Freedom to Preach (part 2)

Jesus said, “You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” He announced, “I am the truth!” The enemy’s assault on freedom is built upon and supported by lies. Satan, the father of all lies, fiercely assaults truth.

As I shared in last week’s commentary, I was kicked off television for preaching the truth found in Romans 1. I did not stand down; I stood up and spoke out for truth. This week you can read the conclusion of my message emphasizing the importance of freedom and the foundation upon which it stands – God’s Word and Jesus the Living Word.

 


 

 

Do you know one reason why we have too much government regulation? When a society no longer believes God is in charge of human affairs, you then have men attempting to take the place of God with a super-state. The all-provident government becomes god. When men get in trouble, they turn to government. God intended the problems of men to bring them to their knees in repentance, seeking Him and not the government.

At the first sound of some frantic, malcontent truth-hater, the television station that kicked our program off the air, hiding behind bureaucratic rules, jumped into a nervous spasm. Often it’s just one person. The person who registered the complaint admitted to not watching our program. God help us. The station manager didn’t even see the program until the afternoon he watched it with me. When I walked into his office, he said, “You can’t say homosexuality is a sin.” That was his first statement. “Homosexuality is not against the law.” [It was against the law in many states, including Texas, at that time.]  But I don’t care whether it is against man’s law or not, because it is against God’s truth, and I’m called to preach God’s truth.

 

WALT DISNEY OVER THE GOSPEL

As Christians, we must stand up. I’m shocked to realize Walt Disney was more effective as one man delivering his message to this nation than all the churches combined. I declare to you America knows more about Mickey Mouse than they do about Moses. Walt Disney got his message out. God wants to get His message out. Christians have to take a stand for truth and freedom.

Because of this situation, every television program we produce is being previewed. It costs us $50,000 just to send tapes ahead this summer so that television stations can watch all the programs before they clear time – all because of one station. Think about that for a minute. We send our programs to a station and one fellow comes in to preview it. Do you realize if I hit one sensitive spot in that man’s life and he doesn’t like it, he silences me before a million people? I sometimes warn about smoking. I believe it is a detriment to your health, and I didn’t wait for the surgeon general to say that before I made up my mind. When are the smokers going to get their time?

If I lose this case, if they can put me off of the air because I represent one side of the issue, then I won’t ever have to pay for any more television time in my life. I will bring suits against every program that goes against what I believe as a Christian, and I want equal time. It will save us a ton of money.

If I lose this battle, if I can’t speak, the press can’t write. If I can’t speak, then they can’t make editorial comments on the news.

When does a broadcaster have the right to assume the dread position of becoming the judge, jury, and prosecutor in determining what is right or wrong? The broadcaster, or station manager, must not have the right or the responsibility of determining what is in the public interest and what is of public importance. One person must never have the right of sitting in the place of censorship and directing all that a city may hear. If that happens, Satan will have his representatives in every one of those seats. God’s Word will be silenced. We must not let it happen.

Someone said, “Preachers ought not mess with politics.” Brother, when a preacher does his business he messes with everything. Everything you do is affected by what the preacher says. I want to say something to preachers who are in the crowd tonight. There are a few of you who would rather be home in bed, and you’re getting an earful. I want to say something to you, fella’. You listen to me. If your preaching doesn’t affect the thinking, the living, the talking, and acting of the people sitting in your church, you ought to vacate the pulpit, because it is full of sounding brass and tinkling cymbals. Get out of it!

The strength of America lies in her pulpits. Nothing greater ever happens in a city than happens in the pulpits of this land when God’s man gets up and preaches God’s Word. If you believe anything is more important than that, go do it, because you are in the wrong place. There is nothing of greater importance than a preacher preaching the Word of God in a society crumbling. God had one Son, and He made Him a preacher. Brother, there is nothing more noble than preaching. Preach it. Preach God’s Word, not your opinion.

Isaiah 5:20-23 says, “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness.” Woe to those people, God says.

This may be the most important meeting since the convening of the Constitutional Congress in 1787, when our founding fathers brought us the Constitution of these United States. We have gathered here tonight to stand in a firm decision and defense of that Constitution and uphold the First Amendment; the freedom of Religion, Speech, Press, Assembly, and Petition.

 

CHALLENGING ASSASSINS OF FREEDOM

Why am I here? I am here to announce my intention to maintain freedom. To blast the avowed enemies of freedom. To challenge the assassins of freedom. To demand the rights in our freedom. To enlist an army of defenders of freedom. To enlighten the minds of people concerning the tragic losses of freedom; to file my objectives concerning the abuses of freedom. To generate concern for reapers for freedom. To gain a new hold on freedom. I’m here to halt the infringements against freedom. To implement ways to maintain our freedom. To insist on the full privilege of freedom. To justify the defense of freedom. To keep freedom alive. To lead the champions of freedom. To magnify the importance of freedom; muzzle the voices against freedom; nurse the most recent wounds of freedom, oppose the foes of freedom; object to the losses of freedom; protect our freedom; question the decisions against freedom. I’m here to resist those who oppose freedom; stop the assault on freedom; tear off the shackles on freedom; unite freedom’s warriors; voice the cry for freedom; vote for freedom; wrestle the foes of freedom; expose the attack on freedom; yell for the cause of freedom; and zero in on the destroyers of freedom. That’s why I’m here tonight.

I believe America is great. America is not great because of her land or her people. America’s greatness is not in the military or materials of our country. It’s not in mechanical or mental greatness, but America’s greatness is in God. Our founding fathers never conceived a nation separated from God. We have a move on today to separate God from government, and God from our society. That is not why America was founded. America is built on God. When America gets too intelligent for God, she has become unintelligent. When she gets too big for God, she is too big. When she divorces herself from God, she will crumble into the dust. When America forsakes the guidance of God, she is dead.

My friend, the greatest problem in our country is not alcohol. It is not drugs. It is not all of the waste in the land, with the bureaucrat and his regulations. The greatest problem in our country is no longer being under God. It is our responsibility to call our people back to God. Francis Scott Key wrote the “Star Spangled Banner” in the white heat of battle. Every day he arose he said he looked to see if the flag was still there. As a 20th century American, I find myself waking every day and looking to see if freedom is still here. My dear friend, we must not lose freedom.

Patrick Henry said, “Is life so dear, a place so sweet as to be purchased with the price of chained slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God. I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death.”

Freedom can be maintained only by the eternal vigilance which has always been its price. The republic was not established by cowards, and cowards will not preserve it. America will be the land of the free, only as long as it is the home of the brave. The American government is guilty of putting a noose around our necks. It will tighten the noose until we cry out for fear of sudden death. When we cry loudly until we get their attention, they turn and release the noose two notches, allowing us to breathe, but they do not take the noose from our necks. The federal government must have no noose around the necks of God’s preachers. No man on this earth can put a noose around God’s prophet, and God’s preachers. If we allow a decision such as the one WFAA made to stand, then I believe everyone in Dallas (and in the United States) has sanctioned their decision.

How can you put a preacher off of the air for preaching the truth? For preaching the Bible? We have laws against obscenity. We are all against obscenity. We are all against irresponsibility and untruth, but since when has truth become slander? Since when has the Bible become obscene? When preachers are silent, people sanction the voice of trash and silence the voice of truth. We sanction the voice of filth, and silence the voice of faith. We sanction the voice of the Hugh Hefners and silence the voice of heaven’s heralds. God help us.

My Bible says, “It would be better if you had a millstone tied around your neck and you were cast into the bottom of the sea, than to ever hinder one of these little ones who believe.” I mean, that goes for a station that silences the voice of the Word of God. My own children cannot hear me preach on TV in this area. My staff cannot hear me. The only way you hear me preach in this area is on the news. That’s the only way I can get on television in the Metroplex. But I’m going to WFAA and will again ask them to sell me time, so that I can preach a message on child abuse and the breakdown of the home, and the importance of the family.

America is a republic; a republic ruled by a constitution. We are not a democracy. A democracy is ruled by the majority. We are a republic. We are ruled by a constitution. We are not a monarchy, but we soon may be an anarchy… That means ruled by no one. Friend, when God is not in control your lives are one step from anarchy… Will you join your heart, your hands, and your lives and will you march to change America for the glory of God? Friends, freedoms lost without a battle are never regained.

When I was a senior in high school, a man came from Russia. He told of an experience when he stood in Moscow’s Red Square. He looked across and saw 10,000 teenagers. They chanted in unison as they stomped their feet, “We march to change the world! We march to change the world!” I heard that march. I heard that chant. And as one teenage boy in a high school assembly, I answered and said, “I’ll march to change the world! I’ll march to change the world!”

Will you join that march, and march to change the world by the power of God? Amen and Amen.

 

Following this message delivered at the Freedom Rally in support of freedom of speech the right to preach and with protests from church leaders and members, along with business leaders led by Mary Crowley, WFAA put us back on the air. The Fairness Doctrine was then wisely overturned, and the result of Christians standing together had an undeniably positive impact on freedom in America and around the world.

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