Jack Phillips
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This morning I sip coffee from one of his mugs: "Masterpiece Cakeshop: Yeah . . . that cakeshop." What cakeshop? If you don't know, you're not informed, and you're watching the wrong news. Jack has been embroiled in legal battles since 2012, when the baker declined to use his talents to create a custom cake celebrating a so-called gay marriage. Phillips, mind you, served all people, no matter what. But he did not wish to use his time and talents to commemorate that which he believed was wrong. This is what the First Amendment is all about, freedom of speech, which means the freedom from compelled speech, along with the free exercise of religion.
Phillips was taken to court again and again, the second time for refusing to use his talents to celebrate a gender transitioning. Do you understand? Perhaps, if a singer was forced to sing at a Trump rally, you might get it. Heck, imagine if an artist did not want to celebrate the end of Roe v. Wade. The scenarios are endless. But here we see the absurdity of tyranny. Were there no other bakeries in the Denver area who would fill the order? Or, to ask the other way around, was there even one other baker who wouldn't? Phillips' life has not been easy. How would you hold up under the legal and social pressure, the death threats, and constant hate?
Brother Stephen Scaer stepped in a few years ago and held a fundraiser so Jack could buy a new (used) van, so that he could keep his life and business going. The family of Pastor Adrian Sherrill has stood by Phillips for years, offering every kind of help. But far too few Christians took notice. Phillips kept moving on, even with joy. He said to me that through all this turmoil, he has slept like a baby, knowing the love of the Lord and Whose opinion was the only one that really and ultimately mattered.
For now, the Colorado Supreme Court has called off the dogs. It seems Jack Phillips may have some respite. But let us not forget those who have been damaged along the way. What of Barronelle Stutzman, the Washington florist, who was finally driven out of business in exhaustion. Let us not forget Indiana teacher John Kluge, who lost his job because he would not use wrong pronouns. What then of all who have lost their jobs for speaking the truth or for refusing to speak a lie. Worst of all, are those who know better, but don't say a word or say that which is not true.
Why did Jack Phillips persevere? He loves the Lord. He believes the Bible. He knows that marriage is not man-made but is given so that a child may have a mom and dad. He knows that it is cruel to give puberty blockers and hormone treatment to confused and troubled children. He knows that it is impossible to turn a man into a woman or a woman into a man. That is to say, he knows that which deep down we all know, unless we are so deluded. He would never say that two plus two equals five.
Liberty is worth fighting for, and the truth matters. We owe a great debt to Jack Phillips, but we pay that debt when we actually stand up, wherever we may be. We honor Jack Phillips by speaking the truth and by refusing to lie. We honor Jack Phillips when we speak against the transgender madness, when we call out the corrupt establishment that is pushing this horror upon our children. And as we do all this, we repent for what we have done and left undone, we repent for what we have said and not said. We honor Jack Phillips' example when we, too, disregard the opinions of the world, the elite whose favor so many seek, and instead worship God alone, and we act and speak for those who need our voices.
The Rev. Dr. Peter Scaer is professor and chairman of the Exegetical Department at Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Ind.
Be Informed
Learn more about race and pro-child politics with Delano Squires of The Heritage Foundation.
Be Equipped
Staying out of politics is not the moral high ground some people think it is. A recent article from The Federalist explains.
Be Encouraged
“For no one of those who are alive today knows where he was during the first two years, when he lived either in the womb . . . Yet he lived at that time, and he was a body joined to a soul—a body adapted to all natural functions.” –Martin Luther
This morning I sip coffee from one of his mugs: "Masterpiece Cakeshop: Yeah . . . that cakeshop." What cakeshop? If you don't know, you're not informed, and you're watching the wrong news. Jack has been embroiled in legal battles since 2012, when the baker declined to use his talents to create a custom cake celebrating a so-called gay marriage. Phillips, mind you, served all people, no matter what. But he did not wish to use his time and talents to commemorate that which he believed was wrong. This is what the First Amendment is all about, freedom of speech, which means the freedom from compelled speech, along with the free exercise of religion.
What do these things have in common and why does it matter for us this election? The “Sinicization movement” in China towards religion, the Bishop Johanna Pohjola trial in Finland, and the so-called “Respect for Marriage Act” law in America? All these are examples of a growing, secular statism growing abroad and now—here. When people ask me, “For whom or for what should I vote this election?” Amidst all the rhetoric and rancor, my main advice is that you vote for the platform that limits government’s coercive power, and the platform that more clearly defines a more limited role of government in the lives of ALL Americans.
Is it alright for Christians to be involved with politics?
The Bible contains no specific command that either requires or forbids Christian involvement with politics. However, through the prophet Jeremiah, God teaches His people that they should, “Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf” (Jer. 29:57). In other places, God teaches that Christians should obey and pray for those in positions of civil authority (Matt. 22:21; Rom. 13:17; Titus 3:1; 1 Pet. 2:13).
Every year on October 31, Christians from around the world are reminded of a “reforming” movement that brought back to light the central message of the Bible, the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Freedom, life, and salvation were again heard as God’s gifts offered to sinners by grace alone, through faith alone, in the person and work of Jesus Christ alone. Martin Luther’s rediscovery of the uniqueness of the freedom of the Gospel as God’s saving work in the world for all shook the foundations of the medieval world. It ushered in many of the precious freedoms that we enjoy in this world today. It clearly identified and distinguished the uniqueness of the eternal freedom that comes from knowing and trusting in God’s gracious work in Jesus from the cultural/political freedoms that come from public policy, citizenship, and good government. Distinguishing, cherishing, and engaging both freedoms is part of what it means to be a Christian citizen in the world for the sake of the culture and the mission of the Church.
Former President Donald Trump has come out in favor of the rape and incest exception [with regard to abortion], and that's a pity. And yet a friend says we need to have abortion precisely because some women are raped or are victims of incest. What that shows is that people are not listening or are confused by the propaganda press, which is the only press half the country ever gets.
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Former President Donald Trump has survived an assassination attempt. We thank God for his protection, and like many other voices this week, we abhor such political violence, boldly praying to God that virtue and civility might return to our public life together. As Christians, we are called into the middle of the chaos of the world in which we live with the power and wisdom of God’s preserving voice of the Law and His saving voice of the Gospel.
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Perhaps someone you know or someone in your child’s school has come out recently as transgender. School districts, government leaders, doctors, counselors and ubiquitous popular media are teaching us all, including many in the church, false and unhealthy ideas about what it means to be human.
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