Standing Firm

Last week, I ended the pastor's corner with Colossians 3:16, "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly," and a challenge for us to read the Bible on a daily basis. After all, one of The Well Church's central tenet is that the Bible is God's inspired and infallible Word, and it contains eternal truth that speaks with authority to our life, doctrine, and mission (2 Timothy 3:16). As I was perusing through christianheadlines.com, I came across the article, "College Student Ordered Not to Read Bible before Class." I thought that the article was about a college overseas. However, to my surprise, the incident took place at Northern Arizona University. According to the article, twenty-two-year-old Mark Holden, who likes to read his Bible before class starts, was asked by his history professor to put the Bible away, even though it was not yet time for class to start. After Holden disagreed with his professor, who happens to be a woman, the professor refereed to Holden's comments as "hate speech," and told the class, "Welcome to Trump's new America - where straight white males can say prejudicial things without being in reprimanded for it." This is shocking news. Since when is reading the Bible before class is wrong? Since when is disagreeing to put away the Bible a "hate speech"? The Well Church, the day has come in America where believers are being challenged for their faith in Jesus Christ. Religious persecution is slowly penetrating our society. Jesus said, "You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved" (Matthew 10:22). Brothers and sisters, let us rely and trust in Jesus Christ by developing our relationship with him by reading and obeying his word. Whatever the world may throw at you, let us stand firm to the end for Christ.