Whither free speech?

Last Thursday the BBC allowed the leader of the British National Party - Nick Griffin - to appear on "Question Time". This decision provoked a massive debate about the limits, if any, that should be placed upon free speech. Should Mr Griffin have been permitted to air his views on prime time TV, or should he have been banned? It appears that a strong majority of people (approx. 75% at the last count) believe the BBC was right, in the interests of free expression to invite Mr Griffin onto the programme. Free speech rights, it seemed, had triumphed, and those of us who feared we were heading towards a society where it was illegal to offend breathed a sigh of relief. (Incidentally, I am a-political and do not support the BNP).

However, this sense of relief was dealt a severe blow at the weekend with the news of the Pauline Howe affair. Mrs Howe, the wife of a Baptist minister, wrote to Norwich City Council complaining about gay parades and expressing the Biblical teaching on Homosexuality. She was subsequently visited by two Police Officers who advised her that she was being investigated for an alleged "hate crime". After some discussion the officers left and no further action was taken. Notwithstanding this a huge furore has broken out in the media over the implications for free speech. Many columnists have expressed outrage at the over-reaction of the Police in what appears to be a blatant attempt to silence someone who simply expressed a Christian belief. Even the director of Stonewall, a gay rights group, accused the Police of acting in a "disproportionate" manner.

Moreover, as if to add insult to injury, the government are determined to press ahead with the removal of the "free speech clause" from the gay hate law. This action will further encourage the Police in their attempts to harass and intimidate Evangelical Christians, What should be our response to all this? Well, the early believers were also told not to spread Christian truth. In Acts 4 v 17-18 Peter and John were told not to preach about the Lord and were threatened. Their response was to pray for boldness and they carried on as before - that should be ours also. We should not be provoked into deliberately seeking confrontation, neither should we be intimidated into silence. As Paul said "If God be for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8 v 31). Down through the centuries the Christian faith has been on the receiving end of many attempts at suppression but it has survived and continues to be preached. My hope and prayer is that, should real and lasting persecution come to this country, we would not hold back from declaring the "whole counsel of God" (including the unpopular bits!).

".......should be a castaway"

As we go through life there is a tendency to look back at situations and events; some of these memories will be pleasant ones, some not so. Indeed, as we reminisce on old times there will be those unpleasant recollections of news items that shocked and troubled us, the memories of which are still painful years later. For me the most troubling news I have heard, and still do from time to time, is that of people who were once so zealous for Christ having fallen away. The Apostle Paul recognised this danger in his own life as he penned the words of 1st Corinthians 9 v 27 - "..I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway".

As I reflected upon this subject my thoughts turned to the sad case of Charles Templeton. He was born in Canada in 1915 and, by the time of his 20s, became a dedicated evangelist, being often in the company of Billy Graham. Many souls were won to Christ through his faithful preaching. However, in the second half of his life he turned so completely away from the Lord that he even wrote a book attacking the Christian faith and the truths of the Bible. He died in 2001 at the age of 85. There was no external evidence that he ever repented of his rebellion and returned to his earlier faith. There is always the possibility that he did so privately in his final days - we can only hope so. A story such as this is deeply depressing but, rather than simply shaking our heads in bewilderment that such a thing can happen, the onus is on every professed believer to learn from the errors of others. A biblical example of such being that of Demas. His name is mentioned three times in the New Testament. In both Colossians 4 v 14 and Philemon verse 24 he is mentioned in a positive light - in the latter being described as a "fellow-labourer". However, when Paul is penning his last recorded words we read the sad news that Demas had "departed....having loved this present world". (2nd Timothy 4 v 10).

It is my hope and prayer that in my own life I would remain faithful to the end remembering the words of Jesus that "he who endures unto the end shall be saved". Matt. 10 v 22.

A Double LIfe

We've heard of Robert Louis Stephenson's book about Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Written in the 19th century it told the story of how the respectable Dr Jekyll took a drug and this turned him into the evil Mr Hyde. A clear case of a double life if there ever was one. However, I wonder how many people know that the inspiration for the book may well have come from a true story Stephenson was told as a child about a certain William Brodie. Brodie lived in the previous century and was a cabinet maker, an Edinburgh city councillor and one of the most respected men in the city. He often went into the homes of the most eminent people of the day in order to make their furniture. However, while doing this he would take impressions of the house keys, have a set made up and then burgle the house at night. He was living a double life, a respected, law abiding citizen out in the open before people, but a villain on the quiet. Eventually he was caught and hanged.

We often hear of people who were highly respected politicians, or bishops, or some other pillars of society, being caught out in some "indiscretion" and, upon further investigation, it transpires that they were living this double life for many years. Why do they do this? I would suggest that they think they are never going to be exposed. They think they can take their guilty secrets to the grave and die venerated as highly respected people. It is quite likely that for everyone who is caught out there are many who never get discovered, they have got away with it - but have they? What such people often forget is that there is a God in Heaven who sees everything. Hebrews 4 v 13 says: "...all things are exposed to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account." This is bad news for one simple reason, we are all sinners, we have all fallen short. Everyone of us have broken God's laws and, in consequence, deserve the punishment of eternal damnation.

The only hope we have is to repent of our sins and accept Jesus as our personal Saviour; He paid the price of sin and rose from the dead. By His resurrection he proved that He was who He said he was - the Son of God.

All of us need to constantly bear in mind the fact that God sees everything, knows everything, and will one day bring us all to account. A double life will be exposed, if not in this life then certainly on the judgement day.