Isn’t it true that men used to treat women with respect and gentleness? Maybe I am just imagining this, but it seems to me that there were more gentle men in days gone by. Where have all the gentlemen gone?

Harvey Weinstein, Charlie Rose, Bill Cosby, Louis C.K., Roy Moore, Donald Trump, Al Franken, Matt Lauer, Garrison Keillor, and the list goes on and on. All these men and many more have been accused of sexual harassment and abuse. A recent Quinnipiac Poll found 60 percent of women say they’ve experienced sexual harassment, and it happens most often in the workplace. What is going on in our country?

I believe we have become an extremely selfish society. We think only about our own wants and
desires. If that’s all we think about then we fail to think about how our actions can hurt others. The men who sexually harass women don’t think about the shame and the pain that these women will carry with them for the rest of their lives.

We also live in a hyper-sexed society. The Biblical standards for sexual relationships have been
thrown out the window by most people. The Bible makes it very clear that God wants us to have sex only within a marriage relationship. Sex is only meant for a husband and wife bound in holy matrimony. It is meant to be the highest and most intimate expression of love between a husband and a wife. Today sex is freely given in casual relationships, and I think many men see sex as something they have a right to demand.

This opens up our society to all kinds of sexual abuse including the human trafficking of millions of girls and boys who are often no more than children. Sexual abuse is rampant in our world, and only a return to God’s standards will begin to alleviate the problem.

The sexual harassment of women is primarily an abuse of power. All of the men cited above were in a position of power over the women they allegedly harassed. When a man has power over a woman horrible things can happen and—what is worse—they know that they can get away with it. Women have been afraid, and rightly so, to speak out about the harassment they have endured. Their careers could be ruined and their reputations forever tainted.

Thank God that this situation seems to be changing. I am so thankful for the #MeToo movement. Women are finding the courage to speak up and bring evil into the light of truth. Only when that happens can we begin to find solutions to this systemic problem. I think it’s wonderful that Time Magazine named the silence breakers as its “Person of the Year.” When women begin to speak truth to power then good can be brought out of their painful
and shame-filled experiences, and I believe our society will be changed for the better.

The Bible makes it very clear that our God loves to bring good out of difficult, painful experiences. I’m sure He can do that in this situation. There is good in this situation that we already can see: Women now have the courage to speak out about the abuse they have experienced, and they are being listened to.

I am also encouraged that more women are seeking positions of power in our society. More women are running for public office. More women are becoming educated at the highest levels and finding leadership positions in the corporate world. As more women enter power positions the dynamic in our society will change dramatically.

I would be remiss if I didn’t identify one other cause for the sexual harassment our women are enduring. This is a spiritual matter. Only God can change the hearts and minds of people and make us better people. We need to pray for a spiritual revival in our nation. When people come to saving faith in Jesus and are filled with the Holy Spirit—then and only then will they treat others with gentleness and respect, control their sexual desires, and reject the
temptations that power brings.

May God bless the men in America with hearts of faith, love, and self-control.
Grace and Peace,

Pastor Tom