Confessions of a recovering political addict
My name is Lance, and I've been free for several years now
I was a political junkie in college.
It made sense. I was a journalism major and felt an obligation to be well versed —or at least I thought I was well versed — in what was going on in my community, my state, my country and the world.
It was 1991. The Gulf War was happening. George H.W. Bush was president. I never left the apartment without checking this relatively new thing called cable news. You never knew when something big was going to happen.
I remember attending a student worship event on campus on a Wednesday night. After the pastor spoke and the service was over, he made an off the cuff remark to those of us who were still around.
“Hey, if you guys listen to the radio, there’s a guy who has caught my interest. His name is Rush Limbaugh.”
So I looked up Rush and began to listen, and did so for the rest of his life. My story is similar to the millions who found him. Somebody is saying what I have been thinking all along.
I didn’t become a political conservative at that moment. I had been, I suppose, since Ronald Reagan. The things he said made sense to me.
The best thing the government can do to assist the individual is remove impediments to individual achievement.
Those impediments include high taxes, unnecessary regulations, bureaucracy on top of bureaucracy and top-down policies.
The best policies are made closest to home, not in Washington far removed from a particular situation.
I believed strongly in the right to life and the right to bear arms.
I grew up poor but never harbored resentment toward the rich and understood that putting the rich in the best position to create jobs helped everyone, even if it made the rich richer.
I loved the flag and loved what veterans did to protect my rights.
These are the things Rush said every day, and I began to form a worldview that this was all vitally important to my happiness. I soaked up as much as I possibly could and seriously considered a double minor in political science.
When Bill Clinton was elected, I thought the world might end. We chuckle at this now but if Facebook had been around then, we would have seen the exact same hysterical reaction that we saw when Biden was elected.
I held this politics-centered worldview for the next 26 years until I began to soak in more of the Bible and less of television.
I still retain my politically conservative worldview but I am now convinced that politics is far from the answer to a better world, or even a better world for me. Do politics matter? Certainly. Do they matter as much as people tend to think? No.
Several things changed my way of thinking.
(1) Experience. I was born in 1970. I have lived through multiple conservative and progressive presidencies. In my state, the Democrats were in control for about 25 years and the Republicans for about 25. The state is pretty much the same and the nation has drifted left regardless. Economic cycles come and go and often do not coincide with the policies that are in place both nationally and locally.
(2) People. I got to know people on both sides of the aisle. Generally, Ds and Rs are the same. By that I mean they are flawed human beings, just like all of us. The hearts of these men are not better or worse because of the letter by their name.
(3) Priorities. I gave my life to Jesus Christ when I was 12, but it has taken me a long time to understand the gravity of that decision, and I’m still learning. The Bible says those who follow Christ become a slave to Him. That means that what we may think is important must be replaced with what Christ says is important. More on that shortly.
(4) Example. Not only am I a slave TO Christ, I am an ambassador FOR Christ. As such, I can offer by example an obsession with politics and who’s right or wrong on a platform, or I can offer the fruits of the spirit as detailed in scripture; I can offer the only thing that can truly save a person … trust in Christ as the Son of God for the remission of sins. Under this example, I am not commanded to ignore politics, just to put it in its proper place. When someone looks at me from afar or up close, this should be what they know about me far, far more than my political opinions.
(5) Scripture. As I looked more closely into God’s word about how to navigate this world, I noticed that very little was said about the governing bodies. Most of what is said instructs Christians to obey the government unless the government tells us we can no longer proclaim Christ as the Son of God and the only path to salvation.
(a) We are to obey the governing authorities: Romans 13 tells us to obey because those in power have been allowed to be in power by the sovereignty of God, regardless of whether those people are “God-friendly” or not. Verse 2: Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.
(b) We are to pray prayers of thanksgiving and submission for rulers and we are instructed to intercede at the throne for them. 1 Timothy 2:1-2 tells us our prayers should be made in an humble manner. And, in doing so, our lives will be characterized as peaceful, quiet, Godly and dignified.
(c) We are commanded to avoid “foolish” quarrels about the law. Titus 3:9 tells us the quarrels are unprofitable and worthless.
(d) Jesus taught the Pharisees to comply with the government and to not use it as an excuse to disobey God. In Matthew 22:17-21, Jesus tells them to give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to render to God what is God’s. Keep in mind that the tax collection system of that day was 100 times more corrupt than it is today.
(e) Paul urged the church at Philippi not to place too much importance on country citizenship, good or bad. Philippians 3:20, “But our citizenship is in Heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.”
(f) Peter, likewise, urged submission to earthly authority. 1 Peter 2:17, “Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.”
(g) Paul taught Timothy how to communicate and live in a world that did not share his views. 2 Timothy 2:24-25, “The Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth.” While this passage may refer directly to those in the ministry, it is consistent with instruction given to all believers.
With these scriptural instructions in mind, here are a few more takeaways:
(1) Obey sincerely and earnestly up to and until you are forbidden to do something expressly taught to do in scripture. Or, in the alternative, obey until you are forced to do anything expressly forbidden in scripture. If a time comes and you are told not to witness, then keep on witnessing. If this causes you to be jailed, then be jailed. This is consistent with what happened to Paul and many of the disciples.
(2) Be involved. We need Biblically-minded, Christian office holders at all levels. What is good for those who follow Christ is good for all. However, there are great temptations in politics that often lead to Biblical truth being compromised. When that happens, it is better that the Christian not be involved than to be involved and compromise clear Biblical truth. This is where we are now with so many. Of course no one is perfect but many professing Christians who hold public office do more harm than good for the kingdom due to their behavior.
(3) Vote. Regardless of what you think about the last election, find those who hold your beliefs the closest and vote for that person; unless, however, you have only two choices and your Spirit-controlled conscience will not allow you to support either one. While there was no Democracy in Biblical times, we are never instructed to choose one sin over another in anything.
(4) Be informed. This is very difficult. Understand that just because you read something that you agree with, it’s not necessarily true. And just because you read something you do not agree with, it’s not necessarily false. Ask God for discernment. None of what I have expressed should be taken to mean that a Christ follower should not be just as active as any other citizen. Maybe this becomes a hobby of yours. If it is, fine. Although I’m not obsessed with politics now as I was before, I still read a lot about it. I just finished a great book on an important political issue. But the people of the early church were not happy because their government was on their side. In fact, the opposite was true. The government despised them and yet Christ followers experienced the joy of Christ while in great, great persecution. The average Southern evangelical Christian is far from this right now.
(5) Put politics in its proper place. My experience is that politics is the most important thing in the lives of many evangelical Christians. I believe this because it dominates their conversation to the extent that it drives almost everything else to the periphery. Concentrate on God’s glory and the advancement of His kingdom to the point that you just don’t have a ton of time to dwell on politics.
(6) Not everyone on the other side hates you. Maybe some do. Nonetheless, the lost are a people to be won to Christ, not a people to skewer alive with hot takes on Facebook and Twitter. We are instructed to engage when necessary with gentleness.
(Photo Politics by Nick Youngson CC BY-SA 3.0 Pix4free.org)
So true. If we believe that God is Sovereign then we can't be consumed by politics. Also politics can cause so much division. My hope is found in Jesus, and he knows what I need. Great read. Looking forward to the next one.