- PSALM 118:8 (ESV): “It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man.”
- JEREMIAH 17:7 (NKJV): “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, And whose hope is the LORD.”
THE DARK FIRST DAY
TODAY IS DAY ONE of the new Biden-Harris Administration, and already we are seeing evidence of the deepening divide within our country. More ominously, we are seeing a deeper divide within the body of Christ.
The four-year reign of Trump-Pence has ended, and each man — and scores of top-level government officials — will begin the next phase of their lives, but we should take a moment to reflect on a few of their key accomplishments:
- Full support for the lives of pre-born children
- Support for male-female marriage as designed by God
- Lowest ever unemployment rate among minority racial groups
- Development of energy independence and exporter of energy
- Transfer of US embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, its capital city
- Signing of peace treaties between Israel and Arab countries
- Support for alternative schools and school choice to give parents the opportunity to send their children to schools that will educate
- Forcing NATO countries to pay their share of mutual defense costs
- Securing our southern border to halt the trade of illegal drugs and inpouring of illegal residents
- Rebuilding our depleted military
- Pulling back troops from long-term foreign engagements
- Fully transparent administration with unrivaled press opportunities
- Oversaw development of potential life-saving vaccines in “warp speed” to combat the ravages of Covid.
Perhaps the sweetest of all was a return to wishing our friends and acquaintances “Merry Christmas” instead of the vapid “Happy Holidays.”
According to the Biden-Harris game plan, all of those measures are now under assault.
Apart from the disgraceful platform this duo brings to power is the legitimacy they will bring to ending any form of, or attempt to, dialogue in a civil manner among competing interests in any public forum.
ALREADY THERE ARE CRIES TO:
- Silence the voices of those who supported the Trump-Pence Administration in any way,
- Boycott private companies that hire anyone who worked in the administration or who voiced support for the administration in social media,
- Censure elected representatives in Congress those who raised legitimate concerns over the mishandling of mail-in ballots during the election,
- Imprison those who are “science deniers,” i.e., anyone who disbelieves the political left’s views on energy consumption, energy production, climate change, efficacy of lock-downs and mask mandates,
- Label as “racists” anyone (white people only) who do not bend to the accepted meme that American institutions are fundamentally and systematically biased against minority races,
- Name white men (both a racist and a sexist claim) as the “problem” with American society, even though it was through white men that the “idea of America” was formed, established, and defended over the years.
A FUNDAMENTAL DIFFERENCE
A FUNDAMENTAL DIFFERENCE between the way the political left and the political right view their policy differences, and each other as fellow Americans, is also coming into sharp focus.
In 2017, political columnist Charles Krauthammer opined the divide this way: “Conservatives think liberals are stupid. Liberals think conservatives are evil.”
The proposition easily can be put to the test. Simply talk to one another.
The liberal will quickly move to an emotional argument around feeling, while the conservative will gravitate to a rational argument. That does not automatically make one side “right” and the other “wrong,” only that their methodology differs.
The liberal will make sweeping denunciations without support and offer policy proscriptions rift with error. Here’s an example: Biden-Harris want to stop development of the XL Pipeline from Canada, despite the fact that construction brings with it harmonious relations with our largest trading partner, thousands of high-paid union jobs, and a ready energy supply. By halting construction on unfounded environmental concerns, the liberals jeopardize all three points.
Rational? Not really. Placing displaced workers on food stamps and Medicaid may increase their dependence on federal government, but it does nothing to strengthen our country.
Try to make that point and see how quickly the liberal will engage in name-calling and attempts to make you “go away” and “shut up.”
Once a conservative voices a perspective different from the liberal’s, the liberal will begin the personal assault: “You’re racist, you’re fascist, you’re a science denier, you’re homophobic, you’re (whatever can be inserted here).”
That’s it. That’s their argument. They’ll boycott your business, slam you, embarrass you, assault you in restaurants, shout at you, and demand you give obeisance to whatever their particular grievance is at the moment. If you won’t salute “Black Lives Matter,” they see that as license to spit in your food and upend your table.
They can spend an entire year excusing left-wing violence in major US cities, treating the mayhem as “mostly peaceful” and necessary, yet go unhinged when a few people of mixed intent storm the Capitol while the President is speaking to his supporters at another location.
Again, try to point out the hypocrisy of their position, and they’ll threaten your children.
You think that’s an exaggeration? Try having a discussion with a liberal and see how quickly they pivot from their argument to a personal attack. It’s what they do.
WHAT HAPPENS NOW?
WHAT ARE WE to make of all this? What are we to do in light of the changing of the guard at the White House?
Whatever solution one posits emanates from one’s core values. Those who believe that “might makes right” may try violence, force, or verbal assault. That would be a very harmful response, and we should all condemn those instincts.
Those whose values are secular conservative will engage the argument around economic and political issues, writing letters to their congressmen/women, engaging in debate forums, encouraging people to register to vote and turn-out when the day arrives, and patiently enduring until the next election.
We can commend those instincts, but for those of us who are social conservatives, we find that approach shallow and missing an important component.
Social conservatives — often dubbed the “religious right” — draw their values from the inerrant and infallible Word of God, the Holy Bible, comprised of 66 books, authored over a 1,600-year period in three languages (Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic) by 44 authors inspired by the Holy Spirit into creating a unified whole in which the Creator of the universe reveals Himself to mankind.
For us, it’s the foundational values of society that are most compelling. Yes, we can weigh in on energy policies and corporate tax rates and educational goals, but it’s the family unit — mother, father, children — that is the centerpiece of a sound society, and we believe those values are now under attack, fueled by liberal ideology and backed by government power.
God has designed us as either male or female and created marriage as an institution to bring us together into a whole. Look at it this way: God fashioned Adam in His image and gave Adam human characteristics patterned after God’s — we have thought, emotions, wills — although not to God’s extent.
When God created Eve, He took some of the characteristics He had given Adam and gave them to Eve, leaving Adam with a portion of the whole while giving Eve a portion of the whole.
For Adam and Eve to be unified, as God is, they would need to come together as husband and wife in marriage.
That is foundational. There is no political or economic issue that rivals in importance the structure of the family.
When the very foundation of a structure is threatened, so, too, is the integrity of the structure.
That is where we are now.
POSTSCRIPT
O LORD, OUR HEAVENLY FATHER, we give thanks for Your great mercy, Your patience, Your kindness. We also know You are just and call us to separate from the world’s values, which are self-centered, vicious, and destructive. We ask that You mold us into the men and women you intended in creation, and that we call on Your name so we can be healed. O Lord, we repent of our evil. Forgive us, Lord, and take us under Your wing. In Jesus’ holy and matchless name we pray. AMEN
LoveAndGrace 