Grace Thoughts

Tim Kelley: In our room, we have Democrats, Republicans, independents, libertarians, and political mongrels who don't know what you are. My goal today is not to have you vote on a political party when you leave. I want to have you vote as a Christian. That is really the purpose of this message. It is not to adhere to a political agenda, even though I'll bring up some issues I believe have biblical ramifications. My goal here is to understand that we have a responsibility not only to be involved in politics to a certain level, but we have the responsibility to understand what the issues of the day are.

I pray that any disagreements will be humble and civil because there is disagreement right within our room. If you disagree with my interpretation of the scriptures, that's okay. You can do that, but you should pay the price of study into the scriptures, too. This whole message is coming from a Christian worldview. I'm viewing the world through the lens of scripture, and that includes my family, my politics, and everything. So, if that's the case, then I have to take my politics and view them through the lens of scripture. That may disagree with modern things or talking points. You can watch CNN, NBC, or Fox News, and you're going to find talking points, slant, dishonesty, and half-truths. We have to find these things ourselves.

Republicans do it, Democrats do it, and everyone else in between does it. It's the political climate of the day. It's very muddy and very confusing, and you wonder whose side they're actually on. So, should a Christian ever even be concerned with politics? Question number one. Should a Christian be active in politics? Question number two. Or should a Christian just worry about the work of the church? Question number three. I think the answer is yes, yes, and no.

I believe that a Christian should be concerned with politics, and I'll show you why in a moment. I think we should be active in politics, and that activity may mean just voting. Just voting, educating yourself, and voting. Not voting blindly, but voting. There is a vote coming up on Tuesday. I have an absentee ballot since I've been in Massachusetts years ago. They still send them to me, so it saves me from going to the polls a half mile away from my house.

I actually already voted. When I looked at some of the issues, it's like every issue. Who is this judge, and why should I reelect them or throw them out? Who is this guy? And then what's this issue with the taxation, the marsh, and the water? What's all that? I paid my price of looking that stuff up online. I asked my wife, but looking that stuff up online and finding out what the issue is about. Some of the stuff I knew, and some of the stuff I didn't. But I didn't vote blindly or ignorantly. I voted educated. I looked it up and got the answers, so I knew when I filled in the box exactly what I was voting for and who I was voting for.

With that said, let's look at the scriptures first of all and see what the scriptures say about my political involvement and your relationship with the government. Everyone must submit, verse one of Romans 13, to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. So, anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished. For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but those who are doing wrong. Who would like to live without fear of authorities? Just do what is right, and they will honor you.

I took my road trip with my family on vacation. I put my cruise control for nine miles an hour over the speed limit. I broke the law a little bit, but I was told by a policeman that they will never pull you over unless you're ten miles an hour over the speed limit. So, I just drove through speed trap after speed trap, waving at people being pulled over, and I just cruised right through because I mostly obeyed the law. Mostly. You see what I'm saying? Obviously, if we violate the law, there's a penalty to pay. If I went too fast, they would pull me over, and there's a penalty to pay. I understand what that penalty is.

The authorities are God's servants. Look at what that says. The authorities are God's servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid. They have the power to punish you. They are God's servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong. You must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment, but to keep a clear conscience. Pay your taxes, also, for the same reasons. For government workers need to be paid, and they are serving God in what they do. Who are they serving? God. Give to everyone what you owe them. Pay your taxes and government fees to those who collect them and give respect and honor to those who are in authority. Can I put in a parenthesis? No matter what their political affiliation is.

Whatever that is, the scriptures do not say to like and pray for the people you agree with. It says pray for those in authority because God is the one that allowed them to have authority. That may grate some of you the wrong way. That means we ought to be praying for my president, whether you voted for him or not. The scriptures ask us to pray for him. Ephesians 3:20, the church, understanding this, has a dual citizenship. This is the crux of what I'm trying to say. Our citizenship is in heaven, and from it, we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

The word citizenship there in the Greek is where we get our English word politics from. It talks about affairs of a commonwealth, the laws that govern and are administered by the commonwealth. So, it says we have a citizenship in heaven, yet we also live right here. So, I have a dual citizenship. I live on planet Earth, and I should be aware of what's happening on planet Earth. But I also have a dual citizenship in heaven. In fact, I'm the connection that heaven has with Earth. I'm the light. How are the values of heaven going to come to Earth? Through God's people. That's how it's going to get here. We're His representatives. So, we have a dual citizenship.

Chip Ingram says this: In every single follower of Jesus, you have a dual citizenship. You are to be faithful in your citizenship in heaven and faithful to your citizenship here on Earth with the government that is here. Okay. We see it illustrated in Mark chapter 12, verses 13 to 17. These are the Pharisees trying to trap Jesus. They've got Him cornered and think they're going to turn the crowd against Him because they hated the Romans. The Jews hated the Romans of this era. The Romans were occupiers in their land, and they wanted the Romans out. The Pharisees knew the Jews hated the Romans, so they sent some of the Pharisees and some of the Herodians to trap Him in His talk.

They came and said, "Teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone's opinion. For you are not swayed by appearances but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?" They're setting Him up. You can see the hypocrisy in their voices. But knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, "Why put me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me look at it." And they brought Him one. And He said to them, "Whose likeness and inscription is on it?" They said, "Caesar's." Then Jesus said, "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."

And they marveled at Him. He was basically saying you have a heavenly responsibility and you have an earthly responsibility. Sometimes, my friends, I think we get this wrong. We think that it's all on Earth or it's all in heaven, but it's both. John 19:10, Jesus Christ standing before Pontius Pilate. "Why don't you talk to me?" Pilate demanded. "Don't you realize I have the power to release you or crucify you?" Then Jesus said, "You would have no power over me at all unless it was given to you from above."

So, Jesus said, "Pilate, you don't have any power. Every bit of power you have, the power you're exercising, God gave that to you. The Father gave that to you from above." He was a non-believer. He wasn't a Jew. He didn't worship the God of Israel. He was a Roman. He was a pagan. He was a Gentile. Jesus says, "Your authority came from the Father above. God put you in this position." Why? I don't have those answers. I just know that Jesus said it. He said you don't have any authority except what God gave you.

Now, here's Grudem's quote. Let me back this up a little bit with this book. I picked four basic books for this message. I read the scriptures, and I used *Culture Shock* by Chip Ingram, *God and Government* by Chuck Colson, and this one Dr. Lewis gave me this week. I got it on my Kindle. It's six or seven dollars on Kindle, pretty cheap. This is probably a little bit more expensive, maybe twenty dollars. But anyway, this book is written by Wayne Grudem. Now, a book is only as good as its author. Grudem is a theologian. He's not what I'd call a political analyst. He's a theologian. He wrote books on systematic theology. I used them in my theology courses in school. He's very well-respected in those circles.

He wrote this book about four years ago, *Politics According to the Bible*. Good book. If you really want to know what the scriptures teach about all levels of politics from a Christian worldview, this is the book you want to get. He lays it out objectively, pros and cons. You can see it from every different angle. But more importantly, he's a Bible teacher. He gives you politics through the lens of a Christian worldview. And it's not the type of book you can just pick and choose what you want to read. It's laid out very well, more like a dictionary almost, and he's very good in what he says.

Let me read his quote here: "To put it another way, if Christians do not speak publicly about moral and ethical issues facing a nation, who will? Where will people learn about ethics? Where will a nation learn how to tell right from wrong? Perhaps from Hollywood movies or from their friends at work or at the local bar? From their professional counselor? From their elementary school teachers? But where do these people learn about right and wrong? The simple fact is that if Christians do not speak publicly about what the Bible teaches regarding the issues of right and wrong, there aren't many other good sources for finding any transcendent source of ethics, any source outside of ourselves or our own subjective feelings and conscience. This is a matter of utmost importance for any nation. If Christians are silent about such moral and ethical issues, then where will the moral standards come from?"

In other words, we are representing the kingdom of God on Earth. If we're silent about these things, if we're not teaching them, if pulpits are afraid to teach this stuff, then where are people going to see that it's not just the talking points of a political party? What does God say? What does truth say? What does the Word of God say about these matters that are really of utmost importance, especially on planet Earth? Not every political issue has a biblical principle wrapped around it. But what about those that do?

Many of them do. If you look at Grudem's book, you'll see page upon page of politics and stuff. Now, I want to say this. I'm going to get into a subject here in a moment. I'm going to talk about the subject of abortion. I'm only going to talk about two or three political issues. I'm picking this because in Chip Ingram's series, *Culture Shock*, this was a whole two messages he did on this one subject. And I think again, from a Christian perspective, a Christian worldview, I want to give you a Christian worldview. What does the Bible say about this subject? I'm not giving you the science worldview of it. I'm not going to get into the legal aspect of Roe v. Wade. But what does the Bible say about the unborn or the preborn children?

As a Christian, what should my stance be on the subject of abortion? And I want to bring this up. Please know, I understand and have witnessed in thirty plus years of ministry the emotional pain that people have endured and gone through because of abortion. Know that God's mercy is boundless, His forgiveness is eternal, and His grace is always extended. Please know that.