Here I find myself sitting 24 hours removed since the 1st presidential debate that happened on Fox News. It was, to say the least, chaotic. It was rather saddening to see two men, who each had a platform to bring forth each of their ideas and what policies they would implement if they were elected president, and instead they used it to degrade the other side.
I actually had a bingo board I found on Facebook that I was using during the debate that I had printed off- yes it was fun, and yes, I finished it in the first 5 minutes of the debate. Also, I'm sure that I heard the tune of crazy train being played as the background music during the debate.
So, where do we stand as Christians after the debate and process what we saw?
1. Not one person walked away as the clear "winner." I think we saw the current state of our national political temperature. While ugly, it is a reality we need to see right now. This divide I see is a direct example of personal sin and a fallen state of sinfulness. We have lost the voice of the people in this nation where each party respected the other candidate.
2. This does not give us an excuse not to vote. After last night I looked at my wife and told her that this would cause many people not to vote. We must vote, I believe; as Christians, we have been blessed to be in a nation that, even with certain flaws, is still beautiful, and we have the freedom to worship as freely as we want. There is nowhere else I would want to live. We need to be a part of the election process here in the USA, and as we are blessed to live here, we need to be a part of the vote for our nation.
3. The kingdom of God is the allegiance we must embrace. After the debate, I made the mistake of going on Facebook, and not to my surprise, I saw such a divide that it was almost on a biblical level with Moses splitting the Red Sea. As Christians, we must respect and have on display the humility of Christ and show charitable discourse in a world of rage and insults being thrown around on Facebook like 6th-grade dodgeball in school.
John Wesley wrote on October 6, 1774
"I met those of our society who had voted in the ensuing election and advised them:
1. To vote, without fee or reward, for the person they judged most worthy.
2. To speak no evil of the person they voted against.
3. To take care, their spirits were not sharpened against those that voted on the other side."
May we heed these words wisely.
4. The Church needs to lead more now than ever. There is a thought that the church needs to be quiet and sit out in our current world. I beg to differ as the church should be the center of dialogue of reconciliation, justice, and peace. After the debate and what has followed on social media platforms, I have found myself in a conundrum. "What is our call as a church at this moment?" Such easy questions burn on my soul. We must be active in our communities, taking care of the hurting and downtrodden, feeding the hungry and addicted, and speaking as peacemakers in this world. James 3:13-18 gives an obvious answer.
Read with me: "Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct, let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that comes down from above but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace." (James 3:13-18 NIV)
Suppose we are to see a revival break out in this nation and see reconciliation happen. In that case, we need to create charitable dialogue and even practice a discourse that shows God's holiness. Church, stop leading by fear and choosing a political party. Neither of these is the kingdom of God. Let the church hold scriptural truth and let the Spirit of God reign supreme. May we as Christians hold our tongue or keyboard and check the wording to that of Christ likeness. May we respect the other party that is opposite of what we choose. May we hold the kingdom of God as our primary source of voting and not culture, which I will write about in the future.
With Respect,
Pastor Abe
Comments