Skip to main content

Pray for Him? Pray For Them?


       I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone—  for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men—the testimony given in its proper time. And for this purpose I was appointed a herald and an apostle—I am telling the truth, I am not lying—and a teacher of the true faith to the Gentiles. I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing. (I Timothy 2:1-8)
 
          Oh, no. Politics. Do we have to? Doesn’t the Constitution say something about separation of Church and State? The reality is that the Constitution does have something to say about the separation of Church and State, but what it says is the opposite of what people claim today. It says that the State may not establish a state religion or interfere with the practice of any religion. This means that what the Bible says in this passage is entirely acceptable: we have the right to fulfill our Biblical responsibility to pray for our leaders. We should pray for their salvation, their sanctification; their physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual well-being, their wisdom, their endurance, their safety, and anything else that would enable those leaders to guide us in a way that allows us to live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. It doesn’t matter that I didn’t like Mr. Obama or that I’m not fond of Mr. Trump, or how you felt or feel about them. It also doesn’t matter what we think of Congress, the Supreme Court, or the various branches of our state and local governments. We are to pray that they will be good leaders.
          God’s goal isn’t for us to have heaven on earth. God’s goal is for all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. He sent Joseph to teach Pharaoh. He sent Moses to another Pharaoh. He sent Jonah to the Ninevites. He sent Daniel to the Medes and Persians and to the Babylonians. He sent Esther to Xerxes. He doesn’t put His people in charge. He puts other people in charge, and then sends His people to work for them. More often than not, those He sends diligently worked for the well-being of their employers/masters. Perhaps that is one of the reasons that Jesus told his disciples that if anyone wants to be first, he must be last, the servant of all. (Mark 9:35) 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Higher Thoughts

  “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the  Lord . “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9)           The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments,   for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord      so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ. (I Corinthians 2:15-16) If you read about the ancient gods of the various peoples, you’ll find that they think just like people. In fact, they think just like the sort of people we really wouldn’t want to be around. They think like the most corrupt Hollywood producer or, like hormone overloaded teens with no upbringing.   It’s embarrassing to read. I have a friend who argues that because God is not just like us, He is so vastly dif...
2 comments
Read more

A Virgin?

           Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)           This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 1:18)           But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”            “How will this be,” Mary asked the...
Post a Comment
Read more

Saved?

  I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” (John 10:28-30) “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, “I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ ” (Matthew 7:21-23) Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar. As it is written: “So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.” (Romans 3:4)   What conclusion do you draw when someone who was raised in a Christian family and church, perhaps even playing a significant role in a chur...
Post a Comment
Read more