Now I hear it. Sure, now I hear it. Devestation occurred on November 6th, as Barack Obama gained another 4 year term as President of our beloved United States. This is the one thing that we as a nation, and as Christians, simply could not allow to happen. Not if we wanted to keep our freedoms. Not if we valued our liberty. We had to pull out all the stops to ensure that this would not happen. Yet disaster struck. And now I am reminded from choruses of Christians everywhere that “Jesus is King”.
But I thought He was already…
I just can’t help but wonder where all these Christians came from who suddenly pronounced Jesus as King. Was Jesus not King before the election? Funny, I really didn’t hear Christians saying so. Would Jesus have been King if Romney had won the election? Or is it just that His Kingship over the affairs of this temporal world wouldn’t have been quite so important if that were the case? Do passages such as Dan. 2:21, Rom. 13:1, and Rev. 17:14 contain some amplified truth post-election that was not entirely fulfilled until now?
Is the rash of “He is on the throne” type of statements simply in response to unfavorable circumstances, in which we need all the more reminding of these Spiritual truths to keep us grounded in faith and looking upward? Perhaps that is the case with some, and I certainly take no issue with that. In large part, however, I think there is something a bit deeper going on.
A King of Convenience
The fact that Jesus is King over the affairs of men, that He works all things together for good, that He has conquered sin and death, and that all creation awaits the full realization of His reign whereupon He will make all things new should never be a truth that we place on the backburner of our hearts, only to bring forward when we are deluged by the onslaught of negative circumstance. This truth encompasses and underpins our faith and hope! If we ignore these truths, then we are living as pagans, each one doing what is right in his own eyes.
Yet examine the facts. With little exception, the mantra of Christians pre-election was that we must grit our teeth and vote for Romney in order to keep Obama from gaining a disastrous 2nd term. Votes for 3rd party candidates were actually votes for Obama, thereby bringing the culpability for an Obama win on the backs of anyone who foolishly chose such action. Arguments for “voting principle” were shortsighted and foolish, ignoring the greater good of ridding our nation of a tyrant. In other words, we needed to do everything in our power to make sure we didn’t allow disaster to befall our nation.
Do you see the problem? The entire focus prior to the election was on what we needed to do. Our hope was in mobilizing enough voters, convincing enough naysayers, doing enough for the “greater good”, etc. However, when those actions failed, then we fell back on “Jesus is King” and “He is in control”.
Is this not double-minded? Why were not Christians reminding themselves of the fact that Jesus is King before the election? Why would they not base their voting decisions upon this truth, rather than upon what was expedient? Why do we think that Jesus is King, yet believe that the result of the election hinges upon our actions for the “greater good”?! Why do we think that we still have to vote for someone who doesn’t meet the Biblical criteria for a civil leader and who is a blasphemer to the face of God just because he’s (supposedly) “better than the other guy”? If Jesus is truly King, then why???
A King With Rivals
Sadly, in many instances (and not only in the political realm), the answer must be that Jesus is not truly King. That is, we refuse to allow Him to reign as King over our hearts and lives. We have convinced ourselves that we must act in our own power and through our own intellect to produce the result that we have deemed to be the most advantageous. In so doing, we become hardened to the simple truths of God’s Word, and fail to walk by faith. And predictably enough, the result of this behavior is disappointment and frustration.
We have explicitly told God that we will only give Him the Kingship after all the avenues of achieving our own desires are exhausted. Only after God’s judgment removes all trust in flesh do we respond in desperation and call Him King. Such a Kingship is not one which our Lord will accept. He will be King alone, without rival (Isa. 42:8, 43:10-11). So long as we place boundaries to His kingdom in our hearts, we will continue to be under His chastening.
The solution to this nation’s problems is not in an election (and certainly not in electing a blasphemer!). The answer to this nation’s problems is not found in lobbying, protests, supreme court appointments, or any political maneuvering. The only cure for our United States is in a Spiritual serum. This serum must take effect upon the hearts of Christians first. I believe that God is not waiting for Christians to influence the government, invite people to church, or even give people the gospel. No, first and foremost, He is withholding His blessing until the people who are called by His name will once again make Him their true, unrivaled King (Ex. 20:2-3; II Chron. 7:14, Jas. 4:8-10).