On October 30, 09', President Barak Obama signed into law the Matthew Shepherd and James Bird Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. Commenting about the bill, the President said the following: "This is the culmination of a struggle that has lasted more than a decade. Time and again we faced opposition. Time and again, the measure was defeated or delayed. Time and again we've been reminded of the difficulty of building a nation in which we're all free to live and love as we see fit."
Now if you're reading these words you might be asking yourself: Does President Obama really mean this? Does he really envision a nation where we're all free to live and love as we see fit? We might ask – what would this look like?
In our Wednesday evening Bible study, we have been working our way through the Old Testament book of 2 Samuel. We recently arrived at chapter eleven where we have King David, a "man after God's own heart", committing adultery with another man's wife. After being informed by Bathsheba that she is now pregnant, David begins to scheme, ultimately having Urriah placed on the front line of battle, insuring his death. Bathsheba, after a brief period of mourning, moves in with David and becomes his wife.
So what do we have here? Some would say adultery and murder, which is correct. However, David might say, "I'm just living and loving as I see fit!"
Is this the nature of the freedom President Obama is talking about? Is this the kind of society he envisions for America? I hope not. For this is not freedom – this is rebellion. President Obama is echoing the battle cry that resounds in the heart of every fallen sinner – "…to live and love as we see fit."
The eleventh chapter of 2 Samuel closes with these words: "But the thing David had done displeased the LORD." We may chose to live and love as we see fit, but what our President is not telling us is that one day we will stand before God and give an account, answering for where our freedom has taken us.
Pastor Van
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