I couldn’t agree with this more! The Christians who are trying to enforce social change by pursuing political power have always confused me. Social and cultural change isn’t enforceable by law. They tried that 100 years ago with Prohibition. And shock of all shocks - it didn’t work. The people who wanted to keep drinking found a way. The people who want to steal or lie or harm others will always find a way. You can’t litigate sin out of humanity.
If Christians want to change this country’s moral or ethical trajectory to “be more Christian” there’s only one answer. It will only happen with individual personal spiritual transformation - when individual members of our society willingly turn to Jesus and allow him to change them from the inside out! We don’t have the power to enforce that kind of change. It certainly won’t stick when we try to apply it from the outside in. The only solution is the saving and transforming work of God’s grace …. We can’t expect people to act like Christ until/unless they come to know him. Heck WE don’t even manage to act like him most of the time - and we’re the ones who claim the moral high ground.
If we want to “change our nation” we are looking at the wrong goal. Like you said - we are subject to another kingdom entirely. Our goal (insofar as our efforts towards change are concerned) should be to represent our kingdom well, to live lives that openly demonstrate its laws and its ways, and to welcome and embrace those who are willing to join us.
This is beautiful wisdom. Your comments about social media are perceptive and correct.
Being a Citizen of the Kingdom is more than about taking a neutral standpoint. It is, as you say, being an active participant in God's Kingdom, and to some this may appear to be a neutral position.
But part of being in that position is that no-one is going to be completely happy with you. So - what's new? No-one ever is anyway unless you agree with them on every. singls. point., which ain't never gonna happen! At the end of the day, others' opinions doin't count; no, you do you and God knows your heart. How else can you be free to do His will?
I definitely wouldn’t say I’m neutral, but I don’t fit neatly in a side and I don’t want to. As you say, no one will be completely happy with us, and Jesus’ opinion matters more to me than anyone else’s! 😁
Thank you for this! It is so easy to get caught up in concern for what's happening in our country. I have real grief for what I grew up with and believe that is permanently gone, and I have a great deal of negative emotions around how the church is complicit in this chasing of political power. But my true citizenship isn't as an American, it's as a follower of Jesus. And He is enough.
Oh trust me, I have plenty of opinions about many things these days, especially regarding Christian obsession with power and the “Christian” leaders who are actually false teachers. But that’s going to be my focus rather than a political party.
Yes. My concern is for how the church is complicit in the grabs for power. The world will do what it does, but the church is meant to be a witness to truth.
You are right, that our citizenship in the kingdom of heaven should give us inner peace. But we still live in the world, and our physical bodies still suffer the affects of war and famine and plague. There are Christians in Ukraine, and there are Christians in Gaza and the West Bank and Israel and Lebanon. They cannot escape what the politics of power is doing to their homes, their neighbours, and their families. If our hearts are not wrung by their plight, how can we pray for them fervently? If we do not feel our own vulnerability to the whims of earthly powers, is our trust in God merely complacency?
It is true that Jesus did not deeply concern himself with politics. But his brief interactions with rulers show he was fully alive to the characters of those in power. He calls Herod 'that fox' and refuses to speak a word when he is brought before - he knew Herod had had his chance of repentance when he listened to John the Baptist, and Herod had instead had John executed on a perverted whim. When Jesus interacts with Pilate, his brief replies show he knew he was dealing with a man who was a coward, who would bow to the greatest political pressure put on him from any side. Jesus didn't involve himself himself in politics, no, but he was realistic in dealing with it. He was also broken by the terrible effects of it - he knew Rome would eventually destroy Jersulam, and he wept over that coming destruction, warning those who would listen. Paul also is fully aware of who he deals with. He knows Felix is corrupt, he knows Festus isn't really interested in the truth, he knows Agrippa is an honourable king. The early Christians were fully cognisant of the world in which they lived - their courage and faith was based in real life experience.
The recent serious threats to the stability of the nation into which I was born, Canada, has threatened the security I so long took for granted. I have lived and visited much less stable areas. For over a year, I worked in a country that had a megalomaniac with delusions of grandeur in power and a feared spy network to remove any who so much as criticized him - as a foreigner, I wouldn't have been killed if I expressed criticism but I would have been expelled (this ruler has since been deposed). I have lived in a city in another country which was relatively stable, but yearly demonstrations often turned into riots, so I had to be aware of where the dangerous areas could be at those times. But those dangers seemed slightly less threatening because I always could go home to the land of my birth. But if that secure retreat itself is affected - when threats of economic destabilization for the purposes of annexation are repeatedly leveled at it, then one really does have to dig deeper into one's faith to find the security the outer world no longer offers anywhere.
While Americans are wondering what their country is going to look like in a few years, Canadians are wondering if they will have a country. As an American living in Canada with plenty of maga family members, it's a very unsettling place to be. There are real concerns for our future. We are supported missionaries with three young children. Most of our supporters are American and we're very much afraid they won't understand...
It's real. We have to face it realistically. But if we realize it is-in the grand scheme of things-normal, I think that helps. And we are being forced to rely on God in ways we never have. That's not a bad thing. What people mean for evil God can always make for our good.
Thanks for sharing your story. I believe you and understand what it's like for Americans not to see the problems we face. ❤️
Having worked in medical missions, I understand wondering if support will change. Where I worked, international aid provided the rapid malaria tests and mosquito nets the mission clinic used and provided to patients. There must be so much heartbreak among international medical missionsaries right now, and so much difficulty in explaining what is wrong to supporters.
My travelss have helped me envision myself more as a stranger and pilgrim on the earth, but even Paul would have given his soul for the salvation of his own people, despite him being an apostle to the Gentiles. The threats to Canada cut deeper into my heart than I would have thought possible. You begin to realize how much you take for granted.
Then are the practical questions that inevitably arise. My mother has severe rheumatoid arthritis. For decades, she avoided medication, but two years ago, the pain and inflammation were literally killing her (the inflammatory joint breakdown by the rheumatoid arthritis actually broke one of her hips). Only by going on extremely expensive anti-inflammatory medications was her health stabilized. Because she is a senior, the provincial health plan pays the full cost of those medications. If we lost our healthcare system, she - my parents are on government pension - couldn't afford the medications. Both the provincial healthcare and the social insurance pensions are uniquely Canadian systems - were we to be annexed, they would probably disappear. Thoughts like these inevitably come to mind.
I think we need to find a balance. Where we care and are concerned, but where our primary focus is Jesus and His kingdom. There’s a difference between being realistic and being dysregulated and all consumed.
I think American Christians have a unique disadvantage inemotionally distancing themselves from politics, in that for many years they have been told they could solve their moral problems politically, that they were 'the Moral Majority'. That idea has influenced evangelical Canadian Christians, as many evangelical pastors in Canada were either American or trained in American seminaries or had American origin professors in Canadian seminaries
Canadians involved in family organizations like Focus on the Family and ATI were often overlooked due to our small numbers, but I remember we were marketed a book that claimed Canada had "Christian origins" too and gave biographies of supposed Christian political leaders in Canada's history. But the book included everyone who claimed belief in a vaguely Christian God - Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, Unitarians, and purely nominal Christians who were baptized as babies and attended church because that was what one did in their eras. The book had the opposite of its intended effect - it made me realize that fidelity to Jesus Christ would mean swimming against not only the secular but also the religious political world around me.
I recently explained to young American relatives of mine that voting solely on 'culture war' issues like abortion or euthanasia was a moot point in Canadian politics, because no political party included them in their platform. Ten years ago, I worked in an polling office during a federal election. It seemed like an important election, because the question of legalized medically assisted dying - an issue that directly affected my healthcare profession - was to be settled by the next government. After the polls closed and I could go home, I was too tired to listen for the results so I went to bed, and woke up the next morning with the words "Put not thy trust in princes..." in my ears. I had to look for the reference, which was Psalm 146:3-5. It was as if a switch flipped and I never looked back, though I still vote prayerfully and carefully. Have I been affected by the legalization of medically assisted dying? Yes. But I have also been able to retain my profession, because it is God who makes a place for me in this world, not humans.
Thank you for sharing, this is an important reminder for how to engage with the current events. I do have a tangential question I'm interested in getting your thoughts on, if you don't mind. I've been reading Kenneth Bailey's book Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes recently, and I'm not sure what to make of chapter 2 where he claims that Bathsheba was deliberately seducing David. I know this is not related to the main point of your article, but I've seen you reference Bailey a few times, so I wanted to get your thoughts. Thanks in advance!
So I went through the chapter you were referencing and it was interesting. I’m wondering a couple of things:
- We in the 2000s who have been through the #metoo movement see the power differences between David and Bathsheba and from our cultural perspective see David as completely wrong. As you said, the prophet Nathan also condemned him.
- Bailey was writing in the 70s and 80s. Anytime I go to watch a “kids” movie from the 80s I’m shocked at what we used to think was normal. So there’s that. 😬
- I’m also wondering about the perspective of the Jewish writers like Matthew. David was a famous Jewish king and “a man after God’s own heart.” Like we do today, it’s easier to make excuses for our heroes and blame their victims.
- And honestly, I’m not personally familiar with the culture. I’ve heard people say it was normal to bathe outside. Bailey seems to think she was bathing by a window. Maybe there’s something there culturally that we don’t understand?
Just some thoughts, but like I said earlier, so much of what Bailey says is amazing so I’ll set this story off to the side, since I can’t ask him about it personally, and appreciate his other teachings.
I think this used to be the common view in Evangelicalism. It's only in recent years that I've started hearing about the great imbalance of power between David and Bathsheba and how, as such, it was sexual assault. Probably Bailey is from that previous time.
I haven’t read that chapter (I’ll look into it) but I disagree with that point pretty strongly. However I don’t reject an author just because I disagree with one thing. Bailey also has wonderful things to say about Jesus and women. Mixed bag I guess. I’m curious to see his perspective and why he feels that way.
I'm with you there - I really like the perspectives he offers in the other chapters, which is why I'm continuing to read the book despite that chapter. Thanks for sharing!
I'm American but I live in Canada and I really love your posts! We have so much in common! Empire is going to empire. But the country I live in is under a real threat. I don't think Americans pay much attention, but the annexation threat is real. I'm coming to grips with, as you say, that things aren't very different from what they've been the past 2000 years. I grew up in the lull at the end of the cold war and post civil rights movement. Now I see it all crashing down. But God has always been God and while it looks different from what I expected, it's fairly normal, unfortunately.
I actually have a little more hope for posting on social media. I started the day Trump was inaugurated and many people I haven't talked to in years-some decades-have messaged me to thank me. We can't do anything about politics, but I think we can eventually change people's mind. A steady drip of truth starts to wear people down, just like the steady drip of lies and the idea that everyone tells them has gotten people to believe maga. Some people don't hear other sides and don't know what other people think--the real people, in their own words.
Putin started with lies about what Ukraine was, questioning it's existence, and Trump, Elon, etc are doing the same thing with Canada. Questioning it's existence, promising economic annexation. This is the reality we are living with.
We cannot over extend ourselves but we should be speaking up. God judges peoples for not caring for others. We will be held responsible for what our nation does. When God gives us words to speak, we are responsible to say them--as you have. :)
I'm not saying we should have random arguments with people. I'm taking about things like pointing out from Trump's Gaza AI video, that we cannot serve both God and money. Things that make people think a little and draw their eyes to the kingdom, as you say.
Jesus said to love our enemies. He said they could be our own family. He never said to kill anyone. Jesus is king of a kingdom that doesn't work that way. The sword he uses to defeat his enemies comes from his mouth. We conquer by the word of our testimony and our leader’s death (and resurrection!). My goal is to defeat our enemies by speaking truth that changes their minds. I won't shoot anyone.
I'll fight like a wolverine if someone tries to hurt me or my kids, but I'll do everything in my power to keep a violent confrontation from happening and there's a lot more to that than most people give credit. I once spent 20 minutes convincing a teenager to let go of a knife. But I won't use deadly force.
I think thoughtful social media posts can be helpful. It’s more the frantic emotional posts that I’m reacting to. We need more calm, thoughtful, truth tellers! I’m glad you are one of them.
Thank you, Christy. I have been feeling the same way, yet when I begin to write I fall back to my old default of political commentary. It is a place I have little desire to go, and I end up not writing at all. Perhaps this will help me find a different tack.
Rest assured I will. I am already formulating some things in my head. Now I just need to get the thoughts to paper. I plan to be back to writing very soon. This week perhaps.
Complexities and nuances are words that describe where I’m at right now in the midst of this politically chaotic time. It seems people see everything as all or nothing, a kind of dualistic thinking that doesn’t allow for complexities or nuances. I’ve never been conservative enough for hard line Republicans or progressive enough for far left Democrats. As a retired pastor I’ve been denouncing the Trump/Musk Christian Nationalism Empire domination dung. I’ve found myself with thoughts running through my mind that are unprintable. I’m going to re-read your post and listen to Ken Bailey. I really needed to read your post this morning. Thank you Christy.
My husband and I were talking about some of these big picture things and how God works in it all. Small picture, His job might be in jeopardy and also our sons Medicaid so we do give ourselves space to feel all the feelings, but ultimately we know the Lord will care for us.
I absolutely think we should give ourselves space to feel our own feelings when things are directly impacting us. I think the trick comes when we try ask feel all the things that don’t directly affect us all the time. It’s exhausting!
But I appreciate how you are standing in the paradox of trusting God big picture and also feeling concerned in the day to day. Praying for you guys!!
Kenneth E. Bailey transformed my understanding of the parables and many other scriptures as well. Jesus Through Middle Easter Eyes was an eye-opening read, and his several treatments of the Luke 15, three-part parable has become the basis for much that I have shared with brothers and sisters in other countries. Thank you for sharing the message God is giving you. You have encouraged me.
I’ve had “Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes” for a couple of years now and I’ve read bits and pieces, but finding the website and hearing Bailey talk has refueled my fire to learn from him!
I'm currently reading the controversial Christopher Caldwell's "The Age of Entitlement: America Since the Sixites." I am willing to bet that most of your readers would find a lot of what he says appalling, yet I think everyone would agree that the major event that led to our current climate was the success of the Rush Limbaugh Radio Show. Caldwell said that that was the point where politics stopped being something you practiced in your community. Now, politics was your community.
Roger Ailes put Limbaugh on syndicated TV, and then parlayed the success of that venture into running Ruper Murdock's Fox News, which was wildly successful. MSNBC saw what Fox News was doing and attempted to be a left-wing version of that.
This marked another turning point according to pop-culture writer Chuck Klosterman: people en masse stopped watching the news to get informed of what was going on so they could make up their minds about it- they started watching the news to have their preconceived biases confirmed and comforted.
Throw social media on top of that and you have the current situation. Social media promised to expand the conversation in the global community. Pastor Jason Gudim of the Being Lutheran Podcast noted that what it's actually done is shrink our definition of who our neighbor is, leaving the partaker to build his or her own monastery of like-minded people while looking at everyone else as the other.
Note how few get the temptation when satan shows Jesus all the kingdoms of the world and says all these I will give to you if you fall down and worship me. The lie? They weren’t satan’s to give!
I couldn’t agree with this more! The Christians who are trying to enforce social change by pursuing political power have always confused me. Social and cultural change isn’t enforceable by law. They tried that 100 years ago with Prohibition. And shock of all shocks - it didn’t work. The people who wanted to keep drinking found a way. The people who want to steal or lie or harm others will always find a way. You can’t litigate sin out of humanity.
If Christians want to change this country’s moral or ethical trajectory to “be more Christian” there’s only one answer. It will only happen with individual personal spiritual transformation - when individual members of our society willingly turn to Jesus and allow him to change them from the inside out! We don’t have the power to enforce that kind of change. It certainly won’t stick when we try to apply it from the outside in. The only solution is the saving and transforming work of God’s grace …. We can’t expect people to act like Christ until/unless they come to know him. Heck WE don’t even manage to act like him most of the time - and we’re the ones who claim the moral high ground.
If we want to “change our nation” we are looking at the wrong goal. Like you said - we are subject to another kingdom entirely. Our goal (insofar as our efforts towards change are concerned) should be to represent our kingdom well, to live lives that openly demonstrate its laws and its ways, and to welcome and embrace those who are willing to join us.
I resonate with all of this! So good!! Thanks for sharing.
I'm taking a similar approach, stepping back from the daily doom scrolling and instead focusing on the Kingdom I've recently become a part of.
Love it! And love that you’ve recently joined the Kingdom.
This is beautiful wisdom. Your comments about social media are perceptive and correct.
Being a Citizen of the Kingdom is more than about taking a neutral standpoint. It is, as you say, being an active participant in God's Kingdom, and to some this may appear to be a neutral position.
But part of being in that position is that no-one is going to be completely happy with you. So - what's new? No-one ever is anyway unless you agree with them on every. singls. point., which ain't never gonna happen! At the end of the day, others' opinions doin't count; no, you do you and God knows your heart. How else can you be free to do His will?
I definitely wouldn’t say I’m neutral, but I don’t fit neatly in a side and I don’t want to. As you say, no one will be completely happy with us, and Jesus’ opinion matters more to me than anyone else’s! 😁
How you will apply it in geopolitics/foreign policy ?
Thank you for this! It is so easy to get caught up in concern for what's happening in our country. I have real grief for what I grew up with and believe that is permanently gone, and I have a great deal of negative emotions around how the church is complicit in this chasing of political power. But my true citizenship isn't as an American, it's as a follower of Jesus. And He is enough.
Oh trust me, I have plenty of opinions about many things these days, especially regarding Christian obsession with power and the “Christian” leaders who are actually false teachers. But that’s going to be my focus rather than a political party.
Yes. My concern is for how the church is complicit in the grabs for power. The world will do what it does, but the church is meant to be a witness to truth.
100% agreed!
You are right, that our citizenship in the kingdom of heaven should give us inner peace. But we still live in the world, and our physical bodies still suffer the affects of war and famine and plague. There are Christians in Ukraine, and there are Christians in Gaza and the West Bank and Israel and Lebanon. They cannot escape what the politics of power is doing to their homes, their neighbours, and their families. If our hearts are not wrung by their plight, how can we pray for them fervently? If we do not feel our own vulnerability to the whims of earthly powers, is our trust in God merely complacency?
It is true that Jesus did not deeply concern himself with politics. But his brief interactions with rulers show he was fully alive to the characters of those in power. He calls Herod 'that fox' and refuses to speak a word when he is brought before - he knew Herod had had his chance of repentance when he listened to John the Baptist, and Herod had instead had John executed on a perverted whim. When Jesus interacts with Pilate, his brief replies show he knew he was dealing with a man who was a coward, who would bow to the greatest political pressure put on him from any side. Jesus didn't involve himself himself in politics, no, but he was realistic in dealing with it. He was also broken by the terrible effects of it - he knew Rome would eventually destroy Jersulam, and he wept over that coming destruction, warning those who would listen. Paul also is fully aware of who he deals with. He knows Felix is corrupt, he knows Festus isn't really interested in the truth, he knows Agrippa is an honourable king. The early Christians were fully cognisant of the world in which they lived - their courage and faith was based in real life experience.
The recent serious threats to the stability of the nation into which I was born, Canada, has threatened the security I so long took for granted. I have lived and visited much less stable areas. For over a year, I worked in a country that had a megalomaniac with delusions of grandeur in power and a feared spy network to remove any who so much as criticized him - as a foreigner, I wouldn't have been killed if I expressed criticism but I would have been expelled (this ruler has since been deposed). I have lived in a city in another country which was relatively stable, but yearly demonstrations often turned into riots, so I had to be aware of where the dangerous areas could be at those times. But those dangers seemed slightly less threatening because I always could go home to the land of my birth. But if that secure retreat itself is affected - when threats of economic destabilization for the purposes of annexation are repeatedly leveled at it, then one really does have to dig deeper into one's faith to find the security the outer world no longer offers anywhere.
While Americans are wondering what their country is going to look like in a few years, Canadians are wondering if they will have a country. As an American living in Canada with plenty of maga family members, it's a very unsettling place to be. There are real concerns for our future. We are supported missionaries with three young children. Most of our supporters are American and we're very much afraid they won't understand...
It's real. We have to face it realistically. But if we realize it is-in the grand scheme of things-normal, I think that helps. And we are being forced to rely on God in ways we never have. That's not a bad thing. What people mean for evil God can always make for our good.
Thanks for sharing your story. I believe you and understand what it's like for Americans not to see the problems we face. ❤️
Having worked in medical missions, I understand wondering if support will change. Where I worked, international aid provided the rapid malaria tests and mosquito nets the mission clinic used and provided to patients. There must be so much heartbreak among international medical missionsaries right now, and so much difficulty in explaining what is wrong to supporters.
My travelss have helped me envision myself more as a stranger and pilgrim on the earth, but even Paul would have given his soul for the salvation of his own people, despite him being an apostle to the Gentiles. The threats to Canada cut deeper into my heart than I would have thought possible. You begin to realize how much you take for granted.
Then are the practical questions that inevitably arise. My mother has severe rheumatoid arthritis. For decades, she avoided medication, but two years ago, the pain and inflammation were literally killing her (the inflammatory joint breakdown by the rheumatoid arthritis actually broke one of her hips). Only by going on extremely expensive anti-inflammatory medications was her health stabilized. Because she is a senior, the provincial health plan pays the full cost of those medications. If we lost our healthcare system, she - my parents are on government pension - couldn't afford the medications. Both the provincial healthcare and the social insurance pensions are uniquely Canadian systems - were we to be annexed, they would probably disappear. Thoughts like these inevitably come to mind.
I think we need to find a balance. Where we care and are concerned, but where our primary focus is Jesus and His kingdom. There’s a difference between being realistic and being dysregulated and all consumed.
I think American Christians have a unique disadvantage inemotionally distancing themselves from politics, in that for many years they have been told they could solve their moral problems politically, that they were 'the Moral Majority'. That idea has influenced evangelical Canadian Christians, as many evangelical pastors in Canada were either American or trained in American seminaries or had American origin professors in Canadian seminaries
Canadians involved in family organizations like Focus on the Family and ATI were often overlooked due to our small numbers, but I remember we were marketed a book that claimed Canada had "Christian origins" too and gave biographies of supposed Christian political leaders in Canada's history. But the book included everyone who claimed belief in a vaguely Christian God - Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, Unitarians, and purely nominal Christians who were baptized as babies and attended church because that was what one did in their eras. The book had the opposite of its intended effect - it made me realize that fidelity to Jesus Christ would mean swimming against not only the secular but also the religious political world around me.
I recently explained to young American relatives of mine that voting solely on 'culture war' issues like abortion or euthanasia was a moot point in Canadian politics, because no political party included them in their platform. Ten years ago, I worked in an polling office during a federal election. It seemed like an important election, because the question of legalized medically assisted dying - an issue that directly affected my healthcare profession - was to be settled by the next government. After the polls closed and I could go home, I was too tired to listen for the results so I went to bed, and woke up the next morning with the words "Put not thy trust in princes..." in my ears. I had to look for the reference, which was Psalm 146:3-5. It was as if a switch flipped and I never looked back, though I still vote prayerfully and carefully. Have I been affected by the legalization of medically assisted dying? Yes. But I have also been able to retain my profession, because it is God who makes a place for me in this world, not humans.
Thank you for sharing, this is an important reminder for how to engage with the current events. I do have a tangential question I'm interested in getting your thoughts on, if you don't mind. I've been reading Kenneth Bailey's book Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes recently, and I'm not sure what to make of chapter 2 where he claims that Bathsheba was deliberately seducing David. I know this is not related to the main point of your article, but I've seen you reference Bailey a few times, so I wanted to get your thoughts. Thanks in advance!
So I went through the chapter you were referencing and it was interesting. I’m wondering a couple of things:
- We in the 2000s who have been through the #metoo movement see the power differences between David and Bathsheba and from our cultural perspective see David as completely wrong. As you said, the prophet Nathan also condemned him.
- Bailey was writing in the 70s and 80s. Anytime I go to watch a “kids” movie from the 80s I’m shocked at what we used to think was normal. So there’s that. 😬
- I’m also wondering about the perspective of the Jewish writers like Matthew. David was a famous Jewish king and “a man after God’s own heart.” Like we do today, it’s easier to make excuses for our heroes and blame their victims.
- And honestly, I’m not personally familiar with the culture. I’ve heard people say it was normal to bathe outside. Bailey seems to think she was bathing by a window. Maybe there’s something there culturally that we don’t understand?
Just some thoughts, but like I said earlier, so much of what Bailey says is amazing so I’ll set this story off to the side, since I can’t ask him about it personally, and appreciate his other teachings.
I think this used to be the common view in Evangelicalism. It's only in recent years that I've started hearing about the great imbalance of power between David and Bathsheba and how, as such, it was sexual assault. Probably Bailey is from that previous time.
I haven’t read that chapter (I’ll look into it) but I disagree with that point pretty strongly. However I don’t reject an author just because I disagree with one thing. Bailey also has wonderful things to say about Jesus and women. Mixed bag I guess. I’m curious to see his perspective and why he feels that way.
I'm with you there - I really like the perspectives he offers in the other chapters, which is why I'm continuing to read the book despite that chapter. Thanks for sharing!
I'm American but I live in Canada and I really love your posts! We have so much in common! Empire is going to empire. But the country I live in is under a real threat. I don't think Americans pay much attention, but the annexation threat is real. I'm coming to grips with, as you say, that things aren't very different from what they've been the past 2000 years. I grew up in the lull at the end of the cold war and post civil rights movement. Now I see it all crashing down. But God has always been God and while it looks different from what I expected, it's fairly normal, unfortunately.
I actually have a little more hope for posting on social media. I started the day Trump was inaugurated and many people I haven't talked to in years-some decades-have messaged me to thank me. We can't do anything about politics, but I think we can eventually change people's mind. A steady drip of truth starts to wear people down, just like the steady drip of lies and the idea that everyone tells them has gotten people to believe maga. Some people don't hear other sides and don't know what other people think--the real people, in their own words.
Putin started with lies about what Ukraine was, questioning it's existence, and Trump, Elon, etc are doing the same thing with Canada. Questioning it's existence, promising economic annexation. This is the reality we are living with.
We cannot over extend ourselves but we should be speaking up. God judges peoples for not caring for others. We will be held responsible for what our nation does. When God gives us words to speak, we are responsible to say them--as you have. :)
I'm not saying we should have random arguments with people. I'm taking about things like pointing out from Trump's Gaza AI video, that we cannot serve both God and money. Things that make people think a little and draw their eyes to the kingdom, as you say.
Thank you for your posts!
If I am you I might consider getting a firearm, just in case. IDK what is the Canadian policy.
No.
Jesus said to love our enemies. He said they could be our own family. He never said to kill anyone. Jesus is king of a kingdom that doesn't work that way. The sword he uses to defeat his enemies comes from his mouth. We conquer by the word of our testimony and our leader’s death (and resurrection!). My goal is to defeat our enemies by speaking truth that changes their minds. I won't shoot anyone.
Well, not even in self defense, I see.
I'll fight like a wolverine if someone tries to hurt me or my kids, but I'll do everything in my power to keep a violent confrontation from happening and there's a lot more to that than most people give credit. I once spent 20 minutes convincing a teenager to let go of a knife. But I won't use deadly force.
Very well. Albeit my context for initial mention of firearms is, "last resort"
I think thoughtful social media posts can be helpful. It’s more the frantic emotional posts that I’m reacting to. We need more calm, thoughtful, truth tellers! I’m glad you are one of them.
Thank you, Christy. I have been feeling the same way, yet when I begin to write I fall back to my old default of political commentary. It is a place I have little desire to go, and I end up not writing at all. Perhaps this will help me find a different tack.
I get this! I hope you can find a different way to approach it because we need voices of truth apart from the constant barrage of politics.
Rest assured I will. I am already formulating some things in my head. Now I just need to get the thoughts to paper. I plan to be back to writing very soon. This week perhaps.
“Instead, Jesus came and claimed to be the foundation stone. He didn’t come to bring earthy power, but a heavenly kingdom.”
I appreciate what you shared. This is all so good. 😊
I’m glad! Thanks for letting me know.
Complexities and nuances are words that describe where I’m at right now in the midst of this politically chaotic time. It seems people see everything as all or nothing, a kind of dualistic thinking that doesn’t allow for complexities or nuances. I’ve never been conservative enough for hard line Republicans or progressive enough for far left Democrats. As a retired pastor I’ve been denouncing the Trump/Musk Christian Nationalism Empire domination dung. I’ve found myself with thoughts running through my mind that are unprintable. I’m going to re-read your post and listen to Ken Bailey. I really needed to read your post this morning. Thank you Christy.
I feel this on so many levels. Glad I could encourage you!
My husband and I were talking about some of these big picture things and how God works in it all. Small picture, His job might be in jeopardy and also our sons Medicaid so we do give ourselves space to feel all the feelings, but ultimately we know the Lord will care for us.
I absolutely think we should give ourselves space to feel our own feelings when things are directly impacting us. I think the trick comes when we try ask feel all the things that don’t directly affect us all the time. It’s exhausting!
But I appreciate how you are standing in the paradox of trusting God big picture and also feeling concerned in the day to day. Praying for you guys!!
Kenneth E. Bailey transformed my understanding of the parables and many other scriptures as well. Jesus Through Middle Easter Eyes was an eye-opening read, and his several treatments of the Luke 15, three-part parable has become the basis for much that I have shared with brothers and sisters in other countries. Thank you for sharing the message God is giving you. You have encouraged me.
I’ve had “Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes” for a couple of years now and I’ve read bits and pieces, but finding the website and hearing Bailey talk has refueled my fire to learn from him!
Sorry, 'Middle Eastern Eyes', and 'treatments ... have become'
I've been thinking along the same lines. Thanks for writing! And for sharing this resource.
You are so welcome! Thanks for reading!
I'm currently reading the controversial Christopher Caldwell's "The Age of Entitlement: America Since the Sixites." I am willing to bet that most of your readers would find a lot of what he says appalling, yet I think everyone would agree that the major event that led to our current climate was the success of the Rush Limbaugh Radio Show. Caldwell said that that was the point where politics stopped being something you practiced in your community. Now, politics was your community.
Roger Ailes put Limbaugh on syndicated TV, and then parlayed the success of that venture into running Ruper Murdock's Fox News, which was wildly successful. MSNBC saw what Fox News was doing and attempted to be a left-wing version of that.
This marked another turning point according to pop-culture writer Chuck Klosterman: people en masse stopped watching the news to get informed of what was going on so they could make up their minds about it- they started watching the news to have their preconceived biases confirmed and comforted.
Throw social media on top of that and you have the current situation. Social media promised to expand the conversation in the global community. Pastor Jason Gudim of the Being Lutheran Podcast noted that what it's actually done is shrink our definition of who our neighbor is, leaving the partaker to build his or her own monastery of like-minded people while looking at everyone else as the other.
I've found myself guilty of that.
This is SO good. “Politics WAS your community.” This and the shrinking definition of who our neighbor is. Thanks for sharing!!
Lots of good thoughts.
From Lord of the Rings: “nine rings to the kings of men, men who love power more than anything else. “
Good connection. And Jesus, the one who has all power, laid it down.
Note how few get the temptation when satan shows Jesus all the kingdoms of the world and says all these I will give to you if you fall down and worship me. The lie? They weren’t satan’s to give!
Hmmm…so good!