voting

A New and Living Way

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By Linda Rex

November 17, 2024, Proper 28 | After Pentecost—This year as we have walked through the Revised Common Lectionary passages, I have been mostly focusing on the New Testament passage, while drawing upon the other passages where they have been appropriate. Today, though, in the light of tomorrow being the 2024 election day here in America, I will begin with the Gospel passage, Mark 13:1–8. I will bring in the New Testament passage from Hebrews later in this blog.

In the gospel for this Sunday, Jesus was leaving the temple when one of his disciples began pointing out the architectural merits and wonders of the building. Jesus was not impressed. He immediately remarked that a time was coming when every stone would be leveled, a statement of hyperbole prophetically pointing to what would happen in 70 AD when Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed by the Romans.

Since the disciples, as usual, did not seem to get the point, they began asking about what the sign would be when all that was predicted would come to pass. Jesus turned their attention instead to what their motives were. They were looking for someone to save them from their Roman oppressors. They were looking for a messiah who would rescue them and make them an independent nation using violent means. But Jesus told them not to seek rescue and salvation from human saviors, for they will always end up misleading the people who follow them, using evil means to defeat evil. And Jesus told the disciples that wars, famines, international disputes were all part of the birth pangs leading up to the establishment of God’s new heaven and earth. They were not to be distressed by any of these things, but to understand that they were all part of the process of God’s redemption of his creation.

Jesus’ message is just as appropriate today as it was back then. Even to this day, there have been leaders who claimed that they would bring about a new world, a new government, and the salvation of their people. Some of these even led a military revolt, or the establishment of a new government. Many looked real good at the beginning, because they knew what things to tell people in order to get a following. But when they eventually began to run things their way, it soon became apparent that they were no savior or messiah—they were merely another faulty human who was leading everyone astray.

In the light of this reality, we are reminded of our New Testament passage, Hebrews 10:11–14, 19–25. In this the author contrasts the daily efforts of the Old Testament Aaronic priest, who, in spite of his diligent efforts, was never able to take away the sins of the people. In contrast, Jesus offered himself, once for all. By this self-offering, Jesus “perfected for all time those who are sanctified.”

There is only one Person who is able to take away our sins and perfect us before God. There is only one Person who delivers us and frees us from the tyrannies of this world. There is only one Person who enables us, “by a new and living way,” through his flesh, to enter into God’s presence. Because of who Jesus Christ is and what he has done, we draw near to God in faith, cleansed and purified, and made whole.

We are reminded that though human kingdoms rise and fall, human leaders rise and fall, and the world seems to be falling into chaotic disarray at times, Jesus Christ does not change. He does not fail us. He is present now by his Spirit, and is interceding for us with his Father on our behalf. There is nothing that cannot be brought to Jesus, and through him to his Father in the Spirit. Whatever is happening in this world, no matter how the election turns out, we have hope that God is still at work bringing to pass his ends and purposes. He will, in time, defeat all his enemies, and they are as good as defeated even now, for he is taking all that is meant for evil and turning it to accomplish his perfect, good will in this world.

As we make our way to the voting booth, and as we work our way through this transition of government, there is one thing we can be sure of: When we go to God with humble hearts and ask him to rescue and save us, and to work all things for our good, he will hear us and respond. May we have the humility and grace to pray to God about all that is going on, and trust in the faithful love and grace of Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all.

Heavenly Father, as we face significant changes in our world and our nation, we turn to you and ask you to take all things into your loving hands and to work them out for our good. Thank you, Jesus, that we can come to you in faith, and know you are interceding on our behalf. We are in need of your rescue and salvation in every moment. May your Spirit move in us, in our lives, and in our circumstances, to accomplish your perfect will, in Jesus name. Amen.

“Every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, ‘sat down at the right hand of God,’ waiting from that time onward ‘until His enemies be made a footstool for His feet.’ For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified. … Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” Hebrews 10:11–14 (15–18) 19–25 NASB

“As He was going out of the temple, one of His disciples said to Him, ‘Teacher, behold what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left upon another which will not be torn down.’ As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and 1James and John and Andrew were questioning Him privately, ‘Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when all these things are going to be fulfilled?’ And Jesus began to say to them, ‘See to it that no one misleads you. Many will come in My name, saying, “I am He!” and will mislead many. When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be frightened; those things must take place; but that is not yet the end. For nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will also be famines. These things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.” Mark 13:1–8 NASB

[Printable copy: https://lifeinthetrinity.blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/olita-new-and-living-way.pdf ]

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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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