Have we traded the Gospel for American Prosperity?

Glenn Beck has burst onto the scene of the American right with a religious fervor not rivaled by any of his fellow talk radio or television hosts. He is talented, funny, witty, and smart. He is often a well-informed and passionate voice for many conservative issues. His popular show continues to surge to record numbers. His audience is demonstrably the most committed audience in conservative talk, as evidenced by the enormous turn out at his latest event in Washington DC.

Glenn Beck is also a Mormon. He is not afraid to speak of his Mormon testimony, his belief in who Mormons call Heavenly Father, or his desire to see America return to God. Lately his television shows have been riddled with discussions about God and the need for America to have a revival of sorts. He has spoken to great extent on the need for a Third Great Awakening in America; seemingly positioning himself as one of its leaders.

The First Great Awakening provided much of the religious and moral backbone for the American Revolution and subsequent founding of our country. The Second Great Awakening accomplished the same for the Civil War. Both of these great awakenings occurred as a result of gospel preaching and a deep passion for the Bible in the church. Glenn Beck seems to believe we need a Third Great Awakening in order to launch a war on political progressives and reclaim our country for God-fearing, liberty-loving, constitution-keeping, small-government capitalists. I would argue that on this note Glenn Beck is correct. I agree with De Tocqueville, Montesquieu, and others that unless the people of a nation are a moral people who self-govern their passions, the hope of liberty will fall to the tyranny of big government. I believe the only way this kind of self-governing of passions will occur is if we have a great Christian awakening in America.

However, I am also deeply concerned about Glenn Beck’s call for a Third Great Awakening. I am not primarily concerned with Glenn Beck. I am primarily concerned with the Evangelicals who are passionately looking to his leadership for this kind of revival. I am uneasy about the compromise I see taking place within evangelicalism. Evangelicals seem to be trading the gospel of the free grace of God in Jesus Christ, for the gospel of American prosperity. We have become so eager to advance an agenda of just laws for the good of our neighbors that we are beginning to compromise where it is not needed.

Historically, evangelicals have been called such because of their commitment to the “evangel,” or the gospel of Jesus Christ. While we have always had our in-house debates and disagreements, we thoroughly agreed that there were doctrinal parameters for defining the house. Positively defined, our core belief was that the Trinitarian God of the Old and New Testaments sent forth his Son, Jesus Christ, to pay for our sins on the cross, to rise from the dead, and to give the gift of new life and the Holy Spirit to all who believe. We believed the Bible was our sole authority and salvation was through faith alone in Jesus alone. Negatively defined, we were not Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, or any of the cults of Protestantism; Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, or Apostolic.

It seems we are increasingly abandoning those core doctrines for a different set of core doctrines! When a man who believes in a completely different God calls us to a Third Great Awakening and we come running down the aisle clamoring for that great day, I wonder if we haven’t traded our core doctrine of the “evangel” for the core doctrine of “American prosperity.” When our evangelical leaders come together and link arms with a Mormon broadcaster and pray to “God” alongside him, I become increasingly convinced we have set our hope on the wrong kingdom.

Please do not misunderstand me. I am not concerned specifically about Glenn Beck, or the Mormon church. I am thankful for the work they did in fighting to keep marriage between a man and a woman. I am thankful for the Roman Catholic church’s efforts to save the lives of unborn babies. I am not arguing against fighting for just causes alongside anyone who wants to join the fight. Rather, my concern is with evangelicals who are redefining the “evangel” to something less than the Gospel we have historically held to in an effort to reclaim America.

As a minister of the Gospel, and a citizen of the kingdom of God, I would love to see a Third Great Awakening in America. I long for and pray for that day. Yet, I believe that awakening must be thoroughly tied to the gospel of Jesus Christ as taught in the Bible and professed among historic evangelicals. I do not believe that awakening can be or should be led by a Mormon. I do not believe it is irresponsible to fight alongside Glenn Beck for just causes. I do believe it is irresponsible, and even idolatrous, to link arms in prayer with him and pretend we worship the same God or preach the same gospel.

Just Politics or Life Lessons?

Running for political office can seem a very unusual and foreign experience. Recognizing that there are political battles that need to be fought and won is not necessarily unusual. Deciding you should be the person who leads the troops in the political battle is another matter. Placing yourself before the public and appealing to them to allow you to lead them is the kind of role that definitely requires a sense of calling.

In 2004, I believed God had called me to run for school board. I had no idea the saga that would play out from that initial decision to run. I did not recognize the many ups and downs that would ensue. I did not recognize the multiple victories, popularity, accolades, and new friends I would gain. I also did not recognize the many misunderstandings, the notoriety, the gossip, and the new enemies I would gain. In the sheer magnitude of life events that surround political involvement, I would agree that it is definitely unusual. Being well known and adored and hated with a high level of intensity by people you have never met is definitely unusual.

I would not agree, however, that the life lessons from politics are foreign or unusual at all. The lessons may be painted on a public canvas, but they are not lessons that apply only in politics. My goal is to list some lessons I have learned after 6 years of crazy ups and downs in political life that I believe have universal application:

1. Don't believe your own press

Success in political endeavors inevitably brings good press coverage. Winning the approval of voters and having people speak exceedingly well of you is a powerfully intoxicating experience. This carries over into everyday human existence. There are few cups as addicting to drink from as the cup of human approval. We find great personal happiness drinking deep from the cup of our own adoration. We love men to love us. Apart from the grace of God graciously bursting into our lives, we are incurable self-worshippers. We believe our own good press because it affirms what we already want to believe about ourselves.

The primary problem with believing your own press is that we often don't raise our gaze above the headlines and look to the Cross. When the press we are getting is good we get carried away with self-exaltation and lose sight of the truth that we are sinners. When the press is bad we get lost in self-pity and lose sight of the truth that we are Christ's. The truth is that we are no more and no less than someone for whom Christ gave his life that we might be saved! Yet, drinking up man's approval can be so terribly addicting. The Bible says that wine is a mocker; so too is the cup of human approval.

2. Thank God for bruising you as needed

In my time in politics I have watched my friends lose many elections. Providentially, I have only lost one small election, but I have felt the pain of the losses of others. I have reflected much on how political losses are not terribly different than any other kind of suffering. It can be exceedingly painful and humiliating to lose politically. When a politician loses a political race it can also cause an identity crisis. These are realities that apply to every other kind of suffering. For example, when a marriage falls apart it is also painful, humiliating, and can cause an identity crisis. How do we handle this kind of suffering?

I would contend we need to be thankful for all forms of suffering. Suffering is God's gracious work of bringing an end to an idol in our lives. I am not suggesting that God directly acts to bring suffering in our lives. However, I am arguing that God so purposes and superintends all circumstances so that he guarantees the suffering we are enduring. He does this so that we will come to an end of ourselves, utterly repent of all idolatry, and joyfully look to Him in faith. He brings suffering into our lives so that we recognize our continual need for Him, which is our good! The Puritan divine, Richard Sibbes, has said that "God bruises a reed so he will know that he is not an oak." Suffering is the gracious bruising God brings into our lives so we know we are not oaks! This temporary, faith-building, joy-inducing, and praiseworthy bruising is God's gracious design for our lives. We should not despise the bruising but be thankful for it.

3. Be careful with fair-weather friends

I remember my first campaign for political office quite well. I ran in 1998 for a central committee seat and I lost horribly. No one endorsed me and even less people voted for me. I also remember my second campaign. I ran in 2004 for a school board seat. I gained little support from any political establishment. I had no significant endorsements, little money, and according to pundits little likelihood of winning. Yet, in a shocking turn of events I overwhelmingly won the election. I was amazed at all the new friends I gained. Suddenly, people who would not give me the time of day wanted to go to lunch. I was now a hot commodity politically.

I remember saying to one of my friends the night I won that this new found popularity is fleeting. I told him we need to note those who stood by us before victory because they would be the ones left after defeat. Proverbs 19:4 says, "wealth brings many new friends, but a poor man is deserted by his friend." The fact is that we all love to run with those who have money and power. We love to sit near the seat of power. We are also a people who love the taste of the words of a gossip (Prov. 26:22). So, when the political winds shift the chatter begins. When the popularity wanes we dine on the reputation of our friend.

Thus, we should be warned that we must be exceedingly careful with fair-weather friends. Loyal friends are hard to find. How do you know the difference between loyal friends and fair-weather friends? I think you can apply two tests:

a. Who are your friends before victory? Who was there when you were still poor and who is only around now that you are rich?

b. Who are your friends who tell you the truth, rather than just flatter you? We love the profuse kisses of our enemies and don't always care for the wounds of our friends. However, the wounds of a friend are faithful.

4. Courageously pursue your calling and not outcomes

On a rainy evening in the Spring of 2004 I stood quietly dejected with a group of friends in a parking lot. We had just lost a battle over what we considered an important moral issue and had been betrayed by people we supported. We were stunned and defeated (Incidentally, this is a scene I see portrayed every couple of election cycles).

As we stood there wondering how such injustice could happen and wondering where we go from here, I heard wisdom that I strive to live by everyday. An older Christian lady said to us, "Tonight we lost. But, we did not come out here to fight because we knew we would win. We came out here to fight because we believe the cause is just! Tonight we lost. But, tomorrow we will get up and fight again because the cause is just. Whether we win or lose we will continue to get up each day and fight because the cause is just!"

Whether the calling God has put in your life is politics or something else, you get up everyday and fulfill your calling because it is what He has given you to do. It is right to give God glory by vigorously pursuing your calling, regardless of whether you receive the outcome you hope for in doing so. I fulfill my pastoral calling because God has called me to it. I let God take care of the outcomes. I believe God has given me a mission to water and sow. I believe God will give the increase. This same principle follows in every area of our lives. We know what God calls us to but we don't know what outcome will occur. Our responsibility is to simply get up everyday and do it because it is right. So, I encourage you to take courage and fulfill your calling no matter what the outcome is each individual day.

No Right to Homsechool

A court in New Hampshire ordered a 10 year old girl to be placed in public school. Her mother had been homeschooling her since the 1st grade. The court said it found 10 year old Amanda, "generally likable and well liked, social and interactive with her peers, academically promising, and intellectually at or superior to grade level."

Yet the court went on to argue, "it would be remarkable if a ten-year-old child who spends her school time with her mother and the vast majority of her other time with her mother would seriously consider adopting any other religious point of view."

The court agreed with the plaintiff (the young girl's father whom she does not live with) that Amanda, "appeared to reflect her mother's rigidity on questions of faith . . . Amanda's relationship with her father suffers to some degree by her belief that his refusal to adopt her religious beliefs and his choice instead to spend eternity away from her proves that he does not love her as much as he says he does."

You can read the story here.

Uncle Sam Can...

Scary Stats on Growing Federal Government!

Sobering stats: this year the federal government will:

• spend $30,958 per household
• tax $17,576 per household
  
• borrow $13,392 per household

Federal spending, in particular, will

• be increased by 22%
• account for 26% of the gross domestic product (GDP)

By 2019, we'll be spending almost $800 billion just to pay net interest on our debt.

And none of these estimates include the cost of health-care reform!

(HT: Justin Taylor)

Obama and Gay Marriage

Well, President Obama is now calling for the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act. In the following news story his administration states that they see it as discriminatory. On a side note, I am pleased to hear that his administration has rightly used the justice department to defend DOMA. The justice department is constitutionally obligated to defend the law, not to seek its repeal. So, I am thankful the administration understands the proper constitutional process for dealing with DOMA. I just wish the President was not seeking to repeal it in Congress (although at least I can say that Congress is the proper branch of government for such discussions).

Read the story here.

Government gone mad...

I am beginning to think our government has completely lost their minds. The idea of fiscal responsibility (you know the idea where you don't spend more than you make) seems to be completely foreign to those in elected office. California has a proposed budget deal (incidentally made behind closed doors which would be a violation of the Brown Act at the local level). The deal would cuts several billion this year...although no where near the amount needed to be cut. The deal would also push forward some bills until next year and take several billion dollars away from local municipalities. Overall, the California State budget is only reduced by 4 billion. What amazes me is that these guys are trying to pass off as a solution the idea of pushing bills to the next year and stealing money from counties and cities. By the way, hundreds of millions of that money is being taken from redevelopment agencies and transportation funds (these are taxes your local government tagged onto property taxes in order to fund local improvements).

Read the story here.

To add insult to injury, the Federal government is now saying the bailout could cost as much as 23 trillion dollars! This is 9 trillion more than our GDP! The entire relief effort for the Great Depression came in at 500 billion in today's dollars. Obama said he would bring change, but sadly most voting Americans did not believe some of us who warned that change would be a fundamental shift from capitalism to socialism.

Read the story here.

No Bible for show and tell!

Sadly, a court of appeals ruled that a mother could not read the Bible for show and tell during an all about me time at school. She was giving a presentation in her son's kindergarten class and wanted to read from the Bible as part of what is important to the 5 year old. However, the court ruled that reading from the Scripture would be a violation.

Read the story here.

Why I am involved in politics...

Because when government gets out of control this kind of frightening behavior begins:

Pastor told his home is no place for Bible study apart from paying large "major use" fees to county of San Diego!

Proposition 8 Upheld!

I just heard that Proposition 8 has been upheld (praise God for that), but same sex marriages that happened prior to passage of Prop 8 will stand (talk about legal stupidity)...more information to follow.

New Supreme Court Pick Announced

President Obama has announced Sonia Sotomayor as his pick for the United States Supreme Court. Concerns have already begun being lodged about her judicial philosophy. Here is a video and a quote from two separate recent statements:



Her quote from a previous lecture found in the NY Times:

“I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life...”

Here is to hoping she turns out to be someone who often employs sarcasm!

Are we moving toward Justiciarchy?

I know, I know, justiciarchy is not a word, but it will be. As we move down the path of an increasingly activist court, we will continue to see the court move into an increasingly legislative role. According to the Associated Press, Iowa's Supreme Court just declared the ban on gay marriage unconstitutional:

"The court reaffirmed that a statute inconsistent with the Iowa constitution must be declared void even though it may be supported by strong and deep-seated traditional beliefs and popular opinion," said a summary of the ruling issued by the court.

What citizens are not asking is how defining marriage as it has been defined for thousands of years is infringing upon the rights of those who now want it redefined. On what basis are courts suddenly redefining marriage? The larger story here is that judges are moving quite comfortably into the role of unelected legislators and the legislatures, executives, and people across America hardly seem to care. God help us as we happily and lazily slide into tyranny.