Hello, folks! I had a friend give me a link to this video. I was absolutely stunned when I first saw it. I thought it offered us a beautiful picture of how Christ has to literally pull us back to himself. He is, indeed, our helper, maker, and best friend.
Enjoy!
Soli Deo Gloria!
Matthew
Categories: The Sacrifice of Christ
Tagged: Christ, Christianity, Everything, Jesus, Lifehouse, Skit
Well, I know it is a little late for this post, but I think it is better late than never.
First, let me just say that November 4, 2008 was an historic day in American history. It was the first time that an African-American was elected to the high office of the land. Likewise, January 20, 2009 will again be an historic date, as President-elect Obama officially receives the mantle of President of the United States of America. Let me just say that I am very glad that America has gotten over her racist past and opened up a new era in American history. With that said, however, I want to say that my joy has been overshadowed with despair due to the fact that we have just elected a very liberal senator to the office of the presidency. President-elect Obama has unashamedly embraced the pro-choice position, and he will more than likely continue his stance on the issue. So, it looks as if Americans can expect many—if not all—of the pro-life regulations to be repealed by executive order the day Obama takes his oath of office. So how are Christians to respond to the election of Barack Obama?
It should be noted that Christians have, in times past, lived under the authority of pagan leaders and should expect to do so in the future. The Apostle Paul, for example, lived under a hideous Roman Emperor named Nero. Yet, what does the Bible say we are to do for our leaders? I think the answer is quite obvious to most people: we are to pray for them.
The first civic duty of the Christian is to pray for his/her leader. And we should pray hard, especially in this day and age. Christians have a sacred obligation to pray for Barack Obama and other leaders of the nation. If we don’t, then we are violating a command of God, and we will be subject to his discipline.
But how are we to pray for President-elect Obama? As James White has said in the video (found below), I think it is important to pray for Obama’s conversion. To put it quite bluntly, Obama should not be considered a Christian due to the fruit that he has shown. Now, I know that some will disagree with me for saying something so radical, but I think that we should go to the words of Jesus on this one. Jesus said you will know a tree by its fruit. If the fruit is bad, then the tree is bad. Likewise, we can know the truth about Barack Obama by the policies that he embraces. First off, he is (and I suspect will continue to be, unless God changes his heart) a pro-choice person. He has repeatedly stood for the right of women to “do away with” their unborn children, and I doubt he will change his mind on the issue.
Secondly, President-elect Obama belonged to a radical church for twenty years that embraces a heretical form of Christian teaching. To put it bluntly, he belonged to a church that teaches apostasy. In fact, anyone who embraces the theological teachings of Rev. Jeremiah Wright should stop and reconsider their most fundamental beliefs, for salvation does not rest upon civil liberation, but on the blood and work of Christ. This “church” seems to push for more of a Marxist agenda than a Christ-exalting, Bible-saturated agenda. While I am not privy to anyone’s heart, I do know how one becomes a Christian, and Barack Obama does not embrace the traditional Protestant principles of sola fide, sola gratia, or solus Christus. So if one subscribes to liberation theology and not reformation theology, then we can conclude they are not a Christian. If one looks to Marxist principles and not Christ for salvation, then one cannot claim to be a Christian. Therefore, I think we should pray for President-elect Obama’s conversion.
The second thing Christians need to remember is that God is sovereign, not President Bush or President-elect Obama. We should not be so consumed with the politics of the day that we forget who is really in control. The simple fact of the matter is that God, not man, is King. We should be about the Kingdom’s business more than about America’s business.
In the end, God is God, and we are man.
soli Deo gloria
Matthew Halsted
Categories: Barack Obama
Tagged: Barack Obama, Christianity, Christians, election, Prayer
"Whatever your heart clings to and confides in, that is really your God."
-Martin Luther
"Grant what thou commandest and then command what thou wilt."
-St. Augustine
"A sinner can no more repent and believe without the Holy Spirit's aid than he can create a world."
-Charles Spurgeon
n"The happiness of the creature consists in rejoicing in God, by which also God is magnified and exalted."
-Jonathan Edwards
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