CityView Magazine

faith Jesus Is Not A Republican, Democrat, Conservative or Liberal BY THE REV. DAN ALGER blue facing off against throngs of people dressed in red. There are many opposing candidates with equally opposing perspectives on government, morality, econom- ics, sexuality, etc. etc. etc. So, where does Je- sus fit into this mess? Is he red? Is he blue? Is he conservative? Is he liberal? Here's the truth of it: he's none of the above. There is no one political party or ideology that purely represents the teachings and perspectives of Jesus Christ. Of course, there are particu- lar issues that God makes his stance pretty clear on and there are times when one party holds a policy more in line with God's position than the other, but no one party has it all right. In fact, there are passages in the f you haven't noticed, it is an election year. And if you haven't heard we have a two party sys- tem here in the United States. So, that means every Presidential election has crowds of people dressed in Piety Before Politics I groups came together in their agreement that Jesus did not live up to their standards. He didn't follow all the rules of the conservatives and he didn't give free reign to everyone like the liberals did. The same is true today. So, what do we do with this? We need to stop tying our faith to a political party. If we are Christians we need to vote for the can- didate who we feel will best lead according to the wisdom, morality and commands laid out in the Scripture, regardless of party affiliation. The standard by which we evaluate a candidate should not be set by a party, but by the Word of God. The things God opposes, we should oppose; and the things God sup- ports, we should support. However, that doesn't mean the Bible that would make your sweet- tea drinking Southern Baptist Re- publican cringe and there are other passages that make the microbrew im- bibing, post-modern Seattleite Demo- crat scowl. Conservatives and liberals, Democrats and Republicans alike could all probably make suggestions to Jesus about things they think he should change about his ideas to better support their perspectives. If you don't believe me, consider this: Jesus' crucifixion was a bi-partisan, cross-the-aisle, unified effort where both conservatives and liberals called for his death. The Sadducees were the liberals of the day and were much more willing to incorporate the whims of the culture. The Pharisees were the fundamentalists who were not satisfied with the holiness of the Scripture alone, so they had to add their own rules on top and look down on anyone who didn't follow them. But these 20 | November/December • 2012 ucated about the issues our nation faces today and what the Scripture has to say about them. We are called to be salt and light in the American democratic system. So, let us be a bold, humble and winsome voice. Let's cut the rancor and the par- tisanship and work for the glory of God, guided by the truth of His Word, for the flourishing of His earth. Be a Republican or a Democrat or whatever you are, but by the grace of Jesus Christ, be a Christian first. CV disagree with us. Let me sum it up this way: Christians should absolutely be a part of politics. Christians definitely should vote. Christians need to be well-ed- reciprocal is true. God does not have to support the causes we feel strongly about. God is not in any particular party. We also need to stop demoniz- ing those who disagree with us. Remember, Jesus prayed for forgive- ness for the people who were in the process of murdering him. Our faith is based on grace and humility and we need to show those qualities to all who

• Cover