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And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. -Mark 16:15 (KJV)

Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. -Proverbs 16:18 (NIV)

But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve…as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD. -Joshua 24:15 (NIV)

There’s a joke that goes:

A vegan woman, an atheist man, and their bisexual daughter walk into a bar. I only know because they told everyone within two minutes.

There’s also a Japanese saying that goes:

The nail that sticks up gets hammered down.

What’s the common thread between these two? That there’s societal pressure to conform. In today’s world, the pressure is more and more against following God, and doing whatever you please. You can be as vocal as you want about your lifestyle choices…as long as your lifestyle isn’t walking with God.

In a world where people strive to get along, they wrongly think that we all must think the same thing, and that opposing viewpoints must be squashed in favor of being okay with anything non-religious. However, there is a loophole: any other religion is okay–and even cool–to talk about…just not Christianity.

A philosophy known as secular humanism has been growing in strength for decades around the world, stressing that we humans can treat each other just fine without any god. All we need is human reason and ethics. We aren’t innately good or evil, we’re not above nature, and ideologies cannot be accepted or rejected by faith.

Sound like anyone you know? It’s pervasive throughout our modern society, in the people around us, and propagated to the masses through advertising, entertainment, and any other channel you can think of. Many people adhere to this philosophy without even knowing it has a name.

Secular humanism is the amplification of Satan’s whisper in the ear of humanity, much like how the serpent told Eve she’d not only be fine, but just as all-knowing as God by eating the forbidden fruit. This is what people today are doing: gorging on the forbidden fruit, indulging and reveling in self…turning from God.

We are not called by the Lord to conform. We are called to make Him known before men. We are called to shout the Good News from the mountaintops. We are called to carry and reflect His light into the darkest corners of this wayward world.

Be unashamed of the gospel. We serve the Lord in all we think, say, and do. Jesus told us we would face opposition in this world, but we know that He is waiting for us after a life of service in His name.

Lord Jesus, we adore you, and thank you for every gift and blessing, and ask you to forgive us of our sin burdens, so we may venture out unencumbered in the mission field. Please equip and strengthen our minds and hearts for the spiritual battles we face every day, to your glory. We love and praise you, and your amazing name we pray. Amen.