What exactly is Homeland Security doing when it isn’t busy labeling conservatives terror threats or dishing out sex change drugs to illegals? Not its job, according to a stunning new report. Days removed from the worst radical Islamic attack on U.S. soil since 9/11, officials have been stunned to learn that DHS may be unintentionally laying the groundwork for another.

In what could be the worst crisis no one knows about, hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals who came to the United States for a limited time have grossly overstayed their visas, Congress is learning. On Tuesday, a House subcommittee was blown away to learn that 527,127 visitors who were supposed to leave in 2015 didn’t. These “visa overstays,” as they’re called, are defined as any “nonimmigrant who was lawfully admitted to the United States for an authorized period but stayed in the United States beyond his or her lawful admission period.” Now, the problem is so out of control, CNSNews reports, that as many as 60 percent of the people who are in America illegally are “overstayers.”

Making matters worse, the Obama administration doesn’t seem to care. Last year, a measly 2,456 were deported — the lowest number ever under President Obama. “That sounds to me like an extension of the administration’s amnesty program,” Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas) argued. “The message they are sending wide and far is: just get into the country. If you’re not convicted of a serious crime, you’re going to be allowed to stay. You’re going to pass go. You’re going to get the money. And that is the wrong message to send because it increases more illegal immigration.”

And conservatives weren’t the only ones concerned about the DHS report. Smith’s Texas colleague, Democrat Rep. Filemon Vela, pointed out that this could be an even bigger problem than her home state’s border control. “While Congress has in recent years paid a great deal of attention to securing our southern border (and rightfully so), less attention has been focused on successfully addressing visa overstays. The approximately 527,000 individuals who overstayed in fiscal year 2015 is a far greater number than the 331,000 individuals who were apprehended along the U.S.-Mexico border that year, illustrating the scope of the overstay problem.”

Obviously, very few immigrants are a threat to American security. But, as too many families can attest, the administration’s lax attitude toward immigration law is another way for our enemies to exploit us. Considering our recent history, it should confound everyone that this isn’t a greater priority for DHS. But despite presiding over some of the worst mass shootings in American history, the president continues to show the greatest hospitality to terrorist wannabes and foreigners with zero respect for U.S. law. Meanwhile, Christians — who are being slaughtered, persecuted, and chased from their Middle East homelands — are turned away at the gates.

In the midst of it all, there seems to be a growing chorus of believers who justify these open-door policies on immigration with the Bible’s command to “love the stranger.” And I agree: we should love the stranger, but that doesn’t mean we have to do so at the expense of our own laws or security. There are plenty of charitable solutions for refugees that don’t involve bringing them to America and letting them take advantage of our hospitality. Our nation can be caring and benevolent without unnecessarily endangering our own people. What many forget is that loving the stranger is just one component of Scripture’s teaching. God also commands these foreigners to assimilate and keep the laws of the land. As Exodus 12:49 makes clear: “There shall be one law for the native and for the stranger who sojourns among you.” The United States’ goal should be a safe haven for everyone. And that means protecting America’s welcoming reputation without sacrificing our systems and safety.

Originally published here.

Pastor Resigns Himself to Anti-Scriptural View

How can the church be light when it doesn’t confront darkness? That was the difficult question posed to the elders of California’s Southwest Church, where lead Pastor Gerald Sharon was just forced to resign. A former member of the Saddleback Church staff, Sharon surprised Southwest’s leadership by insisting the church should soften its stance on homosexuality and same-sex marriage. The internal discussion soon soured, when it was clear that Sharon wanted to depart from biblical teaching. Although Southwest’s elders gave the pastor a chance to reconsider, he refused.

Left with little choice, leaders signed a unanimous letter affirming the church’s stance on sexuality. “Southwest believes that all sexual expressions are based on personal choices, some right and some wrong in the eyes of God,” the statement read. “While Southwest does not believe that being active in same-sex attraction is right in the eyes of God, we welcome anyone to our church. We strongly stand against those who have used the Scriptures as a means to do harm or cause bias towards members in the LGBT community. We believe we can disagree, while not being disagreeable. We believe in civility and healthy dialogue.” In his resignation letter to the church, Sharon wrote that he would not join the elders “in affirming the aforementioned papers since I believe they will limit the church’s ability to love people where they are.”

Unfortunately, Sharon embraced the culture’s lie that “love” means accepting — and even celebrating — people’s wrong choices. If someone is struggling with unhealthy attractions of any kind, they should be welcomed and helped in our churches. We don’t get our lives together and then come to God — it’s because we come to God that we can get our lives together. But if, as time passes, they have no desire to change their lifestyle, the church has an obligation to deal with that person. The same would be true of infidelity or any other sexual sin. Leaders, particularly those in the pulpit, are called to even greater responsibility. Theirs must be an uncompromising stand for truth, rooted in real love that cares more about the person’s temporal and eternal wellbeing than society’s approval. A man who turns his back on the clear teachings of Scripture not only creates division, but compromises the church’s ability to impact the world for Christ. Southwest Church should be commended for recognizing the danger to its witness and standing up for God’s Word! After all, how can Christians be salt and light to the world if we can’t be it in the church?

Originally published here.

This is a publication of the Family Research Council. Mr. Perkins is president of FRC.