Archive - Religion RSS Feed

Is God a Republican or Democrat?

November 4, 2008 in Current Events, Religion with 23 Comments

I’ve heard more discussion about this year’s election than I’ve ever heard in my entire life. This might be because I’m getting older and my ear is tuned more to politics, but it could also be an indicator that our nation is more interested in this election than any other time in recent history. There have been numerous stories of record early vote turnout and the expectation that there will also be long lines at the polls today. If the 75+ people that were lined up outside the church building this morning at 6:55 am are any indication this is no doubt true.

Being a full-time Christian minister I’m privy to a number of conversations that I most likely would not have otherwise heard. I’ve discussed and heard discussions about this year’s election from a number of different angles. I’ve heard people say things like “If you’re really a Christian you will vote Republican.” I’ve heard someone say, “I’m a Christian so that means I’m voting Democrat.” I’ve also heard people say that neither candidate is really worth of the Office, so they’re either not voting or writing in another person. This election is being hotly debated for sure.

The Bible has some things to say about the role of Christians in politics. It talks a lot about being submissive to earthly rulers:

  • “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment” (Romans 13:1-2).
  • “Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men” (Titus 3:1-2).
  • “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men” (1 Peter 2:13-15).
  • “My son, fear the Lord and the king, and do not join with those who do otherwise” (Proverbs 24:21).

Christians are also instructed to pray for our leaders: “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way” (1 Timothy 2:1-2). One of the coolest ideas I’ve seen lately related to this concept is for us to “Pray Backwards” (RagamuffinSoul.com), which basically means to pray for God to bless the other candidate(s) that you did not vote for with wisdom in leadership. This is a valid idea and it also teaches us a dose of humility, since our way always seems the right or best way.

I’ve seen and heard a lot of discussion about praying that a particular candidate is elected President.  I’m not opposed to praying bold prayers (see Luke 11 & 18), but I also know that God will accomplish his will on earth regardless of who is in office. He’s done it before and he will do it again and again. As Christians, our hope is built firmly on the foundation of faith in Jesus Christ and His Kingdom alone, not the Office of the President nor any earthly kingdom.

So, should you move to Canada, France, Mexico, or another country if your candidate is not elected? Absolutely not. Will America be more of a Christian nation if a particular party is in power? No. Our Founding Fathers may have been religious people, and possibly even Christians, but it’s most likely that they were Deists. The laws they established may have biblical roots, but that is where the connection ends. Their goals was not to establish another Christendom. It was to establish a county with religious freedoms.

History has shown us that when the church has too much power it can become corrupt and unspiritual (think about the Crusades) and lose sight of its mission. When the church is in power it’s easy to get comfortable and forget that Jesus commanded us to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:18-20). We should be involved in politics, but our primary allegiance is to God and His true Kingdom: the church.

So if you’re hoping and praying that McCain will be President, but Obama wins, or if you’re pulling for Obama and McCain wins, don’t lose hope. Also, don’t get too confident if your man wins. They are earthly leaders and are prone to sin (Romans 3:23). Place your faith, hope, and trust in the unchanging power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

—
Interesting reads related to this topic:
http://blogs.lifeway.com/blog/edstetzer/2008/11/barna-the-president-and-our-mi.html
http://www.leadingsmart.com/leadingsmart/2008/10/a-single-issue.html
http://www.leadingsmart.com/leadingsmart/2008/10/donald-miller-o.html

New Post Coming Soon…

November 4, 2008 in Current Events, Religion with 0 Comments

I’ve been thinking about it for a little while and I’ve decided I’m going to do it. I’m going to write a post about the election in regards to Christians and political parties, but it will take a few minutes to write. In the meantime feel free to email/tweet/facebook me your thoughts about this issue.

Really, though, I’m writing this post to test out a new way for me to post to my blog that *might* make me post more. We’ll see.

Don’t sweat the small stuff…Pray about it

September 1, 2008 in Religion with 0 Comments

The past few days have been somewhat frustrating around the house. We could not find our digital camera. This normally would be frustrating anyway, but we had not copied pictures from the card off of it for over a week, so there were a bunch of pictures of Emory and family on it.

Over the weekend there were two times that I know God was reminding me that he wasn’t kidding about wanting us to “pray continually” like he told us to do through Paul in 1 Thessalonians 5:17. I knew I should pray about the lost camera, but it also seemed like such a small thing to bother God about. My brother-in-law Chris was the first person God spoke through. He told me that his normal routine now is to pray about lost items as soon as he realizes that he’s misplaced something. He told me about a time in college that he couldn’t find his wallet, stopped to pray about it, and as soon as he was done praying he looked down and the wallet was sitting right there.

The second time that I knew God was wanting me to pay attention was when my mom called me to tell me she found the camera. She told me that she had started looking for it, stopped to pray, and then the first place she looked she found the camera. Let me be clear that Brea and I had just gone over to my parents’ house the night before to look for the camera and had looked in the recliner where she found it. It’s not a coincedence that I didn’t find it. God had a lesson he wanted me to learn. He wants us to pray to him about EVERYTHING in our lives…even the mundane.

If you have any stories about answered prayers, even the smallest ones like a lost digital camera, I’d love to hear them.

Get a free commentary from Logos…for a limited time

August 27, 2008 in Religion, Tech with 0 Comments

The Bible software that I use, Logos, is giving away a free copy of the Cornerstone Biblical Commentary on Matthew and Mark for free. Here’s the info from their blog:

We have arranged with Tyndale to give away the Matthew, Mark volume for free–no strings attached! For a limited time (until the Pre-Pub ships) you can head over to product page and add this wonderful title to your Libronix digital library absolutely free of charge. Use coupon code CORNERSTONE during checkout.

Check it out over at their blog.

Feeling like a dad

August 14, 2008 in Personal, Religion with 0 Comments

One of the things that I thought would change once I became a dad was that I would feel different. I always assumed that since my world was about to get turned upsidedown that life would feel different at a very fundament level, that I wouldn’t ever feel like the person I was before Emory was born. Over two months into this new phase of my life I realize now that it’s not true. I’m still who I am and feel, for the most part, like the same person.

That’s not to say that my life is not different, but I guess I’ve always thought that fatherhood would touch the core of my emotions in a way that I would be reshaped into a new and different person. The feeling that I have about being a dad I can best describe as feeling right. I do, however, still feel like I am the same person.

I guess that what being a parent is starting to do, though, is to reveal more fully who I really am. I know that my weak areas (selfishness, laziness, etc.) are more obvious to me now. I also think that my strong areas rise more to the surface, too.

Maybe the reason for this “true self” that I feel like I’m becoming has to do with the fact that I’m more fully living out God’s command on my life. God told the original inhabitants of the earth, Adam and Eve, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it” (Genesis 1:28). I’m starting to “fill the earth” with my offspring.

Maybe this, also, was partly was Jesus was alluding to when he said “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10). It shouldn’t be a suprise at all that when I live out and obey God’s commands my life will be more rewarding.

Page 9 of 13« First...«7891011»...Last »