October 19, 2026

15 minutes ago

6 min read

We Will Not Be Silent

“Brethren, our preaching will bear its legitimate fruits. If immorality prevails in the land, the fault is ours in a great degree. If there is a decay of conscience, the pulpit is responsible for it. If the public press lacks moral discrimination, the pulpit is responsible for it. If the church is degenerate and worldly, the pulpit is responsible for it. If the world loses its interest in religion, the pulpit is responsible for it. If Satan rules in our halls of legislation, the pulpit is responsible for it. If our politics become so corrupt that the very foundations of our government are ready to fall away, the pulpit is responsible for it. Let us not ignore this fact, my dear brethren; but let us lay it to heart and be thoroughly awake to our responsibility in respect to the morals of this nation.” (Charles Finney, December 4, 1873)

Many pastors and spiritual leaders who don’t want to make a stand on cultural issues and governmental elections hide behind Jesus’ statement, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God” (Matthew 5:9). They contend that politics, the process of choosing government officials, divides. So, they say, pastors and spiritual leaders should stay out of the process, especially from the pulpit. They forget that Jesus not only spoke of making peace, but also of bringing division:

“Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household. He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.” (Matthew 10:34-37)

Even in the Beatitudes, Jesus told us that “peacemaking” would not always be possible. He followed up the peacemaker promise with a warning that persecution and slander will come our way as we represent Him - which would certainly involve speaking truth regarding morality, marriage, life, justice, etc. (verses 10-12). He then reminded us that this happened to the prophets of old (verse 12). Using claims of promoting unity and peace as reasons for not speaking out regarding government and societal issues is so unbiblical it defies all logic.

I realize that government divides, but it also writes the laws that protect life, the sanctity of marriage, the bodies of young children, and our borders from terrorists and drugs that kill hundreds of thousands annually. Government writes laws that guarantee freedom to preach the gospel, to raise our own children without government interference, and to speak freely without censorship. Government funds and empowers our military that protects us from evil dictators and their ideologies, such as communism and Marxism. To assert that the church is supposed to be silent about these issues, or in helping identify who most stands for biblical ideals during elections is not only heretical, it is self-serving and cowardly.

I often think of spiritual heroes like William Wilberforce and Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who lived their lives - and in Bonhoeffer’s case, lost it - to defend causes of justice and morality - in the context of governmental actions. Both would have been persecuted by many leaders of America’s church in our day! Those who won’t speak up loudly and boldly for the protection of babies and children today, wouldn’t have spoken out against slavery in Wilberforce’s day, or Hitler and his Nazis in Bonhoeffer’s. And Bonhoeffer’s words are still true: “Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.”

The silent preachers of our day would not have stood with Patrick Henry in his famous “Give me liberty or give me death” speech. Nor would they have aligned themselves with signers of the Declaration of Independence like Lewis Morris of New York, who said, “Damn the consequences, give me the pen.”

They would have aligned themselves instead with the British loyalists and conscientious objectors of their day, the “peace at all costs” group. The great patriot and God-honoring signer of the Declaration, Sam Adams, said of the fearful, “peace-loving” loyalists:

“If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, go home from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen.” (August 1, 1776, at Independence Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

If you do make a stand for biblical morality in your congregation, if you identify and speak out for godly candidates, and people leave your church over it, do as Jesus instructed: rejoice! (Matthew 5:12)

Do as Paul did regarding Demas and move on from them. “Demas had at one time been one of Paul’s ‘fellow workers’ in the gospel ministry along with Mark, Luke, and others (Philemon 1:24). During Paul’s first imprisonment in Rome, Demas was also in Rome with him (Colossians 4:15).

“There is also biblical evidence that Demas was with Paul during Paul’s second imprisonment in Rome, at least for a while. Then something happened. Demas forsook Paul, abandoned the ministry, and left town. Paul wrote about the sad situation: ‘Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica’ (2 Timothy 4:10).

“The Greek verb used in the original implies that Demas had not merely left Paul but had left him ‘in the lurch’; that is, Demas had abandoned Paul in a time of need. The apostle was in prison, facing a death sentence, and that’s when Demas chose to set sail. Undoubtedly, Paul was deeply let down by Demas. It’s never easy to see a friend and associate in whom you’ve placed your trust forsake you in the midst of hardship.

“The separation caused by Demas’ desertion of Paul was not merely [geographical] but spiritual. Demas left Rome because he fell in love with the world. In other words, Demas chose the corrupt value system of the unsaved world over what heaven values. As the NLT translates it, Demas ‘loves the things of this life’ (2 Timothy 4:10). We don’t know the details of Demas’ situation, but it is evident that Demas decided that what Satan has to offer in this life is better than what God has to offer in the next.”(1)

Never has there been a time in America when it was more important to stand up for truth. If your church doesn’t do so, try to find another one. Don’t support those who refuse to speak up regarding moral and justice issues. Always strive for peace, but never at the expense of truth. Always strive for unity, but never at the cost of the children and babies.

And always…vote!

Pray with me:

Father, we refuse to be like Demas, who abandoned his post. Give us hearts like Paul, Morris, Henry, Adams, Wilberforce and Bonhoeffer, men who were willing to give their lives for the cause of truth. Give us hearts that care more about Your purposes and the future of our children than we do our comfort, ease, and large churches. Give us godly patriots in America who care deeply about this nation You raised up as a voice for the gospel and for truth.

Break off of the church false ideologies that have told leaders to be quiet about government and moral issues while in the pulprit. We cannot be the salt and light You need if we will not use the voices You gave us. Give us backbones of steel, determined and fearless hearts.

And again today, we ask for Your weighty convicting power to descend on believers across our nation who are not planning to vote in the coming elections. Awaken them to truth, convict them deeply, and stir them to action. Give us Your influence in this election by awakening the church.

All of this, we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.