On June 26, 2015 the Supreme Court of the United States made a 5-4 decision in favor of same-sex marriage. Here is a section from Justice Roberts dissent from the majority opinion:

CHIEF JUSTICE ROBERTS, with whom JUSTICE SCALIA and JUSTICE THOMAS join, dissenting.

Petitioners make strong arguments rooted in social policy and considerations of fairness. They contend that same-sex couples should be allowed to affirm their love and commitment through marriage, just like opposite-sex couples. That position has undeniable appeal; over the past six years, voters and legislators in eleven States and the District of Columbia have revised their laws to allow marriage between two people of the same sex.

But this Court is not a legislature. Whether same-sex marriage is a good idea should be of no concern to us. Under the Constitution, judges have power to say what the law is, not what it should be. The people who ratified the Constitution authorized courts to exercise “neither force nor will but merely judgment.” The Federalist No. 78, p. 465 (C. Rossiter ed. 1961) (A. Hamilton) (capitaliza- tion altered).

Although the policy arguments for extending marriage to same-sex couples may be compelling, the legal arguments for requiring such an extension are not. The fundamental right to marry does not include a right to make a State change its definition of marriage. And a State’s decision to maintain the meaning of marriage that has persisted in every culture throughout human history can hardly be called irrational. In short, our Constitution does not enact any one theory of marriage. The people of a State are free to expand marriage to include same-sex couples, or to retain the historic definition.

Today, however, the Court takes the extraordinary step of ordering every State to license and recognize same-sex marriage. Many people will rejoice at this decision, and I begrudge none their celebration. But for those who believe in a government of laws, not of men, the majority’s approach is deeply disheartening. Supporters of same-sex marriage have achieved considerable success persuading their fellow citizens—through the democratic process—to adopt their view. That ends today. Five lawyers have closed the debate and enacted their own vision of marriage as a matter of constitutional law. Stealing this issue from the people will for many cast a cloud over same-sex marriage, making a dramatic social change that much more difficult to accept.

I would encourage everyone to read the 103 page opinion, both the majority view and the dissenting views, so that you can see all the different viewpoints. It gives a glimpse of what is happening to the heart and soul of our nation. What is driving all these cultural changes and why are they happening so quickly now?

Our culture and nation are going through foundational changes at a rate much faster then we have ever seen. In the midst of all these changes, celebrations and criticisms there is more and more spiritual and moral confusion which is leading to an “identity crisis” of tectonic proportions for individuals, our nation and the Church.

Our Fracturing Soul:

Many have said that in changing the definition of marriage that has stood for millennia our nation is entering into uncharted territory. This may be true; however, this is just one decision within a consistent stream of cultural and moral changes that have been changing for a while. If this seems like it has taken us off guard and surprised us, then we have had our blinders on to what has been going on under our noses and within our congregations. Here are a few sobering stats that should lead us to weeping and prayer:

Estimated 20% of pregnancies in US end in abortion, over 56 million since 1973

Co-habitation rather than marriage is the new normal

Over 40 percent of US births are to unmarried mothers

Between 40-50 percent of married people in the United States divorce. The divorce rate for subsequent marriages is even higher

About two-thirds of men view pornography at least monthly; the figures for Christian men don’t vary significantly from the general population

Same sex marriages comprise less than one half of one percent of all married couples in the country currently

It doesn’t seem like anyone wants to talk about where all these changes are going to take us and how they are going to impact our way of life. With the definition of marriage and family changing in America what does that mean for our culture and nation? What is going to happen to the souls of Americans as they try to navigate completely new forms of “identity” and “sexuality”? Is this going to lead to healthier children, marriages, families and relationships in general? Here are two important statements about identity that we need to start thinking more deeply about:

We had no choice in choosing our parents or our personality so “identity” is not an autonomous choice.

We cannot be confident in our “identity” until we are confident in the identity of God.

All of these changes should be stirring a lot of soul-searching by every American and especially those who claim to follow Jesus Christ. I personally believe we are entering into a time of “sifting” for the Church in America. This in my opinion is good news and will bring about a stronger healthier Church. Throughout history God has sifted His people and His Church to make her stronger. The seven letters to the churches in Revelation reveal this process. In Luke 22:31-34, Satan asks Jesus to sift Peter, the leader of the early church, like wheat. But Jesus interceded for him that he would come out stronger when his faith was tested.

³¹ “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, ³² but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” ³³ Peter said to him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death.” ³⁴ Jesus said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day, until you deny three times that you know me.”

If Satan tried to sift Peter do we not think he would try today to sift the Church and its leaders? Peter was ready to give his life for Jesus, so he thought, but he needed some refinement, some sifting before he could lead the early Church into its global mission. And so today, we the Church need some sifting. Jesus we are told intercedes for us and will not let the gates of Hell prevail over His Church. However, He will allow the gates of Hell to prevail over parts of the church, which are not remaining faithful and abiding in His Word. They will be sifted out to make a stronger Church.

A Way Forward:

1.) Be heaven’s citizens first then we can be good American citizens

We must realize that there is a higher Supreme Court than the United States Supreme Court that we are accountable to. (2 Cor. 5:10) The early Church never looked to the government for direction on truth and morals. Jesus didn’t spend any time asking the government to change or mobilizing others to change it. He called his followers to make disciples so He could build a strong Church regardless of the state of the government. (Matt. 16:18, 28:18-20) As followers of Jesus we are first to live as citizens of heaven (Phil. 3:20) But as citizens of America we are to be the best citizens we can and be involved in serving our country. God commands us to pray for our leaders that we may have peace. We cannot forget that we are to have a higher allegiance to follow Christ than follow our government.

2.) Restore counter-cultural not pro-cultural strategy to the Church

Our culture has been moving quickly from a Christian culture to a post-Christian culture. By Christian culture we mean, that up to this point, the majority of Americans check the Christian box when asked what their religion is. However, this is very misleading because stats show that the majority of those who check that box are not actively following Jesus and His Word. Our kingdom calling is not to make a Christian nation, but to make disciples while Jesus builds His Church. Too many of us have been busy trying to build a Christian nation rather than make disciples. Too many churches have been too busy trying to be pro-culture rather than counter-cultural. Historically, the Church has been more pure and healthy when it is counter-cultural.

3.) Return to a biblical worldview that reveals the world is not a playground but a battleground where there is an ongoing war for the identity of our souls

I cannot say it any better than A.W. Tozer who several decades ago prophetically said:

“How different today. The fact remains the same, but the interpretation has changed completely. Men think of the world not as a battleground but as a playground. We are not here to fight we are here to frolic. We are not in a foreign land, we are at home. We are not getting ready to live but we are already living and the best we can do is rid ourselves of our inhibitions and our frustrations and live this life to the full. This we believe is a fair summary of the religious philosophy of modern man.”

AW Tozer, This World, Playground or Battleground, pg. 3

The fact is that much of the Church in America has adopted more of a materialistic worldview than a biblical worldview. Stats show that many within the Church do not believe there is a real devil and deny the reality of spiritual warfare. This is a radical departure from what the Bible teaches and from how Jesus lived. If the Church does not recover a spiritual warfare worldview and embrace the spiritual gifts of the Holy Spirit we will be powerless to bring healing and deliverance to a fractured hurting culture. (Ephesians 6:10-18; 1 Peter 5:6-9)

4.) Correct our misunderstanding and application of “judgment” as it is applied to those inside and outside the Church

We have been asking the culture to adopt biblical views when we the Church aren’t even living or modeling biblical views. We have been judging those outside the Church and not holding those inside the Church accountable to live according to God’s Word. Judgment is a terrible evangelism strategy. The Church in many ways has come across as condemning those outside of sexual immorality but has not dealt with the blatant sexual immorality within the Church. Many are confused about what the bible says about judgment. 1 Corinthians 5:9-13, makes very clear that we are not to judge unbelievers but leave that to God. However, as followers of Christ we are to submit to accountability and “judge” each other in the sense of exhorting each other to a life of purity and abiding in Jesus’ words. God is holy and He calls those who follow Him to be holy. We need to focus on pursuing holiness first in the Church then engage those on the outside about the benefits of a life filled with the Spirit of God.