Several things that occurred this morning reminded me once again of the reality of the spiritual war that we are in. One of the biggest mistakes the Christian can make is to not be aware of this ubiquitous spiritual battle that we are all involved in. Living as if everything is just sweetness and light will just mean we keep losing to the other side.
The Paris Olympics
My first example of this was what took place at the Opening Ceremony of the Paris Olympics. When I opened my social media feed today I saw dozens of posts on this. Satan is alive and well in France it seems, and demonised hatred of Christianity seems to characterise those in charge of the Olympics. One news report describes it this way:
The 2024 Olympics opening ceremony in Paris has sparked international outrage with drag-queen themed imagery of religious and historical figures. In between listing all the countries participating in the Olympic Games, there have been several performances riffing on France’s history and culture, such as a headless Marie Antoinette, the last queen prior to being executed amid French Revolution, singing with her severed head in her hands sporting drag-style makeup. This was part of numerous drag queens that appeared to be a recurring theme throughout the ceremonies.
Three drag queens were among the 10,000 torchbearers who relayed the Olympic flame as it started in Greece, passed through French territories and made its way to Paris. One new display on Friday showed what appear to be numerous performers, including drag queens and a large woman in an aureole halo crown, parodying “The Last Supper,” a universally recognizable painting by renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci of Christ and his apostles.
Plenty of commentary has already been made on this sacrilegious and diabolical assault on Jesus Christ and the faith of so many. One friend of mine put it this way: “The French misfire in Opening Ceremony of the Olympics. There’s good art and there’s bad art. This was bad art. Good art inspires. Bad art mocks and disgusts. The Olympics are supposed to be a unifying event, not a place to insult the deepest beliefs of many.”
Another said this:
Drag queens mock Christianity during the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics in Paris as they attempt to recreate da Vinci’s painting of Jesus’ Last Supper. Not only are Christians the only people that it is socially acceptable to mock… it’s actually celebrated and put front and center when it happens. Remember the words of Jesus: “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you (John 15:18).” There will be a day that mocking turns into fear of the One true God. Hopefully, it happens before it’s too late.
I will speak to that coming day in a moment. And big names were also condemning this disgraceful assault on our faith. Elon Musk said this: “This was extremely disrespectful to Christians.” Sports people also weighed in on this. Riley Gaines put it this way: “Men in wigs front & center at the Olympic Games. No one ever tell me this group is ‘oppressed’ or ‘marginalized’ again.”
NFL footballer Harrison Butker said this: “Be not deceived, God is not mocked. For what things a man shall sow, those also shall he reap. For he that soweth in his flesh, of the flesh also shall reap corruption. But he that soweth in the spirit, of the spirit shall reap life everlasting.’ Galatians 6:7-8.”
And is anyone really surprised that once again it was Christianity, and not Islam, that was attacked in such a vile and ugly manner? If Muhammad had come under attack like this, the Olympics would NOT be going ahead – guaranteed. As another friend said: “Nothing says ‘I do what I want’ quite like mocking the religion that requires its followers to ‘turn the other cheek.’ So fearless. So brave.”
One other friend did not seem too fazed by all this: “Can’t we Christians just ignore it?” To which I had to reply: “Why should Christians ignore diabolical attacks on their Lord and their faith?” Too often we are just too laid back and too apathetic. A bit of righteous indignation now and then would not go astray.
Cultists
A second thing that happened this morning also made me realise how this spiritual battle is happening at all times in all places. Several cultists (Jehovah’s Witnesses) came to my door to give me a pamphlet and encourage me to come to an event about ‘Jesus’. Those who know nothing about this group can see this piece.
And when I soon thereafter walked my dog, I saw more of them seeking to deceive many. It occurred to me right away that Christians need to be as evangelistic and committed as so many in the cults are. And I prayed that their deception would not have any success in my neighbourhood.
As I have often said, I daily pray for all my neighbours when I walk the dog. I will need to add to my prayers that they not only become committed Christians but that they do not fall prey to these cults and false religions. If they can hit the streets seeking converts, we believers need to be emboldened to share our faith much more.
Do not presume upon God’s patience and grace
The third thing that happened this morning came just moments after the above two events. In my daily reading, I am now again in the book of Isaiah. This heavy-duty prophet often comforts me when I despair over the state of the world. His hard-hitting words are the tonic we need when we get discouraged.
And so it was that just moments after grieving in my spirit over the diabolical anti-Christian hate on display at the Paris Olympics, I read Isaiah 2:11-12. It certainly brought some comfort, hope and relief:
The haughty looks of man shall be brought low,
and the lofty pride of men shall be humbled,
and the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.For the Lord of hosts has a day
against all that is proud and lofty,
against all that is lifted up—and it shall be brought low.
The whole chapter is worth reading. The simple truth is this: all the rebellion and defiance of the living God that we see on display everywhere – and not just in Paris – will not always continue. We live in a day of grace right now, where God extends mercy to others. But that will come to an end soon enough.
While we now pray for the lost and seek to share the gospel with them, it is of comfort to know that as God is rejected and hated on by so many, their fist-shaking at God will not go on forever. They will one day find that the living God will not be mocked, and that the same grace that was once offered will be replaced by the righteous judgment of a just and holy God.
So none of us dare presume upon God and his grace. This window of mercy and the offer of forgiveness will not always be open. Soon enough Christ will return, and the judgments discussed in the books of Isaiah, Revelation and elsewhere will be on full display.
One quote that I have often run with from R. C. Sproul is worth sharing here once again. It is a necessary word that we all need to hear. Commenting on Romans 1 he said this:
We hear all the time about God’s infinite grace and mercy. I cringe when I hear it. God’s mercy is infinite insofar as it is mercy bestowed upon us by a Being who is infinite, but when the term infinite is used to describe his mercy rather than his person, I have problems with it because the Bible makes very clear that there is a limit to God’s mercy. There is a limit to his grace, and he is determined not to pour out his mercy on impenitent people forever. There is a time, as the Old Testament repeatedly reports, particularly in the book of the prophet Jeremiah, that God stops being gracious with people, and he gives them over to their sin.
We see all over the world, especially in the West, people being given over to their sin. The sacrilegious and blasphemous display in Paris is just one of millions of examples of this. But it will not go on for much longer. That is good news.
In the meantime, please pray that the homosexual activist and “artistic director” of the Paris Olympics Thomas Jolly has an encounter with the living Christ that he so very much seems to hate.
