June: it’s Pride Month, and the rainbow reminder is ubiquitous. Is that where we’ve arrived, as a nation and culture?
Psalm 10 gives timeless insight: “In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak, who are caught in the schemes he devises. He boasts about the cravings of his heart; he blesses the greedy and reviles the Lord. In his pride the wicked man does not seek Him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God. His ways are always prosperous; your laws are rejected by him; he sneers at all his enemies. He says to himself, ‘Nothing will ever shake me.’ He swears, ‘No one will ever do me harm.’”
Much has changed in one generation, but the move toward the current norms has been underway for quite some time. It’s no surprise that Paul recognized the milestones that mark the path away from God and into self-worship. As an Irish priest summarized the truth of Romans 1:18-32: “First, we overlook evil. Then we permit evil. Then we legalize evil. Then we promote evil. Then we celebrate evil. Then we persecute those who still call it evil,” (Fr. Dwight Longenecker.)
Evil doesn’t just happen; it is the natural outcome of a society moving away – systematically – from the recognition of God’s deity and our need to submit to and worship Him.
Carl R. Trueman offers a thoughtful and informed macroview of the effort of the Evil One – across recent generations – to lead Western culture from embracing biblical values to rejecting the constraints defined by the Creator that allow people – and societies – to enjoy His continued blessing. His book, Strange New World: How Thinkers and Activists Redefined Identity and Sparked the Sexual Revolution (Crossway Books, 2022) peels back the political veneers of the contemporary conflicts to show a systematic erosion that started with Enlightenment philosophy and created open hostility toward any belief system that fails to allow any and all emanations of human depravity. It’s not fun reading, but it informs the insidious strategy of the god of this world to dethrone His Majesty Jehovah God.
June’s focus on celebrating Pride will force people to take sides. How does the follower of Jesus manage to follow Jesus in the face of popular culture’s effort to reject Him entirely?
He lived in the same fallen world that is our temporary outpost, on the way to our Heavenly Home. When here among us, He was surrounded by the 1st Century version of perversion as well. The society of Israel in that day was as broken as 21st Century America. Religious Pharisees denounced people caught in sin; the hidden blight of self-righteousness escaped the awareness of the religious.
One of the most vicious renunciations of Jesus offered by the Jewish leaders of His day was to call him out as a Friend to Sinners, a charge He never denied. Casting Crowns have captured His heart in their lyrics: “Jesus, friend of sinners, we have strayed so far away. We cut down people in your name, but the sword was never ours to swing. Jesus, Friend of sinners, the truth’s become so hard to see. The world is on their way to You, but they’re tripping over me…” (click to hear their challenge).
We need to understand the real battle here: it’s not between gays and straights. It’s a life-and-death war that started in Heaven and will end in Hell. Jesus came to redeem everyone: not the righteous (because there are none). He came to save everyone, no matter the nature of their sin, whether hidden in a dark heart of flaunted with rainbow banners.
The line has been impugned, but it’s still the essence of our assignment: Hate the Sin, but Love the Sinner. God’s family on Earth is universally defined by our common testimony: from our own dark sin, the God of Light came with the solution of the Gospel and released us from the sin that held us captive.
Every time you see a Pride flag, would you join me in praying for the redemption of people caught in the pride of sin and needing the love of God, offered through His people on His behalf?
Bob Shank
