Sowing the Wind

In the early twentieth century G. K. Chesterton wrote, almost prophetically, "You may talk of God as a metaphor or a mystification . . . but nobody protests. But if you speak of God as a fact, as a thing like a tiger, as a reason for changing one’s conduct, then the modern world will stop you somehow if it can."

When people are angry with God, they are often angry with God’s people. This is because they are being convicted by the Holy Spirit as a result of their sin. Jesus said, "God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers" (Matthew 5:11).

If we are true followers of Jesus, we have to stand up for what is true and not be intimidated by what others say. Great men and women of God who have been used throughout history to change the course of human events have stood up for what is true. William Wilberforce was one of those people. He was a parliamentarian who would have had a very successful career in politics, had he pursued it. Instead, after his conversion, he dedicated his life to eradicating slavery in England. He succeeded, resulting in its abolition in 1807.

Government isn’t able to solve the problems we’re facing in our country. There is a place for government. But we have to call on the name of the Lord. We have done our level best to remove Him from our classrooms, from our culture, and from our courtrooms. We have sown the wind. The Bible says those who do that will reap the whirlwind. As philosopher George Santayana pointed out, those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.