The United States of America: A nation caught in adultery
The sad truth revealed by "kiss cam" at a Coldplay concert
The video clip of a CEO cuddling with his HR director during a Coldplay concert has gone viral. When the pair realized their embrace was caught on the Jumbotron (or “kiss cam”), they hid their faces and ran. The knee-jerk reaction triggered the band’s front man to jokingly say, “Either they’re having an affair, or they’re just very shy.” Mainstream media and podcasters are covering the incident from every angle. Memes and AI images add a comedic flair. Fifteen minutes of fame are up for grabs if anyone close to the situation wants to be interviewed.
Adultery is the greatest betrayal in God’s eyes
In the Bible (you know, that Book most Christians don’t read), there’s an Old Testament prophet named Hosea whom God commands to wed a prostitute. For the sake of our discussion, let’s imagine Hosea as a young virgin with dreams of marrying and settling down. He grew up with a father and mother who, despite their flaws and mistakes, loved each other and remained faithful to their vows. From this union, they conceived and raised Hosea to become a respectable man of God.
Almost daily, Hosea’s father instructs him to pray for God’s best, that he will choose a wife of noble character and purity. Hosea’s father warns him not to be swayed by physical beauty but to discern whether she is one sent by the Lord. Hosea waits patiently as the years pass, remembering his father’s words of wisdom, which echo those of the king centuries later in Proverbs 18:22: “He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord.” When the day finally comes for him to receive God’s greatest gift, Hosea is astounded by the Creator’s command.
You want me to marry who? A prostitute? But God, I waited for You, I served You, and I put You first in everything. I resisted every urge and temptation to sleep with all these beautiful virgins in my hometown. I refused to settle. And this is my reward? A whore who’s been with a number of men—a number that only You know? This can’t be right. My own father married a virgin. Their union was nearly perfect, at least in my eyes. All my brothers and sisters married well, and they’re living in the blessings of a fruitful legacy. I want the same for my family. What did I do to deserve this?
After the initial shock wore off, Hosea realized a few things. He didn’t know the woman’s story. He didn’t know her father. Hosea’s eyes widened when he considered how sheltered his life had been. He was ignorant of the Lord’s broken heart over the sins of Israel, a nation He called His wife. Despite the covenant promise and new name, this wife shamelessly committed lewd acts of adultery, even in public places! Israel worshipped idols and prostituted herself to false gods with an insatiable hunger. Hosea always knew his future belonged to the Lord, and so he embodied the fierce, unwavering love of God toward mankind.
America is a prostitute and adulterer
In Scripture, Hosea marries a promiscuous woman named Gomer. Their children’s names further exposed Israel’s fallen moral state. It took Gomer a long time to give up her whoring ways. Thus, Hosea searched for her in the streets, fretfully peering into gutters, impatiently dragging her out of foreign beds. At one point, he had to pay off sex traffickers to get Gomer back (assuming she’s the woman in Hosea 3). Hosea could have divorced her, stoned her, or let her wander off for good. Instead, he reminds her that she was chosen, that she had a new identity as a wife and mother. Eventually, she settled down. Indeed, the Lord endured great pain in keeping His covenant with Israel.
Although the United States is a gentile nation living under the New Testament, Hosea’s prophecy still rings true. America, too, has betrayed her covenant with God that was forged in the blood of Jesus Christ. While some are laughing and making light of adultery, that viral video is His revelation for anyone with eyes to see it. Western society is an adulterer willing to prostitute herself for fame, material gain, and global dominance. Yet, there it is printed on our money, “In God We Trust,” and in the last line of the Pledge, “…one nation under God.”
Before Christians can point a finger at sinners in the world, we must consider the offenders in our own house. After all, Jesus admonished the religious to “remove the plank from your own eye.” This means distancing ourselves from prominent so-called believers like Daystar CEO Joni Lamb, who suffered her late husband’s affair for seven years, only to console herself in his passing by marrying another woman’s husband. Then there’s Chip and Joanna Gaines, who further defiled the sanctity of marriage by featuring a homosexual couple on their Magnolia Network. The Gainses once endured persecution for refusing to bow to the rainbow mob. Now, they’ve joined the list of spiritual adulterers.
Adultery is stupid, selfish, and dangerous
If the adulterers in the viral video were proud of their relationship, they wouldn’t have run or hidden in shame. Reports say the man—who stands to lose multiple millions if his wife files for divorce—has resigned as CEO, and the woman is expected to follow suit. The pair not only humiliated themselves, but in their selfish lusts, they also brought reproach on their children, families, and closest associates. Everyone has to deal with the consequences of their stupid decision.
To understand how much God hates sexual sin, consider such passages as Proverbs 5, 6:32, and 7; Jeremiah 13; and 1 Corinthians 5 and 6. Sexual immorality and impurity are no joke. Adultery is so egregious that God gave two Commandments as a warning against it! All other sexual sins (including heterosexual fornication) are only further transgressions from the law, carrying the same penalty of death. If this is what America looks like from the Lord’s perspective, there’s nothing to keep us from suffering the same fate as the Old Testament people of Israel. For all of our 21st-century privilege and prosperity, we are nothing without the favor of God.
Many Americans resemble the young, naive Hosea I described above, stuck in a comfortable cycle of work, feed the kids, walk the dog, sleep, wake up, repeat, retire, vacation, die. Some believers still say we live in a “Christian nation” even as rioters and nudists march in our streets, children are trafficked, murder rates skyrocket, and government greed threatens to permanently bankrupt present and future generations. They figure the LA fires, the Texas flash floods, and the hardened Islamists campaigning for high office are someone else’s responsibility. I can’t be the only one who sees what’s happening and thinks maybe God is trying to warn us.
Of course, I’m probably one of the few people who took the viral adultery video this seriously. I don’t apologize for that. I care about my country, and I don’t want to see it destroyed. This is not a laughing matter. We are in real trouble. Yet, my people are cracking jokes, celebrating, or outright dismissing lewdness and depravity in full view of heaven and earth. Who knew God could use a Jumbotron at a Coldplay concert to expose America’s true spiritual condition?