I shared this on my Facebook page:

The Bible clearly teaches that God’s very best for our lives involves our purity and obedience to Him. This includes forsaking all sexual sins—heterosexual and homosexual—outside of the marriage covenant between a man and a woman. If this message is “hate speech,” then the Bible is hate speech, and no one can preach the whole Bible without being guilty of hate speech. “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope” (Romans 15:4, NIV).

 A reader wrote this comment:

Focusing on sex and abortion are fair game because they are discussed in the Bible.

Randy, you know that most of your followers, who tend to be older and white, will be very happy with a post like this. Many will click 'like' or 'love,' and go on with their day, probably spending most or all of it relating only with their 'tribe.'

Why don't we *also* discuss why so many conservative Christians focus almost exclusively on issues like sex and abortion? While ignoring things like feeding the poor, loving our enemies, etc.? Is it because condemning sex and abortion doesn't really ask much of older, white Christians (or "cultural evangelicals"), while doing the other things might be more of a challenge?

There are more and more stories on social media of teachers at Christian schools being attacked by supposedly Christian parents for doing things like teaching the Beatitudes and other teachings of Jesus. In some cases, the parents believe their partisan politics are being attacked when the teacher is reading straight from the Gospels. This suggests the parents are, at the least, placing politics above Jesus. Something worth discussing.

You are a wonderful author. Back around 2002, God used your book Dominion to change my life. I know it's tempting to just sit back and enjoy smooth sailing, but why not use your platform to challenge your followers to read the Bible more, and to think?

One of our EPM staff said this in reply:

If you’ve followed Randy’s page and blog for long, you know his heart is always to encourage believers to read the Bible more and apply its truths to their lives. (For example, see this post). The vast majority of Randy’s posts have nothing to do with sex or abortion. But because those are two topics that Randy has written about in his books, and because God cares about unborn children and cares about sexual purity and addresses it in His Word, they are topics that Randy does address on his page from time to time, too. We are called to share the full counsel of God (Acts 2:27).

Our ministry gives away 100% of the royalties from Randy’s books; some go to pro-life causes, but the vast majority goes to care for already born children and people, including to relief ministries providing practical needs. We will always encourage people to give and help a wide variety of ministries meeting people’s needs (see this list). For example, Randy has addressed the needs of persecuted believers in various places and encouraged people to find ways to help them. (This blog encouraged people to get involved in caring for the needy in their communities.)

Do the vast majority of Christians really not care about the needy, and do nothing to care for them? Certainly, that’s the line we’re told from the secular world. But when we look closer and move past the stereotypes, we find there are countless believers involved with all sorts of ministries across the country and around the world. Yes, some support these ministries financially and don’t do as much hands-on work, for various reasons. But they are still a vital part of caring for the needy. Now, are there Christians who talk about these topics online but do nothing to help actual people, through serving or giving? Yes, of course. That’s always been true. But to characterize all believers as not caring for the needy is simply untrue.

Let’s “consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds” (Hebrews 10:24). Yes, sometimes that will involve addressing tough topics like sexual purity and abortion. But may we always point each other back to God’s Word and to our wonderful Savior. We are seeking to do that in our content, and will continue to do so with God’s help. The Lord bless you.

Out of curiosity, I asked our staff how much money our ministry has given in 2024 so far to different categories of ministries, through what we call special funds (this doesn’t include designated giving from donors, which would equal much more):

Missions Fund—Evangelizing and discipling the world's unreached. ($72,158)

Relief Fund—Helping in Christ's name the world's unfed, unclothed, unsheltered, and genuinely poor. ($44,000)

Persecuted Church Fund— Aiding Christians around the world who are suffering for their faith. ($4,746)

Pro-life Fund—Intervening, with truth and compassion, for unborn babies and their mothers. ($12,000)

Disabilities Fund— Assisting those who are disabled through worthy disability ministries. ($2,500)

Family Fund—Promoting the family's cause and helping specific needy families through established reputable organizations. ($13,535)

Legal Defense Fund—Assisting those in legal difficulty because they are upholding biblical principles. ($450)

Salt and Light Fund—Promoting truth, moral sanity, justice, and compassion in a post-Christian society. ($11,838)

Racial Unity Fund— Fostering interracial understanding, partnership, and unity in the Body of Christ. ($1,225)

Clearly, prolife causes are just one of the areas that EPM supports. Of course, I would never apologize for even a dime of what we give to pro-life ministries or causes. However, my point is that we are not a one-issue ministry and have never been. Similarly, over the years, some people have thought I talk too much about social justice issues and not enough about missions, not realizing how much EPM gives substantially to missions and crisis and development aid. I’m not trying to be defensive; I simply wish to clarify that we give to a wide and diverse range of causes that we believe are close to God’s heart.

This reader’s comment also reminded me of whataboutism. It’s a common logical fallacy that doesn’t refute what’s being said but gives the illusion it does through ad hominem attacks and claims of hypocrisy or lack of love. Here’s how one website describes it:

Whataboutism, also called whataboutery, is a logical fallacy and rhetorical technique in which people respond to a difficult concern or question with a counter-accusation in order to divert attention to a different topic.

As the name suggests, it’s characterized by the phrase “what about…?”, which would be followed by an issue that may be only remotely related to the original one.

It’s typically used when one is charged with a harmful accusation regarding their past actions; one counters the charge by bringing up something negative about the opposing side and thus attempts to downplay the magnitude of their own actions.

It is classified as a variant of the tu quoque fallacy, but it’s also closely related to the red herring fallacy.