How should we respond to America's moral descent?

Immorality in America has reached epic proportions. Government scandals and disasters, such as Hillary Clinton's illegal email crimes, Obama's Iran deal that no one wants but him and our enemies, extremely sensitive classified data leaked to China, Benghazi, Fast and Furious, IRS targeting and bullying, or illegal data collection on every U.S. citizen by the NSA, are being exposed almost on a daily basis but without any accountability or prosecution.

While I've long known of the atrocities committed by Planned Parenthood through my volunteer work with CareNet pregnancy life care facilities, the series of undercover investigative videos (the 5th one published this week) were so graphic and clearly representative of the utter disregard this postmodern culture has for sacred human life that you have to wonder why the government would direct $500 million of our tax dollars to this vile organization which peddles murder with a thin veneer of women's health services which are also provided by free health clinics.  And now that the AFA promises health care for everyone, why on earth would we need to keep funding these butcher shops?  80% of those brutally killed through abortion are black or Hispanic as Sanger intended. We could have cut racism by defunding Planned Infanticide, but now the blood of all those millions of slain babies is on the heads of the senators who opposed the bill to stop funding this madness.  Planned Parenthood bought out most of the Democratic party with blood money.

Who would buy intact body parts obtained by butchering a baby while he/she is still alive?  The Obama administration, of course.  Such depths of sin the human heart is capable of is outstanding and show all the the more what a huge price Christ paid for us all.

When we fail to learn from the mistakes of the past we will inevitably repeat them.

Not only is the right to abort (brutally dismembering) babies celebrated, but now college students are petitioning to legalize fourth term abortion.  The hardened hearts of American media viewers barely winched when a mainstream media host joined the radical let in suggesting that a birthed child isn't really alive until the parents decided that he is, even if the child is months or years old. As if the erosion of the traditional family and marriage (as defined when human life first began) through no fault divorce and homosexual marriage is not enough, even pedophiles are gaining support in Washington, DC for their efforts to pursue the same rights as homosexuals. With so much moral depravity eroding the foundations of America, Christians cannot help but consider what happened to Sodom and Gomorrah and wonder how long God will continue to spare America from the judgment due her.

Sexual immorality is especially rampant and glorified.  The SCOTUS overreached their limits of power and pretended to be "gods" as they "redefined" marriage in every state to mean just about anything that feels good  no matter how harmful it is to society. Now that pornography is available anywhere there is a digital signal, sexual addiction has become an epidemic, destroying families and communities. Divorce rates are over 50%, with over half of all children growing up in broken homes without the stable, healthy influence of both a loving mother and a devoted father. Sex crimes like those of Anthony Wiener, Bill Clinton, and San Diego Mayor Bill Filner have been covered up, applauded, and/or dismissed as trivial instead of punished.

Biblical prophecies foretold that these days of reckless immorality would come.

But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. ² People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, ³ without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, ⁴ treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— ⁵ having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people. ⁶ They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over gullible women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, ⁷ always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth. ⁸ Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these teachers oppose the truth. They are men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. ⁹ But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone.
(2 Timothy 3: 1-8)

So what should Christians do about it? What are Biblical responses to such evil? The following list offers a few suggestions.

1. Abide in Christ

Continue abiding in Christ by studying and meditating on His word, seeking Him through prayer, and obeying His commands no matter what persecutions may come.

In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evildoers and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3: 12-17)

2.  Make disciples.

Remember that despite the depravity in America, God is still at work. The reason Christ came into the world was to see and save the lost (Luke 19:10). Continue to pray for unbelievers and extend God's love to them, for there is much rejoicing in Heaven when a lost sheep comes home (Luke 15:3-7).

Consider Brittni Ruiz, who is known in the porn industry as Jenna Presley. After seven years as a popular porn star, prostitute, and abuser of drugs and alcohol, after watching her boyfriend knifed to death in front of her, and after several failed suicide attempts, she encountered the unconditional love of God through the ministry of XXXchurch and was changed forever by the saving work of Jesus Christ.

"I never found love in my life and was looking for it in all the wrong places … I have finally encountered the unconditional love of God, and I will never go back,” she said. (Credit: The Blaze)

Each day brings the end one day closer, so be urgent about sharing the gospel and strengthening believers in the faith (Matthew 28: 18-20).

3.  Look for God's miracles.

Look for God's powerful hand at work as He performs miracles of the soul, mind, and body. Taking time to truly see God moving and working through events, circumstances, and changed lives gives encouragement and hope while strengthening believers' faith. 

Official 112th Congress portrait of Jaime Herrera Beutler provided by U.S. Congress via Wikipedia.

Consider Washington state Representative Jaime Herrera Beutler's newborn daughter, Abigail. Beutler's unborn baby was diagnosed with Potter's Syndrome, which is almost always fatal for the baby. So, instead of terminating the pregnancy as doctors typically advise, Jaime and her husband began praying for a miracle. After a series of risky, trial saline treatments via amnioinfusion, the baby was born at only 28 weeks into the pregnancy. To the amazement of the medical team, Abigail's lungs were healthy enough at birth to breathe on her own, a first for any baby born with bilateral renal agenesis. Abigail needs regular dialysis and will need a kidney transplant at some point, but weeks after her birth, she continues to defy all odds. (Credit: Life News)

4.  Hold leaders accountable.

Unchecked sin will always lead to more sin and corruption. When leaders, who serve as role models, are not held accountable and fall into immorality, sin will increase across society. The only way to hold back the tidal wave of sin is to exact justice from evil doers, especially those in leadership positions.

When the press made light of Bill Clinton's affair with Monica Lewinsky, fewer college student viewed oral sex as actual sex. This skewed definition lowered taboos against it and resulted in increased oral sex activity among students. Instead of withdrawing from the mayoral race to seek more counseling for his serious and continuing sexting addiction, Anthony Weiner's addiction was enabled by his wife's alleged support and by the 78% of young women polled who still approve of him. San Diego Mayor Filner has been sexual harassing women as far back as 1979, yet instead of holding him accountable and encouraging him to get help to prevent future crimes, his party members have been covering his sins for decades while numerous women have fallen prey to his abuses. Examples such as these deceive people into believing that sin has no consequences. Such a false belief will only lead to increasing immorality.

Christians must stop overlooking such unacceptable behavior. They must demand that justice be meted while holding those within the church accountable. When Christ's righteousness shines into the darkness (Daniel 12:3) and Christ followers live above reproach by the power of the Spirit within them, then the rushing tide of immorality will turn back.

As long as the government is allowed to remove basic freedoms such as freedom of the press, free speech, freedom of religion, or the right to bear arms or to safeguard personal privacy, and as long as officials are not punished for violating Constitutional law, the government will continue to remove every freedom it chooses while violating any laws that stand in the way, even the U.S. Constitution itself which establishes each entity's power. Citizens must insist that justice be administered quickly, that checks and balances be enforced, and that liars who cover-up the truth be prosecuted. Those who lost loved ones through these scandals especially deserve to know the truth. Any guilty party involved in these scandals must be tried and convicted in a timely manner as with the Watergate scandal. Elected officials must understand that no one is above the law.

When the justice system functions as originally intended, convictions deter future crimes while protecting the innocent. Once Gosnell was finally convicted of his many crimes against women and heinous acts against children, 42 abortion clinics in North Carolina have been shut down due to health violations while a clinic on the scale of Gosnell's is being tried in Delaware. Planned Parenthood was recently convicted of a $12.5M Medicaid fraud. These recent examples demonstrate the purifying effect of justice that is consistently administered.

 

5. Pray continually.

In times of great evil, Christians must pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). With full knowledge that Christ has ultimately defeated evil, give thanks for the victory He freely gives. Pray in the Spirit in all occasions for all people, especially for those in positions of authority (Ephesians 6: 18-20). Pray for wisdom and strength to live for Christ in this dark world. Pray for revival and for God's will to do be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Be quick to repent and to extend forgiveness. Pray for protection from evil while clinging to Christ's righteousness (Luke 11:1-4).


Originally published by Examiner.com