What role has Christianity played in holding back moral decay in the Western world?
In the Western world, Christianity has served as the brake against the falling away of moral principles. Christians have stood in the gap, declaring certain behavior wrong, while the Holy Spirit works to restrain iniquity. Remove every believer and the Holy Spirit's restraining role, and nothing remains to hold back moral decay.
Les explains that Christianity has been the brake on the falling away of moral principles in the Western world. Because the Western world came out of a basic Judeo-Christian structure, believers have had to stand in the gap and say, “Wait a minute, this is wrong.” He contrasts this with much of the rest of the world, where pagan religions have often been grossly immoral and where gross immorality has been accepted for centuries. If every believer is taken away, along with the Holy Spirit and His role as He works today, nothing is left to hold back iniquity.