Having spoken against lawlessness and violence over the summer months, it grieves me to see the events of yesterday in our capitol. While I share much of the frustration of those who believe that there were very real issues with our election, the response of the relative few who committed unlawful acts at the capitol building yesterday now overshadow the real issues that we need to address going forward.
How then do we respond as Christians, knowing that our God is at work in the midst of all these things? I want to share the words of the Apostle Paul to his young friend, Timothy, as they speak to us today:
"First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people (people in every area of life), 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, who desires all people (Jews and Gentiles) to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all (Jews and Gentiles), which is the testimony given at the proper time. For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth" (I Timothy 2:1-7).
God calls us to pray for our leaders, no matter who they are! Why? So that we will have the freedom to live "a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way." As followers of Jesus Christ we must not forget who we are in the world and where our hope comes from. We must point out injustice and speak truth to our neighbors, using every opportunity to point them to Jesus Christ. We are "Christian Americans," not the other way around! We are followers of Christ first, and American patriots second. Our first and greatest "loyalty" must be to Jesus Christ and to His kingdom. While we are extremely blessed to live in what is yet, a relatively free country, we must continually pray for God's mercy and for wisdom and endurance to continue to speak of Jesus Christ, "the ONLY Mediator between God and men." It is only through the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit, leading to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, that any person will avoid the inevitable judgment of God that is coming upon our nation and the world!
OUR response is not in question: "YOU are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet. YOU are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 5:13-16).
As I have shared over the past months in sermons and many conversations, politics is not separated from "religion." Jesus Christ is Lord over every area of life, even in the political realm. Pray for godly men and women to rise up and to continue to stand for biblical truth and the principles found in God's Word, to defend human life, to promote peace and genuine love and compassion toward all. As I wrote in a previous post, evil has an agenda, but OUR agenda, if it is GOD's agenda, will eventually overcome, when Jesus Christ returns. Until then, we must be that light in the darkness. Peter writes it this way,
"Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation" (I Peter 2:11-12).
Jesus Christ is coming again to reign as King over the entire earth. That is a fact! Until then, by our words and by our deeds, we who believe are ambassadors of His kingdom, being sent into the world to speak and to act on His behalf, calling people out of darkness and into His marvelous light. When He comes, may we be found so doing!
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