The Golden Calf

Recently I went to a comedy show. It was held at a church and the comedian was "Christian." What that really means is that he is promoted by churches and you can feel safe taking your kids to go see him. Needless to say that there was probably several hundred people in attendance.

The comedian came out and did his thing. He was pretty funny. (If I'm honest my favorite part was a sketch by the back up comedian.) One joke in particular stuck out to me because it seemed to get the best response. He made a joke about how bad Obamacare was and the place erupted. The jokes about home schooling fell flat, but this one apparently struck gold. It reminded me yet again that the church in America has an idol and that idol is politics.

At this point I have probably upset half of you. "What about the other party?" I hear you cry. Though it is true that there are Christians in the Democrat party (shocking I know), very rarely is Christianity held captive by that party like the Republican party. Somewhere, somehow, Evangelicals have come to think that the Republican party is the party of Christ. This kind of thinking has happened before and those people Crucified Christ.

Alaskan Caribou

Before I get to the rest of this post I want to take some time to talk about how I grew up. I grew up like I think most Evangelical young men did. I went to a church where we remembered fallen soldiers and had an American Flag. On car trips my father would listen to Rush Limbaugh. I read books like Wild at Heart and I Kissed Dating Goodbye.

I was a member of the young republicans at my school. I debated with people who obviously were misinformed about what the world was really like. I knew that if Jesus were on Earth today that he would certainly have been a Republican. I thought that I was living a the perfect Christian life.

One day my government teacher decided to force me to defend protecting the wild caribou in Alaska. It was a debate on oil drilling and he knew that I was in favor of it. Honestly, I was furious. How could he force me to do this? Didn't he know that those people were ignorant? Well because I respected my teacher I put my best into it.

They controlled the temple and thought that it was the only place where religion belonged. They sold out their religion to Rome for power.

I don't remember which side won, but I do remember talking to my teacher after class. He told me that he wanted me to understand the other side. He said that the best way to know what I truly believe is to defend my opponent. This is a lesson that I have taken to heart. It has caused me to actually think about what I believe rather than just take the word of someone I respect. But this blog post isn't really about me.

We Have No King But Caesar

In the book of John we have an interchange between Pilate and the chief Priests. When Pilate asks them if he should crucify Jesus, (literally he asks "shall I crucify your king?") they respond that they have no King but Caesar. I'm not going to get into the details of this story because I already have a post on it. What I do want to talk about is why. I want to talk about why the chief Priests said that.

If you read any of the Gospel's in any depth you will quickly find that the people most opposed to Jesus were the religious leaders. There were several different groups and non of them liked him because he disrupted their power. For the Pharisees this was the power over the people. He continually told the people that following the laws of the Pharisees was not going to save them.

The Chief Priests were probably part of a group known as the Sadducees. Unlike the Pharisees that were strict and pious, the Sadducees got their power from Rome. They controlled the temple and thought that it was the only place where religion belonged. They sold out their religion to Rome for power. ;

Our Chief Priests

The past few months have been harrowing for some Christians. We have seen prominent Christian leaders defend Trump and even claim that he is born again. After Grudem defended Trump many other Christians came out against not only Trump but Grudem. I could list the numerous Christian leaders who over the course of this election season have endorsed or at least defended Trump. But that is not the point.

The church has determined that the Republican party is the party of Christians... The Government can't save Christians. Jesus is our savior not some golden calf.

This past weekend we got news of yet another scandal involving Trump. Apparently this time it was enough for Grudem and Dobson to change their minds. Yet we still have some religious leaders defending Trump. I don't bring this up to pour salt on fresh wounds. I bring this up to make a point about Christianity in our culture.

The church has determined that the Republican party is the party of Christians. Even in his redirect, Grudem still claims that the only party that can save Christians is the Republican party. Here is the problem. The Government can't save Christians. Jesus is our savior not some golden (elephant) calf.

Since when has the church need the support of government? I urge you to look back at history. In nearly every case where the church gained governmental support it became corrupt. The church thrives when it is oppressed. Maybe we don't need a party. Maybe the church needs some persecution.

Choose This Day Whom You Will Serve

Brothers and sisters I don't say this because I want to hurt you. I say this because I love the bride. I say this because I want to help you. I remember going to a church were a tree on stage meant we were worshiping pagan gods, but an American flag was given a pass. I remember talking to Christians who didn't worship Christmas because it was a pagan holiday, but they were fine with Thanksgiving and July 4th. (Celebrations of theft and rebellion respectively.) I remember when George W. Bush declared that America, not Jesus, was a light in the darkness. Just this week I saw a thread on Facebook where someone declared that Hillary had the spirit of the anti-Christ.

Brothers and sisters, this tells us one thing. We have given up Jesus for politics. We have created a golden calf and now call it YHWH. We have become the Chief Priests. We have become the rebellious Israelites who turned from God.

When Joshua lead the people into the promised land he reminded them of all the things God had done for them. Then he gave them a choice. He told them that they were entering a land where people worshiped gods other than YHWH. He told them that they were going to be tempted to worship these other gods. But he said "as for me and my house, we will serve YHWH."

This is my question to you today. Who will you serve? Will you continue to serve the things of this world? Will you continue to put your faith in a political party? Or will you serve God? Will you give up privileges and rights, as Jesus did, because you want to follow God?

May you come to realize that Jesus does not have a political party. May you choose to serve YHWH over the gods of this nation. May you come to understand that persecution does not mean a loss of God's favor. And may God give you strength and comfort as you choose to follow Him.

Amen!