Randy Harris reminded us in graduate chapel at ACU on Wednesday morning that despite the political fervor of this season, as Christians, our true allegiance is to Christ the King. Presidents come and go, and in 100 years the outcome of this election will mean little. So, although it is certainly important for us to be discerning about how we will cast our votes, the eventual triumph of God's kingdom is a certainty, and our job as followers of Christ is to hasten the coming of God's kingdom on earth by being dedicated servants to our true King.
So, what does all of this mean in terms of how we ought to conduct ourselves as citizens of this country? First and foremost, we need to realize that good Christian people will be voting for Barack Obama and John McCain. We also need to realize that although we may invoke biblical principles and standards to justify our decisions, those decisions are typically based much more in our own lived experience (as is our interpretation of the very scriptures we invoke). Finally, if we are followers of Christ the King above all, what are the implications for how we treat others on this earth who follow a different earthly, albeit secondary, king than we do? Unfortunately, it has seemed that people who claim to be followers of Christ are the most divisive during election seasons, saying awful things about and to one another. When Christians behave in this way, how can we expect our political candidates to act any differently? Perhaps one way in which we can be about the breaking in of God's kingdom is by refusing to engage in hurtful, mean, and divisive conversation, regardless of whether or not the object of our comments will ever hear what we say about them. If we refuse to engage in these types of conversations, perhaps we can begin to change the political atmosphere in which we live.
"Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen" (Eph. 4:29).
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3 comments:
I am in 100% agreement. Couldn't have said it better. But, does that mean no more anti-Bush Birthday cards?
Well, let's not get too zealous here :)! He just makes it so easy! But, seriously, I'm the first to admit that I engage in this kind of talk all the time. But, I'm going to try to change that.
Very well put, jaime. That's one of the reasons I sometimes find it difficult to be in the teacher's lounge during election time.
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