Voting on Moral Issues
The state of Florida has two moral issues on the ballot this fall, which Christians would surely like to weigh in on. On television, commercials supporting amendments 3 and 4 are misleading at best and lying at worst. These two issues involve recreational marijuana and abortion. The short version of this article is to advise Christians to vote no on amendments 3 and 4. But surely all will want to know why, and that is the reason for the longer version.
Amendment 3
Florida's Amendment 3 would make it legal for adults 21 and older to have up to 3 ounces of marijuana and up to 5 grams of cannabis concentrate. It would also enable them to possess, purchase and use marijuana products and accessories without needing a medical marijuana card, as is the case now.
According to Florida Family Voice, the amendment opens the door to the recreational use of marijuana, but there are no clear guidelines for law enforcement provided. They go on to say:
The devastating effects of recreational marijuana use include impaired educational learning, threats to workplace safety, and excessive pollution in public places. The damage seen in other states that have legalized recreational marijuana is well documented, including increased addiction and crime, severe harm to marriages and families, decreased workforce productivity….
A NO vote on Amendment 3 will maintain the status quo. Medical marijuana laws will not be affected.
Amendment 4
Television ads are using scare tactics, saying that women will not get good health care and doctors will end up in jail. Voting NO does not change Florida’s abortion laws, but voting yes will. It will make it legal to have an abortion all the way up to the time of birth, which is far more radical than even European countries allow. Below are some quotes from Florida Family Voice:
Amendment 4 allows doctors to be removed from the abortion decision-making process by not requiring an actual medical doctor to determine if an abortion is necessary to protect the mother’s health or if the baby she is carrying is viable.
Instead, it allows any so-called “healthcare provider” to make these determinations. Under Florida law “healthcare provider” isn’t limited to doctors; so even employees of abortion clinics who are not licensed medical doctors would be able to approve late-term abortions.
In a bait and switch, Amendment 4 claims to protect “parental notification” although it deceptively fails to mention that “parental consent” laws in Florida will be repealed, making abortion the only medical procedure a minor in Florida could receive without parental consent.
Finally, the radical activists who authored this amendment will use the deceptively broad language to file lawsuits to force Florida taxpayers to pay for abortions, exactly as they have done in other states that have passed these radical abortion initiatives.
Furthermore, we are given to understand that this amendment is unnecessary since the Florida legislature already has the power to make this amendment law.
Rationale
Many countries do not allow their citizens to have a say in the way they are governed or the laws that they have. In the United States of America, however, citizens (including Christians) have the right to express their political preferences at the ballot box. Sometimes we get to have a say on moral issues.
Marijuana affects the synapses in the brain. According to the Internet, smoking “marijuana can affect your memory and cognitive function and cause harmful cardiovascular effects, such as high blood pressure. Long-term marijuana use can worsen respiratory conditions.” For many people, it is a gateway drug to more powerful stimulants, uppers, downers, and hallucinogens. The fact is that it harms the human body. Non-marijuana users are often affected adversely as well. Society does not need recreational marijuana to harm it.
The Bible clearly teaches that a child is a child in or out of the womb. John the Baptizer was a baby prior to birth (Luke 1:41, 44), and Jesus was called by the same Greek word after He was born (Luke 2:12, 16). God makes no distinction between the two. A baby is a human being, separate from the mother. The child is not a part of the mother’s body.
On occasion the child in the womb dies, but the mother lives. On other occasions, the mother may be attacked and murdered, but the child lives. Has anyone ever seen a mother die but a lung survives—or an appendix? No, but a baby has survived such an awful ordeal. Why? The child is a separate human being—and therefore should be protected.
Society should possess respect for human life. How ironic that it cares about animal life (which is all right, but such were not made in the image of God) and balks at executing criminals who are clearly guilty but desires to kill the innocent! Vote in favor of the Scriptures.