SALEM — An uproar took place in response to the recent opening ceremony of the Olympics in Paris. The most globally-watched drag show in history included depravity involving the mockery of the famous painting of DaVinci’s “The Last Supper.” The scene included a drag queen taking the place of Jesus and twelve other LGBTQ members representing the disciples. But ultimately GOD got the last word in Paris.
One Ohio pastor believes the debacle that took place during the Olympics hosted by France was not a singular event, but rather a symptomatic event stemming back from a history of secular humanism absent from GOD.
“The controversial Olympic opening ceremony should elicit questions in our mind that should precipitate inside the heart and mind of every American,” says Pastor Timothy Ginter. “How did France get to this place? What will America choose? What must we do?”
The Lead Pastor of ‘The Church at the Center’ believes America is in danger of choosing a culture of paganism that rejects GOD. He points to history for a better understanding. While both the United States and France had revolutions a decade apart and both considered republics, the similarities seem to end there.
“Proverbs 14:12 says ‘There is a way that seems right to man, but its end leads to death,’ says Pastor Ginter. “The American Revolution was based on Judeo-Christian values while the French Revolution was based on anti-GOD secular values that removed Christian influence from society.”
During the French Revolution, many churches were desecrated, including the Cathedral of Notre Dame where the altar was disassembled and replaced with an alter dedicated to “secular enlightment.” Church masses were also banned. French Sociologist Alexis de Tocqueville noted these differences.
“The duty belongs to us, the results belong to GOD…. We can see America lit again if you and I would just put a lamp out in front of our own houses. If you and I can just do what we can do, we will stop the darkness that is seeking to envelope this nation and drive it away.”
Pastor Timothy Ginter
Also during the Revolution, the French began consuming their own. With the new invention of the guillotine, one million French citizens had been eliminated by 1802; even the founder of the French Revolution was killed. As a result, France got rid of the seven-day week originating from the Bible and changed the week to ten days. While the American Founding Fathers signed their official documents with “In the Year of the LORD,” the French got rid of calendar years based on the birth of Christ and called 1791 as “Year One” of the revolution.
The Salem Pastor noted polar opposite characteristics found in the American Revolution. “Conversely, the U.S. Constitution and Declaration of Independence were the first to include inalienable rights, or God-given rights that were considered fundamental to every human being that no government has the authority to take away. While the United States has been under the same Constitution since since 1789, France has had fourteen different constitutions.”
However, Ginter warns culturally speaking, America is a hair-breadth away from the French Model. He pointed to the Sisters of Perpetuality at Dodger Stadium where drag queens portrayed themselves as nuns. Generation Z’ers may have already chosen the French Model. According to a PEERS testing of children attending home school, less than three percent have a Biblical worldview. Research indicates an individual’s worldview is formulated between fifteen months and age thirteen.
“I do not know how much time this country has left,” says Pastor Ginter. “We are at the epicenter, we are at a crisis point. In the Bible, there is no position of neutrality. There is no middle ground. He who gathers scatters. Everyone must do something. The sin of commission is treated the same as the sin of omission. We are in the position where we have to speak up. If you do what you can, GOD will multiply and amplify your efforts. The duty is ours, results is GOD’s.”
Ginter closes by saying America needs revival. He points to a story from America’s founding.
“In the days before electricity when people got around by horse-drawn carriages, the streets of Philadelphia were a dangerous place to be at night. Philadelphia had no paved roads and the roads were dark; one never knew if they were stepping in mud or horse excrement. Ben Franklin decided that the City of Philadelphia needed to light the streets up. Rather than go to the city fathers, Franklin decided to put a post in the ground in front of his house and hang a lantern on the post at night. Pretty soon individuals would gather at Franklin’s house because there was a lamp there. A neighbor thought it was a good idea, and decided to stick a post with a lantern in their front yard. After a while, the streets of Philadelphia were lit all because Franklin put a lamp in front of his house.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, we can see America lit again if you and I would just put a lamp out in front of our own house. If you and I can just do what we can do, we will stop the darkness that is seeking to envelope this nation and drive it away.”
Interestingly, the City of Paris experienced a blackout one day following the wicked opening ceremony. The only building with light was a downtown church, the Basillica of Sacre-Coeur de Montmartre. GOD will not be mocked.
The Bottom Line:
The Bible says in First Corinthians Nine, “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win.”
View Pastor Timothy Ginter’s August 4th sermon below at Church at the Center in Salem, Ohio. (45 min.)
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