Read time: 3 minutes 34 seconds
In a win for religious liberty, the case against a Christian street preacher in England has been tossed out.
John Dunn, 55, has been preaching in the southwestern town of Swindon for 15 years.
Dunn was arrested in 2020 and prosecutors claimed he was guilty of hate speech because he publicly declared the Bible is against homosexuality.
Seeing two women holding hands, Dunn said to them, “I hope you are sisters.”
The women revealed to Dunn that they were in fact married to one another, whereupon he quoted 1 Corinthians 6 to them declaring, “It says in the Bible that homosexuals ‘will not inherit the kingdom of God.'”
The case was taken up by the Christian Legal Centre in London. The CLC argued for the sharing of one’s belief system in accordance with the European Convention of Human Rights that the U.K. still falls under, “even if these cross the sensibilities of the majority of the population.”
The most disturbing aspect of the case came when the lawyers representing the government made the statement, “there are references in the Bible which are simply no longer appropriate in modern society, and which would be deemed offensive if stated in public.”
Their defense of such an egregious statement was to quote the Old Testament when the Mosaic Law discussed the death penalty for acts of homosexuality.
The CLC celebrated the court’s decision to toss out the case against Mr. Dunn.
A statement was provided to Fox News Digital detailing their position on the matter, and how the aggressive and hostile nature toward the Bible by the government was “deeply concerning.”
“The Bible and its teachings are the foundation of our society and have provided many of the freedoms and protections that we still enjoy today,” said Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre. “It is extraordinary that the prosecution, speaking on behalf of the state, could say that the Bible contains abusive words which, when spoken in public, constitute a criminal offense.
“The view from the [government] was that the Bible is offensive and contains illegal speech which should not be shared in public,” she wrote. “‘Offense’ is an entirely subjective concept and is easily manipulated to shut down viewpoints that people simply don’t like. Any suggestion that there is a right not to be offended must be strongly resisted. In today’s democracy, we need the freedom to debate, challenge and disagree.”
This case, and many like it, show the increasingly hostile nature of Western governments toward the tenants of Christianity and Judaism.
Governments have become increasingly secular as they continue to remove any aspect of God from within their halls.
With anti-God sentiment now permeating the halls of Congress and Parliament, the once bastions of religious freedom in the world are now home to speech oppression, and suppression of beliefs that praise God instead of government.
The warning signs are here for Christians and Jews alike, as anti-Semitism continues to occur worldwide and with increasing frequency, but are people paying attention to the world around them?
The Bible offers Christians the prophetic warnings that persecution is coming for them. For centuries Americans have not had to endure persecution for their beliefs the same way that citizens in countries like Russia, China and Iran have.
But that time may be coming.
As “cancel culture” has swept through Western nations in the past decade, those brave enough have suffered consequences like Mr. Dunn recently endured. Some have been completely removed from social media outlets so that their message would no longer be available, while others have been physically assaulted for proclaiming the gospel.
Even though these events are new and shocking to Western Christians, they should not come as a surprise. Bible verses such as 1 Peter chapter 4 are given to Christians as encouragement during their suffering.
Being a Christian means being an imitator of Christ. Jesus suffered for all, and in turn Christians are going to suffer for Him. Fortified with that knowledge, believers must reinforce and strengthen their foundation in Christ. Empowered by the Holy Spirit, Christians can not only endure persecution, but spread the saving gospel of Jesus Christ while doing so. 
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James Lasher is Staff Writer for Charisma Media.
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