Recently it was reported that Attorney
General Jeff Sessions was blasted by the Left-wing media for speaking to an
alleged “hate group.” Sessions spoke to
the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) – a Christian legal defense group. Sessions commended how sad it is that the
Left’s hate in America today has come to the point in which Christians must
have a legal defense organization to protect their 1st Amendment rights of
religious liberty … a founding principle of this country.
It’s also stunning to see how much
controversy was generated by the White House meeting in which Christians prayed
over President Trump in the Oval Office. The Rev. William Barber II, who also serves as
the President of the North Carolina NAACP, had this to say about the prayer for
the president:
“This
very, very, very, extreme agenda by Ryan and McConnell is a form of theological
malpractice that borders on heresy. When
you can p-r-a-y for a president and others while they are p-r-e-y, preying on
the most vulnerable, you’re violating the most sacred principles of religion.”
Apparently, Rev. Barber has forgotten
or is unaware of the biblical injunction to pray for our leaders. There are several passages, but most Christians
are familiar with these verses:
“I urge, then, first
of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all
people – for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and
quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.
This is good, and pleases God our Savior …” (1 Timothy 2:1-3,
NIV)
Given this clear Biblical mandate, I
and millions of believers will continue to pray for President Trump, Vice
President Pence and all those in positions of authority … no matter how many Leftists
try to intimidate us.
While Rev. Barber can quote chapter
and verse about the need to care for the poor, there is not one verse in which
Jesus says to lobby the Pharisees or the Roman government to give more money to
the poor. All the verses about helping
widows and orphans, the lame and the sick were injunctions to individual Christians
or to churches collectively. They were
not a call for big government. And given
the ‘kangaroo court’ Christ was subjected to before He was murdered, I think it
is safe to say that Jesus was not a fan of big government!
I suspect that few of those criticizing
the president today objected when Obama tried to force Christians and the
Little Sisters of the Poor to pay for abortions. The Bible says, “Now choose life, so that you and your children may live.”
(Deuteronomy 30:19b, NIV)
I don’t recall many ‘progressive’
religious leaders raising their voices when Left-wing judges stripped away thousands
of years of Judeo-Christian history and distorted God’s definition of marriage.
Where were these ‘progressive’
religious leaders when Christian business owners faced persecution from the Left
and from big government for following their faith?
Where were the ‘progressive’ religious
leaders when the Obama Administration was ignoring the genocide of Christians
in the Middle East? Where do they stand
when it comes to bringing in more Muslim migrants who we know have
statistically high rates of anti-Semitism and, in many cases, harbor hatred of
Christians?
And when was the last time one of
these ‘progressive’ religious leaders spoke out against the growing
anti-Semitism on the Left and defended Israel … the only nation in the Middle
East where the number of Christians is growing?
[Sadly, a growing number of ‘progressive’ Christian denominations are,
in the name of Christ (a Jew), irrationally and immorally condemning the Jewish
state.]
Unhesitatingly,
I’ve been ‘polar opposite’ to the ‘progressive’ clergy of America. And I make no apology! My stances on each of these issues (and more)
are grounded in a Biblical worldview.
Rev.
Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain
(Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor,
Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel
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