A.The first Humanist Manifesto (1933) stated that the purpose of humanism is to evaluate, transform, control, and direct all associations and institutions.An emphasis was given to religious institutions, which were to be "reconstituted as rapidly as experience allows, in order to function effectively in the modern world.”
B.Nearly eighty years after that purpose was first stated, we can see that humanists have been very successful in achieving their goal.Let us consider some of the effects of the humanist transformation of our nation.
II.THE EFFECTS OF HUMANISM ON OUR NATION
A.Humanism has advanced godlessness in our government by promoting a false interpretation of the concept of "separation of church and state.”
1.The modern, false interpretation of "separation of church and state” is that no government sponsored or funded institution, agency, or activity may make any reference or allusion to God.
a.The phrase "separation of church and state” was first used by the U.S. Supreme Court to interpret the Constitution in 1947 when it ruled on Everson v. Board of Education.It has since become a mandate for complete secularization of local and federal governments.
b.The phrase "separation of church and state” was not taken from the Constitution, but rather it was taken from a private letter written by President Thomas Jefferson in 1802 to a Baptist group in Danbury Connecticut.
i.The Baptists had petitioned Jefferson with their concern about the government interfering with their religious practices.
ii.Jefferson answered them by writing that the Constitution’s First Amendment built "a wall of separation between Church & State.”He was saying that the Constitution kept the government out of churches and not that it kept Christianity out of government.
2.Humanists have used the modern "separation of church and state” doctrine to justify the elimination of any recognition of God from the government and even from the public in general.
a.The second Humanist Manifesto (1973) declares that the "separation of church and state and the separation of ideology and state are imperatives.”
b.Organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which has humanist roots, demand the removal of Christianity from the government and the public, and most of the public has complied.
c.Today, humanists are working to replace "In God We Trust” as our national motto and to stop public schools from reading historical documents and speeches that acknowledge God, which would include even the Declaration of Independence.
d.Religion has not been removed from our government, but rather the religion of Christianity has been replaced by the godless religion of humanism.
3.These effects of humanism put our government in great danger, for the Scriptures say:
a."The wicked will return to Sheol, even all the nations who forget God.” (Ps. 9:17)
b."Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD…” (Ps. 33:12)
c."Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people.” (Prov. 14:34)
B.Humanism is largely responsible for the gross immorality that is now practiced in our nation.
1.The second Humanist Manifesto states, "In the area of sexuality, we believe that intolerant attitudes, often cultivated by orthodox religions and puritanical cultures, unduly repress sexual conduct. The right to birth control, abortion, and divorce should be recognized.”
2.This humanist principle has become the standard of godless behavior in our culture with predictable results.
a.Read Romans 1:18-32.Like the Gentiles, our culture has become foolish with humanist speculations and has refused to acknowledge God.Therefore, God has given it over to impurity (v. 24), degrading passions (v. 26), and depraved minds (v. 28).
b.Now our nation is awash in fornication, adultery, homosexuality, divorce, disregard of marriage, and abortion at the rate of more than one million children killed per year.
3.These effects of humanism put our nation in great danger, for the Scriptures declare:
a."Let marriage be held in honor among all, and the marriage bed be undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers God will judge.” (Heb. 13:4)
b."‘…the LORD has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have dealt treacherously, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant…Take heed then to your spirit, and let no one deal treacherously against the wife of your youth.For I hate divorce,’” says the LORD…” (Mal. 2:14-16)
c."You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination…Do not defile yourselves by any of these things; for by all these the nations which I am casting out before you have become defiled.For the land has become defiled, therefore I have brought its punishment upon it, so the land has spewed out its inhabitants.” (Lev. 18:22, 24-25).
C.Humanism has altered the purpose and mission of most churches in our nation.
1.Christ designed His church to be "the pillar and support of the truth” (1Tim. 3:15).The church’s work is to edify its members (Eph. 4:11-16; Heb. 10:25), to spread the gospel of Christ (Matt. 28:18-20; Acts 8:4; Rom. 1:16-17; 1Thess. 1:8), and to worship God (1Cor. 11:17-34).
2.However, humanists by influence and infiltration have managed to "reconstitute” many churches and denominations who falsely claim to be following Christ.
a.Many churches have been co-opted by humanists to such a degree that they view all religions (Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, etc.) as equivalent paths to salvation.
i.This belief has rejected the Bible’s claim that Christ is the only way to God, salvation, and eternal life (John 3:16; 14:6).
ii.Instead, it embraces the humanist notion of collective salvation.The second Humanist Manifesto states, "Each person’s future is in some way linked to all.”
b.The humanist emphasis on socialization has led many churches to become little more than social clubs and entertainment halls.
c.Through the influence of humanism, Darwinism, and even communism, a new belief has emerged in many churches that is known as "Liberation Theology.”
i.Liberation Theology is the belief that Christ’s mission in the world was to become our economic liberator rather than our spiritual Savior.
ii.According to this belief, sin is the uneven distribution of wealth, and righteousness is the equal redistribution of that wealth.
iii.This new belief complies perfectly with the goals of humanism.The first Humanist Manifesto declared, "A socialized and cooperative economic order must be established to the end that the equitable distribution of the means of life be possible.”
3.These effects of humanism have placed many souls in danger, for the Scriptures say:
a."And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)
b."There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.” (Eph. 4:4-6)
c."For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” (1Tim. 6:10)
D.Notice a few other parts of our nation that are deeply affected by humanism.
1.Economics has been corrupted by humanism so that it has become a sphere of theft, extortion, and manipulation (socialism, Keynesian economics) rather than the honest and godly practices of work, trade, saving, spending, and giving.Under this form of economics, government is considered almost as a god with all power (omnipotence).
2.Science has been corrupted by humanism so that it has often been used for godless purposes (population control, euthanasia, intimidation, political manipulation, etc.).Science also has been considered like a god with all knowledge (omniscience).
3.Government has been further corrupted by humanistic goal of a universal one-world order, which essentially is intended to undo the work of God accomplished at Babel (Gen. 11:1-9).If this is achieved, then government will be counted as a god that is everywhere (omnipresence).
III.CONCLUSION
A.Many of these effects have happened slowly and progressively over the last one-hundred years so that they were almost unnoticed.Remember that humanism is an invisible religion among us.
B.In the next lesson, we will consider how humanism has been and still is spread in our nation.
