Ducks, Cakes, and Other Stupid Boycotts

The purpose of this post is not to defend Phil Robertson or his comments.

In fact, I don’t think that is the main objective of any of the Duck Dynasty patriarch’s supporters. What is alarming to many of us is that Phil’s rights end when homosexuals’ rights advance.

I realize that the 1^st Amendment doesn’t guarantee that Phil be on a reality show; however, I think we all realize what would happen if the roles were reversed. Who is the last person to lose a job, sponsorship, or their reputation for slandering or “judging” those of us who stand for the sanctity of marriage? Every person who calls us intolerant, hateful, bigots, religious nuts, homophobic, and any of the other divisive insults is doing the same thing Phil Robertson did. Some might argue what they are doing is worse.

How is that worse? Robertson only answered a question (much like Mr. Cathy from Chick-fil-A did). Would we rather Robertson lie? That might be the norm for politicians, but dishonesty should be frowned on. Furthermore, Robertson cited his beliefs from the centuries-old Bible, what we believe to be the Word of God.

While some liberal Christians have now denied the Bible’s stance against homosexuality, the overwhelming majority of believers have stood by this claim since Leviticus, through the days of Paul, and even in this anything-goes culture.

The Duck Commander didn’t call anyone names; he answered a question about his beliefs. When his enemies respond with name calling, isn’t that stooping to a worse level?

Contrary to what media types like Bill O’Reilly have claimed, Robertson wasn’t “judging” homosexuals. Quite the opposite. He quite clearly said that he doesn’t judge and it is up to God to “sort ‘em out” at the judgment. He said he has no way of knowing what is in the heart of man, and it is his job to love everyone.

Nothing more judgmental than loving everyone.

This issue is just another chapter in the anti-Christian assault on Bible-believers. Consider Jack Phillips, owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop in Denver, Colorado. His rights were violated when Judge Robert Spencer recently criticized Phillips for refusing to make a cake for a gay wedding. The honorable Spencer told Phillips from now on he could not refuse to make cakes for homosexual events, even though Phillips is a strong believer who said he will close his shop before that happens.

Masterpiece Cakeshop is not a government entity, and neither is Phillips a government employee. He is an entrepreneur, a small business owner that has the right to not bake cakes. How can a judge order someone to bake a cake? It only makes sense when cries of “Intolerance!” get involved.

Remember, we have to tolerate everyone. Except Christians. No one has to tolerate them.

Don’t believe me? Ask yourself what would happen if the roles were reversed. What if Jack Phillips went into Adam and Steve’s Cakeshop and ordered a cake for his straight-pride rally? What if he wanted the cake to have 1 Corinthians 6 piped onto it? Would Robert Spencer have ordered the homosexuals to make the cake? I highly doubt it.

As gay rights groups continue to demand more rights, we need to be sure that we do not lose ours. Fortunately it appears that believers are sticking together to support each other. So far it looks like that Duck Dynasty boycott is working about as well as last year’s Chick-fil-A boycott.

To Save a Life

(Like my blog about the peace symbol, this blog was written as a default response to all the parents, students, and other people who are asking my opinion of To Save a Life.) By now you have probably heard of the movie To Save a Life, which opened nation-wide in theaters on January 22nd. The movie deals with so many issues that teens face today, like suicide, cutting, drinking, drugs, premarital sex, teen pregnancy, and abortion. At first glance this movie looks like an awesome resource that we should recommend for our teens, parents, youth pastors, and youth workers. But a closer look at the movie reveals a few disturbing things. For starters, according to pluggedin.com, there are 2 uses of the “A” word, 5 uses of hell (used as a curse word), and once the “D” word is used. There are other crude terms used to describe a girl, and crude terms for referring to sexual activity. There is also a bedroom scene that shows a girl removing a boy’s shirt, then afterwards the girl putting he

Evangelism

“Preach the gospel at all times, and when necessary, use words.” St. Francis of Assisi is given credit for this famous quote (although that exact phrasing does not appear in any of his writings), and a lot of people would think that this is a great philosophy. His actual quote was that everyone should “preach by their deeds.” Preaching with our deeds is not just a strategy, it is a necessity. We are commanded all through the Scriptures to let our light shine and be a peculiar people. People should be able to look at our lives and see that we are Christians. They should see the love of Christ readily on display, and thus feel compelled to live their lives in the same way. The sermon that we should preach with our lives is a sermon of love, joy, peace, patience, self-control, forgiveness, conviction, etc. But this idea that has emerged that says we should ONLY preach with our deeds is a heresy straight from the devil himself. Think about it: who is the one that does not want you t

What is a Curse Word?

I know. Stupid question, right? But lately I have heard Christians begin to debate what actually makes a word a curse word. Since the Bible never says, “Thou shalt not say the ‘s’ word,” how do we know that a word is bad? Because of this I have heard Christians justify cursing. The Bible gives a broad command for Christians to adhere to: let no corrupt word come out of your mouth (Ephesians 4:29). The word corrupt means rotten; therefore, we should never say a rotten word, whether it is on the list of curse words or not. First, we have to realize that there are curse words. On the night of Jesus’ arrest Peter was found guilty of using one himself. Matthew 26:74 tells us that when Peter denied knowing Jesus that he began “to curse and to swear.” This verse shows that there are curse words, and that they are wrong to use. I’m sure whatever words Peter said were not the same curse words that we have in our culture today. Here is the point: a curse word (or rotten word) is any wo

Tommy Mann

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