An Online Devotional from Pastor Chad Carter

W e ' r e m o r e t h a n j u s t a C h u r c h . . . W e ' r e a F A M I L Y !

Is THAT What They

Call Tolerance?

Pastor Chad Carter

“Is THAT What They Call Tolerance?!”

Pastor Chad Carter

November 13, 2008

This week, I watched national news outlets in

amazement and stunned disbelief as a homosexual

activist group of protesters in California displayed

their brand of tolerance for the whole world to see.

To give you some history: the voters of California had already voted once to amend their state’s Constitution to define marriage as a relationship between one man and one woman. The notoriously dysfunctional court system of California, however, overturned the will of the people and permitted homosexual marriage to take place in California.

That was mistake number one. Judges are required to simply interpret the law. Not create it. That is not the duty of their branch of government. They, in essence, told the people of their state that their will, determined through a legitimate statewide vote, did not matter. Since when in our democracy does the will of the people, determined through their collective vote, not matter and become subject to disqualification from a person sitting on a bench in a black robe? These are rogue, renegade, liberal judges who have assumed more responsibility than our form of government affords them.

Any judge who thinks they have a right to legislate from the bench and overturn the will of the people, determined through a legitimate statewide vote, should be thrown off the bench they just legislated from.

The people of California let their will be known when they voted the first time to define marriage as a relationship between one man and one woman. When rogue judges disregarded their vote, the people of California petitioned to have it appear on the ballot again in 2008. Enter Proposition 8. And, as amazing as it sounds, the California voters turned out in record numbers and determined, yet a second time, that marriage will remain to be defined as a relationship between a man and a woman.

Congratulations to the voters of California.

California homosexuals, and homosexuals across the nation, are greatly upset concerning the outcome of their state’s vote on Proposition 8. As might be expected, they took to the streets and began to protest. Now, that’s certainly their right. It is a free country, and freedom of speech is certainly protected. …OR IS IT?

It seems that with the flux of liberalism in America, the term “tolerance” has taken on an unusual definition. It seems there is an expected level of toleration for everything and everybody, except Christians. Every lifestyle, ideology, and philosophy is being promoted and protected by the doctrine of “toleration” except those which are espoused by people of faith in Christ. The media protects freedom of speech for the liberal, but strips it from the conservative. Liberal ideology is promoted and protected. Conservative ideology is demoted and attacked. It has become a very lop-sided expectation of tolerance.

We are told that we must be tolerant of homosexuals and their lifestyles. We are told we must be tolerant of those who don’t share our views on abortion and other important issues. But the same courtesy of toleration is not reciprocated in the opposite direction, nor is it expected. No better display of that fact can be seen than in what happened in California this week.

In protest of the passage of Proposition 8, homosexuals took to the streets and began their very public, very visible, very vocal outcry of foul. They held signs and screamed. They hopped up and down and whined. They ranted and raved. And it’s all their right to do. In America, you are free to make a fool of yourself in public. And we are all supposed to be “tolerant” of it.

But in the midst of their protest, a little, frail old woman walked into the middle of them and held up what appeared to be a large Styrofoam or cardboard cross. The homosexuals began to yell in her face and tried to hide her cross with their posters and signs. They began to push her out of the midst of them.

One irate homosexual reached up and slapped the cross from her hands onto the ground. The angry homosexual mob began to stomp the old woman’s cross into pieces, while others of them continued pointing and screaming in her face. They pushed her, and shoved her, and forced her out of the crowd.

Is THAT what they call tolerance? Is that their warped version of tolerance?

She wasn’t trying to prevent the homosexuals from expressing their freedom of speech. They however, tried to prevent hers.

She didn’t try to remove their right to protest. She simply wanted to express the same right herself to walk into the middle of them and hold up her cross.

She didn’t try to hide, cover or remove their signs. They, however, did try to hide, cover and remove her cross.

She didn’t knock anyone’s sign from their hands and stomp them into the ground. They, however, did knock her cross from her hands and stomped it like a crazed mob.

She didn’t yell and scream, point her fingers in their noses and shove them around. They, however, did yell and scream at her, point fingers in her face and shoved her around.

(You can verify the account I have given by watching for yourself online at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QD1AITHS2Wc&NR=1 )

In the midst of the irate, angry homosexual mob, she can clearly be seen mouthing the words, “I love you” to them, and folding her hands in prayer for them.

The male news reporter can be heard in the background saying, “a lot of anger and a lot of hate, quite honestly, on both sides.”

Anger and hate on both sides? What an outright lie. The anger and hatred is CLEARLY ONE-SIDED.

Do you see the bias here? This little old, white-headed grandma was expected to be tolerant of an angry, aggressive, homosexual mob. But the angry homosexual mob was not expected to be tolerant of her.

Again, is THAT what they call tolerance?!

In another place, in another time, there was another homosexual mob that so disrespected and devalued the rights of their neighbors that they sought to break down the doors and climb in the windows of a home that contained a family who disagreed with their views. When male visitors came to visit that family, the homosexual mob tried to force entry into their house to have perverse, homosexual sex with those visiting men.

Perhaps you recognize this story. It is the Genesis chapter 19 account of the perverse cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. The family was Lot’s, and the men were angels. The example I gave you was just a drop in the bucket concerning the sin and perversion that permeated their borders. This kind of perverse activity was regular occurrence. Let me remind you, God’s judgment came upon those twin cities of sin, and they were ultimately destroyed.

Is this the road we’re heading down in America? Are we careening in a downward spiral as fast as the wheels of time can take us? America is going backwards. Something’s wrong. I’m not trying to be cheeky in saying this, but if we continue down the road we’re going now, it will be more appropriate for us to refer to ourselves as the United States of Sodom and Gomorrah.

May God have mercy on us. May a cry of repentance sweep out across the length and breadth of this nation from those who are called to declare the truth of God’s Word. Preachers, teachers, pastors and evangelists must become less concerned with pleasing people, and burn with a conviction to please God.

May God wake up the sleeping Church who is only concerned about their own personal wellbeing, and baptize them fresh in the fire of the Holy Ghost. We don’t need another “me-me-me” message. We don’t need another pep-talk about how you can be a better you. Jesus told you what to do with yourself – crucify the flesh, take up your cross and follow Him.

Ancient Nineveh was spared because one God-called, God-anointed, God-appointed man finally quit seeking personal satisfaction and convenience. He quit worrying about what he wanted and finally embraced what God wanted. And when he opened his mouth, the nation turned to God and was spared.

May God spare America in the same way. May God bring us again to our Scriptural foundation that made us great. God help the Church to quit talking about the Church, and actually be the Church. America and the world hang in the balance.

Pastor Chad Carter

Family Harvest Church

Pastor Chad Carter is the founder and senior pastor of Family Harvest Church. He frequently ministers on conservative social issues from the basis of Scripture. He has hosted various guests such as Indiana Secretary of State Todd Rokita, Indiana Senator Brent Steele, as well as nationally-known ministers who are calling the Church to raise the standard of righteousness and affect the culture for Christ. For more information, log on to www.ChadCarter.org.

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