I’ve heard author Frank Peretti compare our culture’s hunger for biblical absolutes to the need for authority on a neighborhood playground in the summertime. Posted on the fence of the playground are some rules: “No hitting. No profanity. Only age ten and under on the monkey bars. Only age eight and older on the basketball court. Ten minute limit on the tetherball court.” The rules work well because mingling through the crowd of children is Mrs. Kravitz. She has a keen eye, and if you misbehave, she will give you a pink slip. Two pink slips and you’re out of the playground for the summer.
*But take Mrs. Kravitz out of the picture. How long do you think it will take before the rules begin to be violated? “Hey, he hit me!” “She spit on me!” “Hey get those big kids off the monkey bars! Little kids are getting hurt!” “Hey, he cut the tetherball off!”
*Who will soon rule the playground? The biggest, the strongest, the most antagonistic. That’s what is happening all around us, because there is no regard for the rules. The 10 commandments are no longer obeyed, and the Bible is no longer respected as a source of authority in our culture, largely because it is not preached from our pulpits as the Word of God. Preachers don’t have the ability to “hand out pink slips,” but we do have a duty to uphold the truth of God’s Word and sound a clear
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