Chapter 8: Dazed by the Deception of New Tolerance
-Today’s culture believes tolerance trumps truth
***common English words like tolerant and tolerance have become
victims of redefinition in the hands of revisionists
-the new tolerance has become a weapon in the war against the truth
Tolerance:
-we all their view to be presented: we don’t whine, protest, picket, and
refuse the right to give an opposing viewpoint
-there are times when we will disagree with others, and as fellow humans
we extend tolerance to one another
-stripping the word tolerance of it original meaning has opened to
reinterpretation by anyone and everyone as they see fit
-Christians need to exercise great wisdom when dealing with the
world’s intolerant behavior masquerading as a virtue
-dangerous deception will neutralize and destroy the body of Jesus Christ
The New Tolerance Decides What is Tolerated:
-some have confused our First Amendment rights with intolerance
-turning then into volatile political and social issues
-redefinition of tolerance revised meaning from the secular into the sacred
-Washington, DC have tried to ban evangelism because they felt it fueled
and stoked religious passions
Ex. a Christian says to someone, “I disagree with your belief,” it can be
labeled as a hate crime
Ex. simply verbalizing “Jesus loves you and wants you to go to heaven,”
can be labeled as hate speech
-newly defined tolerance is that it weakens and dilutes the church’s
strength, morphs into society, and removes its uniqueness in the world
-the church is the power of the gospel
Our Culture Demands Tolerance:
-until the minute it’s discovered that you are a Christian
-the same culture suddenly become intolerant
-today’s culture, individuals are entitled to express their views and
everyone else must respect those views-until—you want to talk about
Jesus Christ
-mention Jesus and suddenly you are banded as intolerant
John 14:6
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes
to the Father except through me.”
-Believers are told, “your opinions are hurtful and hateful, and you need
to keep them to yourself.”
-If you want to share the good news of the gospel then you are told your
are doing them harm
***If a person wants to believe a certain way and practice that belief within
the bounds of our laws, they have the freedom to do so
-we can all amicably agree to disagree–this is true tolerance
The New Tolerance Dismisses Absolutes:
-people will do anything when they believe God is dead
-today’s culture’s condition is right and wrong are subjective and open for interpretation: sins like anger, violence, fornication, adultery, lying, drunkenness, and thievery are not widely tolerated and justified
perpetrators are caught are exposed, but rationalized:
-this is just who I am so you have to accept me
-I can’t help myself
-my behavior is not my fault
-I have a disease
-I enjoy what I am doing and don’t see any harm in it
-I don’t need to comply with your rules because I didn’t make them
-I don’t acknowledge the God who you say did make those rules
-when society condones youthful misbehavior and something bigger comes along, there is no ground of truth to stand on
Isaiah 5:20
Woe to those who call evil good
and good evil,
who put darkness for light
and light for darkness,
who put bitter for sweet
and sweet for bitter.
-we live in a society bent on having its way, but that works only when people lower their expectations and values
-we reinforce lower standards through laws that make light of and sometimes seem to flaunt sinful behavior
-in the name of tolerance, Christians are forced to accept laws and court rulings that violate the absolutes of Holy Scripture
***the United States was long viewed as a Christian nation, but in recent decades, as governing bodies have continued to validage godlessness
-Christianity has become viewed as an aberrant belief system to be squashed
The New Tolerance Sets the Boundaries:
-the secularist’s mantra: stay within your prescribed boundaries
-state’s intolerance for religious freedom is rampant
-the demand for the new kind of tolerance is driven in part by political correctness
-this new kind of tolerance has infiltrated the church
-user friendly pulpit messages do not convict anybody
-pastors refrain from saying certain words in their sermons or on social media for fear creating conflict
-pastors silenced for fear over being scandalized or deplatformed
***today’s Christians haven’t experienced religious persecution en masse but if we continue to stay silent we will find ourselves down that road of no return as we give up our freedom of speech and religion
-the church needs to wake up and stand up
-the alternative is to join the ranks of believers who have allowed totalitarian nations that claim the right to control the whole person including their beliefs
Acts 5: 28-29
“We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood.” Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings!
***We are to obey the laws of the land until those laws directly violate the Word of God
The New Tolerance Isn’t Loving:
-some Christians feel we need to argue with those who disagree with us
-some Christians feel we need spiritually wrestle them to the ground in hopes they come around to our thinking
-Tolerance doesn’t work that way
-instead of fighting against them, we should care for them as we are concerned about their souls
Proverbs 27:6
“Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses.”
-faced with unrelenting pressure to accept all lifestyles, many churches, are surrendering their moral ground despite a clear biblical mandate to do otherwise
-this leaves Christ-followers who stand on biblical truths stigmatized as unloving and intolerant
Romans 1: 26-27
“Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.”
James 1: 17
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”
1 Corinthians 6: 9-11
“Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”
John 15: 13
“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”
Romans 2: 4
“Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?”
True Tolerance Shows Others a Better Way:
-people often condemn the Bible because certain scriptures don’t seem inclusive
-truth is they are not inclusive but are meant to be exclusive
-there is a unique fellowship between believers
-this connection is not intolerant or mean-spirited
-we do not set out to attack with the goal of destroying lives
-Christians live by a higher standard that does not allow us to turn our backs on someone in need
-our enemies should be the among the most blessed people on the face of the Earth
Romans 12: 20-21
On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
***Spirit of God at work diffusing a tense and ugly situation
“Our culture has moved to the far side of hypersensitivity, which, in turn, has led to a major movement within Christian circles to make the church seem tolerant as the world defines it. Personally, I don’t see anywhere in the Bible calling for us to do that. Whenever believers allow themselves to be guided by the feelings of unbelievers, they’re right where Satan wants them: fearful of speaking the truth” (Hibbs, 144).
“Don’t build yourself a Christrian fortress and hide there. Go with wisdom and understanding to influence the world for the glory of God. Go to those who are hurting and love them without assimilating their beliefs. This is what it means to be in the world but not of it” (Hibbs, 144).
Romans 12: 1
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.”
-Do not be conformed to this world
-Be transformed by the renewing of your mind
-Do good and what is acceptable and perfect will of God
-Satan will not leave your resolve unchallenged
-Ask for the Spirit’s empowerment because He swells in you
-the Holy Spirit’s power resides within you
***be strong and wise in response to today’s mixed-up world
***He freely gives us the ability and inner fortitude to stand firm
***May he work in and through us for His glory and the salvation of many