Could They?

I was speaking to one of my Elders recently and joked that if the congregation ever got hard up financially they could just drop my health insurance and pay the $2,000 Obamacare tax/fine/assessment/penalty or whatever they are calling it this week, and save a lot of money! To which he remarked: unless they wouldn't cover me unless I preached and taught a certain way.

Hmmm. Could it get to that point? Right now (in my somewhat limited understanding of all this) there are "health exchanges" set up with private insurance companies. But will that last? Will health care really become government coverage? And if it does, will they use health care as a weapon like this, trying to squash and control teaching against what is politically correct? Or, could they prevent pastors who speak against certain issues from participating in the exchanges? I hadn't considered that before, but I wonder . . .

I already have said that I thought churches who won't do gay marriages would eventually lose their tax exempt and charitable status. How else could the government try to control what churches teach and preach? It is an interesting question. It should not change anything - the church teaches the truth, no matter what the consequences. But is persecution like this coming? Maybe.