We neglect the counsel of our fathers in the faith to our own detriment. Is this word from Basil of Caesarea (4th century) timely and relevant, or what? "So long then as the word of truth is on our side, never be in any wise distressed at the calumny of a lie; let no imperial threats scare you; do not be grieved at the laughter and mockery of your intimates nor of the condemnation of those who pretend to care for you, and who put forward, as their most attractive bait to deceive, a pretence of giving good advice. Against them all let sound reason do battle, invoking the championship and succour of our Lord Jesus Christ, the teacher of true religion, for Whom to suffer is sweet, and 'to die is gain'" (Letter XVIII to Macaruis and John). As Christians we may think we're going through unique circumstances: the lie is proliferating in our society in all its ugly forms; we are subject to a government that some think is poised to cage and control us; the laughter and mocking of our neighbors is on the rise; and those who would advise us in an effort to be our friends tell us to keep our religion to ourselves. Basil and generations of Christians before us have seen all this and more, and they are persuaded that, if we keep the Word of Truth on our side, and stand with sound reason on the foundation of Scriptures, our Biblical worldview can prevail as Christ gives us victories over those who reject the knowledge of God and exchange the truth for a lie. But if we doubt the reliability of Scripture, or ignore or neglect its counsel, we will surely give in to those whose commitment to secularism, materialism, and naturalism is far more zealous and consistent than our commitment to Christ and His Truth.

T. M. Moore