Our True Hope
Theme of the week: Faith and Politics
Friday, November 2, 2012
 1 of 1
Key Bible Verse: But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. (Philippians 3:20) Dig Deeper: 1 Peter 2:9-12
If government was the hope of the world, then Christ would have come as a Roman senator, a general, or better yet, part of the line of Caesar. He most certainly would not have been born to a young teenage girl from a Podunk village called Nazareth, where his first cries were alongside animals in a lowly manger.
Yes, we need to be concerned about our government and the decisions of its leaders. But our hope can never rest in legislation by our representatives.
Rather than argue politics, we need to consult Scripture and ask the Lord to lead us to wisdom. Yet with our fallible minds and selfish hearts, we will not always see clearly or make the right decisions.
As it stands, the real political question is not one of Democrats or Republicans. Instead, the issue is one of a democracy versus a theocracy, a government run by human beings or one ruled by God. Humans have no power outside of what an omnipotent, all-powerful God measures out to them. We can continue to argue and divide over impotent governments, or we can place our hope in an all-powerful God and [his everlasting kingdom].
—Bryan Loritts in A Cross-Shaped Gospel
My Response: I will submit my personal convictions and opinions to God, his holy Word, and the counsel of wise and godly spiritual leaders.
Thought to Apply: The political principles of Christianity … are laid down for us in the Sermon on the Mount. Contrariwise to other empires, Christians conquer by yielding; they gain influence by shrinking from it; they possess the earth by renouncing it.—John Henry Newman (cardinal, theologian, writer)
Adapted from A Cross-Shaped Gospel (Moody, 2011) by permission. All rights reserved by the copyright holder and/or the publisher. May not be reproduced.
Copyright © 2012 by Christianity Today/Men of Integrity magazine. Click here for reprint information on Men of Integrity. 1 of 1
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Father, give me a clearer and deepened understanding of what Jesus meant by "give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God" (Matt. 22:21).
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