moral breakdown of our society. The highest court in the nation had turned their backs on the intent of the founding fathers of our nation. Those men believed that a robust society should be ruled by laws which had their foundation in the morality of God’s Word. Please note, I am a firm believer that morality cannot be legislated. Yet, if we are to survive as a nation, it is imperative that moral guidelines should be a vital consideration in the adjudication of laws and in all aspects of our society.

I include some of the most prominent founding fathers and their statements of the importance of reliance upon God for the well-being of our nation. It is far better to be on the wrong side of history, than to be on the wrong side of God as the founding fathers attested.

John Adams: in a speech to the military in 1798 warned his fellow countrymen stating, “[W]e have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion. . . . Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”1

George Washington: “And let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of peculiar structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle. It is substantially true, that virtue or morality is a necessary spring of popular government. The rule, indeed, extends with more or less force to every species of free government. Who, that is a sincere friend to it, can look with indifference upon attempts to shake the foundation of the fabric?”2

James Madison: "Before any man can be considered as a member of civil society, he must be considered as a subject of the Governor of the Universe." - Signer of the Constitution; Fourth President of the United States.3

Thomas Jefferson: "And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are of the gift of God? That they are not to be violated but with His wrath? Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that His justice cannot sleep forever." - Signer and the Principal Author of the Declaration of Independence; Third President of the United States.4

James Madison: “We have staked the whole future of American civilization, not upon the power of government, far from it. We have staked the future of all our political institutions upon the capacity of mankind for self government; upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God.”5

It should be noted that the Supreme Court’s ruling in the matter of the Affordable Care Act was based upon their interpretation of the ‘intended’ meaning of the law that was written, and not upon the plain interpretation of the wording. Does it seem strange that those five justices in 2015 who were supposed to interpret the Constitution were not able to consider the plain ‘intent’ of the founding fathers?

Fast forward to 2022: Five justices, following the original intent of the Constitution, struck down Roe vs. Wade, a 50 year old law legalizing abortion, correctly basing their argument that such an issue was not found in the Constitution. The backlash towards these justices has never been seen before in history. It only proves the unfortunate fact that we as a nation still do not have a moral consensus. Even though the moral intent of the Founders is well documented, there is a crusade among many to devise their own “moral compass”—one that dismisses the Founders’ intent of a reliance upon God. This will lead only to anarchy and the collapse of our Republic.

So it seems for those who wish the demise of our country, I guess to them, anything goes…

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1 John Adams, The Works of John Adams, Second President of the United States, Charles Francis Adams, editor (Boston: Little, Brown, and Co. 1854), Vol. IX, p. 229, October 11, 1798.)

2 George Washington, Address of George Washington, President of the United States . . . Preparatory to His Declination (Baltimore: George and Henry S. Keatinge), pp. 22-23. In his Farewell Address to the United States in 1796.

3 http://www.gospelway.com/government/hobby_lobby.php (accessed June 29, 2015)

4 http://www.gospelway.com/government/hobby_lobby.php (accessed June 29, 2015)

5 A Memorial and Remonstrance Against Religious Assessments, June 20, 1785; The Papers of James Madison, Edited by William T. Hutchinson et al. Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 1962–77 (vols. 1–10); Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1977–(vols. 11–) Vol. 8

 

© 2022 David M. Rossi 

    

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A BIBLICAL EXAMINATION OF HOMOSEXUALITY AND SAME SEX UNIONS - PART III

PART 3: THE BIBLICAL RESPONSE

Concerning The Unbeliever

“But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”  1 Corinthians 2:14

   We cannot expect the unbeliever to understand our position on this issue of homosexuality and same sex unions. Our only response to them should be this: we believe that God has revealed to us through His Word His divine design for marriage, and that He intended it to be between a man and a woman, only. Any departure from His design, according to His Word, is an abomination and sinful.

   In holding fast to the truth, the believer in Christ will come under the attack of those who favor a 'live and let live' philosophy. They will be called “intolerant,” “unloving,” “discriminator” and even “homophobic.” We should do our best not to react to the name-calling and to maintain our position. And we should do so in spite of what the law of the land states, for we must appeal to a much higher authority when it comes to this matter.

   However, there are some within the Church who cannot bear the humiliation of this name-calling.  These are the ones who have capitulated on this moral issue in an attempt to appease those who hold this errant view of sexuality.

Concerning Believers

“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” 2 Timothy 3:16

     After having looked at the Scriptures dealing with this matter, we must begin by asking why  those who claim to know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior are giving in to this philosophy? The answer is that they have simply turned their backs on the clear and plain teaching of the Bible. But it goes back further than this. There was a time when all who claimed Christ as their Lord and Savior, held the Bible to be objective truth. They believed it to be sufficient for life and practice. But now they have turned their backs on objective truth and have rejected that God has indeed spoken to us through His Word.

   The clear teaching of Scripture is that homosexuality is a sin. And since the Scriptures are profitable for instruction in righteousness, we who claim Christ as Savior must adhere to these truths. We must not allow the world to dictate what we should believe. If we let the world dictate to us what we should believe, we risk compromising the truth and making Christ’s Gospel ineffective to a lost and dying world.

   

Our Response Towards Error

“Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.” James 5:19-20

   We who are holding fast to the truth on this issue must be willing to speak out against those within the Church who stand on the other side. But we must do so by first understanding their position and then in a very loving manner refute their error. It cannot be done in a spirit of anger or puffed up pride, but with sincere love and compassion for those who have been caught up in this snare of Satan. If we fail to do this in the right manner, than we risk causing further division to the Body of Christ.  

Christian Carnality

“And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ.” 1 Corinthians 3:1

   What if we are questioned: “Don’t you ever sin?” or “Isn’t it true that even Christians commit sexual sins?” It is vitally important that we have the correct answer to these inquiries. The answer is yes. Paul writes of this issue of Christian carnality in 1 Corinthians 3. He also writes elsewhere that the believer is not to grieve (Eph. 4:30) or quench (1 Thess. 5:19) the Holy Spirit by indulging in sinful activities. The believer is commanded further to “flee sexual immorality” (1 Corinthians 6:18), and not to “give place to the devil” (Ephesians 4:27). The attitude of turning from one’s sin should be the rule of life for the Christian, not to continue in a condition of carnality. So for a Christian to state that he is a homosexual and then to continue in this life style is a total disregard of the clear teachings of Scripture. Whenever a believer sins he is to confess it to the Lord (1 John 1:9) and determine not to give in to the same temptation again and again. The Catholic prayer of contrition states this fittingly: “I firmly resolve with the help of Thy grace to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin.” This ought to be the attitude of the true believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, whether it be sins of the flesh, murder or sins of the tongue.

The Moral Slide of Our Culture

“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine…and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.” 2 Timothy 4:3-4

   But what about denominations who have adopted this view of condoning homosexuality to the point that they have instituted ceremonies to ‘bless’ their unions, and even permitting them to become ministers and leaders within the Churches. What should be the response of believers who are holding fast to the inspired Word?

   First, we must recognize the danger that this issue creates for our generation and for generations to come. Our children and grandchildren will be affected in an even greater way than we have been already. This moral slide of our culture away from Christian principles will become more rapid when errant denominations support this agenda. It will make it virtually impossible to correct this shift away from sound doctrine and it will become difficult if not illegal to speak out against this matter.

   Secondly, we must again approach the subject knowledgeably and in a spirit of love. Anger will not suffice at this time. What we do and say must reflect the true character of our faith in Christ and our belief that He has spoken to us with absolute authority in His Word.

   Thirdly, we should make an effort to be heard. Writing to the heads of these errant denominations, letters to the editors, to Christian periodicals and, above all else, prayer. But we must act, or we will become partially guilty of this problem by standing by and watching this moral slide away from absolute values in our culture. And, we can expect to see in the days ahead on this issue a culture that is totally intolerant of true Christianity.