Whether we like to admit it or not, we are living in a post-Christian America. This is evidenced clearly by the moral relativism overtaking the common mentality, the abortion and LGBT agendas dominating our culture, and the lack of real, Biblical Christianity inside the walls of America’s churches.
Our culture has shunned Christian values so entirely that now, one of the most honorable institutions in society – traditional marriage – is devalued and mercilessly mocked in the media and by the public (not to mention perverted by the LGBT agenda). A study published by Thriving Center of Psychology showed that 2 in 5 young adults (41% of men and 52% of women) believe marriage is an “outdated tradition,” and thus, 61% of unmarried couples cohabitate. This is a society void of conviction and belief in God.
Immediately upon Mike Johnson’s procurement of the House Speaker position last week, the media began a merciless attack on him and his values – using every negative and extreme word in the dictionary to describe him, including “sinister creep,” “religious fanatic,” “liar, bigot, weirdo, and villain,” “Christian nationalist,” “evil,” “incel,” and worse. But what beliefs are problematic enough to warrant this reaction? One of them is his covenant marriage to his wife of 25 years, Kelly.
Covenant marriages were created in Louisiana, Johnson’s home state, in the 1990s, and several other states soon adopted the same policy. He and his wife were one of the first couples in the country to renew their marriage and have it certified as a “covenant marriage.” The media seems appalled by the very idea of this traditional, committed marriage design – baselessly saying it “harms women” and “keeps them locked inside their own houses,” which couldn’t be further from the truth.
The original point of covenant marriages was to combat the rising popularity of “no fault divorces,” which quickly gained popularity and created a culture of divorce across the nation. Covenant marriages require two elements of newlyweds: to receive premarital counseling before their nuptials, ensuring they have a solid foundation for marriage, and, if it comes down to it, receive counseling before filing for divorce with the goal of reconciliation. Covenant marriages allow divorce only in certain instances: adultery, felony, abandonment, abuse, and long-term separation. This eradicates the popular notion in culture that divorce is warranted if you “fall out of love” or things get tough. The couple agrees to these terms voluntarily before signing their covenant marriage document, signaling their lifelong commitment to one another and honoring God’s intent for marriage – which represents His own unwavering commitment to the Church.
In addition to ridiculing Johnson’s covenant marriage for no apparent reason other than to mock Christian values, the media has torn apart every word ever written or spoken by the new Speaker, trying to villainize and embarrass him – but of course, to no avail. Countless statements made by a young Johnson working as an attorney for Alliance Defending Freedom still ring true today: “When you break up the nuclear family, when you tell a generation of people that life has no value, no meaning, that it’s expendable, then you do wind up with school shooters.”
The Left mocks the idea of the nuclear family, traditional marriage, and healthy moral values founded in Christianity as if they are nonsense. But we see where society is now without them; it is a direct cause and effect. The drug and homelessness crises, suicide rates, gender confusion, reckless sexual behavior leading to STDs and abortions, gun violence, and countless other societal woes have been amplified due to America’s lack of reliance on God and His principles.
Mike Johnson is shining like a beacon on a hill because he is unafraid to live out his Christian faith in public. This is what it looks like to have a true man of God in Congress – and we desperately need more of them. Not men who call themselves Christians but forget to “bring Jesus to work with them,” but men who are set apart, letting their “manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ,” as Scripture commands us (Philippians 1:27).
It is past time for us to reclaim our Christian values by unabashedly defending them in the public square. We are immensely thankful for the work Mike Johnson is doing in Congress to defend Christianity and traditional values, never backing down from the truth and what God has called him to. We urge you to pray for him in this season of scrutiny and challenge, and for God to raise up more leaders of his caliber.
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” – Romans 12:2
