The Responsibility of Citizenship

What is the role of a citizen in shaping the government?

Preamble of Constitution

We live in a representative democracy in the United States, in which “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America”

In the United States of America we are not just the citizenry of the nation we live in; we are the government as well. We have the right as well as the responsibility to help shape the laws that govern this nation.

What is government and why is it necessary?

Administration of life in an organized society as well as the body of officials
that presides over the process. Human beings discovered at an early stage in
their history that a social situation in which "everyone did as he saw fit" (Judges 21:25) proved to be an unstable, disorganized, and
frequently even a dangerous one, in which unenlightened self-interest took
precedence over the concerns of other citizens. Baker's Evangelical
Dictionary of Biblical Theology

What is God’s purpose for government?

1Obey the government, for God is the one who put it there. All governments have
been placed in power by God. 2So those who refuse to obey the laws of the
land are refusing to obey God, and punishment will follow. 3For the
authorities do not frighten people who are doing right, but they frighten those
who do wrong. So do what they say, and you will get along well. 4The
authorities are sent by God to help you. But if you are doing something wrong,
of course you should be afraid, for you will be punished. The authorities are
established by God for that very purpose, to punish tho+se who do
wrong. 5So you must obey the government for two reasons: to keep from being
punished and to keep a clear conscience. 6Pay your taxes, too, for these
same reasons. For government workers need to be paid so they can keep on doing
the work God intended them to do. 7Give to everyone what you owe them: Pay
your taxes and import duties, and give respect and honor to all to whom it is
due. Romans 13 NLT

What responsibilities do we have as Christians in the United States?

Since we as citizens of the United States are the government, as established in the Pre-amble of the Constitution, and government is meant to administer life in an organized society, do we not have a responsibility to make laws that will benefit the well-being of the entire society. Judges 21:25 states that “there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” Is that not what we find in our own nation today? There can be no set standard of right and wrong, because that standard is said to be unloving or intolerant. In the end though, isn’t the unloving act to allow society to deteriorate in such a way that “self interest” takes “precedence over the concerns of other citizens.” If government has been established and ordained by God, (not simply the authority of government but the type of government that any nation is under) for the protection and the punishment of its citizens, then do we not have a responsibility as Christians in a representative democracy to form laws for the benefit of that society?

It is our responsibility as citizens, as well as Christians, to seriously consider the positions of those running for political office. Voting is a right that should not be taken lightly, but it is not an overwhelming act either. The platform of each party reveals their beliefs clearly, as well as the voting record of each candidate. Compare those positions with your convictions and vote. If each American fulfilled their governing responsibility, we would defiantly begin to live in “a more perfect union.”

Life

Life is an issue that divides our nation. It has been dividing it since January 1972. The division arose with the Supreme Court ruling on Roe v. Wade. That decision made abortion legal in the United States for the first time. It was seen as a victory for women, a victory so that they would no longer have to publicly carry the burden of an “indiscretion”, a public burden their male counterparts did not have to carry. Women now had the right to chose; to chose what they would do with their own bodies.

With that decision, the nation was firmly divided. The United States was and is divided between two passionate world views; those who believe life is sacred and no one has a “right” to take the life of another, no matter how small that life might be, and those who see women’s bodies as their own and the Roe v. Wade decision as liberation for women across the nation.

This decision acted as the final catalyst for many Christians around the country. Prayer and the Bible had been removed from the public schools by this same court, and now that same court said that life, a unborn child’s life, was not sacred. By 1979, only seven years after the Roe decision, Jerry Falwell and the Moral Majority was up and running, moving a pro-life president into the White House, by calling on Christians to vote according to their moral beliefs. A movement against judicial activism began with Roe v. Wade, a movement wrought from the pens of the Burger justices; a movement that is known today as the “Religious Right.”

Christians, as a voting bloc, became a significant power in the political landscape. Politicians on both sides of the isle started to court them. The rise of the “Religious Right” was lead by organizations like the Christian Coalition, Focus on the Family, and The Family Research Council. Family values became the dominate theme of presidential convention after convention, especially for the Republican Party, whose party platform lined up with the pro-life passion of the majority of its constituent base.

“Christian” became synonymous with Republican for many American’s, but that correlation was not always seen as a positive. A backlash to the political drive of the “Religious Right”, especially their political activities, has arisen among a new generation of political activists.

The youth of the 90’s saw the founders of the “Religious Right” as mean spirited, vindictive men who did not want to share Christ with the world, but instead wanted to gain power for themselves. The dominate worldview of the founders of the religious right movement is being rejected by the generation that followed them. Self-proclaimed, post-modern Christians see men like Jerry Falwell, Gary Baure, James Dobson, and D. James Kennedy as unloving and unchristian in their approach to political activity. This new generation of politically active Christians is just as passionate as the prior leaders, but their focus is far different. They protest against those standing up for “traditional” family values, arguing against such things as the Marriage Amendment. They believe it is harsh and uncaring to ask for a Constitutional Amendment for marriage, believing this amendment pushes people, specifically homosexuals, away from God.

The life of the unborn or as Rick Warren stated, the human rights of the unborn, is not even enough to rally this new generation into one political entity with their predecessors. The life issue has become passé. To many, it is divisive and unwinnable, so why make it the one issue to live and die over. The new generation of Christians and non-Christians argue that people are being killed around the world. All killing should be stopped including the killing our own nation perpetrates against innocent people in Iraq and Afghanistan. For the post-modern generation, global warming is the equivalent of marching for civil rights in the ‘60’s. The planet, not humanity, needs to be saved. Saved from what; saved from humanity itself. The Republican Party is no longer seen as the party of moral values. Moral values have shifted for many post-modern Christians, with abortion taking a backseat to more faddish and popular causes.

These new political Christians are no less engaged in changing culture than their older counterparts. They differ in how that should be achieved and what social change actually should take place. The post-moderns don’t stand against anything. They embrace everything and everyone that is different from themselves, except their forefathers in the political world they all inhabit.


The political divide that separates these two generations is based on a multitude of factors, but one of the main features of their differences of thought has arisen within the past decade. The disparity between them is based on their interpretations or application of the Bible; more specifically the inspiration or importance of all Scripture.

To the post-modern Christian, the Gospels are the most significant section the Bible. The life of Jesus is the gold standard and the rest of the Bible is not as vital to the life of a believer. Now the leaders of the “right” or more clearly described, the moderns, believe all Scripture is God breathed and is profitable for correction, teaching and training in righteousness. They too would claim Christ as the gold standard, but they would look at His life as part of the overall plan of God for humankind. A plan encompassed by both Old and New Testaments; the writings of Moses as much as the writings of Paul. The importance of all Scripture to modern Christians is one of the reasons they are so passionate in their stance against abortion, gay rights and moral relationships in marriage. Those in the “right” believe that the Ten Commandments matter, and there is a moral law humanity should live by. The post-moderns do not hold to this belief as strongly. They never want to appear judgmental or unloving. Relationship for the post-modern trumps a biblical standard of morality.

This is one reason that Barack Obama was unable to answer Rick Warren, when Warren asked him at what stage human rights should be extended to a child. Obama said the answer to that question was “above his pay grade.” He could not say because if he answered in either direction he would be making a judgmental statement. Yet he was able to say that evil does exist, such as in killing of innocents in Darfur, but he was unable to say that that evil should be crushed or defeated as John McCain said. To say that the United States had a right to defeat an evil presupposes a moral superiority and that is judgmental or uncaring for those on the other side, who might not be evil but simply misguided.

Many young Christians are drawn to Barack Obama because they too believe that it is not possible to make moral judgments of other nations because we ourselves have moral failings. They are also being drawn by the new focus the Democratic Party is placing on faith and prayer. An announcer on the Christian radio station, KLOVE, overflowed with excitement and praise for the Democratic convention. She said that God was not absent, His name was being used and prayer was a prevalent part of the huge event being held in Denver.

The Democrats have always claimed faith, the difference in their draw to Christians a decade ago and their draw today is that the post-modern generation does not look at one issue as the plumb line in their voting decisions. The Democratic Party has not changed. Its platform has always been the same since the Roe v. Wade decision in 1972. It states:

Because we believe in the privacy and equality of women, we stand proudly for a
woman's right to choose, consistent with Roe v. Wade, and regardless of her
ability to pay. We stand firmly against Republican efforts to undermine that
right. At the same time, we strongly support family planning and adoption
incentives. Abortion should be safe, legal, and rare.

Democrats stand behind the right of every woman to
choose. We believe it is a constitutional liberty. This year’s Supreme Court
ruling show us that eliminating a woman’s right to choose is only one justice
away. Our goal is to make abortion more rare, not more dangerous. We support
contraceptive research, family planning, comprehensive family life education,
and policies that support healthy childbearing. Source: The Democratic
Platform for America, p.36 Jul 10, 2004

Life still divides us as a nation, but sadly, it has just become another issue among the many. No longer is it an evil to be defeated. It is a political issue to be discussed, and accepted if necessary in order not to appear judgmental. The truth is if evil is not defeated a moral judgment is still made.

July 20, 2000,
Testimony of Jill Stanek to Illinois Legislature
On Behalf of The Born-Alive Infant Act

I am a Registered Nurse who has worked in the Labor & Delivery
Department at Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn, Illinois, for the past five years.
Christ Hospital performs abortions on women in their second or even third
trimesters of pregnancy. Sometimes the babies being aborted are healthy, and
sometimes they are not.

The method of abortion that Christ Hospital uses is called "induced
labor abortion," also now known as "live birth abortion." This type of abortion
can be performed different ways, but the goal always is to cause a pregnant
woman's cervix to open so that she will deliver a premature baby who dies during
the birth process or soon afterward. The way that induced abortion is most often
executed at my hospital is by the physician inserting a medication called
Cytotec into the birth canal close to the cervix. Cytotec irritates the cervix
and stimulates it to open. When this occurs, the small, preterm baby drops out
of the uterus, oftentimes alive. It is not uncommon for one of these live
aborted babies to linger for an hour or two or even longer. One of them once
lived for almost eight hours.

In the event that a baby is aborted alive, he or she receives no
medical assessments or care but is only given what my hospital calls "comfort
care." "Comfort care" is defined as keeping the baby warm in a blanket until he
or she dies, although even this minimal compassion is not always provided. It is
not required that these babies be held during their short lives.

One night, a nursing co-worker was taking an aborted Down's Syndrome
baby who was born alive to our Soiled Utility Room because his parents did not
want to hold him, and she did not have time to hold him. I could not bear the
thought of this suffering child dying alone in a Soiled Utility Room, so I
cradled and rocked him for the 45 minutes that he lived. He was 21 to 22 weeks
old, weighed about 1/2 pound, and was about 10 inches long. He was too weak to
move very much, expending any energy he had trying to breathe. Toward the end he
was so quiet that I couldn't tell if he was still alive unless I held him up to
the light to see if his heart was still beating through his chest wall. After he
was pronounced dead, we folded his little arms across his chest, wrapped him in
a tiny shroud, and carried him to the hospital morgue where all of our dead
patients are taken.

Other co-workers have told me many upsetting stories about live aborted
babies whom they have cared for. I was told about an aborted baby who was
supposed to have Spina bifida but was delivered with an intact spine. Another
nurse is haunted by the memory of an aborted baby who came out weighing much
more than expected ~ almost two pounds. She is haunted because she doesn't know
if she made a mistake by not getting that baby medical help. A Support Associate
told me about a live aborted baby who was left to die on the counter of the
Soiled Utility Room wrapped in a disposable towel. This baby was accidentally
thrown into the garbage, and when they later were going through the trash to
find the baby, the baby fell out of the towel and on to the floor.

I was recently told about a situation by a nurse who said, "I can't
stop thinking about it." She had a patient who was 23+ weeks pregnant, and it
did not look as if her baby would be able to continue to live inside of her. The
baby was healthy and had up to a 39% chance of survival, according to national
statistics. But the patient chose to abort. The baby was born alive. If the
mother had wanted everything done for her baby, there would have been a
neonatologist, pediatric resident, neonatal nurse, and respiratory therapist
present for the delivery, and the baby would have been taken to our Neonatal
Intensive Care Unit for specialized care. Instead, the only personnel present
for this delivery were an obstetrical resident and my co-worker. After delivery
the baby, who showed early signs of thriving, was merely wrapped in a blanket
and kept in the Labor & Delivery Department until she died 2-1/2 hours
later.

Something is very wrong with a legal system that says doctors are
mandated to pronounce babies dead but are not mandated to assess babies for life
and chances of survival. In other words, our laws currently say that babies have
no rights to medical oversight until they are dead. We look the other way and
pretend that these babies aren't human while they're alive but human only after
they are dead. We issue these babies both birth and death certificates, but it
is really only the death certificate that matters. No other children in America
are medically abandoned like this.

Abortion is a cancer that is literally killing America. It is killing
our children while it is killing our consciences. It began when we took God out
of our decision making and proclaimed that the little beings growing inside of
women were "products of conception" and not little girls and little boys. Who
should be surprised that we keep pushing the envelope so that now we are
aborting these "products of conception" alive? I even work at a hospital named
"Christ" that does this very thing! It is beyond me to comprehend that we're
doing what we're doing now, and so I can't even imagine what horrible ways we
will think of next to torture our children. Please help put an end to this by
proclaiming infants as American human being homo sapiens with the same legal and
medical rights that you and I big people have. Thank you.

There is a harsh, judgmental attitude among many in the “Religious Right” movement that needs to be changed. Christ came to seek and save the lost, not gain political power and position, but neither did He ignore the moral ills of His day. He loved the adulterous woman, and said to her, “go and sin no more.” He made a moral judgment on her sin. Relationship is important to sharing the love of Christ, but there is a standard of right and wrong that God set up in His Word, His Law. Jesus did not come to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it.

“Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commands and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 5:19).

Do not take the name of the Lord your God in vain. Do not murder.

Christ Hospital preforms these types of abortions. Not only are they taking the lives of innocent babies, they are doing it in the name of Christ. Life continues to divide our nation, but it should never be an issue that divides Christians, be they post-modern or modern. There is no more loving stance than to defend the life of the innocent.

Real

Why do we as Christians think we need to hide things from each other, from outsiders and in our heads from God? It’s like, if we don’t say it, it isn’t true so we are holy. If we let our sin out, then everyone will know that we aren’t what we say we are, so then the name of Jesus will be tainted, so lets talk a good talk and then we can fool them all.

Well, guess what? Everyone already knows that we aren’t what we claim to be. They are just sitting back waiting on us to realize it. I think those outside of the church, sit around and laugh at how we try to make ourselves “look” like followers of Jesus. We are so not what we think we are, and if we would just admit that, I think the walls of most churches wouldn’t be able to contain the number of people who would come in to a church that was honest about itself, its people and it’s past.

I have found that most people who aren’t believers would be believers if it was simply about Jesus. Instead those trying to “impress” them with what it looks like to be a Christian get in the way. When I am real with people, they are real with me. When I confess my sin to them, they confess their sin to me, and when I have done that, then they are far more willing to take a look at Jesus. When I play the “holy” game, well they play it right back…calling us hypocrites, maybe even white washed tombs; sound familiar. In the end, it is realness that people want form us, not a game of hide and seek. They already know who we are, people just like them. The sad thing is that we don’t always know who we are.


We have lost our way. Jesus didn’t go to those who looked good on the outside. He didn’t entertain a crowd to get them to follow Him. He went and sat at a well with a woman that no one else would give the time of day. He asked a man who was lame for 38 years a question, I am sure no one else ever even took the time to acknowledge this man, but Jesus took the time to ask Him something about Himself. He didn’t go out to make a name for Himself, and when He was going to be dragged in to be king, he avoided the crowd. He loved people no one else loved, he forgave people no one else would forgive, and he walked with people no one else would allow themselves to walk with. He loved.

If we would start living out what we say we are, instead of pretending we are what we are not, then we wouldn’t have to put on a show to draw unchurched. If we were real, they would be real. If we loved one another, then we would be able to show every that we are true followers of Jesus.

This is how they will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another. John 13:35

A God Centered Heart

I was sharing with my kids today about how to hear from God. As I shared, I used my hands to explain to them the difference between the two types of lives Christians live at times. I held up one hand and above it I held up the other one. The first hand represented a Christian and the second hand signified God.

I let them know that many Christians walk along, knowing God is always with them and understanding that He is “above” them. They talk to Him if they think about it, or if something big comes along that they need help to understand, but too often they are not in constant communication. Really, they treat God like they would treat any other friend. They spend time with their friend when they have the time or when they have a need.

I then held up the hand that represented a Christian, but this time I opened it up and placed the hand that stood for God in the middle of it. I explained that some Christians live with God at their center. They are in constant fellowship or communication with Him. He directs all their thoughts, dreams and attitudes. These Christians aren’t always talking to God, but they are always listening to Him. They know His will at any given moment because they know Him.

My oldest said, “But Mom, aren’t we all like the first example sometimes.”

I said, “Yes, we are. We all tend to move back and forth between the two, but it is my hope that I can teach you to walk with Jesus at your center. I want you to understand that we make ourselves the center and check in with God every so often. That isn’t the way it should be.”

But sadly, I had to admit that I bounce between the two way too much. It is so easy to set my own agenda, thinking all the time that it is His. I set a schedule, keep to it, and then ask if it is okay, never actually listening for the answer. That is when I get way off course, and that is when Jesus has to get my attention.

The key to God centered living is this, I did not give my life to Christ to make Him the Friend of my life, instead I surrendered my life to His Lordship.

In the stillness, I hear Your voice call
And I am overwhelmed
And I am lost for words to describe it
Jesus You’re more than a friend
Jesus You’re more than my heart could ever express
Your love and Your grace never fail me
Your merciful touch always heals me
You bring joy to my soul
My heart longs to worship You my King
And I long to bring You a pleasing offering
And I am overwhelmed and
I am lost for words to describe it
Jesus You’re more than a friend
Jesus You’re more than my heart could ever express
Your love and Your grace never fail me
Your merciful touch always heals me
You bring joy to my soul.
Jesus You’re more than a friend
You’re more than my heart could ever express.

More Than A Friend by Jeremy Riddle


A God centered life is not easy. It takes sincere discipline and a heart that desires relationship with Jesus above anything (person, place, activity, career…) else.

Are you leading your own life, checking in with God every so often, or are you God centered? Is Jesus your friend or is He your Lord?

Imitate

Is there someone in your life that just makes you a better person? I mean when you are around them you learn what it means to live well. They do not just tell you what you are doing wrong (if they are a good friend they will tell you this occasionally), they tell you what you are doing right too. They live out their faith in a real and tangible way. They do not sit back and point their fingers at everyone else, because they realize how sinful they themselves are, but they do not use their own weakness as an excuse not to help others learn from their mistakes. They actually care about you, and your well-being. They are not in the relationship for what they can get out of it. They love you in an honest and real way.

When you spend time with them, you know that it is time well spent. You are inspired to live like them, and to learn from their example. They help you become a better wife, mother, daughter, friend and most of all follower of Christ. It seems that no matter whom they are with, they are godly, faithful, always pointing others to Jesus.

You might wonder if you were left without them what you would do, what you would be like. When you do not get to spend large amounts of time with them, you feel like you are drifting away from where you need to be. You might doubt your own strength or heart.

That is when you remember that Jesus gave you this person not as a replacement for Himself, but as an example of one totally devoted to Him, therefore a good example to follow. Just as Paul wrote to those he ministered to, “imitate me as I imitate Christ”, so too, if you have a friend like this, you have been given a modern day Paul to learn from. Know that no matter where you go, you will walk even closer to Jesus because such a faithful friend once guided you.

My pastor recently said, each of us needs to have a Paul in our lives to walk ahead of us as a guide as we grow in our faith. He then said that we also need someone to walk beside us, someone not ahead of us nor behind us in our maturity, but someone right with us in Jesus. Finally, he said that we need a Timothy to lead. Someone we are leading toward a deeper and more intimate relationship with Jesus.

I have often had overlapping friendships, where my friends and I trade places, sometimes we are walking side by side, other times they are holding my hand leading me in the right direction, and still other times I am leading them. The key to these relationships is that we are all looking in the same direction. No matter who is leading or who is following, we always have the set goal of walking together in Jesus.

Who is your Paul, your Barnabas, your Timothy? Don’t take them for granted. They are gifts from God. Keep good company so that you might continue to grow in your faith and obedience. As you do that, you will be to someone else what your friend has been to you. You will become a good example for someone else, and one day they will imitate you, as you imitate Christ.

Disillusionment of Relationship

What expectations do you have for the people in your life? I have one set for my husband, another for my kids and still another for my friends. I don’t think that I set a high standard of relational demands until I find those demands (which I did not know were demands) not being met.

I recognize I have one overall expectation for everyone in my life, which is depth of relationship. I want to be close to those who are important to me. If there is a distance, I feel insecure and try to rectify the distance or the reason for it as quickly as I can. If the distance continues I often feel unloved and undervalued. This “feeling” then leads me to draw back from the person thereby creating more distance. The very thing I wanted to avoid.

Not everyone needs the same level of intimacy that I find myself needing. The people I am most secure with tend to be those who are not necessarily like me but understand that need. I have realized however, no one can make me secure, no one can satisfy my expectations, no one is always constant in their love or affection. No one except Jesus.

Oswald Chambers addresses this subject of expectations in My Utmost for His Highest. In the devotional for July 30, he states:

Disillusionment means having no more misconceptions, false impressions, and
false judgments in life; it means being free from these deceptions. However,
though no longer deceived, our experience of disillusionment may actually leave
us cynical and overly critical in our judgment of others. But the
disillusionment that comes from God brings us to the point where we see people
as they really are, yet without any cynicism or any stinging and bitter
criticism. Many of the things in life that inflict the greatest injury, grief,
or pain, stem from the fact that we suffer from illusions. We are not true to
one another as facts, seeing each other as we really are; we are only true to
our misconceived ideas of one another. According to our thinking, everything is
either delightful and good, or it is evil, malicious, and cowardly.
Refusing to be disillusioned is the cause of much of the suffering of
human life. And this is how that suffering happens— if we love someone, but do
not love God, we demand total perfection and righteousness from that person, and
when we do not get it we become cruel and vindictive; yet we are demanding of a
human being something which he or she cannot possibly give. There is only one
Being who can completely satisfy to the absolute depth of the hurting human
heart, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. Our Lord is so obviously
uncompromising with regard to every human relationship because He knows that
every relationship that is not based on faithfulness to Himself will end in
disaster. Our Lord trusted no one, and never placed His faith in people, yet He
was never suspicious or bitter. Our Lord’s confidence in God, and in what God’s
grace could do for anyone, was so perfect that He never despaired, never giving
up hope for any person. If our trust is placed in human beings, we will end up
despairing of everyone.

No one will ever meet our every expectation, our every need, and if they try they will fail. If we hold those we love to the level of perfection, we will become bitter and unkind to those we claim to love and will in turn miss their expectation of us. The fact that we fail does not mean that we do not love, all it means is that we are human. A person’s willingness to change, to meet another’s expectations is actually one way they reveal their love. We need to place our absolute trust in Christ, and when we are able to do that then we can allow those around us to love us the best way they know how, and accept what they have to offer, not what we expect them to give.

Jesus did not commit Himself to them….for He knew what was in man….

John 2:24-25