November 4, 2008

"Daddy, Is That the Bad Man?" Election 2008

Depending on your political views you will react to Barack Obama's election with excitement as in "Hurray, our country can now move forward with much needed change!" or with dread and resignation as in "Oh no, his election portends our country's continued moral, political, and cultural decline!" Given that most of my readers are evangelical Christians, I suspect the latter reaction is more common.

Be careful. Your children/grandchildren are watching, your students are watching, and an unbelieving world is watching.

Let me share a story with you. When my oldest daughter was about seven or eight years old I remember walking past the den and hearing my daughter pointing at the TV and asking with big saucer eyes, "daddy, is that the bad man?!" She was anxiously pointing at President Clinton.

A piercing pang of guilt shot through my soul. I realized that through my verbal editorializing during news casts that I had taught my daughter to fear and dishonor the President of the United States in direct violation of what the Scriptures teach: "Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor." (1Pe 2:17)

When Peter wrote those words, Nero was the emperor of Rome.

(To those inclined to cynicism, I AM NOT equating President Elect Obama with Nero.)

My point is that if Peter could encourage the early Christians to honor the man that was feeding them to lions and impaling them upon poles and burning them alive to light his gardens, then surely we can pray for and honor our new President notwithstanding our political views.

Let me suggest that we have a wonderful opportunity to bear a great testimony to the transforming power of the Gospel in how we respond to the election.

1. Pray for our new President and mean it.

(I Peter 2:17; Romans 13:1) The Scriptures do not differentiate for whom we pray.

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. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior... (1Ti 2:1-3)

2. Pray for our country.

Although the structures and policies of government have a profound George Whitfield - An Answer to Mr. Wesleyimpact for good or evil, it is the character of individual citizens that ultimately determines the character of any country. More than a good president, we need powerful faithful pulpits, godly families, and strong Christian schools. Pray that the Lord's Spirit will blow throughout our land bringing with Him revival and deep rooted reformation.

3. Verbally express due honor to the Office of the President and to the man who occupies it.

It is perfectly legitimate, in fact necessary, to express opposition to those values and policies that are clearly in violation of biblical teaching. It is not legitimate to hurl vindictive and mean spirited abuse at anyone, including the President Elect.

I can think of no better example than David. Even though King Saul was pursuing David to imprison or kill him, David responded by honoring his persecutor because of the office he held.

And the men of David said to him, "Here is the day of which the LORD said to you, 'Behold, I will give your enemy into your hand, and you shall do to him as it shall seem good to you.'" Then David arose and stealthily cut off a corner of Saul's robe.

And afterward David's heart struck him, because he had cut off a corner of Saul's robe. He said to his men, "The LORD forbid that I should do this thing to my lord, the LORD's anointed, to put out my hand against him, seeing he is the LORD's anointed."

So David persuaded his men with these words and did not permit them to attack Saul ... Afterward David also arose and went out of the cave, and called after Saul, "My lord the king!" And when Saul looked behind him, David bowed with his face to the earth and paid homage ... Behold, this day your eyes have seen how the LORD gave you today into my hand in the cave. And some told me to kill you, but I spared you. I said, 'I will not put out my hand against my lord, for he is the LORD's anointed.' ... As soon as David had finished speaking these words to Saul ... Saul lifted up his voice and wept. He said to David, "You are more righteous than I, for you have repaid me good, whereas I have repaid you evil. (1Sa 24:4-17)

Notice the impact of David's response on Saul. David's demonstration of trust in God and respect for the authority that God had sovereignly appointed had a profound impact on Saul. David's response gave great testimony to the power of God's Spirit and was used by God to instruct the King.

David's example comes down through the millennia to instruct us on how we should respond. As a Christian community we have the same opportunity. Instead of moaning, complaining, predicting the apocalypse, the end of civilization as we know it and verbally assailing and demeaning the President Elect, we have the opportunity to show watching students and a watching world that Christians can disagree without being disagreeable. We can oppose bad policy and evil without being vindictive, mean-spirited, and disrespectful.

4. Use the election to teach your students (and faculty?) how to work through the various policy issues from a biblical perspective--not from a Democratic or a Republican one.

On a survey we once republican-party-logo.jpgconducted, a student wrote the following: "Republican = Christian? Where does that come from?" That thinking student understood that some teachers where implicitly teaching that Republican political philosophy and policy were equivalent with biblical Christianity.

That is false. There are points of Biblical connection with both Republican and Democratic policies. Neither Party has a corner on truth or virtue.

Sound doctrine transcends political ideology, party affiliation, and cultural and ethnic identification. In this sense, Christianity is always trans-political and trans-cultural.

5. Instead of always protesting what is wrong, offer solutions and prepare our students to do the same.

Several years ago I edited and co-authored School Based Clinics and Other Critical Issues in Public Education (Crossway Books). Here is a portion of what I wrote that I believe imageapplies to how Christians should be responding to public policy issues in a constructive Christ honoring fashion--regardless of who occupies the White House.

… Unfortunately, much of our cultural dilemma results from the failure of Christians to cultivate a Christian mind, and the result has been the abandonment of most fields of knowledge to those with a secular mind. This abandonment takes two forms: either withdrawal from public debate as it concerns the formation of public policy because we are ill equipped to offer an effective and relevant alternative; or worse, Christians who are involved in public debate are so secular in their thinking that their recommendations represent only slight modifications to secular proposals. In other words, instead of the Christian evangelizing his culture, he has been evangelized by it. Because many Christians have failed to cultivate a Christian Mind (in part due to a lack of instruction from church leaders), many believers are unaware of just how secular their thinking has become.

This is a particularly relevant point in light of the increased political activity of the religious right. In reaction to the rapid erosion of ethics and morality in our country, many Christians have taken up the call to be salt and light by active involvement in the political process. This is a good and vital part of any effort at cultural reform. But a note of caution is in order. As Christians, we must not confuse Christian principles with conservative Republican (or Democratic) politics. They are not the same thing. We must be careful not to confuse theology with ideology, as biblical theology always transcends any particular ideology. Although it can be reasonably argued that portions of the current Republican platform reflect biblical principles-for example, its opposition to abortion-this does not mean to think Christianly is to think like a conservative Republican. There are instances where elements of biblical truth can be found in the platform or the candidates of either party.20

Thus, the Christian who wishes to function as salt and light in his culture must devote himself to the study of Scripture and seek through that study to properly interpret all of life. Once having achieved a measure of understanding, he is better prepared to make application of what he has learned to his home, his church, his vocation, and to his civic responsibilities. It should be added that this is not to imply that his knowledge must be exhaustive or that each believer must be a scholar.

Nor does it mean that he refuses to participate in public discourse until he believes he has a complete comprehension of his theology or of any given issue. Learning is a lifelong task. Since we are created as finite beings, exhaustive knowledge is beyond our grasp. Although certain knowledge is possible, exhaustive knowledge is not. Therefore, the challenge of the believer is to seek to simultaneously increase his knowledge while diligently applying that which he already knows. This is then the theological component of our Christianity, and it is the foundation upon which the relational component is built …

Moreover, the absence of viable alternatives puts the Christian in the position of always criticizing, attacking and tearing down. For example, when school based "health" clinics are proffered as the solution to teenage pregnancy, the Christian community finds itself aggressively opposing their implementation-and rightly so. Unfortunately, criticism in the absence of alternatives creates an atmosphere in which the Christian community, instead of being viewed as a constructive force in the community, is viewed as a bunch of uncaring obstructionists who do not care about the health of teenagers. We protest such accusations as unfair, but such attitudes are in part understandable if all we have to offer is criticism. It is here, at the policy level that Christian scholars from every discipline can contribute in a tangible way to the reclamation of the culture. Frequently, Christians who are seeking to arrest the implementation of harmful and immoral programs often find themselves at the mercy of a secular establishment armed with research, which "proves" their position. Although much of the research is less than conclusive or is even faulty, it nevertheless adds credence to whatever policy is being proffered.

Consequently, the Christian community finds itself in a noncompetitive position in the marketplace of ideas and by default relinquishes policy formation to the secular establishment. A case in point is provided by the necessity of this writer relying almost exclusively on secular research to demonstrate that as currently constituted, "values-free" sex education and family planning programs are ineffective and inappropriate responses to escalating rates of teenage pregnancy. Fortunately, some of the researchers within the family planning establishment itself have cited the failures (on solely pragmatic grounds), thus giving us a fighting chance. This is not always the case.

As a practical point, the development of distinctly Christian think tanks, which combine the skills of theologians from various orthodox persuasions, the expertise of Christian scholars from many different disciplines, and the practical insight of the policy analyst and those experienced in the "realities" of the political process would be of inestimable value in assisting the Christian community in its role as salt and light.

To read the two chapters I authored, click here. (PLEASE NOTE: the first chapter deals with teenage pregnancy; the second chapter addresses the Christian community's response to public policy.) Also note that you will notice what appear to be typos. These are not typos. The chapters were scanned into a PDF file and the OCR program misinterpreted some of the text.

Rather than bemoaning what is wrong, we are responsible to teach our students how to think biblically and how to apply biblically informed thinking to specific policy issues. This should be an exciting and very positive endeavor with the goal of working to see "God's will done on earth as it is in heaven."

6. Celebrate the moral progress that his election represents.

"What, moral progress with the election of a President who aggressively supports abortion rights and gay marriage?" Yes.

Although by most measures the United States is in moral decline, the election of an African-American president reflects significant moral progress on the racial front. Christians should celebrate this achievement and recognize it publicly, not withstanding other legitimate moral concerns.

Celebrating progress on one moral front does not imply endorsement of the President Elect's positions on other social issues.

As Christians, we should, we must, be intelligent and thoughtful enough to celebrate the good while addressing the wrong. The fact that our country has elected an African-American president should be an occasion to celebrate this momentous achievement with those with whom we may disagree on most every other issue. We should model this attitude for our children, our students, and a watching world.

Imagine, if you will, how this must feel to millions of African-American families and to their young children. African-American mothers and fathers can now turn to their children and say, "In America, you can be anything you wish to be if you are willing to work for it." Is that not something that we would want every parent to be able to say to every child?

7. Remember that "for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose."

The church of Christ is the focal point of history, with Christ being preeminent. God superintends the affairs of men in such a way as to establish genuine free moral agency and personal responsibility, for the good of His people, and for His glory. Ultimately, this election is for our good and God's glory. This does not mean that everything that occurs will be good but God promises to work all things together for the good of His people.

Pray, rest in God's wise providence, respect those in authority, work for what is right, model dignity in word and deed before your students and teach them how to think, how to love, and how to Glorify the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!

26 comments:

Anonymous said...

Right on Doc. We, the Christ-centered, biblically integrated curriculum, must pull up our pants and BE good teachers. As staff and faculty in Christian schoos, we offer no moral goodness of our own. Now is when Philippians 4:5 (a magnanimouns spirit) speaks loud and clear.
To BE . . . or not to be; Christ in us a hope of glory.

Anonymous said...
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Jason A. Van Bemmel said...

Excellent commentary! Just what we need to hear today and what we need to remember at all times.

Anonymous said...

I agree with most of what you say. But I also don't understand why it should be necessary to continue to support a man who openly supports abortion and the act of killing unborn innocent children. This is a direct violation of God's law. And until we have a true Christian leader who does not support abortion and killing innocent children because the "circumstances" aren't right for those in the situation, I'll have to not support him. I hope he does a good job. But I don't think we should sit on the sidelines and say he's a fine man and we believe in him just because everyone else goes along with it. And I think we should still teach our children the difference between right and wrong. Let's start with teaching them not to kill innocent unborn children. As a Christian, that's what I believe.

thediaperdiaries said...

Great post. My 5 yo knew that we really wanted McCain to win and expressed a lot of frustration this morning that Obama had won. I took the time to tell her about history being made. We have a lot of African American friends who can dream bigger today and for that I am thankful. I don't agree with Obamas policies, but after 8 years of watching the other side vilify our president, I hope Republicans can show that we are bigger than that.

Anonymous said...

Wow. That is a lot to take in all at once. You have given me so much to think about and meditate on, I am going to be savoring this post all week. Thank you!

Mrs. Valente said...

Thanks for this. I wrote a [similar] post this morning.

http://kingdomtwindom.blogspot.com/2008/11/its-either-peace-or-apple-cider.html

Of course, yours is much more eloquent, and much more in depth (which is good since people will actually be reading yours!;).

Anyway, I just thought I'd say "Hello, and thank you." I thought that might mean something today (from a product of Christian schools).

;)

Miss Michelle said...

Fantastic points! I will certainly be praying for God to implement some of them into my heart today. Thanks for sharing.

Kristen said...

Thank you for this post. I was feeling very negative this morning, although I stopped short of saying anything negative about our president-elect to my children. You've given me some positive things to think about. I still feel extremely blessed to have a say in our country's leadership, even though the candidates I vote for don't always win.

dcarnathan said...

Thank you for your discerning heart and biblical response to the 2008 election results. I often find that we, as Christians, all too often fail to trust that God hears our prayers and faithfully answers them. We are so busy seeking to control that we forget that God is the mover and the doer of all that was, all that is, and all that shall be.

In our continual desire to control through doing and proselytizing we, however well intentioned we may be, continually usurp God's authority, God's plan, and God's mysterious knowledge to bring all things to the betterment of His Kingdom.

His ways and knowledge are mysterious to us. Let us, as citizens of this extraordinary, free country, and as Christians, fully trust that God has designed the outcome of this election. Let us support His decision and offer our best citizenship to the new leader of our country, even though we may disagree on many issues.

We have prayed. God has answered. Let us respond according to the biblical standard that has been set for us and is beautifully outlined here.

Unknown said...

You've written a great post. I've read several so far about praying for our country and our leaders, etc, but I've just been so disgusted and angry and depressed all day. The future feels uncertain- I want to feel secure and I just don't. I feel afraid.

But your words have made me realize that I've been harboring something akin to hatred in my heart. There is nothing honorable about that, nothing that glorifies God. So in spite of my political leanings, I am going to pray for our President Elect, and mean it.

Leaders and nations come and go. God is forever the same.

Anonymous said...

So glad to read this post today. I am a Christian; I consider myself an evangelical Christian. In fact, I serve a church vocationally where we live and breathe bringing life and hope and the truth of the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ to a lost and dying world. I love my Lord. I love my job.

I believe that abortion is a wrong choice; although I actually chose to abort a child as a terrified 18-year old girl. I do not believe that sanctioning the marriage of gay partners is appropriate, although I support civil unions.

I love Jesus. I love the local church. I believe in grace.

I think McCain is a good, decent man who sincerely wanted to serve his country.

But I voted for Obama.

Part of my vote was against the evil-minded, mean-spirited vitriol spouted by my fellow evangelical Christians, few of whom seemed able to state things like what you have offered, so eloquently, here in this post. It is only after the contest is over that we seem able to achieve some sort of consensus that decent, respectful behavior honors God. Too little, too late.

I'm not sure how many were like me. I supported Obama because I believe he is a leader. I believe he held his tongue when he could have cursed and uttered inflammatory language. I believe that he is a man of integrity who sincerely wants the best for our beloved country. I believe would prefer that a woman not abort her children. I believe he loves his family. I did NOT want to be aligned with other Christians who were ready to assassinate everything about a decent man in order to win a point on abortion and/or gay marriage.

Other things matter.

Thank you for your heartfelt and sincere post. You give me hope for the church and for the world.

Ultimately, God remains God and on the throne. But it's nice to hear his representatives speak in a way that honors him. I'm glad I read this today.

Anonymous said...

I agree with anonymous (the first one). Obama doesn't just support "choice," he thinks we should destroy embryos (stem cell research), kill babies at any stage of development (partial birth abortion) and pay for it using taxpayer dollars if necessary, and if a child happens to survive a botched abortion, we should make certain that it doesn't live by denying it medical care (Born Alive, Illinois). And, he's promised Planned Parenthood that one of his first acts will be to sign a federal law that will prevent any state interference with abortion. I suppose this would include any alternatives (I suppose this would include discussing any alternatives?). His other positions, though not as morally offensive, are equally bad.

And, people have set him up to be, even called him, a "messiah." Did you ever once see him disavow the title? Don't we know that God is not mocked?

I realize that my heart is not full of love right now (actually, that's an understatement). That is my issue, and I need to work on it. My husband and I got into a fight about this last night, because I just couldn't stand to see one more celebratory comment about his election, and he was tired of hearing me complain. My husband's criticism was justified. However, I do not make any bad comments in front of my four year old, who is excited that Obama won (she knows nothing about him; one of her friends said everyone should vote for Obama).

I am glad that any last barrier has been removed for people of power to obtain the highest office in the land. I just wish it were someone with a different heart.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post ""Daddy, Is That the Bad Man?" Election 2008":

I believe that we, as Americans, should continue to stand for what we believe in. No matter what everyone else says, we should not bow to anything we feel is wrong. Abortion is an awful thing. Obama supports it. He openly supports it “…” It's almost like what the Bible teaches, "If you think of having an affair with another person, then you are guilty in God's eyes of adultery." That's what I believe. If you vote for someone who has the power to make changes and make abortions more widespread and legal in every state; then every child that is killed and aborted as a result, you [are guilty]. I know it sounds harsh, but I don't think God favors abortion in any way. No matter which way you look at it, it's WRONG!!! That's why this country is in the shape it is in now. No one has any moral fiber in their "Christian" body. And we are all being taught to bow down to our "leaders" because they are elected or are in a position of power because of a voting system by people of no moral integrity. I will not bow to any man. Christ is my leader and I follow Him. And I feel that He does not agree with abortion either.

(From the Moderator: I have taken the liberty of redacting this post. The purpose of my blog is to foster respectful as well as candid dialog. I reserve the right to not publish or slightly modify comments to ensure that they are not unnecessarily incendiary or disrespectful. To protect the integrity of any edited post, I will indicate the changes that I have made. Omitted text will be indicated by “ … “ and changed text with [ ]. Thank you.)

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...

Oh, and by the way, the last comment by "Anonymous" is right on.

I don't see any disrespect coming from his views. If his they personally offend someone, that's one thing, but I think he's right on.

Christians are not sissies. I think it's a good thing to not always have a G-Rated discussion when it comes to "Christian dialogue." (Jesus wasn't G-Rated with the Pharisees by any means).

Anonymous said...

“…” You can talk all you want about a new cultural or even racial frontier, whatever, but it's irrelevant. I wouldn't care if Obama was black, white, Hispanic, German, Russian, Asian, whatever: Obama's associations (whether they be true or not), his "beliefs," and his attitude alone should not be seen as "respectful" or "honorable". This man supports the Freedom of Choice Act, which a very scary thing to think about if you are a taxpayer who is pro-life. When your taxes start funding for the murders of millions of innocent babies, in or out of the womb, you can't tell me you will still be honoring and respecting this man. I also don't see the point in saying such things about "respect" and "backing" when for the past 8 years, there has been no such respect or backing for President Bush and his cabinet. He has been the blunt end of an endless number of harmful and unnecessary satires and criticisms over the last 8 years, and nobody seems to want to defend him now (Racial frontier, right?)

Speaking of associations, has anyone even questioned Obama's stance with Jewish people and the state of Israel? If this tape that the LA times isn't releasing is real, then we have bonafide a Jew-hater on our hands, which is not "okay" with me.

The bottom line is, President-ELECT Obama has not repudiated anything said by any of his harmful associations; he has beat around the bush his stance on life in the womb; and his overall attitude about our country is negative, overly critical, and flat-out unpatriotic.

Support him if you want, but as far as I'm concerned, these next four years will be dedicated to to rebuilding the CONSERVATIVE movement “ … “ because believe it or not, Conservatism, without any other attachments (Moderate tag-alongs), WORKS (Gay marriage ban in California? I rest my case).

Look, I'm a Christian. I believe that God is sovereign, and I am not worried about the next four years as far as that's concerned. What worries me is the radical judgments placed on Christians by other Christians who are only trying to fight. I'm a patriot; I love my country. I will not sit around and do nothing. I will pray everyday not that Americans respect Barack Obama, not that they try to "reach across the aisles," but that God will protect his people in this country. That is the most important thing.

I would encourage others to do the same. If you consider this post controversial, fine. That's the beauty of free speech (which is also at stake (Fairness Doctrine)).
God Bless and Protect America.

(From the Moderator: This comment was edited to enforce my commitment to vigorous but respectful dialog.)

Anonymous said...

Excellent challenge to Christians throughout our land. I've added your post to my latest blog post. :o)

Anonymous said...

I have never read this blog before, a friend sent me the link. First of all, I will say that I'm 25 and live in the very liberal Austin, Texas. I'm a Christian, I believe abortion is murder, and I voted for Barack Obama.

However, my parents are evangelicals, and I spent half of my pre-college education in Christian schools. My parents were both politically active in the 90s, and both made derogatory comments toward Clinton and Democrats in general.

I cannot emphasize this enough: Your children hear you. They hear and understand. When you make disparaging remarks about liberals, they will judge people.

For years, I equated voting Democrat with all that was evil and wrong. However, after the war in Iraq started going sour, I started thinking and praying (yes, a lot of praying) about how I should vote. I made the decision to vote for John Kerry. I was terrified to tell my parents and most of my friends, simply out of fear that they would judge me and tell me I was not a good Christian.

This time around, many of my Christian friends (many of whom grew up in Christian schools) voted for Obama. We've been open and vocal. We are those young people who cared this time and got out to vote. (The media's been saying for years that we could make the difference, and this time, we did.) We voted based on our consciences, our morals, our values. We follow Christ, and we are just as much a part of His body as our Republican parents.

You all may disagree, but I urge all of you not to dismiss us. And please, please, please do not equate Christianity with conservative Republican politics. One day, ten years from now, your kids may just vote for the other guy and be scared to talk about it with the people they love the most.

Anonymous said...

Dr. Mosbacker:
Thank you for your thought-provoking comments about the election.

I am a bit troubled by the anonymous comment from Austin, Texas because I can't understand how in one breath this person could say that "abortion is murder" and in the next breath claim to vote his/her conscience and morals by supporting Obama. If I say that I believe that something is true, but support the exact opposite of that belief...something is wrong with my thinking. As a Christian, my conscience must be informed by the truth of God's Word, and there is no doubt that Scripturally, abortion is wrong. The issue of life is not an issue that we can just "agree to disagree" on. The issue of life is much more important than the economy or other similar issues because man was created in the image of God. We can disagree on economic policies and bailout packages, but when it comes to life (if we take God at His Word), the issue must be settled for us! As another person said in his/her comment "other things matter," and that is true, but I can't think of many things that matter more than life!

I'm not saying that John McCain was the right man for the job, but based on some key moral issues (of which abortion is one), I am confident that Barack Obama was certainly not the right man for the job. However, by electing Barack Obama to be our next President, clearly, our country has come a long way on the issue of race, and for this, I am glad.

I talked with my children about Mr. Obama, and I explained that although I did not support him, we must pray for him as our President. I hope that by my example of what I said and will continue to say about him (especially in front of my children) that they will understand the reasons why I did not support him. However, I do hope that when they are adults, they will be Christians who think Biblically on every issue and base their votes on the values given to them in the Word of God and not as a reaction against what they were taught growing up!

To the anonymous writer from Austin: nobody has dismissed you, and you are correct in stating that Republican politics is not the same thing as Christianity. My fear is that the post-modern culture of our day which is espoused on college campuses (like the one in Austin) throughout our nation is influencing the hearts and minds
of Christian young people like you. I guess I would ask you: if abortion is murder, then why support a strong proponent of it?

To those in Christian education: Biblical integration in all subject matter is so important. Our students don't need to be told who to vote for, but they do need to understand that the Bible speaks to the key issues of our day. Let's saturate our students with a Biblical worldview!

Anonymous said...

To Matt from Texas, I so agree with your opinion. I agree with most everyones opinion on here, except for the anonymous above you. I did a Bible study called the "Truth Project", it states that only 9% of the people who claim to be born again Christians believe in a Biblical world view. ONLY 9% believe the Bible is the true word of God! We have to allow God and the Holy Spirit to minister to us on this, do we as Christians believe God's word? And as Christ followers do we agree with sin? In this world it is easy to be "grey", saying " well, I think it is wrong, but....". Yes, we need to seek God first and His rightousness. Apart from Him, it is sin. Where do we stand? As a nation, we are Godless. As Christians we need to proclaim God's glory in, yes, He appoints all authority and that we need to stand as Christ did against ungodlyness (that is murder, abortion,lying, stealing, adultry (porn, etc.) homosexuality, etc.). Christ lashed out at those in the market, He was angry. Do we support those sins, I say no, tough love, yes.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for this article. In the areas where Obama's views are in direct contradiction to God's views (like abortion, homosexuality) we can pray that God will convict him of the error of his ways and "turn his heart like a watercourse" so that it aligns with His will.
(from a red Grandma in a blue state)

Anonymous said...

I'm glad to have read this post. The minute Oama won, I've been reading angry, indignant responses from Christians. And it's very sad.

I'm a Christian. I believe in salvation through Jesus Christ. I believe in the Word of the Bible. And yet, when I express my support of Obama with my American Christian friends, I get attacked before I can explain why.

Yes, abortion and homosexuality is sin. But so is hypocrisy (lying), killing innocents for a misguided agenda etc. And all sin is sin. No ranking of small to big. All sin is sin in the eyes of the Lord. How than can we as Christians have decided that abortion and homosexuality are the worst sins and these two have to be the it and end all topics for any candidate. Obama support abortion and homosexuality. therefore he is evil or bad or not a Christian. Are we judging him based on our ranking of the levels of sin? Who are we to judge?

Neither party is better than the other. Neither is Christian nor non-Christian. Both are political systems, with individual agendas in mind.

When we choose a president, while his personal morality is important, his skill and ability to be a good leader is too. Clinton wasn't the greatest moral leader, but he was a good president and did a lot of good for the US. Bush may appear to be more moral, but he has led US on a misguided path of justice and cause not only a US recession, but a global downturn. He has also done more harm for Christians worldwide by constantly proclaiming his faith but acting contradictory.

As Christians, we cannot mix politics and our faith. Politics is created by the world, governed by flawed humans. There will never be a perfect party or candidate. God's kingdom has no politics. He is King, and we His followers.

Anonymous said...

To the previous post. I believe you don't understand. Obama wasn't running against George Bush. John McCain was running against Obama. Bush's term of office was over.

Anonymous said...

Just to clarify, Obama does not support gay marriage.

Anonymous said...

He supports civil union but not gay marriage. But it's really only a matter of time...