Politics

Our Heavenly 911

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The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; he is their stronghold in the time of trouble. The Lord helps them and delivers them… Psalm 37:39-40a

Calling God our helper has gotten a bad name as some have misinterpreted this as if it meant treating God like an assistant or employee. But the Hebrew word used here for help means to surround, protect and come to the aid of someone in trouble. God is not working for us, but instead He is like the ambulance driver or fire fighter who is equipped and waiting to answer our cry for help. So today if you look out your window and see trouble on your street and the news on television is filled with videos of riots remember that God’s help is available whenever we ask. The writer of Hebrews puts this into practical terms by saying;

Keep free from the love of money and be content with what you have. for He has said; I will never leave you nor forsake you. Hebrews 13:5

What is really at the bottom of a lot of the unrest and anger we are witnessing is money. Liberals and conservatives both act as if people would be content if they just had a little more. Conservatives complain the government has taken too much and liberals act as if people need to be given more. Whatever happened to; “All we need is love!”? So no matter what side of the political aisle we stand on, today’s reading counsels us to take a deep breath and step back from the conflict and remember that the love of money is like a boss who can never be satisfied. If we become slaves to him we will lose our spiritual freedom and the only one happy with that is Satan. But if we turn to Jesus for help; He promises us contentment that no government can tax away and no thief can steal. He has promised to never leave or forsake us and the Greek word used here for never means – NEVER! He never hides out in the middle of a crisis or walks away when we mess up. He is our ever present help in the time of trouble(Psalm 46:1). He is heaven’s 911 operator and when we dial the phone of prayer; Jesus answers. He is always listening. All we need to do is cry out in faith and we will hear His calm and steady voice saying; “This is 911. What is your emergency today?

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Honor the King

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Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king ! 1 Peter 2:17

We hosted an exchange student from Eastern Europe several years ago. He arrived in September to begin school and landed right in the middle of a bitterly election fight for governor akin to our present presidential race. I had become deaf to the ads stating that this man was a liar and the other a thief but our student had not. “Wow!” he said one day. “They couldn’t say those things back in my country! They would arrest you or someone would come and beat you up!”  “They always do that here” I explained. It is just part of any election.” Whether or not insulting and rude behavior has always been this way is a debate for the historians but what is not in question is God’s attitude toward our disrespect of those in authority.

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“You don’t know how bad these politicians are today!” you might say. But the rulers in the days of the early church were kings like Herod, governors like Pontius Pilate and Emperors like Titus (Who burned Jerusalem to the ground, crucified thousands of people and had their fields plowed with salt) In other words those rulers whom Peter told us to honor were sometimes violent and ruthless people, Yet the honor we give as Christians is not really just to them but to God who has given them authority. Honoring them has nothing to do with agreeing with or even obeying their commands – Check out Daniel in the lions’ den!  When we honor the king we are saying, “I trust that God is still in control!” God is giving us the chance to show the world God’s way. As followers of Jesus Christ we should respect everyone even those politicians we do not like. Remember that they are all made in the image of God! 

Jesus loved…

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As we drove down a side road in Amish country we stopped at a small farm stand. There a sweet red haired girl of about 6 was watching her mother’s shoo-fly pie, fresh baked cookies, and chow-chow. She told us her name was Martha. “Well I’ve got some good news for you Martha.” I said. “The Bible says that Jesus loved Martha!” I told her and we both laughed.

I picked out some cookies and paid for them and she put them into a bag then waved and smiled as we drove off. Remembering that moment today I wondered how many kinds of people that Jesus loved. There is an election just one week away and our debate has become heated and angry. We hear it on television, see it in our neighborhoods, and sadly even in our churches. Below is a list of people Jesus loves. It makes me wonder if we can make a list of people we are ready to love for Him.

He loved Mary Marta and Lazarus

He loved His disciples to the end

He loved the rich young ruler

He loved his sheep and died for them

He loved tax collectors and sinners

He loved a woman caught in adultery

He loved His enemies and forgave

He loves all of us and our neighbors

Who will we tell that Jesus still loves today?