I'm typing this before we find out if Kavanaugh has been confirmed or not. This whole fiasco has been very dispiriting. I've been demoralized by the character assassination coming from both sides. Whether he gets confirmed or not, he will carry this blemish on his character for a long, long time. I feel for his wife & children. I still think that Ford was assaulted, but since her story can't be corroborated, it seems to me that someone else must have been involved. We'll never know.
Then I read Pastor Asbury's article in our church's monthly newsletter. [He's our associate pastor.] It was a great reminder, so I'm reprinting excerpts from it. It was titled, "What Are Evangelicals Afraid of Losing?"
Surely we can be grateful for any public servant who upholds the First Amendment. And we should applaud fellow believers who apply their education & experience as lawyers to defend religious freedom (as long as they don't seek to privilege Christianity legally above other religions).
However, the church does not reach the gospel at the pleasure of any administration or decline to preach it at another's administration's displeasure. We preach at Christ's pleasure. And we don't make his policies but communicate them. It's not when we're fed to lions that we lose everything; it's when we preach another gospel. "What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?" (Matt. 16:26) . . .
Let's face it. Liberal & conservative, Catholic & Protestant have courted political power & happily allowed themselves to be used by it. This always happens when the church confuses the kingdom of Christ with the kingdoms of this present age. Jesus came not to jump start the theocracy in Israel, much less to be the founding father of any other nation. Even during his ministry, two disciples--James & John--wanted to call down judgment on a village that rejected their message, but "Jesus turned to them & rebuked them" (Luke 9:54-55). He is not the mascot for a voting bloc but the Savior of the world. He came to forgive sins & bring everlasting life, to die & rise again so that through faith in Him we too can share in His new creation . . .
If one wants to talk about real violence against Christians, surely the persecution of the early Christians should count. Yet every New Testament command on the subject calls us to love & pray for our enemies with the confidence that Christ is still building His church. Then why does the appeal to fear work so consistently with many who claim to stand in the line of Jesus' disciples, to whom He said, "Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom" (Luke 12:32)?
This is not to say we should have no concern at all about the state of our nation. Nowhere in the New Testament are Christians called to avoid the responsibilities of our temporary citizenship, even though our ultimate citizenship is in heaven (Phil. 3:20). However, many of us sound like we've staked everything not only on constitutional freedoms but also on social respect, acceptance, & even power. But that comes at the cost of confusing the gospel with Christian nationalism.
The only Christian nation in the world today is the one gathered "from every tribe & language & people & nation" (Rev. 5:9) to be addressed by its King. In His Great Commission, Jesus gave authority to the church to make disciples, not citizens; to proclaim the gospel, not political opinions; to baptize people in the name of the Father, the Son, & the Holy Sprit, not in the name of America or a political party; & to teach everything that He delivered, not our own personal & political priorities. And He promised that His presence with us is something that the world can never take away.
Anyone who believes, much less preaches, that evangelical Christians are "one election away from losing everything" in November has forgotten how to sing the psalmist's warning, "Do not put your trust in princes in human beings, who cannot save" (Ps. 146:3)
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