Article By: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries

Hey, mom and dad, I’ve got a question for you.

Your son or daughter just turned sixteen and is begging to take your new car out for a spin.

They haven’t taken Driver’s Ed.
They don’t have a license.
But they are technically “of age.”

If you decide to give them the keys, learning to drive will be part of their self-discovery process. And it would be a shame to suppress their creativity and individuality with your instruction.

And who needs Driver’s Ed class or a learning permit, anyway?

It’s just an overrated system of outdated and highly-restrictive rules. Your child doesn’t need all that; they’ve got their feelings and instincts to guide them.

No rules. No restrictions. No absolutes.

Your kid should be allowed to drive on the side of the road that “feels right” to them and obey the signs and signals that fit into the “moral code” they’ve written for themselves.

Sound like a good plan. I mean, what’s the worst that could happen?

Traffic Laws Are For Our Protection

Today I want to start our conversation with one truth I believe we all agree upon.

Whether democrat or republican, Christian or atheist, man or woman, I think we can all agree that traffic laws are a good thing.

The process of receiving driving education, passing a test, and agreeing to abide by the laws established by the local and national government is beneficial and necessary for all future drivers.

Are you nodding your head in agreement? I sure hope so…

Safe driving is a matter of life and death, and we all know it. The statistics show that there is a direct relationship between well-enforced traffic laws and fewer driving-related deaths.

Teen driving restrictions.
Seat-belt laws.
Speed limits.

When these laws are embraced and enforced, lives are saved. Why? Because these laws are for our good and for our protection.

Driving a car is one of the most dangerous things we do on a day-to-day basis. And we would never, ever, allow our children to drive without the proper instruction and licensing.

Because we love them and we want the best for them.

Traffic laws are for our protection and it’s important everyone follow them, regardless of “how they feel” about them.

Imagine the chaos that would ensue if we decided to toss out all the rules and allowed everyone to drive as they please?

There are a few countries that put a low priority on educating drivers and enforcing driving laws. I found a fascinating article about driving in Haiti. Here are a few of the highlights:

“Driving in Haiti must be undertaken with extreme caution. Lanes are not marked and signs indicating the direction of traffic flow seldom exist. Drivers do not always verify that the road is clear before switching lanes, turning, or merging.  Speed limits are seldom posted and are generally ignored. Drivers should be particularly cautious at night, as unlighted vehicles can appear without warning. There are few marked crosswalks and sidewalks, and pedestrians often wend their way through traffic in urban areas. Additionally, motorcycles on Haitian roads tend to maneuver in between traffic on both the left and right sides of vehicles, as well as into on-coming traffic.”

Driving in Haiti sounds fun, doesn’t it?

No thank you!

But, when I read this article, I can’t help but think of all the ways that driving in Haiti is like morality in America.

Sure there’s right and wrong, but it’s all relative. I get to define it for myself, and then you must respect my definition. No, not just respect it, accept it and validate it!

Moral Laws are Just as Important as Traffic Laws

We can all agree about the importance enforcing of traffic laws (for the protection of all drivers), but our nation lo longer upholds the most basic laws of morality:

Killing people is bad unless it’s an unborn fetus.
Stealing is wrong unless you can figure out a legal way to do it.
Men and Women are different unless you believe in gender neutrality.

And finally, you may have religious freedom unless your beliefs offend another person.

I hate to state the obvious, but all the major world religions teach that there is some level of moral and absolute truth.

Most religions teach that there is a God, which must be terribly offensive to atheists.
Most religions teach that God is the creator, which I can’t imagine evolutionists appreciate.
Most religions teach that there is such thing as right and wrong, which is just so darn offensive I can hardly take it.

And my religion, Christianity, teaches that our God is the only God (Jer. 10:10), that all His words are true (Ps. 119:16), there is such thing as sin (Deut. 6:18), and Jesus Christ is the only way to heaven (Jn. 14:6).

When you live in a society that believes any form of absolute truth is offensive, all religions are inherently offensive.

And Christianity is the most offensive religion of all!

Because any system or individual that believes dogmatically in anything—especially absolute truth—is by definition guilty of intolerance.

Making all Bible-believing Christians insensitive and intolerant, no matter how they act or what they say.

God’s Moral Laws Are Also For our Protection

Friends, I don’t think our country will do away with traffic laws anytime soon.

But our religious freedoms are slowly being removed—all in the name of “tolerance” and “acceptance.”

And we wonder why there are so many collisions, traffic-jams, and fatalities on the moral highways of our country?!

Our society is handing out car keys, telling people to create their own “road rules,” and inviting them to do as they please so long as it doesn’t offend anyone else.

Our children are being taught that truth is relative and what is wrong for one person is not necessarily wrong for someone else. They are being invited—no encouraged—to accept all versions of the truth as equal. Thus making absolute truth (aka the Bible) one of the few things in our society that is absolutely intolerable.

But the laws and commands of the Bible are there to protect us. They are our instruction manual for life here on earth, written by the very One who created us.

Psalm 19:7-9 says, “The instruction of the Lord is perfect, renewing one’s life; the testimony of the Lord is trustworthy, making the inexperienced wise. The precepts of the Lord are right, making the heart glad; the command of the Lord is radiant, making the eyes light up. The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever; the ordinances of the Lord are reliable and altogether righteous.”

And Psalm 119 is packed with all the reasons why following God’s moral laws were established for our good, our benefit, and our protection!

So, of course, the enemy is going to do everything he can to compromise, illegitimize, and banish God’s moral law from our society. It’s quite a brilliant strategy when you think about it.

What You Can Do to Protect Your Religious Freedom

I’ve heard it said that understanding the problem is half of the solution.

I wish I had a greater breadth of knowledge on this subject matter; I wish I had more wisdom or counsel to offer.

I’m not there yet.

But I still felt it was important for me to shed light on this topic that has been gnawing at my spirit for the past several weeks.

And I do have an additional resource to recommend to anyone else who wants to educate and prepare themselves (and their families) for this sinister plot to eradicate absolute moral truth from our society.

It’s a book called, “The New Tolerance,” by Josh McDowell and Bob Hostetler. Shockingly this book was written in 1998, but it could not be more relevant if it had been written yesterday! I am so grateful to my aunt for giving me a copy of this book early on in my ministry work, and I will continue to read and reference it in the future.

I’ve also found three excellent resources to help Christians in America educate themselves and learn how to protect their religious freedoms:

1. Subscribe to the Alliance Defending Freedom Newsletter.
2. Read the “Religious Freedom in Danger” article at Focus on the Family.
3. Educate yourself on the most current issues at The Heritage Foundation.

We are at war. And from where I’m standing, far too many Christians are poorly equipped for this battle. Including me!

It’s time for us to strengthen our spiritual muscles, gather our spiritual weapons, and learn how to fight and win our spiritual battles.

All we ask is you stay positive and respectful, even when you disagree. Debates about ideas are fine; critiquing other people is not. Any posts which contribute towards a negative community spirit may be removed and may result in the revoking of posting privileges.

Share this Article with Friends Online!