Chuck Baldwin -- Hope In God

A reader recently wrote to me with some very interesting remarks. In a nutshell, he said the reasons that conservative Christians were "turned off" by my repudiations of President Bush's often liberal and unconstitutional policies were: 1) They know I am right, and, 2) The fact that I'm right leaves them with little or no hope. I believe his analysis is dead right on.

The Scriptures are clear that a Christian's battle is "not against flesh and blood." It is also clear that spiritual warfare involves more than just prayer. Since "the battle is the Lord's," it is incumbent upon every professing believer to "fight the good fight" using the proper weapons made available to him or her. Chiefest of these weapons is an undying, unyielding trust in an omnipotent God.

"Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; but we will remember the name of the Lord our God," said King David. If he were writing today, he might say, " Some trust in the Republican Party, and some in the Democratic Party, but we will trust in God."

It is abundantly clear that many (if not most) professing Christians today have traded trust in God for trust in political parties. Therefore, when someone such as me comes along and repudiates the principles and policies of the Party's standard-bearer, a deep feeling of hopelessness overwhelms their souls, because to them the only alternative is the other Party. In such a case, God is demoted to the position of Party servant. His will and power is lost to the will and power of the Party. One could even make the argument that the Party has become a god.

To give such loyalty and devotion to any political party smacks of communism or Nazism. In Hitler's Germany, the church's interpretation of divine truth was subservient to the will of the state. Ditto for Communist China today. Furthermore, this is fast becoming a way of life for churches in America.

Many churches and preachers were willing to compromise or ignore divine truth in order to accommodate President Clinton. Many other churches and preachers are willing to do the same thing today in order to accommodate President Bush. The reason for this compromise and appeasement is people have traded an undying, unyielding trust in God for a pragmatic, "lesser of two evils" trust in partisan politics.

It is past time for Christians in America to wake up and repent of political idolatry! God is not Republican or Democrat! His will is not subservient to their pundits; neither is His power dependent upon their success at the polls! As John Quincy Adams said, "Duty is ours; results are God's."

It is not our duty to win elections. It is not our duty to "get a seat at the table." It is not our duty to receive invitations to White House dinners. It is not our duty to elect "conservatives." Whether we win or lose, whether we sit at the table or eat on a blanket in the back yard, whether we receive any phone calls from the White House or not, whether conservatives control Congress or not, our duty is to be faithful to the truth and leave the results with God!

The choice, then, seems obvious. In the name of "pragmatism," we can continue to sell our souls to partisan politics, or we can stand for the truth and put our hope in God. It seems to me the former is not taking us where we ought to go. Maybe we should try the latter.

Chuck Baldwin is Founder-Pastor of Crossroads Baptist Church in Pensacola, Florida. In 1985 the church was recognized by President Ronald Reagan for its unusual growth and influence.

Dr. Baldwin is the host of a lively, hard-hitting syndicated radio talk show on the Genesis Communications Network called, "Chuck Baldwin Live" This is a daily, one hour long call-in show in which Dr. Baldwin addresses current event topics from a conservative Christian point of view. Pastor Baldwin writes weekly articles on the internet http://www.ChuckBaldwinLive.com and newspapers.

To learn more about his radio talk show please visit his web site at: http://www.chuckbaldwinlive.com. When responding, please include your name, city and state E-mail: chuck@chuckbaldwinlive.com

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