Making History

My wife and I sat on the couch completely in awe of the events that we saw unfolding before our eyes. No one could have scripted a movie or drama that would even compare. I knew as I watched President-Elect Barack Obama take the stage that I was witnessing a true historic event. It was hard to not be caught in the emotion and the weight of the moment as he began another speech--only this time he was speaking to the nation as our next President. People all over the world were celebrating the new era of American politics and policy.

I am not a political expert. I vote my conscience and try to honor the Lord as I labor in two kingdoms. You have heard me preach about my understanding of the Kingdom of this world and the Kingdom that is not of this world. I do not hold to the values and ideology that our new President holds to and yet I can see the great impact and significance that America's choice will have and has already had on the world and in our country. What our next President has done is remarkable in and of itself. He is a brilliant man, a leader and now he is our President. ANd he is a pretty good speaker--that will be a nice change for sure (not that this makes a good leader).



The Christian's responsibility is to pray for our leaders. Romans 13 tells us that God himself placed these very leaders in their offices. Therefore we ought to pray for them so that we might live peaceful and quiet lives--so that the Gospel may go out to the corners of the world. Does this mean that our fight against injustice for the unborn is now over? Absolutely not. Does this mean that we ought not to protest decisions that are made that violate God's law? Hardly.

But perhaps we now have the opportunity to reflect on where the American Church has been for the past 50 years. Have we lost our way? Were politics ever the answer to our problems? Is our identity determined by CNN to be a voting group called "Evangelicals/Born Agains"? To quote Maximus in Gladiator when referring to the blood thirsty crowd in the Colisseum, "There was vision for a kingdom and this is not it...this is not it!"

A new age has truly dawned in America. I don't mean to say that change is actually coming or that we can now look forward to a brighter day. I think the days ahead are just as uncertain as they were yesterday. But I take comfort and rest in the promises that our God has set up His kingdom through Christ Jesus and it shall never falter. We don't hold elections every four years to elect a new Messiah. He is King and his Kingdom is not of this world. So until he comes again to consumate his Kingdom we ought to keep living as if the next moment would be before the Lord in glory.