Ms. Adams is 100% correct. Which one is it exactly? The majority of the American church may be doing a celebratory dance but at least 25% of the church is laying in sackcloth and ashes. The 75% will accuse the minority of not supporting biblical values while the minority will accuse the 75% of supporting a morally bankrupt candidate. Both are right and both are wrong. The damage has been done within the body of Christ because we failed to adhere to the Word of God.
I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment. -- 1Corinthians 1: 10 (ESV)
Specifically here, Paul is admonishing the Corinthians for being divided over who they claim to be following. Some said they were following Paul, some Cephas, and others said they were following Christ. Such a division is easier to spot and correct one would think although with the high rate of pastor worship in the church today that also might be debatable. The overall point here however should not be lost. These verses this year could be speaking about following Trump or Hillary instead of Christ. The body of Christ is meant to be one body. We are meant to be unified by correct doctrine. How can one Christian be praying that Donald Trump be anointed with a Spirit of King David and another be praying that God expose his evil works of darkness? But preacher! What about praying for our leaders! For starters I would be curious if our prayer lives were so solemnly pious when the winner was not who we wanted but looking past that let us examine the text referenced:
First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers,, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. - 1Timothy 2: 1-4 (ESV)
So yes, there is no question that we ought to be praying for all leaders, including our new president elect. We do not do so however for carnal means and goals. We do so that we might live quiet and peaceful lives, godly and dignified in every way. Beloved there was nothing quiet, peaceful, godly or dignified about the way the church behaved in this election or in the aftermath. It has caused not only a witness problem for the world but deep seeded confusion within the body, as Ms. Adams artfully explains:
I was once one of those people who prided herself on attending churches where the people in my pew were people who didn't look like me. How beautiful to worship with one another in Christ. There is no this church, or that church, we were One Church and One Body. But I think somewhere we went wrong when we began to focus on the intent behind that being just about color, because that's what it has turned into. A great photo opportunity to throw onto websites or promo materials to show that one Black face or that one Asian face. We're learning now, the hard way that is just not enough. The reality of the deep theological, racial and philosophical differences are being unveiled. You might be holding my hand in prayer, and while I'm praying for justice for Trayvon Martin, you're praying for the innocence of George Zimmerman. You might be holding my hand in prayer, but while I'm praying God would provide a place for the poor and marginalized, you're praying" those people" would just go away. You might be holding my hand in prayer, but while I'm praying for the walls to come down, you're praying the walls would go up. You might be holding my hand in prayer, but we're praying two different prayers and possibly to two different versions of who we think Jesus is. How do we reconcile THAT? I'm immediately brought back to a time when my ancestors who were slaves would gather together on Sunday morning and sing their songs of praise, and read scripture aloud and pray to Jesus. Right across the field in their big homes, their slave owners gathered together to sing the same songs, read the same scripture and pray to their own version of Jesus as well. Well which one is it? How do we reconcile THAT? -- Khristi Adams
How do we reconcile that beloved? How do we reconcile that so many of the people we clasp hands with in prayer may be praying the exact opposite of us and our view about what and who Jesus is today? Let me proffer that it must begin and end with where we view our citizenship. That much like Jesus had nothing to say about the daily morass of life under Roman rule, we ought to have just as little to say about cultural and societal arguments for the modern day Sodom we live in. His kingdom is not of this world and as Christians, with our citizenship in heaven, our concern must be for the things of HIS kingdom. This is what it means to be a servant under the authority of someone we call Lord. We talk a good game as the church. We go out on Sundays and raise our hands to sing songs about our Lord and then leave the church building and become enamored in the things of this world instead of His kingdom. We become obsessed with the cause du jour and try to wrap Jesus around it with pious sounding Christianese. We do so often times out of pure motives forgetting that our wickedly deceitful hearts are not to be trusted. The Trayvon Martin story was a tragedy but our responsibility as the church was not to take either side. We were not there beloved. We do not know. The Bible says to leave such matters to God. We ought to pray peace for all involved and salvation for all who are lost. Go back and read the Timothy verses and you will see that even our prayers for leaders are directly tied to salvation. That is what matters to God and what ought to matter to His servants. There are not two different Jesus'. How profoundly sad is it that we have divided ourselves in such a manner that opposing sides of the same body believe in two different and incorrect caricatures of the one they claim to serve? Ms. Adams concludes:
So this past Tuesday, some of us were celebrating a victory in Jesus and others, devastated and turning towards Jesus to give them strength in the midst of evil. And I'm stuck, trying to figure out if I should go to church, because I just don't know whose hand I'm holding or which Jesus is being preached"that Jesus is my Savior & my Redeemer and I just want the real Jesus to stand up. Will the real Jesus, please just stand up?
