Recently a friend of mine on Facebook posted a note about his feelings toward voting and how it may be contrary to what the Jesus Christ would have us do as Christians. After much prayer and thought I have concluded the following. As you read, I would suggest that you pray about what the Lord would have you do concerning issues like this and any other. The following is just what I have seen the Lord lead me to believe and do personally- if you feel the Lord is leading you in any other direction- by all means OBEY HIM! Here is his note, the next post was my response.
...Ok i now there gonna be peeps who really disagree with me on this and am happy you hold your beliefs passionately. i would hope and pray that you would confront me on any of this so we may talk about it and i could led you through why i have come to this conclusion and on what biblical stance this is coming from. Thanks you for your time.You cannot serve two masters at the same time. If you do you will wind up serving one and hating another. When we vote we must ask ourselve this question, why are we indorsing and supporting someone who is in fact not Jesus Christ. It would seem to me that in the bible jesus takes a clear path in this, not to be of this world. We are set apart from it, we live in it yet we are not of it. The voting process has become infatuated with big spending, lies and corruption. Why would we support these thing when we are told that all these are sins. When Obama or McCain could be using the millions apon millions to feed the poor and help the homeless they spend it on hateful and illworded campaign slogans and Ads.Lets take it back to the part where the bible says you cant serve two masters. I see a exact political parallel in this. We support these people and put their names on our cars. We put that fish and Religious bumperstickers on the back of of our cars and on the other side we put i support the war. May i remind you jesus was very clear on killing and loving our enemies.Its seems we brand ourselves with the names with what this world has to offer... we are set apart from this world. I see where people could get excited over this election. I mean whoever wins has the power to change history right? Wrong!!! it is the church, the body of christ who has the power to change history we just have forgotten that the power that is given to us is higher and more powerful than the worldly power that is given to a worldly man. Jesus, when he was being tempted in the desert by satan had the choice to have power over all, all he needed to do was to bow down and worship satan. Jesus refused tha power because he knew the corruption that came along with it. I would go so far to say that he knew that, that kind of power was weak and the only power on earth that could change history is the power of love.So which master will i boast in? which master will i lift up? I will lift up the master who says love your enemy, not bomb them. I will lift the master who says give to the needy and homeless, not take from the needy and homeless. I will lift up the master who claims he is the Son Of GOD and who has the true power to move the earth! The church has the power to move the nations we just have to remember where we come from and what true power is. true power is not bending over to the laws that go against everything that jesus stands for. Remember it says "we must obey god rather that human beings" (acts 5:29), maybe this is what st. augustine was getting at when he said, " an unjust law is no law at all." But the attitude of jesus ran deeper than the usual christian politics-that you obey the authorities when they are doing good, and you disobey authorities when they are doing bad. Getting back to the issue... True power is not voting for the person who you think has power. true power is not letting someone make choices for you. But true Power is us standing together as the body of christ, not to change the Government or to make a revolution but to show the world there is a better way. To show the world the love at which christ has shown us, and that jesus' way of economics and ruling is better. here an example of what god economy was getting at. every 7 years there would be something called the jubilee and this is when the isrealites would destroy all dept, would redistribute land, would set slaves free, to allow aliens into the land freely with love, and to give lovingly to the homeless and poor. You see god has the blueprints for a perfect way of life all we have to do is live by it and to follow it to the very depths of our hearts and souls. During the exile in the desert when the jewish people came out of Egypt, God had a plan for the people to be no ruler but God. Of course the people threw that away once they got into the promissed land and demanded from God a king to rule the land, a king that is able to be corrupted and decieved. But people there in the bible in dueteronomy are is the blue print for a wonderful kingdom, a wonderful nation. all it takes is the followers of christ to follow it and to live the christ lived with everything we have.I choose not to vote because i choose not to serve two masters. I follow christ. I have a few quotes from people who where of the early church..actually one was a roman scribe who was looking in on this group of christ followers. He called Abraham and commanded him to go out from the country where he was living. With this call God has aroused us all, and now we have left the state. we have renounced all the things the world has to offer.- Justin(origen, quoting celsus) " if everyone were to act the same as you christians, the national government would soon be left utterly derserted and without any help, and affairs on earth would soon be passedinto the hands of the most savage and wretched barbarians." [origen] celsus exhorts us to help the Emperor and be his fellow soldiers, to this we reply, " you cannot demand military service of christians any more you can of (roman)priests." We do not go forth as soldiers with the Emperor even if he damands this.[Origen goes on further to say that if the romans followed the teachings of jesus, there would be no barbarians.]-OrigenWe ourselves were well conversant with war, murder, and everything evil, but all of us throughout the whole wide earth have traded in out weapons of war. we have exchanged our swords for plowshares, our spears for farm tools...now we cultivate the fear of god, justice, kindness, faith, and the expectation of the future given us through the crucified one...the more we are persecuted and martyred, the more do others in ever increasing numbers become believers.-justin, martyred in 165 ADYou who are God's sevants are living in a foreign country, for your own city-state is far away from this city-state. Knowing which is yours, why do you acquire feilds, costly furnishings, buildings and frail dwellings here?Anyone who aquires things for himself in this city cannot expect to find the way home to his own city. Do you not realize that all these things here do not belong to you, that they are under a power of alien nature? The ruler will say you do not obey my laws, either observe my laws or get out of my country. Aquire no more here than what is absolutely necessary. Instead of feilds buy for yourselves people in distress with your means.-Hermas, 140 ADI do not strive to be a rulre. I do not strive for wealth. I refuse offices connected with military command. I dispise death.-TatianWe may live in the best babylon in the world(america)...but its still Babylon, and we are called to come out of her.--Tony Campolo(recent history)I RECOGNIZE NO EMPIRE OF THIS PRESENT AGE.-Speratus, Acts of the MartyrsHere is something shane claiborne wrote when he was in an interview with CBS when they asked him what he thinks of the war in Iraq and of America. They basically called him a traitor.i believe these words that he says and push it towards you.Traitor?If this bloody, counterfeit liberation is American...I am proud to be called un-AmericanIf depleted uranium is American...i am proud to be un-Americanif US sanctions are American...I am proud to be un-AmericanIf the imposed "peace" of Pax Americana is American...I am proud to be un-AmericanBut If grace, humility and nonviolence are American..I am proud to be AmericanIf sharing to create a safe, sustainable world is american...I am proud to be called americanIf loving our enemies is American...I am proud to called American.Regardless, I would die for the people of New York, but i will not kill for them...my kingdom is not of this worldI would die for the people of Baghdad, but i will not kill for them... my kingdom is not of this world. I will stand in the way of terror and war... my kingdom is not of this world.I will pledge an allegiance deeper than nationalism, to my GOD and to my family... my kingdom is not of this world. I will use my life to shout, " ANOTHER WORLD IS POSSIBLE" ...for my kingdom is from another place. "My kingdom is not of this world. If it were my servants would fight... but now my kingdom is from another place"[ Jesus;John 18:36](shane Claiborne)I RECOGNIZE NO EMPIRE OF THIS PRESENT AGE.
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