David Lloyd George challenges our personal view of politics and politicians with these words: "A politician is a person with whose politics you don’t agree. If you agree with him, he is a statesman." Americans are living in an era when the political atmosphere is, to say the least, highly-charged. The word battles and political wrangling and verbal spin aimed at swaying the public’s opinion never ends. Talking heads and news-people on TV and radio vehemently assure us when we listen to them we are in a "no-spin zone" and that they stand for "the most trusted name in news." But depending on who you listen to, the Republicans or the Democrats are either the cause of all our current problems or the cure for them! Former Republican President George Bush gave voice to the sentiment all political candidates seek to stir into the political pot during campaigns – "My opponent has a problem. He won’t get elected unless things get worse, and things won’t get worse unless he gets elected." Many politicians have not helped public opinion about politicians and government. Political promises made and not kept, and so many moral failures and scandals on the part of individual politicians (from those in the White House to the State House to local Court Houses) that many people have just tuned out and turned off from politicians and the political process itself. As with the police and preachers, some people reach the unfair and illogical conclusion that one or two bad apples in a barrel mean the whole bunch is a rotten, stinking mess and ought to be thrown out! Tennessee’s Republican nominee for governor in the upcoming November (2018) election, Bill Lee, won his campaign for the Republican nomination saying he was best qualified for political office because he was not a politician!
There can be no denying it. Political cynicism and skepticism is at a high level. Some of the criticism in some cases is no doubt deserved. But Christians must be careful! In the words of the New Testament writer Jude, many people today "reject authority, and speak evil of dignitaries" and "speak evil of whatever they do not know" (Jude 8, 10). God is not pleased when children of the Prince of peace become war-like in their attitude and language, let alone their actions. Political passion runs higher with some than others. Whatever your political preference (or if you don’t have one), the Holy Spirit speaks some very counter-cultural words about how to relate to government. It is almost certain you won’t hear these words on CNN or FOX news or from the myriad of "conservative" or "liberal" talk show hosts that saturate America. Here they are – "Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves" (Romans 13:1-2). The people who first read those words didn’t get to vote on who ruled. The guy in their White House was not a Democrat or Republican. Yet they were taught to submit to governing authority. Unless man’s law asks us to disobey God’s law, we are obliged to be subject. "Have I therefore become your enemy because I tell you the truth?" (Galatians 4:16)
Dan Gulley, Smithville, TN
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