Legislating Immorality

We’ve heard it a thousand times.  Whenever Godly men and women attempt to put forth public policy that upholds traditional family and Christan values, the leftists cry out indignantly, “You can’t legislate morality!”  Or, the ever-popular, “Quit trying to force your religion down my throat!”

In a way, they are correct.  God — the one TRUE God, our Creator — never forces Himself on anyone.  Only tyrants and bullies use force.  Not our loving Heavenly Father.  And as a society, we have determined that murder, rape, theft, assault and battery and vandalism are morally wrong, and we have passed laws that prohibit such things.  Yet there are still murderers, still rapists, still thieves and vandals.  Our laws have not stopped them.  In fact, as our nation continues to self destruct, these crimes are taking place even more frequently — our courts are backed up and our jails are overflowing.  Obviously all our legislation has not caused more people to behave in a moral way.

God gave His holy law, the Ten Commandments, to Moses on Mount Sinai, in approximatley 1440 BC.  But even before the Ten Commandments were given, societies were governed by laws.  The oldest known set of laws is called the Code of Ur-Nammu.  It was written about 2100 BC in the Sumarian language.  These laws include prohibitions against such things as murder, robbery, kidnapping, and even sorcery.

The Bible tells us that people were pretty much always lawbreakers… Adam and Eve disobeyed God almost immediately;  Cain murdered his brother and incurred God’s wrath.  Even though God had not yet set any explicit laws against murder;  murder was still a horrific crime, even then.  And there were countless other crimes.  In fact, the entire world eventually became so dreadfully wicked, so full of lawbreakers, that God had to destroy all mankind — with the exception of Noah and his family.  That took place in 2400 BC.  — nearly a thousand years before God handed down the tablets to Moses.

It is clear that God has planted, within the hearts of each of us, the knowledge of right and wrong.  He’s created us with a conscience.  There are those who claim they don’t believe in God, and somehow, don’t even believe in the basic rules set forth in the Ten Commandments.  Yet even atheists are held accountable.  Just because you don’t believe in something doesn’t make it go away… the Truth is  STILL the truth and the law is still the law.  Romans 1:19 says, “…what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.”  Verse 20 goes on to say that people are “without excuse.”   Indeed, even today, our courts will tell you that “ignorance of the law is no excuse.”  If this is true in small, civil matters and city ordinances, how much more true is it when it comes to issues of genuine Godly morality?

So perhaps it is true that no one can really legislate morality.  Laws can be passed to regulate and control behavior, but they can never make a person behave in a moral way.  Morality — like truth — exists above and beyond, and outside the law.  Knowledge of morality and truth is instilled in the human heart, but unfortunately, the human heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9).  The human heart will always try to squirm it’s way out of following what it instinctively KNOWS is God’s will.  Look at today’s so-called “progressive” societies that choose secularism, those which try to live apart from the morality and truth of God.  Today’s atheists have even come up with a cute little catch-phrase, “We can be good without God.”  But look around, my friends… how has that been working out for us?  Truly, the more God is shunned from any culture, the faster the downward spiral into chaos and immorality.  The laws of God are as powerful, steadfast and true as the laws of nature… like gravity.  And they are meant to be a BLESSING to those who follow them, not a yoke of bondage.  Deny God’s laws if you choose, but you’ll soon reap the consequences.

The Bible tells us that “where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”  (From my experience, GREAT BLESSINGS too!)   But the opposite of freedom is tyranny, slavery, oppression.  In our world today, there is a false religious system that seeks to FORCE people to comply and obey.  These Islamic savages demand adherence to Sharia law worldwide — that is part of their overall agenda.  Convert, obey Sharia Law or DIE!  But remember:  the one TRUE God NEVER forces such obedience at knifepoint.  (That’s how you know Islam is an evil, counterfeit religion).  God does not want robots or slaves.  He is not a tyrant or a gangster.  He is our CREATOR, our loving Father.  And He wants us to come and follow Him because we love Him, because we become His own dear CHILDREN when we repent and turn to Him of our own freewill.

Many other countries around the world are seeking a secular, man-made government, ruled by humanistic law, with no acknowledgement of God whatsoever.  While some of these nations may allow their citizens to practice a form of religion, their societies are not founded on Godly morality and truth, and God is not allowed to even be spoken of in public.  This is the direction the Atheists are pushing America toward — “do what you want in your church buildings but keep God hidden, out of sight.”

So while we instinctively know, deep down in our consciences, that, for instance,  murder is WRONG, we see more and more countries accepting such things as euthanasia of the elderly, handicapped or infirm.  While we KNOW for a fact that abortion is nothing less than the outright murder of a tiny human being, we sanction it, legislate and legalize it, and in the process we accept it in our society as the “normal” way of things;  as the “law of the land.”  We choose not to think about the reality of what’s really happening.  And when courageous watchmen on the walls of our nation cry out against this genocide, and expose it to the light of day, society vilifies the watchmen, shouting them down for daring to show or speak of such distasteful, horrific truths.

Why are we so brainwashed about abortion?  Because we have been programmed that way.  As a country, we have come to accept it as normal, even though we KNOW it is not only wrong, we know it is REALLY wrong.  But abortion has become a profitable INDUSTRY.  In the United States alone, it brings in over $1 billion dollars in revenue annually.  Do you think that those who speak in favor of abortion, those who cry out that it is “women’s healthcare” and that it’s a woman’s “right” to choose, may, just perhaps, have some sort of vested, financial interest in this?  Do you think?  The saddest part is that so many of us CHRISTIANS have come to believe this practice is normal and acceptable.  Still, I have to wonder, do we really BELIEVE it is alright to kill a baby?  Or are we simply turning off our consciences in order to justify our sin  — and our lazy  indifference of the plight of the most helpless among us?

We legislated the immorality of baby killing in 1973.  Now we are doing the same with sodomy.  But consider this:  Throughout the history of the world, in every culture, since the beginning of time, the act of homosexuality was KNOWN to be immoral and wrong.  When psychiatry became a practiced science, the behavior of sodomy was a known mental illness.  But long before that, God called it something else, something much plainer:  He called it an abomination.  But now, our country, like so many others have declared it legal.  And more than legal, it is now a “human right,” “the law of the land.”

It is estimated that a mere 4% of Americans are living a homosexual lifestyle.  Of course, the militant sodomite lobbyists will claim much higher numbers.  But, you see, they have an agenda.  Their agenda is to normalize their sin, and make it not only accepted, but also force this evil practice on the rest of us and FORCE our celebration and participation.  The agenda is to indoctrinate our kids from as early on as possible, even in pre-school, then drill these ideas into their brains constantly throughout elementary, middle and high school, until graduating them to “college” where the first order of business for an incoming freshman is to get them to renounce their Christian faith (if they even have one), and equally important:  to question their sexuality and encourage their experimentation in perverted sexual acts.

You see, homosexuals are unable to reproduce naturally.  It’s not as if it’s the same as a person’s nationality or skin color.  So in order to be successful with their twisted agenda, there must be many more of them.  Four percent of the population will not do.  And so they indoctrinate and recruit children in the schools, under the guise of “anti-bullying” curriculum, and this is legislated and sanctioned, under state and federal laws, as “education.”  It’s NOT  education, it’s indoctrination, plain and simple.  Those in the sodomite movement revealed their plans in writing many years ago.  They have TOLD US they are (quote) “coming for our kids.”  Their agenda is furthered by their willing accomplices in government, as well as the entertainment and news media.  You cannot turn on a single television program today without there being some reference to happy homosexuals.  Now, surely, even practicing sodomites must see this as disingenuous.  Surely even THEY must see this lifestyle is being actively glorified at artificially high levels.  And seeing that, do they honestly believe their lifestyle is normal and right?  Or have they simply turned off their consciences in order to justify their sin?

Let’s also look at the matter drugs, what Scripture calls “Pharmakea” or “Sorcery.”   Time would not permit us to delve into the multi billion dollar industry of legal, pharmaceutical drugs, so let’s focus here on just one drug that is now being widely accepted and “legalized” for recreation: Marijuana.  Eight states have now voted to legalize Marijuana for recreational purposes.  Is this a case of legislating morality?  No, I don’t believe the use of mind-altering substances can be considered moral.  Even those who indulge in this activity know, instinctively, that it is wrong, and most do it privately, under cover of darkness, where sinners love to try to hide from God, whether they say they believe in  Him or not.

It’s estimated that Americans spend $113 billion dollars every year, consuming over 30 million pounds of pot.  Think of the new industry that will arise when even more states embrace this as acceptable — when more states “legislate” this form of immorality!  And lest you think there will be opposition from our government, on the contrary, I believe politicians can hardly wait to get their hands on the tax revenue this new cash crop can produce, not to mention the benefits of having a stoned and even more apathetic, tuned-out constituancy.  After all, the Federal government, while openly calling smoking tobacco a “sin” has no qualms at all about raking in over $100 billion dollars a year in tobacco “sin taxes!”

No, just like baby killing and same sex “marriage,” the only opposition this sin will face will come from conservative, God-fearing Americans, who are willing to be viewed as intolerant and judgmental bigots, in order to rescue some semblance of morality in our country.  But sadly, our pulpits and our American Establishment Churches have raised the white flag of surrender, and so there will not be enough Christians left with the courage to be salt and light in this new controversy… AND, if we don’t acknowledge that it’s a sin, then we’re free to participate too — just like everything else we turn a blind eye to!

Now today the debate rages over gun control.  But do we really believe that another law on the books will change a murderous heart?  We have a million laws in this country now, with jails overflowing.  One more law will not make a difference.  And we don’t need a million laws.  We only need God’s original Ten, yet we can’t even abide by those.

When man makes a law and imposes a penalty for the breaking of that law, it can become a deterrent, but it can never change the law-breaker’s heart.  We all continue to do whatever we deem to be wise in our own eyes.  We can never legislate morality.  Morality is written on the human heart, and instilled in us by our Creator, God.  He gives us the freewill to choose right, to choose life.  Or, to choose wrong, which always leads to death.  God is very patient with us and very kind, not willing that any should perish.  Scripture is replete with stories of His mercy and grace.  But Scripture also tells us  there are consequences to breaking the laws of God and nature.  And there is a time when it becomes too late for us… and we are “given over” to depraved minds.

The Bible says if we will confess our sins today, He is faithful, and just, to forgive us our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  That is a promise from God.  Confess, then repent and turn from the sinful ways of this world.  This world may call it “legal.”  This world may call it “normal.”  But you know what’s right.  And you know what’s wrong.  Why do you persist in your rebellion?  The laws of God are not a wall or a fence to keep you imprisoned.  They are a guard rail to keep you safe, and safely in the loving care of your Creator.

Audio CDs and transcripts of this message are available when you call me at Wisconsin Christian News, (715) 486-8066.  Or email [email protected]and ask for message number 183.

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Rob is the founder and publisher of Wisconsin Christian News, a regional Christian newspaper. While the main distribution of the paper is Wisconsin-based, WCN also has subscribers in nearly all fifty states.  He writes a monthly commentary for WCN, and can also be heard twice weekly, (Tuesdays and Saturdays) nationwide on the VCY America Radio Network, with his “From the Editor’s Desk” commentaries.  Rob’s messages offer unique teaching and insights from God's word, dealing with the most important issues of our day.

Rob Pue

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