When Christians, the federal government and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) all agree on the same issue, it’s worth making note of, especially when the issue is free speech involving religious symbolism. That’s what happened on January 18 in the nation’s capital when the case of Shurtleff v. Boston was argued before the U.S. Supreme Court.

The case involves whether a city government can deny a civic group – Camp Constitution – the right to raise a Christian flag at a Constitution Day commemoration after approving 284 previous requests for other flag-raising events from various groups, including flags representing Communist China, Cuba and gay pride. The city decided that the Christian nature of the flag required it to decline Camp Constitution’s request, as the city did not want to be seen as endorsing any particular religion.

Under typical First Amendment free speech principles, if a government creates a “public forum” for speech, it cannot thereafter discriminate against speakers based on the content of their speech. That includes religious speech.

However, if a particular forum is not really “public,” but restricted to only the government’s viewpoint, then the government can restrict the kinds of speech that it allows.

The Christian religion has a great tradition of speaking hard truths in cultures and countries that endorse immoral opinions and activities.

Consider the example of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a Christian minister, who courageously campaigned for civil rights for African Americans while segregation was the norm and Jim Crow laws were enforced throughout the South.

And think of William Wilberforce, an evangelical Christian, British politician and abolitionist whose activism in Parliament led to the end of slavery in the British Empire.

While Dr. King and Wilberforce’s activism took place decades, and centuries, ago, each era has its own failings and sinful tendencies.

In our time, sexual sins have become particularly pronounced – to the point where governments are now affirming certain sins and prohibiting individuals from helping others overcome them.

In the past five decades, hundreds of municipalities and dozens of states in the U.S. have added “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” (SOGI) protections to their existing nondiscrimination statutes. They’ve also banned any kind of professional counseling help for minors struggling with these issues.

CBS Sports refused to air a commercial for The Business Bible during the Hula Bowl, the college football all-star game played last Saturday, January 16, in Orlando.

Just one year ago, CBS Sports hired Senior Director of Workplace Culture and Diversity Initiatives Ndidi Massay to bring “diversity and inclusion” to the company. Evidently some folks didn’t get the message about real diversity, as the company was not inclusive toward an advertisement for a company producing a Bible for Christian men and women in the business world.

Journalist Todd Starnes, who broke the story, said, “The Bible is the best-selling book in history. For CBS Sports to turn away a paying customer is hardly the best business practice. Sounds like CBS sports executives should consider reading The Business Bible.”

He wrote, “The network has gone to great lengths to pride itself in its tolerance and diversity,” but said that claim now “rings hollow.”

The Business Bible was one of the sponsors of the Hula Bowl, along with Five Guys, Newsweek, Wilson, DoubleTree by Hilton and other businesses.

Nicholas Leone, founder of The Business Bible, told Starnes about the Bible ban, “The ad is about business, discovering your success story, and is a nice introduction to the resource that will be available later this year.”