the issue isn't the issue

I'm just about tired of all the campaign commercials and political advertising.  Okay, I've been tired of it since about MARCH... but alas now we can finally see a light at the end of the tunnel.  With only two weeks left till the general election, the candidates are ratcheting up their rhetoric... but its ALMOST OVER! 

I keep hearing that the candidates should be talking about the issues.  THAT'S what the American people want to hear about.  I'm not sure about everyone else, but I'm kinda sick of hearing about the "issues" myself, because I'm pretty sure that the issues aren't the issue.  Everybody is talking about the problems that face the country... there's the economic crisis, the war in Iraq, the global war on terror, the need for better & more affordable healthcare for every American, overwhelming poverty, abortion, same-sex marriage, etc.  The list is endless, really.  But I wonder... what's the #1, fundamental problem facing EVERY American?  Sin, isn't it?  Aren't we (as a people) in the shape we're in because of SIN... not just sin in a personal sense, but SIN in an institutional sense.  The truth is, its not just individuals who have "sinned and fallen short" but our entire world is fallen as a result.  SIN has so wreaked havoc in our world that we speak not only of lost souls, but we can speak of a fallen world.  And isn't that why we have the problems that we have... from abortion to the war to the economic failure?

Isn't the fundamental, bottom-line ultimately a spiritual problem?  If so, can we really "fix it" with a political solution?  I don't think so.  So, what is the "fix"?  This Sunday I'm going to pose this question... as we just have two more weeks left till the election, it may be a good time to stop and think... "Just what DO we expect a new President to do?"  Can either one of them really address "the issue" with a viable solution?  Can we?

Some comments I've gotten...

I can't believe all of the comments I have recieved after announcing that I was going to tackle the subject of "Faith & Politics" for the next four Sundays!  I've never recieved as many comments (good, bad or indifferent) from ANY sermon I've ever preached... especially BEFORE it has even been delivered.  I wonder what people are afraid I will say?  I wonder what people expect me to say?  Below are just a sampling of e-mails I've gotten from my Facebook page as well as e-mail... the names are left off to protect the innocent & the guilty!  Remember, the question was "Can you talk about politics at church?"

"I remember someone who tried to talk about politics in synagogue...I don't think it went very well for him."

 

"I guess it depends if anyone from the IRS attends there."

 

"just remind everyone that we (BOTH sides) need to stop expecting the government to do what Christ designated as the church's responsibility." 

 

"The fact that I've typed and re-typed my reply about six times is a sure sign we shouldn't." 

 

"You do have freedom of speech, but depending on what you would say...  Your family could crash at our place if it ended badly.  Or...  you could just blame Brad!" 

 

"NOT from the pulpit! We have had problems with this at our church recently! I think it is a bad idea!" 

 

"and make everyone happy! sticky one!" 

 

"Can discuss current events and political issues of moral significance--but advocate for a candidate and it will threaten your tax exempt status.  And also half the congregation will disagree with you and get mad. :)"

 

"take a lesson from an old man... Its not a good idea..."

 

   Your lesson topic on "Faith & Politics" is interesting.  You are a brave soul!  Would love to be there to hear them.  I have been "forbidden" by a couple of my elders to even mention it.  I am really struggling with that, in a time when I feel I NEED to be vocal.

   Let's keep praying. 

 

"If you figure that out, let us all know!"

 

"Poor Jim - Everyone expects you to back a candidate!  Show them the true way!  Point to "that one" who died on the cross for us.  Following Christ is politics - it smashes the Republicans and Democrats by reminding them they they are part of a fallen world that offers no true hope to their followers."

 

"You can talk about politics as long as you don't talk about Republicans, Democrats, Politicians, Issues, Mistakes, or Solutions.  Everything else is fair game."

 

 

Can you talk about politics at church?

I can remember one of the first things said to me when I began preaching was, "Just stay out of politics... it'll only get you into trouble."  I laughed about it then, but considered it sound advice.  Yet here I am, some years later, facing one of the biggest "political" decisions I've ever faced... coming Nov. 4th and another Presidential election.  While this decision may not rank up there with the all time greatest decisions ever, it is still rather significant.  Who am I to vote for... if I vote at all?  I have conflicting opinions.  Neither of the candidates fully represent the platform I would wish that they would.  There are things about both of the candidates that I like... and certainly things about both of them that I don't like.  I find myself in a quandary.  I've even been tempted to follow the way of David Lipscomb and abstain from voting at all... but I'm not sure that's the best approach.

This has not only already been one of the longest campaigns in history, it has been one of the most interesting.  I can't think of an election in modern times where religion has played such a dominant role.  Beginning in the primary season when one of the major candidates was an ordained Baptist minister, through the controversies surrounding Barak Obama's former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, right up until today as Sarah Palin has faced questions about her roots in a Pentecostal church... the question of faith has been a recurring theme. 

So, I've decided that since this is such a major issue in our nation and community today... I can't ignore it from the pulpit.  Beginning this Sunday I am inviting the congregation to explore with me the intersection of faith and politics.  What is the relationship of our faith to our politics?  What should it be?  I have already recieved more comments than I have ever gotten about a sermon that I haven't even preached yet... so let me hear from you!  What do you think?