Christian Boycotts | SermonIndex

T

TMK Apr 28, 2016

Recently I believe the Family Research Council announced a boycott of Target stores due to the LGBT bathroom issue.

My question is the propriety of boycotting in light of the following scriptures:
-------------------
Romans 12:14, 17-18 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.

Matthew 5:43-46 "You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
-----------------

My question is whether a Christian boycott is a proper response- or does it make us look like unloving jerks?

What if the Family Research Council had instead said "to show our love to the LGBT community we are asking Christians to increase their shopping at Target."

Which scenario better shows the love of Christ?

I do not pretend to have the answer- just throwing it out for discussion.

sermonindex Apr 28, 2016

The best boycott we can do is one in our own lives against sin:

2 Timothy 2:19New International Version (NIV)

19 Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: "The Lord knows those who are his,” and, "Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness.”

I personally would never take our children to a place where LGBT washrooms where there as we would never want to expose them to this perversion in their minds. So our personal choice is not to usually shop in such a place especially with children.

I am sure other saints have other good thoughts on this matter.

sermonindex Apr 28, 2016

by sermonindex on 2016/4/28 12:18:15
The best boycott we can do is one in our own lives against sin:

AMEN!

sermonindex Apr 28, 2016

No comment on the boycott...

But this latest controversy has made me think about where the business world is headed as it embraces the mark of the beast more and more.

What we do know is that eventually it will not be possible to buy or sell unless one accepts the mark. This transgender nonsense is the thin edge of the wedge I think. Its amazing how quickly the business world jumped on top of this and how quickly the country has become polarized over 0.01% of the populations demands. Insanity. It can only be described as an agenda birthed in the pit of hell.

And more, much more is on the way. If this is the kind of wickedness we are dealing with today, try to imagine what the world will look like in 50 years...what kind of things will the State be imposing on the populace? Sodom and Gomorrah, here we come...

T

TMK Apr 28, 2016

So will the boycott help matters? Will it help to change the hearts of LGTBs?

We have to decide if this scripture means what it says:

Romans 12:20 Therefore"If your enemy is hungry, feed him;If he is thirsty, give him a drink;For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.”

What does the last part of this verse mean?

F

Fatherschild Apr 28, 2016

Sodom and Gomorrah are already here and brought live to you in living blazing technical wonder working power straight to your living rooms and mobile devices via satellite. Our battle is not against the flesh, our own or any LGBT flag flapping lost soul’s. Our battle is against those powers and principalities that would have us despise these lost souls rather than pray them through as the Lord would lead us.

We had a target store in my reasonably large city and it didn’t last long. Within a year or so it was closed because nobody saw the merit in doing business there as better deals were to had elsewhere. Mind you I also believe it was God’s hand and the prayers of the saints here for this city and it’s people However, in the future should I be in the proximity of a Target store sans any children (keep the kids out of there), and God orchestrates a divine appointment well Glory to God there may be one less LGBT soul lost to the darkness and plucked from the fire amen? He would that none perish.

sermonindex Apr 28, 2016

Neither Target nor transgender people are our enemies so I don't even see how that scripture is relevant to the situation.

sermonindex Apr 28, 2016

I believe as with all things, the Gospel is the ultimate answer.

However, even though I'm not a big "boycott them" guy by nature, if a company is saying that if my family goes there & has to use their restroom, they must be subjected to this perversion: I'm not going there. And while I will always preach the Gospel to transgendered (& everyone else) in love, I still hope Target gets the message & stops the insanity or frankly goes out of business & other retailers get the message & don't do it too. It may very well be that some day there are no other options, but I won't in good conscience deal with them & support them with my hard earned $. Can't.

It's like the same reason I have turned down big opportunities where I live that fell in my lap to sell products to Casinos (which feed on & perpetuate greed & take advantage of old people, who still have personal responsibility, but they gladly send buses to the nursing homes to get them), porn shops (I had one "given to me" & told my company no thanks & explained why), & I had a chance for the Stericycle account (they take all the "waste" from abortion clinics) & I'd rather struggle with my bills & "have nothing to do with the undeuitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them". I believ God will honor that either now or in eternity (& with 7 kids and single income, it's not as if I don't "need the $", trust me).

Anyways, that's my 2 cents.

But the only REAL ULTIMATE final solution for reaching all these people is the Gospel, I don't disagree with that. But I'm not going into strip clubs to preach to the people at the bar either. Wisdom I believe.

My 2 cents,
Jeff

sermonindex Apr 28, 2016

Strangely enough, I am not against boycotts as such. I say strangely because I do not believe you can legislate morality and so on. A heart change is a heart change and that is what we as Christians desire to see in everyone, that they find Jesus and their lives are revolutionized. Yet, by simply refusing to shop at that store is s simple enough act. I think about when the black people boycotted the bus company down south back in the civil rights days. It was highly effective and even if they achieved nothing, at least their conscience was clear. They did not want to contribute to the profits of a company who removed a lady because she would not sit at the back of the bus. I see nothing wrong with that. We live in a day and age where corporations are blackmailing municipalities and states into reversing their laws. If Christians decide that they do not want to add to the profits of these companies, then that seems fine enough to me. There are plenty of choices out there :)................bro Frank

J

Jasmine Apr 28, 2016

I'm not going to be diplomatic about this. I'm for the boycott. I'm for the boycott because to me this isn't about transgendered people as much as it is about predators. There are predominately evil men who want to have access to women and children any way they can for their own vile purposes and this is just the invitation they need. I also feel like what did people think was going to happen with their compromise for "gay marriage”. Did people really think it was going to stop there? Did they think celebrating Bruce Jenner's "transformation” was going to stop there? I remember over 20 years ago, one of my Professors who was a lesbian telling me that the "movement” wasn't homosexual but rather "polysexual”. So yeah "they” all want rights....

I can't just take the position of Joshua 24:15 and act like this doesn't affect my neighbor when it clearly does. I think there's a better way to love transgendered people besides putting women and children in danger. I feel that if transgendered people really cared about community they would have taken the compromise that was offered to them to have their own restrooms. That way everyone could be safe.

I truly know that God's Love is never absent of His Truth and His Holiness. I know because that's how I got Saved. In His Presence, God is pure unadulterated Love but He's fully Truth and He's completely Holy. With all that I had a conviction followed by repentance. I wish I could explain it better but was/is life transforming and God hasn't changed. Jesus is the same. The Holy Spirit is still the Spirit of Truth. So I'm all for loving the LGBT as long as this is the kind of love we're talking about.

I don't think former bad treatment of the LGBT by some Christians is a reason to not continue to stand for right and righteousness.

sermonindex Apr 28, 2016

edit:

I think it is wise to boycott something where there may be danger for your yourself or children, but if we were to boycott everything that is not of God, we would not be paying taxes or shopping at most places. No one would have a credit card, use PayPal, Ebay, own stocks, bonds, or do business with banks. And this is just scratching the surface.

Just as the mark of the beast is spiritual and not physical, so is the mark of Christ. Would anyone say the "mark of Christ" is physical? Is 2 Tim 2:19 speaking of a physical seal?

2Tim 2:19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

Do you think this is referring to a physical looking seal?
Rev 9:4 And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.

One is known as a Christian not by physical, outward marks, but by the fruit of the Spirit and their loyalty to Jesus. Christians display the character of the One who indwells them. Just the same, one is known as a non-Christian by the "works of the flesh" and what "spirit" they are of and their loyalty to the "beast" (world system and religions of this world). Unbelievers display the character of their father, too (Eph 2:2).

We are instructed to try the spirits, not look for physical marks.

1Jn_4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.

How many Christians do you know that have Social Security numbers (can't buy and sell without one), credit cards, birth certificates, marriage certificates, driver's license (can't drive without one)?

Do having these things that you need to buy and sell, mean that you are not a Christian?

F

Fatherschild Apr 28, 2016

I agree Jasmine that this new ‘policy’ provides great opportunity for predators to have easier access to victimize children and vulnerable women, so yes stay away!

Beyond that, I agree with Jeff that supporting the ‘perversion‘ is hard earned dollars down the proverbial toilet (pun intended), and Julius I believe you are correct about the need to find balance in this area per the OP.

I guess in my first post I got a little side tracked and shifted from the discussion about 'boycotting' to plucking a few LGBT from the fire. Sorry for the distraction, and yet do pray for those poor lost souls.

sermonindex Apr 28, 2016

I think you are over thinking it Julias. No one would willingly put their children in a dangerous situation. I have a special needs young man and I still go into the public bathrooms with him. Should I not just rely on God to keep him safe? I think that would be a silly argument, I am tasked with keeping him safe as are all parents for their children. If a specific business is actually going to invite any man into the ladies bathroom, then it would be wise to simply avoid that business. As it is right now, any man in a womans bathroom in Target, when challenged, merely needs to reply that he self identifies himself as a woman. This is an invitation to predators and has nothing to do with the 0.3% of Americans who identify themselves as a transgender. The lunatics are actually taking over the asylum. In this case the asylum is the secular state. We are going to have to be prepared for living in times no one has ever experienced before..........bro Frank

D

dolfan Apr 28, 2016

Boycotts fail when the cause supported lacks consensus support. There are not enough Christians in America to boycott Target 100% and have enough impact to make them change their policy to "only go to the restroom that matches what the Lord gave you". They would double down on this and have glass walls on all the stalls, such is the delusion among us now. Everybody in America except the LGBT and their supporters would have to quit Target to close them involuntarily, IMO.

Boycotts also fail when the cause supported lacks media support. Media are the surrogate for actual thought. That is why they tell us what to think, and are quite open about that fact. America does not think. We do as we are told by media of all kinds and all perspectives. The media tells us LGBT is normal. So, we actually think, to a large enough degree, that Target is not wrong and besides who cares? You can't boycott successfully if the media is not in charge any more than you can be a party nominee for president if the powers that be are not picking you. We only think we are free. We are slaves, albeit unwittingly for the most part.

So, boycott if you like. Sooner or later, you will probably shop there again. We all pretty much lay down our arms eventually when it comes at the cost of laying down our money for something we want. Or, if you don't and you stick to your principles, wave at the folks swarming into the Target as you pass.

T

TMK Apr 28, 2016

I appreciate all the responses, but no one has addressed the scripture in the OP.

Does a boycott heap burning coals on the heads of the LGBTs (per the actual meaning of that phrase) or is it just making a monetary stab at Target? In other words, what effect does the boycott have on LGBTs?

Target is a soulless corporation.

Let's think about an analogous scenario. Let's say there is a business in town, let's say a bakery, run by an openly gay couple. Would it have more of an effect from Gods perspective for Christians to 1) boycott their business to express their disdain for the couple's sin, or rather 2) lavishly patronize their bakery? Who is more likely to influence the couple for the Kingdom- the boycotters or the lavishers?

J

JFW Apr 28, 2016

Why does it surprise us when an unsaved, unregenerate people act like unsaved, unregenerate people?
I mean honestly what did we think they were gonna do?

And now we (the body of Christ) are going to follow suit by boycotting their spiritual illiteracy!!??? Isn't that what the "world" would do....?

But we are not of this world,... Nope this place is not our home so why are we trying to get comfortable here?

Did Jesus or Paul or Peter or John boycott Herod, Festus, or Cesar.... Or did they concern themselves with the cause of Christ, namely the kingdom of God and live in such a way that the love of God and the truth of Christ was daily manifest in their lives so as to bring a living hope to a lost and dying world?

Is that what we're doing in our spare time when we're not busy boycotting some new offense or devouring our brothers and sisters that see things a lil dif?

The ship is sinking and we argue over bathrooms.... seriously!?

Now the words of Jesus make more sense than ever... "When the Son of man returns, will He find any faith upon the earth?"

I thought we were to be the lights of this world and as it gets darker and darker we'd shine brighter and brighter, not begin to flicker and sputter out-

Where is the love of God shed abroad in our hearts?

sermonindex Apr 28, 2016

JFW, dolfan, TMK - agree with you.

Of course, no parent would knowingly put their children in a dangerous situation.

D

dolfan Apr 28, 2016

TMK, sorry to not address your question. We get off track around here so easily! :)

It can be more effective to lavish love on our enemies than to curse them. We're not told to love them based on how effective it is. And, love is sometimes not lavished -- sometimes it is tougher and truth-telling.

People work at Target. Target is a soulless corporation, indeed. The instruction to love our enemy in Romans 12 is applied by Paul in Romans 13 to government. People work the jobs of government. We pay to them the debt of love we owe to Jesus.

That is probably not often going to be expressed in a boycott. On the other hand, there may be other duties that rightly alter or even halt something recognizable as "love" for an enemy (i.e., predatory behavior against a child would require something way more coercive than a boycott and not generally seen as a loving hand even if it truly is).

As Americans, we treasure the power of a collective voice. It is all wrapped up in this whole democracy razzmatazz. As Christians, we DEEPLY let our American thought inform our Christian heart. It seldom (IMO!) produces anything worth doing or giving much thought to.

A

AlmostHome Apr 28, 2016

The questions asked are valid, thoughtful ones. Timely for me because, for the first time ever, I signed this very (or any) online petition/boycott just yesterday.

I've never been one to "get involved" with anything online. I've never put my personal information out there for any reason because I've never trusted the internet. Not even in the beginning. (Identity theft, data mining, big brother, etc.,)

Due to very recent, ongoing battles and changes in my life, I put myself out there for the first time with this boycott.

The original post has me thinking about this from a new angle now. I don't regret signing the boycott but I want more than ever to make sure I'm not doing anything out of my own ways or thinking, especially at this point in biblical history and where the Holy Spirit has me in life.

I don't know the answer to this. I don't believe Christians need to be the world's doormat, but I do want to be obedient to the scriptures, regardless of the cost or how I feel about it. What I get out of this thread, more than anything, is the reminder of how important it is to pray and seek God's will for me in all things; and to not forget to examine my attitude and motives.

J

Jasmine Apr 28, 2016

@TMK

In the example you provided how do you distinguish between showing love by "lavishly patronizing" their business and not cosigning their lifestyle? What message would you be sending and how would the gay couple know the difference? Has this worked for you in the past?