This post is intended to speak to committed Christians, although if you are reading this and are still on the fence (so to speak) welcome!

In the New Testament, the author of the Book of Hebrews repeatedly uses the phrase, Hold Fast. Here is one such usage, in Hebrews 10:23

“Let us hold fast to the hope we profess.” (There are different translations, but this is the gist.)

* * * * *

These are turbulent times, and our core beliefs are under attack around the world and across our country. Almost no one is persecuting Muslims or Hindus or Buddhists (with the exception maybe of India where non-Hindus are routinely mistreated). But, nearly everywhere, Christians, the single largest belief system in the world, are on the defensive.

In some places, like China, they have to hide for fear of their welfare. In Africa, they are slaughtered by Islamic tribal groups. In western Europe and Canada, Christians face dwindling numbers and influence as atheistic, Marxist and nihilistic philosophies, coupled with massive Muslim migration are transforming the social, political and economic landscape.

And the United States is not immune.

Under the guise of a thing called Tolerance, Christianity is just not included. We are seen as anachronistic and oppressive. As such, we have been on the defensive for decades now, which has only accelerated since around 2012.

Previously unthinkable practices such as genital mutilation of children in order to accommodate their “feelings” and the political agenda of elites in academia, the media and government, have been allowed not just to flourish but to include withering attacks on those who stand up to oppose such horrendous practices. I think of the Aztecs sacrificing children on some alter. How are we different?

Previously unthinkable practices of allowing boys and men who all of a sudden declare, without any scientific basis (other than constructed by means other than science) to wake up one day to declare that they are girls and women … and have entire swaths of humanity swoon at their feet … is tantamount to the king walking naked with everyone just nodding their heads. Until the innocent and brave boy points out the obvious.

And it’s getting worse. Where is it supposed to end?

Well, it’s really an attack on the fundamental values and principles that have built the west since the Enlightenment, which coupled historical Judeo-Christian beliefs with modern scientific rationalism. This confluence has lifted billions out of poverty and spread the concepts of freedom and individual liberty around the globe.

In this attack, we are witnessing the degradation of civilization, the only thing that keeps us out of chaos and tyranny.

There are many who see this viewpoint as an anachronism. After all, the Arc of History (as so-called Progressives are used to saying) leans towards a world freed from mythologies and oppressive cultures run by white men and capitalists. This is just another tired retread of fundamental Marxist ideology, branded as Communism. 

Too long now, Christians have been on the defensive, trying to counter the massive and coordinated attack on our basic values and beliefs conducted by unified academia, media and the levers of government. It’s been body blow after body blow.

Enough is enough.

We begin the counterattack (and it is a counterattack, just as we are part of something greater than the obvious … as I said in a recent post) with Hold Fast. Draw the line. While we can certainly engage in conversations with others whereby we exchange viewpoints in a calm and reasoned manner, we cannot allow ourselves to be sidelined by loud and strident voices that do not seek dialogue but only to harangue.

But holding fast is no longer enough. We need to be bold in pushing our agenda forward. An agenda that includes unapologetically proclaiming the truth of the Gospel and the fact that Jesus is the only way to eternal life. This will not go down well in some quarters but it must be said. We can’t apologize or backpedal. Certainly, we should arm ourselves with rational explanations for our beliefs, but we can also challenge others to support their own … something they will not want to do because the logic breaks down.

We are clearly called by Jesus to proclaim the Truth. And he just as clearly said we could face persecution and worse. In the comfortable West it’s easy to ignore what this can mean. But, as we face these attacks, we should be reminded of the famous line, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”

Jesus calls us to be bold. And boldness requires risk. Boldness requires that we abandon the comfort of approval by everyone around us, including friends and family. If we really believe that Jesus is God and that the words accorded to him are accurate, this is non-negotiable. 

We can take comfort that we are not alone but in the presence of a “cloud of witnesses,” of brothers and sisters who are also taking risks because there is only one who is Just and stands in Judgment.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us” Hebrews 12:1

I need to become bolder, holding fast to what I know to be true. I need not defend that knowledge here as I’ve done it extensively elsewhere. I am part of a massive body that includes a large swath of humanity and untold numbers in the heavenly realms. My hope is based upon a promise that is ironclad. Every other promise is hollow in comparison because we are in the flesh and seduced into thoughts and behaviors that are not of God. As much as I try to be good and to do God’s will, I always fall far short, therefore rejecting him and his authority over me. The only way that gap can be resolved is through Jesus. The only way.

And that is the foundation upon which I stand. It is there that I hold fast.

In closing, I return to one of the gifts God has given me through his Word and that comes from the Book of Ephesians Chapter 6, verses 10-17

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against the flesh and blood, but against the rulers, the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

This is the space in which I live now. Leading my life as best I can with what God has provided me, my wife, family and dear friends. I ask for wisdom and strength to meet the challenges ahead and that God uses me to, as Charlie would say, make heaven crowded.

Amen.