We should always be speaking The
Truth in Love. (Ephesians 4:15). I want only to lovingly speak the Truth of The
Bible here and comment on some things I have noticed in public discourse over
the last number of years. I do not to seek to pronounce, suggest or proffer any
political candidates in any way. I do not seek to cajole anyone to any
particular political party or point of view. I don’t claim to be of any
particular political party and I don’t think it’s my position to push political
candidates or parties or tell people how to vote and who to vote for. (I also
don’t think churches and other places of influence need to be doing this, but
particularly for the church.)
I want to make it clear from the outset what this post is about and what it’s not about. It’s much more about attitudes and the states of our hearts and trust levels more so than about voting or elections- but it is certainly based in relation to elections and the level of power we afford to them. While this is in some ways specific to America in this piece, the principles are applicable for all countries of the world. I have spoken in more detail on the topic of voting as it relates to the Christian and what The Bible says to this matter. That’s not exactly the angle I’m focusing on with this piece. This is devoted to addressing our level of devotion to the political system versus our devotion to God.
As many others have stated, I’ll add my voice to those saying this about the state of politics in America in 2016- I’m disheartened to see the cacophony of noise and malicious, venomous poison barbs it has become. I’m equally disheartened to see what the level of discourse in general has become, but that has been a downward spiral for a long time coming- since Genesis 3 at least. I’m speaking this as a rebuke to all the political parties that continue the pattern of mudslinging that seems to be carried out with each election season. It seems that each party constantly builds its own candidate up to sound better than they are while concurrently denigrates, vilifies and demonizes its opponent. Of course, that is the sad nature of politics, it seems. However, it is certainly not the nature of Christ. Colossians 3:5-17 tells us that we must put off anger, wrath, malice, slander and obscene talk from our mouths- and instead, put on kindness, humility, meekness, patience, forgiveness and compassionate hearts! And above all these, put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And when we remember that Jesus Himself is Love (as 1 John 4:8 tells us), then we can say with The Beatles, truly- “Love is all you need”.
To address the elephant and the donkey in the room (and whatever symbol you want to use for third parties ;-)), I'm definitely also not saying who to vote for- I just encourage everyone to follow 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 - "Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid all appearance of evil.") And I would encourage people to also read about all the independent candidates and candidates of other parties (like the Green Party, Libertarian Party, Prohibition Party, America's Party and more.) Vote for who you think God wants you to vote for. And in the end, trust Him above ANY person. (Isaiah 2:22) That’s really briefly all I care to say about the voting process. (For more thoughts on this, see my previous blog entry on this matter.)
I hope the 2016 elections can help people in America learn to unite as Americans rather than be divided over ideologies. My personal goal is generally to try to look for the positive first- try to find something I can applaud, compliment and agree with first and talk about that first- and thank the person for sharing their thoughts. And then politely state my differences where needs be. I firmly believe that no matter what we have to say, there is always a nice way to say it. We can disagree about policies and ideas without insulting each other, whether directly or subtly.
(This is of course, modeled after 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22- "Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid all appearance of evil." You may notice I repeat these verses many times over- they are so practical and such good reminders!) In the end, we can never forget the wonder of the created being that we are conversing with- this is another human being who is fearfully and wonderfully made in God's image- and we are called to love them as we love ourselves! It doesn't matter how vile they are or how much we think their beliefs are vulgar and wrong- our first call is always to love with the love of Christ above all else. (This doesn't mean we can't disagree and lovingly correct when needs be- particularly in spiritual matters of eternal importance- but we must speak the Truth in Love. (Ephesians 4:15) This one is another favorite- I can never say it enough!)
As I've said many times before, when it comes to politics- vote for who you think God wants you to vote for. Let the Holy Spirit guide you. But don't hail them like they're going to magically make everything better...they won't. All the candidates are human and they fail just like we do. And we're also called to love all of them like Jesus does. (John 13:35) Yes, God is in control and He sets rulers up and takes them down. (Daniel 4) And as Isaiah 2:22 reminds us, quit putting your trust in man, who has but a breath in his nostrils. Put your trust in The Lord! His will will be done. :-)
I've said much the same thing for a while now and I’ll probably keep repeating myself through this writing as some things I need to hear over and over again- as we all do at times. :-) Fix your eyes on Jesus- not on this world and its political system. Stop putting trust in man who has but a breath in his nostrils (that God gave him.) (see Isaiah 2:22) Put your faith in God. He's always in control. No one gets political power unless Jesus lets them. And no matter what happens on earth in our own power struggles, there's One who reigns as King of Kings and Lord of Lords- and we who know Him as Savior and Lord don't have to fear- we've got another King coming. :-) As Jesus told Pilate in John 19:11, he wouldn’t have had any power over Him except that it was given to him from above.
Whoever God decides to put in power, we are commanded to respect them, love them and pray for them! (1 Timothy 2:1-4, 2 Peter 2:11-17, Romans 13). We should also remember the context of when these verses were written- the leader Christians were commanded to love, respect, honor and pray for at that time was Nero- the guy who was using Christians for nightlights and lion snacks. If the church could obey these commands for him, I think we can do the same in America- thankfully, we’re not quite there with our leaders. (Sadly, there are some Christians around the world who suffer similar barbarities in the world today though…. And these verses must be even tougher for them to carry out- but they are still God’s Word nonetheless, no matter what our situation might be.)
There are two errors I think we commonly tend to fall into when it comes to elections. Sometimes we believe that our chosen candidate is the one to bring balance to the Force and restore peace to the land- he or she is “the Golden Child”- “the Chosen One”- and everything will be all right once they are elected. We also sometimes tend to believe that the opponent of our chosen candidate is somehow the destroyer of worlds- the one who will make our living experience a hell on earth. I think either extreme is the wrong view. There is absolutely nothing that happens in this universe without being run by God first and getting His okay for happening! If God chooses for something to not happen- it will simply cease to be before it ever comes into existence. All things are held up by Him and in Him suspended- just check Colossians 1:17. Also, see John 1- nothing exists except that He made it and allowed it to be. The Lord is absolutely sovereign at all times. (Romans 9) If we truly believe this, then why do we act like a particular election is somehow going to be either the start of a new era of awesomeness or indeed the very end of the world? Yes, it’s true that God is always in control and everything will be all right because He rules the world. But why do we only say that when our chosen candidate loses? Somehow, I don’t seem to hear it being said when our chosen candidate wins. Yet it’s true regardless- and we sure better be looking to Him above any other human being in all things. (By this, I don’t mean that we should disregard our leaders and ignore them- we should be thankful for their service and pray for them- but we don’t hail them as the one who will fix everything.) Insert the Godliest person you can think of into the role of President. Anyone less than Jesus Christ will utterly fail in the end. There is only One who can put this world back together to what it should be and restore it from its fallen state- and that’s Jesus alone! He does that by forgiving people and changing their hearts when they ask Him to do so. He’s provided for this by dying on the cross for all our sins and rising again. We must always keep our eyes and minds fixed on Him and know that He is the only One we can trust to always be faithful. (2 Timothy 2:11-13, Psalms 136)
As a bit of a side note, I also think America tends to be very egocentric at times. (Though, to be fair, some of this comes from its status as a world leader. There’s no denying that a lot of the world looks to the USA to set the tone for other nations.) However, I think it’s important to note that everything does not revolve around the United States of America. (This is getting into a separate matter that I might write more on later; for now, suffice it to say that I tire of hearing people make comparisons of America and Israel. God loves all countries, of course- but the USA is not His chosen people.) My point here is just to say that if some feel that America is in a bad place because of a politician elected as President- this doesn’t mean it’s the end of the world. I don’t particularly want to see America fall as a nation and I don’t seek to make any predictions whatsoever regarding that- but I don’t want to act like it’s so important that the rest of the world can’t go on without it. In the end, God alone determines all nations’ fates- and nothing happens outside of His permissive will.
I saw this article (http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2016/november/year-of-living-hopelessly.html) in Christianity Today a while back about how 2016 has pushed some people towards nihilism- and how we don’t need to let that happen to us. (It’s a great article, by the way!) This is also something I grow weary of seeing- the despair of so many because of the state of the world. Yes, things are bleak in many ways. I’m well aware of the travails that sin brings upon us. But this has been happening since Genesis 3. The world is fallen and will continue to revel in sin until Christ returns and restores all things to the way He designed them to be originally. Until then, we as Christians must be His agents of change to show people the way of His kingdom, which is perfect love. We must boldly proclaim the Gospel and must live as people of Hope. We have an everlasting Hope in Jesus and we need not be scared of the future. We know the One who holds the past, present and future all in His hands- and we know the end of The Book- and “the Good Book says we win!” (as Stryper reminds us in “Soldiers Under Command”) We must be strong and courageous. (Joshua 1:9) We must be of good cheer because Christ has overcome the world! (John 16:33) Everything will be just as God has ordained it. (Psalms 139, Acts 27:25)He keeps the earth's pillars steady. (Psalms 75:3-4) We must hope in God alone. (Psalms 42) We find our peace in Him alone. (Romans 15:13) Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the Name of The Lord our God! (Psalms 20)
So as we face the future with calm assurance in our Father God, let’s remember this about elections and their outcomes. It’s not a brave new world, it’s not a whole new world- it’s my Father’s world- and He’s got the whole world in His hands.
I want to make it clear from the outset what this post is about and what it’s not about. It’s much more about attitudes and the states of our hearts and trust levels more so than about voting or elections- but it is certainly based in relation to elections and the level of power we afford to them. While this is in some ways specific to America in this piece, the principles are applicable for all countries of the world. I have spoken in more detail on the topic of voting as it relates to the Christian and what The Bible says to this matter. That’s not exactly the angle I’m focusing on with this piece. This is devoted to addressing our level of devotion to the political system versus our devotion to God.
As many others have stated, I’ll add my voice to those saying this about the state of politics in America in 2016- I’m disheartened to see the cacophony of noise and malicious, venomous poison barbs it has become. I’m equally disheartened to see what the level of discourse in general has become, but that has been a downward spiral for a long time coming- since Genesis 3 at least. I’m speaking this as a rebuke to all the political parties that continue the pattern of mudslinging that seems to be carried out with each election season. It seems that each party constantly builds its own candidate up to sound better than they are while concurrently denigrates, vilifies and demonizes its opponent. Of course, that is the sad nature of politics, it seems. However, it is certainly not the nature of Christ. Colossians 3:5-17 tells us that we must put off anger, wrath, malice, slander and obscene talk from our mouths- and instead, put on kindness, humility, meekness, patience, forgiveness and compassionate hearts! And above all these, put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And when we remember that Jesus Himself is Love (as 1 John 4:8 tells us), then we can say with The Beatles, truly- “Love is all you need”.
To address the elephant and the donkey in the room (and whatever symbol you want to use for third parties ;-)), I'm definitely also not saying who to vote for- I just encourage everyone to follow 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 - "Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid all appearance of evil.") And I would encourage people to also read about all the independent candidates and candidates of other parties (like the Green Party, Libertarian Party, Prohibition Party, America's Party and more.) Vote for who you think God wants you to vote for. And in the end, trust Him above ANY person. (Isaiah 2:22) That’s really briefly all I care to say about the voting process. (For more thoughts on this, see my previous blog entry on this matter.)
I hope the 2016 elections can help people in America learn to unite as Americans rather than be divided over ideologies. My personal goal is generally to try to look for the positive first- try to find something I can applaud, compliment and agree with first and talk about that first- and thank the person for sharing their thoughts. And then politely state my differences where needs be. I firmly believe that no matter what we have to say, there is always a nice way to say it. We can disagree about policies and ideas without insulting each other, whether directly or subtly.
(This is of course, modeled after 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22- "Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid all appearance of evil." You may notice I repeat these verses many times over- they are so practical and such good reminders!) In the end, we can never forget the wonder of the created being that we are conversing with- this is another human being who is fearfully and wonderfully made in God's image- and we are called to love them as we love ourselves! It doesn't matter how vile they are or how much we think their beliefs are vulgar and wrong- our first call is always to love with the love of Christ above all else. (This doesn't mean we can't disagree and lovingly correct when needs be- particularly in spiritual matters of eternal importance- but we must speak the Truth in Love. (Ephesians 4:15) This one is another favorite- I can never say it enough!)
As I've said many times before, when it comes to politics- vote for who you think God wants you to vote for. Let the Holy Spirit guide you. But don't hail them like they're going to magically make everything better...they won't. All the candidates are human and they fail just like we do. And we're also called to love all of them like Jesus does. (John 13:35) Yes, God is in control and He sets rulers up and takes them down. (Daniel 4) And as Isaiah 2:22 reminds us, quit putting your trust in man, who has but a breath in his nostrils. Put your trust in The Lord! His will will be done. :-)
I've said much the same thing for a while now and I’ll probably keep repeating myself through this writing as some things I need to hear over and over again- as we all do at times. :-) Fix your eyes on Jesus- not on this world and its political system. Stop putting trust in man who has but a breath in his nostrils (that God gave him.) (see Isaiah 2:22) Put your faith in God. He's always in control. No one gets political power unless Jesus lets them. And no matter what happens on earth in our own power struggles, there's One who reigns as King of Kings and Lord of Lords- and we who know Him as Savior and Lord don't have to fear- we've got another King coming. :-) As Jesus told Pilate in John 19:11, he wouldn’t have had any power over Him except that it was given to him from above.
Whoever God decides to put in power, we are commanded to respect them, love them and pray for them! (1 Timothy 2:1-4, 2 Peter 2:11-17, Romans 13). We should also remember the context of when these verses were written- the leader Christians were commanded to love, respect, honor and pray for at that time was Nero- the guy who was using Christians for nightlights and lion snacks. If the church could obey these commands for him, I think we can do the same in America- thankfully, we’re not quite there with our leaders. (Sadly, there are some Christians around the world who suffer similar barbarities in the world today though…. And these verses must be even tougher for them to carry out- but they are still God’s Word nonetheless, no matter what our situation might be.)
There are two errors I think we commonly tend to fall into when it comes to elections. Sometimes we believe that our chosen candidate is the one to bring balance to the Force and restore peace to the land- he or she is “the Golden Child”- “the Chosen One”- and everything will be all right once they are elected. We also sometimes tend to believe that the opponent of our chosen candidate is somehow the destroyer of worlds- the one who will make our living experience a hell on earth. I think either extreme is the wrong view. There is absolutely nothing that happens in this universe without being run by God first and getting His okay for happening! If God chooses for something to not happen- it will simply cease to be before it ever comes into existence. All things are held up by Him and in Him suspended- just check Colossians 1:17. Also, see John 1- nothing exists except that He made it and allowed it to be. The Lord is absolutely sovereign at all times. (Romans 9) If we truly believe this, then why do we act like a particular election is somehow going to be either the start of a new era of awesomeness or indeed the very end of the world? Yes, it’s true that God is always in control and everything will be all right because He rules the world. But why do we only say that when our chosen candidate loses? Somehow, I don’t seem to hear it being said when our chosen candidate wins. Yet it’s true regardless- and we sure better be looking to Him above any other human being in all things. (By this, I don’t mean that we should disregard our leaders and ignore them- we should be thankful for their service and pray for them- but we don’t hail them as the one who will fix everything.) Insert the Godliest person you can think of into the role of President. Anyone less than Jesus Christ will utterly fail in the end. There is only One who can put this world back together to what it should be and restore it from its fallen state- and that’s Jesus alone! He does that by forgiving people and changing their hearts when they ask Him to do so. He’s provided for this by dying on the cross for all our sins and rising again. We must always keep our eyes and minds fixed on Him and know that He is the only One we can trust to always be faithful. (2 Timothy 2:11-13, Psalms 136)
As a bit of a side note, I also think America tends to be very egocentric at times. (Though, to be fair, some of this comes from its status as a world leader. There’s no denying that a lot of the world looks to the USA to set the tone for other nations.) However, I think it’s important to note that everything does not revolve around the United States of America. (This is getting into a separate matter that I might write more on later; for now, suffice it to say that I tire of hearing people make comparisons of America and Israel. God loves all countries, of course- but the USA is not His chosen people.) My point here is just to say that if some feel that America is in a bad place because of a politician elected as President- this doesn’t mean it’s the end of the world. I don’t particularly want to see America fall as a nation and I don’t seek to make any predictions whatsoever regarding that- but I don’t want to act like it’s so important that the rest of the world can’t go on without it. In the end, God alone determines all nations’ fates- and nothing happens outside of His permissive will.
I saw this article (http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2016/november/year-of-living-hopelessly.html) in Christianity Today a while back about how 2016 has pushed some people towards nihilism- and how we don’t need to let that happen to us. (It’s a great article, by the way!) This is also something I grow weary of seeing- the despair of so many because of the state of the world. Yes, things are bleak in many ways. I’m well aware of the travails that sin brings upon us. But this has been happening since Genesis 3. The world is fallen and will continue to revel in sin until Christ returns and restores all things to the way He designed them to be originally. Until then, we as Christians must be His agents of change to show people the way of His kingdom, which is perfect love. We must boldly proclaim the Gospel and must live as people of Hope. We have an everlasting Hope in Jesus and we need not be scared of the future. We know the One who holds the past, present and future all in His hands- and we know the end of The Book- and “the Good Book says we win!” (as Stryper reminds us in “Soldiers Under Command”) We must be strong and courageous. (Joshua 1:9) We must be of good cheer because Christ has overcome the world! (John 16:33) Everything will be just as God has ordained it. (Psalms 139, Acts 27:25)He keeps the earth's pillars steady. (Psalms 75:3-4) We must hope in God alone. (Psalms 42) We find our peace in Him alone. (Romans 15:13) Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the Name of The Lord our God! (Psalms 20)
So as we face the future with calm assurance in our Father God, let’s remember this about elections and their outcomes. It’s not a brave new world, it’s not a whole new world- it’s my Father’s world- and He’s got the whole world in His hands.
Good and true words, Nate!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Kev. :-)
ReplyDelete