political

Don’t Vote in a Vacuum

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By Linda Rex

October 18, 2020, Proper 24—In truth, today’s political scene seems rampant with misinformation, suspicion, and a host of other ills. We are not given truth—we are given biased opinions. We’re not given clear goals and objectives—we’re given nebulous promises that vary depending upon which audience is spoken to. It seems that we are unable to simply elect honest, capable leaders who are seeking the best for their constituents no matter the cost to themselves.

This really isn’t a new situation, though. I recall many election seasons when I felt we spent the entire time ducking all the mud being slung at one another by the candidates. I’ve forgotten all the unkept promises that have been made during my lifetime by different people who had hoped they would say just the right thing that would convince people to elect them.

The real issue in all this is that too often we live as though this physical world is the only reality there is. We make our decisions and form our opinions based on tangible evidence—things we touch, hear, or see. The way in which we determine the future of our children and our country lacks a significant foundation—an understanding that we are not alone in this cosmos—that we do not make our decisions in a vacuum.

We may believe that it is all up to us to determine who ends up being president, senator, or mayor. Yes, we have a responsibility to educate ourselves about the candidates and the issues, and to make an intelligent, informed decision about whom to vote for. And yes, in this country, we have a responsibility to cast our vote when the election arrives. This is the part we have been given to play in the process of governing ourselves.

But we must never assume that it’s all up to us, because it is not. We want to be fully self-governing—but in reality, there is a form of government which undergirds and supersedes all human government. We can’t see it, but it is very real, and must be taken into account at all times, especially if we are in any position of power, authority, or popular influence.

The prophet Isaiah predicted a ruler named Cyrus would be given power and would be instrumental in rebuilding the Jewish temple in Jerusalem (Isa. 44:28; 45:1-7). This ruler, he said, would not know God or even acknowledge him, but would be anointed by God to accomplish an important task in preparation for the coming of the Messiah. His title, authority, and power were a gift of the divine One, given for the sole purpose of fulfilling the will and purposes of the only One who truly rules on earth, God himself.

In due time, there was a king named Cyrus who came into power in Persia. The priest Ezra records how he made a decree encouraging the exiled Jewish people to go back to Judah and rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. Later, his decree was honored by King Darius, who ensured that the project was completed in spite of the efforts of those who opposed the rebuilding. Human efforts sought to accomplish two opposing goals, but what God had in mind was what ultimately happened, even when it required working through two rulers who did not know or worship him.

When the nation of Israel was in its time of formation, Moses and his brother Aaron the priest were its leaders. They were the ones criticized when there were problems, accused of neglect or worse when people were hungry or thirsty, and blamed when things didn’t turn out as planned. What the people didn’t seem to grasp was that Moses and Aaron were simply stewards, servants of God who were answerable to him for every decision they made.

Moses seemed to have an understanding of this. He would meet with God, and then bring to the people the word he was given. When Israel created and worshiped a gold calf instead of worshiping the unseen God who had delivered them from Egypt, Moses interceded on their behalf. When the thought of leading Israel to the promised land seemed overwhelming to him, Moses told God that if he didn’t go with them, he wasn’t going at all. God promised to be present with Israel as they traveled. It would be God’s presence with them that distinguished them as God’s people. (Exodus 33:12–23)

We have fallen far as human beings when we cannot and do not recognize that what distinguishes us as God’s people is his living presence in us and among us. When we vote for our leaders, do we consider what party they are a member of or what kind of people they are? Do we consider their personality and popularity, or do we focus on what they value and on what they base their decisions? Today these things may be difficult to discern due to faulty media coverage of their campaigns, but we do have the presence and power of God to give us discernment, wisdom, and understanding when making these decisions.

Jesus was approached by two opposing groups who sought to catch him in a political snare. The Pharisees fiercely opposed the Roman government while the Herodians, who supported King Herod, were content with the status quo. But they both were opposed to want-to-be messiahs coming in to upset their house of power, authority and popularity. They didn’t want to acknowledge Jesus as Messiah because he didn’t agree with their agendas. These two groups came up with a well-considered question by which they thought they could force Jesus to take one side or the other, therefore enabling them to get rid of him once and for all.

They asked Jesus whether or not it was lawful to give a poll-tax to Caesar. They failed to recognize their opponent in this discussion—they were talking to the One who was present in the flesh while at the same time sustaining all things by his word. Even though Jesus at that moment held all power and authority in heaven and on earth, he chose to humble himself, limiting himself to our human existence, and allowing himself to be questioned in this way.

His answer, though, speaks volumes for our political arena today. He asked for a denarius, something any pious Jew would not carry, due to its idolatrous portrait of the emperor—he was handed this coin used to pay Roman taxes. “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” he asked. They told him it was Caesar’s. He replied, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” At this, they left amazed.

Jesus touched them at the core of their belief system—their piety was a fraud, their hypocrisy was obvious, and their values were not where they belonged. Jesus acknowledged that human government is to be respected, taxes paid, laws observed. But there will always be a law superior, an authority greater, and a power more supreme. Jesus did not need power, authority, or popularity in order to rule—he needed only to be who he was, God in human flesh, the One who alone is king of kings and lord of lords.

We do have a responsibility, as I mentioned earlier, to our nation and to one another. We need to make informed, wise decisions and vote. But we want to remember to do so prayerfully, humbly, and obediently, understanding that the One who elevates and removes leaders is still in charge. We are encouraged to ask God for leaders who will enable us to continue to follow Christ peacefully, free to share the good news with others in our lives. As believers in Christ, the presence of God is still in us and with us, for we are God’s people. We do not trust in human government—we trust solely in the living Lord. We live as citizens of heaven, ambassadors of the kingdom of God, shining the light of his love and grace in the midst of a very human, dark and broken world.

Heavenly Father, in your majesty and glory, you rule with compassion, mercy, and justice. Thank you, holy Word of God, for taking on our human flesh, living our life, dying, and rising again, so that we might be now and forever in your presence. Holy Spirit, enlighten us with a glimpse of the glory and majesty of our risen Lord. Empower us with wisdom, insight, and discernment as we vote. Abba, you determine who should rule—you guide the election, accomplishing your divine purpose as ever, through Jesus and by your Spirit. Amen.

“Thus says the LORD to Cyrus His anointed, | Whom I have taken by the right hand, | To subdue nations before him | And to loose the loins of kings; | To open doors before him so that gates will not be shut: … | For the sake of Jacob My servant, | And Israel My chosen one, | I have also called you by your name; | I have given you a title of honor | Though you have not known Me. | I am the LORD, and there is no other; | Besides Me there is no God. | I will gird you, though you have not known Me; | That men may know from the rising to the setting of the sun | That there is no one besides Me. | I am the LORD, and there is no other, …” Isaiah 45:1, 4-6 NASB

See also Matthew 22:15–22.

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The Gods We Make

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By Linda Rex

October 11, 2020, Proper 23—Right now, the political climate here in America, I believe, is very unhealthy. Unfortunately, the spiritual enemies of God are fanning the flames of divisiveness, hatred, corruption, and deception. In the process, we are finding ourselves once again facing the reality of our human proclivity to choose to make our own gods rather than simply receiving God for who he is, the Creator, Sustainer, and Savior of all, King of kings and Lord of lords. We are so much like the people who, when Moses delayed on the mountain as he conversed with God, told Aaron to make them a god who would go before them.

They tore off their rings of gold and handed them to Aaron, and he fashioned the gold into a molten calf. He told them that this was the god who had delivered them from Egypt. How incredible that they, humans who were created to be the only image-bearers of God, traded in that image for a metal animal which had no sentient life but that which was given it by the evil one. They preferred to worship a tangible object than to worship an invisible, but real, deity (Exodus 32:1-14; Psalm 106:1–6, 19–23).

The distinction between the two types of worship is found in the factor of real relationship. To worship an object, concept, or even an ideology, is to worship something inanimate which we can control and define, whereas to worship a divine being means to be in a relationship where there is uncertainty and the need for trust. Being in a relationship of humility, love and service with a God and loving Being who is greater than us, who has created us and sustains us, means we are not rulers of ourselves but are beloved creatures who are dependent upon him for all that we are, all that we have and all that we need.

The profound wonder of this good and loving God is that he never meant for us to denigrate ourselves by idolatry in this way. He created all things out of nothing. He made Adam out of the dust of the earth and took Eve from his side—both were intended to have great dignity as reflections of his likeness and stewards of his creation. But human beings seem to prefer, as God told Moses, to “corrupt themselves”—to ruin, blemish, or destroy themselves. Sadly, we so often choose the path back to the place from which we came. The anger God expressed in that moment on Mount Sinai was intense, but his anger was that sin was corrupting and destroying the glory and beauty he had given the human race and specifically his covenant people.

When Jesus stood before the chief priests and Pharisees and told them the parables of the kingdom of heaven, he was faced with this same problem. This time, however, rather than creating a golden calf and telling the people to worship it, the rulers of his people had created a system of rules and traditions that enslaved the people and they were rejecting the Son whom God had sent, saying that he was not the Messiah but a demon-possessed fraud. Accusing the true image-bearer of God of being a fraud was these leaders’ death knell. They rejected the true messiah, Jesus Christ, while accepting instead several others, and this ultimately led the Roman government to destroy their temple and beloved Jerusalem in 70 A.D.

Jesus’ parable for this Sunday is about a king’s marriage feast, in celebration of the wedding of his son. Such a feast would normally last for about a week and it was assumed that those invited would attend this wonderful event out of respect for the king. But in Jesus’ story, those invited didn’t really care anything about the king, his son, or his feast. They were indifferent to what really mattered—just like the Jewish leaders Jesus was talking to were indifferent to the nearness and presence of the kingdom in the person of the Son of God. In the end, these chief priests and Pharisees would, like the people in the story, kill John and then Jesus just as they had killed the other prophets sent by God.

Jesus said the king then sent out his servants to invite everyone off the street—all the people, both good and evil, to the banquet. In the same way, Jesus includes all humanity in his life, death, resurrection and ascension, giving each of us a free ticket to the marriage supper of the Lamb. In Christ, everyone has a place at the banqueting table. We see that those originally invited, these leaders who believed they were already righteous and included, refused to show up, while those who realized their unworthiness were thrilled to be included in the great event, so they made sure they were there.

Then Jesus described the king at the banquet enjoying the fellowship of all of these guests. But the king saw one man who did not show him the courtesy of dressing in the appropriate wedding attire. How sad that even when we are given the grace of the garments of salvation in Jesus, we refuse to put them on by faith. So often, we insist on doing things on our own, under our own power, rather than simply walking by faith, trusting in the finished work of Christ. Rather than clothing ourselves with Jesus, we wear our comfortable but dirty, tattered garments of law-keeping, Pharisaical legalism, and stubborn self-will, self-reliance and pride. This is an insult to and causes great grief for our heavenly Father.

It is our refusal to trust in God’s infinite love and grace, to count on his faithfulness and goodness, that gets us into trouble every time. How different might things have been if Aaron and Israel had seen past Moses to the divine I Am, understanding just who he was as their compassionate, gracious, and forbearing covenant God? What if they had simply trusted in his faithful love and goodness while they waited for Moses to come down off the mountain?

What Aaron did in redirecting the people away from the living God to an idol became a fatal flaw in the character of the nation. They fell prey to this sin over and over again, even when God sent them his Son. They were unable or unwilling to see past the tangible into the spiritual realities—to be the image-bearers of the divine One instead of worshipers of idols. They trusted in what they could see and feel instead of in the living Lord, their Redeemer.

While those who knew they were sinners were beginning by faith to enjoy the fruits of the kingdom of God inaugurated in Christ, these Jewish leaders who were hearing Jesus’ parable were caught in the darkness of unbelief. The bright Light, the Son of God, had dawned upon them, but they turned away, preferring to hide in the darkness instead. They refused to let God be the God he was, the living Word in human flesh, the true image-bearer of Abba, their Redeemer and Savior.

We need to be careful today that we are keeping Jesus in the center of all things. This includes our approach to what is going on in the political arena. In whom are we placing our faith? On what or whom are we counting to save us, to resolve our issues? What or who defines our values, our goals, and our expectations for ourselves and for our nation? Are we caught up in the physical and tangible or are we focusing our hearts and minds on the heavenly realities?

Let us be reminded of who we are as image-bearers of God and temples of the divine Spirit. Let us trust in the love of our Abba, who gave us his very own Son and Spirit so we could celebrate with him in fellowship now and forever as his adopted children. May we, as followers of Christ, adorn ourselves by faith in the garments of salvation he has provided, rejoicing gratefully in God’s bountiful love and grace. Let us humbly seek his wisdom, guidance and provision as we go through this season of uncertainty and unrest.

Dear Abba, our heavenly Father, thank you for your love and grace as expressed to us in the gift of your Son and your Spirit. Forgive us our idolatries and our stubborn resistance to your will. Grant us the humility to acknowledge you as Lord and King over all. Keep our hearts and minds on you. Enable us to fully trust in your goodness, faithfulness, mercy and love, in and through Jesus, the Light of all. Amen.

“The LORD of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples on this mountain; | A banquet of aged wine, choice pieces with marrow, | And refined, aged wine. | And on this mountain He will swallow up the covering which is over all peoples, | Even the veil which is stretched over all nations. | He will swallow up death for all time, | And the Lord GOD will wipe tears away from all faces, | And He will remove the reproach of His people from all the earth; | For the LORD has spoken. | And it will be said in that day, | ‘Behold, this is our God for whom we have waited that He might save us. | This is the LORD for whom we have waited; | Let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation.’ ” Isaiah 25:6-9 NASB

See also Matthew 22:1-14.

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The Simplicity of Grace and Truth

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By Linda Rex

FEBRUARY 16, 2020, 6th SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY—Lost in the midst of our current political scene, with its polarizing rhetoric and maneuvering of people into places of influence and power, is the quiet transforming simplicity of grace and truth. As I was reading the gospel reading for this particular Sunday, I was struck by the reality that even though we may have dogmatic opinions, emphatic assertions of right vs. wrong, or clear expectations of how things are or ought to be, we are never at the place where we can, with authority, say we are right and everyone else is wrong.

There is only one person who did this, and was right in doing it, because of who he was. The fundamental groundwork of the gospel message is that this person had the capacity to know exactly what to do and say in every situation, and was able to do and say it, because he was the One who created all things and held them together by his word of power. He could, and did, say to those around him, “It is written…” or “You say…” and overturned what had been said or written by simply affirming, “But I say…”.

When human beings talk in this manner, all our red flags go up. Immediately, we grow concerned, because such language overthrows any authority other than the one who is speaking. For Jesus to say, “What you may have been told or taught has no relevance anymore—what I say is what really matters now,” is to put Christ on a plane above everyone else, even to the point of him being God himself. We would never accept a human being having the arrogance to place themselves in that position of authority….or would we?

The problem we are running into today is the loss of our understanding of who we are in relation to who Jesus Christ is—the One who is both fully God and fully human. I was driving in downtown Nashville yesterday, and was amazed at the vast amount of construction and renovation that is going on in this city. As I looked about me, I saw towers of glass and metal rising high into the sky, many of them only partially built. Apartment buildings that were dozens of stories tall gave evidence of the thousands of people moving into Nashville needing places to live.

Years ago, the tallest buildings in the skyscape would have been the cathedrals and churches with towering steeples. Today, such buildings are dwarfed by the immensity of other places where people live, work, and play. In some ways, this is a metaphor for the attention we give today to the spiritual realities, and to the God who sent his Son to redeem us and his Spirit to transform our hearts by faith.

What we have lost is not so much a creed or a certain religion or belief system as it is the simple understanding of who God is, and who we are in relation to him. To even assert that there is a God and that we are his creatures, formed to live in relationship with him, is offensive to many people today. We do not want to surrender ourselves to the reality that there is someone to whom we owe our existence and our ability to live and work in this world. And we most certainly do not want anyone other than ourselves to have the ability to tell us what to say or do.

This is not a new problem. In reality, it is one we have been manifesting since the days when Adam and Eve walked in the Garden of Eden. They too wrestled with the choice between life, and deciding for themselves what is good and what is evil. The human tendency to choose for ourselves a way of living and being which ends in death is something fundamental to our humanity—it is our sinful nature at work within us. We just have a natural proclivity to choose death over life, and then to blame God when things don’t turn out the way we want them to.

It is ironic that the nation God called his very own, ancient Israel, whom he joined himself to in covenant love, would take the descriptions of life in his presence and turn them into prescriptions for living. They added many words to the 613 rules in the old covenant, creating an even more difficult path for the average person to follow, should they decide to obey the God of the Jewish people. Over the centuries, as the Jews interacted with God, for many of them, the law and its observation supplanted the covenant relationship it was designed to lead people into and to participate in.

Jesus, in his Sermon on the Mount, reminded his listeners that keeping the law in itself was insufficient—no, even impossible. He told them what the law said, and then took them farther, deeper, into the heart of his Father. He showed his hearers that God looks at our intent, our motives, and our reasoning. We can’t just go through the motions—an entire transformation of our being is needed, not just a change in our actions.

That being the case, we as human beings are in an extremely difficult place. There is no way, with our sinful nature abounding, that we can ever have the right motivation in every situation. There is no way we will ever keep our thoughts where they ought to be or our feelings and desires pure and chaste. We are helpless and can never live as we ought to in right relationship with God and others.

So we come to the simplicity of grace and truth. Truth is, we are not God—he is. Truth is, we are broken, sinful people, who will, whether we want to or not, find ourselves choosing death instead of life, and reaping the consequences of it. Truth is, we have no hope of anything being any different—in us, in this world, in our circumstances—apart from the living Lord, the One who made it all, sustains it all, and redeemed it all. So, we need grace.

And we have grace. That is the good thing. God the Word has come into our humanity, lived the life we were created for in Jesus Christ as a Son in perfect relationship with the Father, died the death we so often choose, and has risen, taking us with him into glory. Our humanity is now in a totally different place—we are free to live in right relationship with God and others because of Christ. This grace means that it’s not all up to us—it’s up to him. Whatever we say and do as humans, we say and do it in Christ, and he gives us life.

Truth—God is, and we are his, and apart from him, we have no hope. Grace—in Jesus he has come, included us in his life and death, and has sent the Spirit to make this so as we trust in him. The simplicity of grace and truth—the reception of the gift God has given—the belief that God loves us this much and will never leave or forsake us, would transform our lives, our politics, and our world, if we were willing.

Today, in the stillness of quiet reflection, consider these questions: Are my decisions leading me to a greater, fuller life in joyful relationship with God and others? Or are they leading down the path to death and destruction? What is my response to the words of Jesus to me, “But I say…”? Allow yourself to respond in the simplicity of grace and truth which is ours in Jesus Christ, receiving Abba’s gift of forgiveness and life in the Spirit.

Dear God, we so desperately need healed! Thank you, Abba, for your perfect gift of forgiveness and life in the Spirit, through our Lord Jesus Christ. Thank you, Jesus, for bringing us grace and truth, and for leading us into life everlasting. Our life is in you alone. Holy Spirit, may you penetrate the core of our beings with the new life Jesus brought us, transforming our hearts and minds, and thereby healing our churches, our communities, our politics, this world and the earth on which we live. We long for you to finish what you have begun, through Jesus our Lord. Amen.

“This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life,…” Deuteronomy 30:19-20a NLT

See also Matthew 5:21–37.

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Freedom to Lead

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By Linda Rex

The other day I stood in a line of about fifty people waiting for an opportunity to cast my vote. The line moved rather slowly, and by the time I got to the voting machine, there were another fifty people behind me. I thought it was pretty cool that I could stand in line with people of all different walks of life, of a different race and culture than myself, and express my opinion via the vote as to who should be elected to office.

I realize there are a lot of dynamics in the political arena I am unaware of. And I realize that just casting a vote doesn’t guarantee a particular person will get elected. My trust is not placed completely in the person I am voting for—I realize their human frailty. What I do trust in is the reality that no one gets into political office apart from God’s gracious permission. I cling to the Word which says, “… there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God.”

This is hard to get my mind around sometimes though. We elect people into office in this country—or at least we go through the motions of an election to put people into power. If we are responsible for putting someone into office, then why do Christians say God has established someone in a position of authority over us? What if they are corrupt or inept? Is it possible that sometimes God allows us to choose to elect someone who may not be honest and trustworthy or a good fit for the position? Apparently so.

A quick look back into history tells us that we as human beings have not been very good at choosing leaders for ourselves. I am reminded at this particular moment of how the nation of Germany began to move Hitler into power, thinking he was going to make their nation great again and save them from their poverty and help them rebuild. No doubt, there was some good at the beginning, but ultimately the power Hitler took to himself destroyed nations and killed people in a catastrophic way. And it took a world war and the loss of millions of lives to end it.

Going farther back, I am reminded of what is written in the book of Daniel. Daniel did something which is not easy to do—living as a God-fearing man in service to a pagan tyrant, a king who simply spoke the word and whatever he said became law. Daniel’s life is a good example of how to live in a godless society and still serve God, being faithful to the Word of God and prayer in spite of the restrictions in one’s work and everyday life.

Daniel was always taking risks you and I would find very difficult to take. He started out his service at the palace by refusing to eat the specialty foods and wines offered him and insisting on eating only simple foods and drinking water. This request he made could have caused him to simply be executed, but God gave him grace and favor.

The grace and favor of God seemed to cover every part of Daniel’s experience in Babylon. But what stands out most in my mind today considering our current political environment and the concerns people have expressed about the leadership of our country, both local and federal, is the story about Nebuchanezzar’s dream. God speaks to us in dreams often, yet we don’t usually in this society pay attention to what God is trying to tell us through our dreams.

Back then, there was an attentiveness to such things and the ones who normally attended to them were the wise men, the ones who were soothsayers, magicians, astrologers and conjurers. Nebuchanezzar had scores of them around to help him with his dreams, but one morning he woke up very disturbed by a dream, and none of these clever men were able to tell him what his dream meant. I’ve often wondered whether they were just afraid to tell him what the dream meant, because he might have gotten mad and killed them all (he had a habit of doing that).

In any case, he finally got around to telling Daniel about the dream. Daniel, who the king called Belteshazzar, was the chief of the magicians—interesting that he rose that far—and the king recognized in him “a spirit of the holy gods.” Nebuchadnezzar may have been as far from God as a person could get, and yet he was able to recognize the presence of God in Daniel in all he said and did. This says a lot about what kind of person Daniel was and how he lived his life.

Daniel hesitated at first to tell the king what his dream meant but the king insisted that he do so. Finally, Daniel explained that the dream was a message from God telling the king if he didn’t humble himself and give God the glory, and repent of his wickedness and tend to the poor and needy in his kingdom, God would see that he would lose his sanity and wander about as an insane beast for seven years, until he recognized God as Lord of his kingdom. It was a miracle the king didn’t assassinate Daniel on the spot.

There are historical records, I’ve been told, of a seven-year silence in the reign of Nebuchanezzar. The biblical record says about a year after his dream, he was arrogantly boasting about his position and power when an angel informed him the dream was now becoming a reality. Isn’t it interesting that today our Bible includes a story written by this king, telling us of what happens to a ruler when they presume to believe they are the only supreme authority in this world? He lost his mind temporarily for seven years, and then God restored the kingdom to him. After that, he was a little more respectful of God, though I doubt very much he ever stopped worshiping idols.

Whatever may happen in the political arena we can know God is ultimately in charge. Our voting and working as politicians and public servants need to be seen as our participation in what God is doing in this world. God is and always will be the One who is Lord of all, but he includes us in what he does as our sovereign Lord.

God allows people to hold power in this world, and he holds them accountable for everything they say and do, especially when it creates suffering and hardship for those who are powerless and needy. The purpose of being given responsibility and authority over others is not so we can become self-indulgent, self-important, and arrogant, but so we can help and serve others, humbling ourselves to make other people’s lives better and to enable them to know, love and serve God and one another in the true freedom which is ours in Christ.

Political power and authority are transient—they cannot be counted on. Some people hold office for decades in some countries, not because they are good leaders, but because they force their will on others. God’s purpose is not for us to force our will on others, but to enable others to follow God’s will, and to live freely in loving respect for one another. We have been given great freedom in this country to have a change after a few years to another leader. We should be grateful, and participate in the voting process as much as we can.

The book of Daniel tells us that one day God will establish a divine kingdom that will grow and fill the whole world, ultimately bringing low every other human government. This government was established in Jesus Christ in his first coming, and is at work today in the world by the Holy Spirit within the universal Church of believers. As we follow Christ and bravely live out and share the truth of God’s love in this world, we participate in and live in God’s kingdom, and enable others to experience its benefits within our world even today. May we be heavenly kingdom minded and Christ centered as we live, work, and serve in this earthly world today.

We, as believers in Christ, need to obey the apostolic admonition to pray for our leaders and for those who carry political power. Pray that we may continue to live quiet and peaceful lives as believers, and that we may be free to share the good news with our neighbors, friends, and families. Pray also that God will grant us as believers grace and favor with all those in authority, so that we can continue Christ’s mission in our community and in the nation as a whole.

If you, as Daniel did, have the gift of political leadership, then place that gift at Jesus’ feet and serve where he calls you to serve. Do the work of Christ fearlessly, trusting God will grant you grace and favor as you need it. We need leaders who are not afraid to “do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly before your God.” We need leaders who are willing to take the risks necessary to bring about change. It is a tough political arena right now, but what we need in that arena are spiritual warriors who are willing to take the hits for being honest, humble, and compassionate, and who are submissive to the will and purposes of our Lord Jesus Christ and his heavenly Abba. May the Spirit do a mighty work in this nation and bring many to humble service so we can see some real change that lasts.

Dear Abba, it is a blessing that you have made your Son Jesus Christ Lord of all. We are thankful you are still in charge, and that even when we fail to make good choices about our leaders, you still are at work in the midst of our failures. We ask you for godly men and women to lead us in this country who are equipped for servant leadership and who are filled with the Spirit. Lord, give our leaders wisdom, compassion, and humility—a spirit of service toward those they are responsible for. Grant us courage to confront and challenge our leaders when necessary, and the grace to respect and follow them as they follow you. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

“…this is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king: that you be driven away from mankind and your dwelling place be with the beasts of the field, and you be given grass to eat like cattle and be drenched with the dew of heaven; and seven periods of time will pass over you, until you recognize that the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind and bestows it on whomever He wishes. And in that it was commanded to leave the stump with the roots of the tree, your kingdom will be assured to you after you recognize that it is Heaven that rules. Therefore, O king, may my advice be pleasing to you: break away now from your sins by doing righteousness and from your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor, in case there may be a prolonging of your prosperity.” Daniel 4:24-27 NASB

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Being Right vs. Being Rightly Related

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By Linda Rex

Have you ever had to come to terms with the reality you were absolutely, totally and completely wrong about something you were entirely convinced of? You were so sure you were correct, you were quick to tell anyone who would listen (and some who wouldn’t) what you believed to be true while not realizing you were completely in error? Me, too.

One of the things I’ve learned from such experiences is not only a little humility, but also the reality enforcing our position of “being right” rarely if ever builds relationships. Instead, it often puts an intense strain on the relationship, especially if we make “being right” a condition of that relationship. It takes great humility and grace to place having a warm, loving relationship with someone of higher value than being in the right about something.

I used to be amused listening to the elderly couples in the nursing home when they got to telling stories. One would be telling quite a tale, while the other would be correcting all the facts as they went. Happy couples found a way to let the details go or to graciously overlook the failure at accuracy, or they would just laugh it off when one of them got it wrong. Other couples would start down the road to a fight, or would just be downright nasty to each other. They didn’t seem to value the relationship as much as they did “being right.”

Granted, there is a place for the true realities of life. And yes, there are things we do stand for which are worth standing for—those things which Jesus Christ stood for in his life, his death, his resurrection and ascension. When Jesus called us to follow him, he warned us ahead of time people would not necessarily welcome us or be willing to listen to and agree with the good news we are offering. In fact, he indicated we would share in his suffering and death because of what we believed to be true and right.

Being a person of integrity is something God calls each of us to be. We are to be honest, even to the place of the core of our being—truly and completely transparent and authentic, pure of thought and deed. The reason God wants us to be this way is because it is the way he is as Father, Son and Spirit, and we as human beings are made in his image to reflect his likeness. Part of that likeness is being people of honesty and integrity.

Do you realize, though, that God in Christ lives in relationship with millions of people who are dishonest and not authentic and transparent? And, believe it or not, God didn’t make “being right” a condition of his relationship with all the broken people we are—no, it is “while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). “God so loved the world” not while we were right, but while we were horribly, terribly wrong (John 3:16-17).

Being honest, truthful and authentic human beings is not a condition of our relationship with God, but a result of the relationship God forged with us in Christ’s life, death, resurrection and ascension. Today God offers us his living Word, the Lord Jesus, and so by his Spirit opens the written Word of God to our understanding, and God’s implanted Word in our hearts creates in us Jesus’ own humility, honest, integrity and transparent authenticity.

God does not demand we be right in every instance, but rather invites us into relationship with himself, and works to transform our hearts and minds in the process so in the end we will come to discern and choose what is right in God’s sight. God focuses on life. We tend to focus on what is good and what is evil—the rules to follow so we can “be right”—do-it-yourself religion. God focuses on us being rightly related to him, and is working to make everything right in the end—which is something only he can do. He is the only One who is truly and always “right.”

This afternoon I was going through some old family correspondence. And I was reflecting on the painful and difficult path we trod as a family who parted ways theologically when I was in my thirties. I was informed how “wrong” I was on many occasions, but I tried very hard not to respond in kind. I did not preach. I did not cut off the relationship. I did my best to offer God’s unconditional love and acceptance no matter the response I got, all the way up until the relationship ended in death.

God honored this, for which I am grateful. Somehow, we were able to transcend the religious barrier and get down to the reality of building a loving relationship with one another in spite of it. Yes, there were awkward moments and uncomfortable conversations. But for the most part, there was a leaning toward one another rather than away from one another. And I hope someday to be able to finish our conversations in the presence of Jesus in glory. Then we will each know for a fact, where we were truly right and truly wrong. (And I imagine it will be both in each instance.)

I believe it is possible for us as human beings to transcend our differences, even the critical ones, by offering one another the love of God in Christ. The discussions we are facing today in our political and cultural arena are difficult and painful ones, and there must be by necessity, strong differences in beliefs, opinions and convictions. But we need to look to the One who created us in this way, differences as well as equality in person, value and being, in order to see how best to get beyond them into true unity.

The path none of us seem to want to take is the path Jesus trod and told us we were to follow him down. His path to unity took him straight through his sacrificial suffering and crucifixion into the grave. None of us want to lay any part of ourselves in the grave with him, nor do we want to admit that perhaps the only real truth there is, is the truth which is at the core of who we are as human beings—our identity lies in Christ and in him alone.

It is worth giving some real thought and prayer to the possibility each of us may have some places in our thinking, our beliefs, our way of living and working, in which we may be terribly, horribly wrong. This is the call God gives us to repentance—to turn around and go the other way—to start seeing God for Who he really is and ourselves for who we really are.

To confess this truth and to humbly admit our need for God’s grace—this is a good thing. On the other side, we will find ourselves in the midst of warm, loving relationship with God and others—and this is what we were created for in the first place. As image-bearers of God as Father, Son and Spirit, we reflect that divine relationship. And this is the best possible place we could find ourselves. And “being right” isn’t what gets us there—“being rightly related” does, and Jesus took care of that for us and offers it to us in the gift of his Spirit.

Thank you, heavenly Father, for calling us into relationship with you and making it possible for us to be rightly related with you and with others through your Son Jesus and by your Spirit. Grant us each the grace and humility to be open to and willing to admit to the possibility we might be wrong, or at the least, in need of a change of mind and heart. You know the truth in every instance, and you know how things really are and need to be. So, do indeed, Lord, make all things right as you have promised you would in Jesus and by your Spirit. Amen.

“For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:6–8 NASB

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Caught in the Political Crossfire

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by Linda Rex

It seems like everywhere I turn recently, there is some new report about one of the candidates for the presidency doing or saying something which has gotten a whole lot of people upset. I realize a person who has chosen to live in the public eye is faced with this all the time. But, from where I am sitting, there seems to be a lot of mudslinging in this election.

Mudslinging is a human response to our broken humanity. When we are experiencing fear, shame or guilt for our failings as human beings, it is a whole lot easier to sling some mud at someone else than it is to admit we are imperfect and flawed and are in need of redemption. Pointing the finger at another’s flaws enables us to be free for a moment from the unpleasant experience of being exposed for who we are at our core.

But being open and transparent is what we as human beings are created for. We are designed by God to live in a fellowship of love in which each is known and accepted completely for who they are as God’s beloved child. Instead of slinging mud at one another, we are meant by God to be slinging love and grace at one another. But this doesn’t come easy for us.

Think about it. What if each candidate, instead of finding fault with his/her opponent, spent every moment they could promoting the other’s best interests, and seeking to point out their strengths and valuable experiences, and all their qualifications for the position? What if they sought to promote the success of the other person instead of seeking their own success at the expense of the other?

It’s hard to get one’s mind around, isn’t it? This isn’t how we function as Americans in the political sphere. We don’t even work this way in the business world or at home. It seems a ridiculous concept to even consider. And yet, this is the perichoretic life we were created in and for.

But there is so much more involved in what is going on today than just candidates slinging mud at one another. There is also a lot of mudslinging going on between people on all sides of this equation, the most appalling being that of between Christians.

Christians of all people ought to understand and live out the reality the Trinity teaches us that since we are beings made in the image of God to reflect his likeness, we can and should live out our uniqueness in an atmosphere of love and grace which affirms both our equality and our oneness with one another in Christ. We are the ones who should be creating an atmosphere within our society and within the political arena in which each person is appreciated and respected for their unique calling, abilities, training, education and experience, while being included in the community as an accepted and beloved equal.

Bonhoeffer was quite clear in his book “Ethics” and I have to agree with him, that the [Christian] church was not meant to dictate to society, but to influence it. It is in how we live out the truth of our inclusion in God’s life and love, our personhood as God’s beloved children, which influences society and affects politics.

As a Christian pastor, I don’t tell people who to vote for, but I do speak pointedly about the difference between the life God created for us in his Son Jesus Christ and the life our broken humanity drives us to live. We need to pay attention to this difference and live out the truth of who we are in Christ, thereby influencing transformation in our community and in our society as a whole.

Some people are called into leadership roles in our communities, cities, states, and nation. How they fulfill their roles largely depends on how well they are immersed in and living out of their connection with the Triune God of love. If they are living out of a center which is located within their broken humanity, it will be reflected in everything they say and do, promote and accomplish. And the results of leading in this way speak for themselves.

I have to say, though, every human being finds themselves in that place where he or she wants to live in the truth of who they really are, but in this broken, sinful world, it can be almost impossible to really do it day in and day out. We can only live each day and each moment in the grace God gives us in Christ. We each respond feebly and ineffectively to the Spirit’s lead, and most of the time, I would say, we don’t even realize he is leading us.

So, this leaves us all at the same place—the place Christ bought for us in his personhood as God in human flesh—the place of grace. We live as best as we can in that life of love given to us in Christ by the Holy Spirit and then we need to trust—trust that God will work all this out for the betterment of all humankind, redeeming, renewing and restoring whatever we break along the way.

The best place we can be along this journey of faith is in the everlasting arms, resting in God’s grace and love, and doing our best to participate in those things God is at work doing in this world. We can come to see what it is God has called us and gifted us to do in this world, and be busy participating in God’s mission of redemption and renewal. We can actively be building community, helping to heal the hurting, and bringing about justice for the needy, poverty-stricken, enslaved and abused.

And yes, in this next election, we can vote. We can begin the process of voting by informing ourselves, studying each candidate objectively, and learning about the issues at stake in our world today. We can pray and ask God for wisdom and insight, and for the ability to look beyond our prejudices into what it is God would like to see done in this situation.

We will each come up with a different person, a different point of view, but this does not mean we cannot come together to make a mutual decision about who to elect. We want to all bring our opinions and choices to the table, and to have a just and fair election. But then we want to place the outcome into the hands of God. For indeed, he could allow us to elect a very scary leader. It happens. But it does not change God’s ability and desire to sovereignly work out what is best in the long run for all of us collectively and individually.

God is the One who puts people in power and removes them from power. Nothing can prevent him from removing a candidate, or a president, out of the way, should he choose to do so. (Ps. 75) Nothing stands in his way, either, from using this elected individual to accomplish his purposes in the world—there are plenty of examples of this in the biblical historical record.

This is why we ultimately rest in the everlasting arms. We trust in God’s love and grace. And we go vote our conscience while leaving the results up to him.

Abba, you are a good, good Father, and you want what is best for us. Thank you for taking our broken efforts to lead and care for ourselves and turning them to accomplish your purposes in this world. Give us wisdom, insight and courage to make the best decisions possible in this election so we may choose leaders who are people of godly character, who are wise and intelligent men and women with good hearts who will lead us into paths of peace, love and grace. May you provide us with leaders who will govern us with justice and mercy and humility. Through your Son Jesus and by your Spirit, may it be so. Amen.

“It is God alone who judges; he decides who will rise and who will fall.” Psalm 75:7 NLT

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