Jesusnomics

Today’s post comes from @RealFredHammond

“While most Black Christians who vote Dem, are not saying they approve of Abortion & gay issues but want a fair shake at life”

Let’s start at the end and work backwards on this one. What does it mean to want a “fair shake at life”? More specifically, what sort of fairness is exclusive to Democrats? Civil Rights is already the law of the land including Equal Opportunity for employment, Fair Housing, and so on. Last time I checked, there was no part of the Republican or Libertarian agenda to revoke any of that.

In fact, the only significant place in which Republicans and Democrats differ in areas of race would seem to be on the issues of entitlements. In other words, it’s not about fairness at all but about what government is obligated to give people simply for being born of a certain race or ethnicity. That’s not about a fair shake at life, in fact that’s the complete opposite of fairness.

So in reality, the meaning of this statement is that African-American Christians are willing to violate their own consciences with regards to issues like abortion and gay rights as long as the cash and entitlements keep flowing. That’s hardly a complimentary picture of the Black Christian demographic, especially if you consider that on average, “1,876 black babies are aborted every day in the United States.” Did those babies get a ‘fair shake’ at life?  Their chance at fairness ended before they ever saw the light of day.

One can almost hear the words of Jesus has He said to His disciples: “deny yourself, take up your cross, and then vote for whichever candidate promises to give you the most stuff.” Go thou and do likewise.

This morning’s message comes from Twitter via @rhammett

Hopeful this morning that God’s people do not mistake Republicans for revival. Politicians cannot solve our nation’s problems!

Amen.

Jesusnomics is never about politics as an end in itself. Political action should flow primarily out of the Gospel through a robust theology and generous orthopraxy. Trying to rewrite the Gospel into a message of political expediency is what gets both sides of the aisle in trouble.

Last night some politicians won and some politicians lost. The winners promised a bright new day full of wonderful things and the losers blamed everything but themselves for their losses. It’s what politicians always do. While it’s important that we be aware and involved in issues of public policy that affect our lives, our wallets, and our freedoms, our Hope does not reside in a political Savior. The government is not the final arbiter of our sanctification.

Elections matter. I watched the returns late into the night to see how the political landscape is shaping up for the next few years. But this morning as the dust settles it’s important to remember that whether “your guys” won or lost, the Gospel matters more.