I heard a preacher tell an anecdote once, and somehow it
stuck with me. If I suggest that a
passage of scripture might apply to a person or group, please know that I try
to remember that it also applies to me.
The humorous story goes like this:
There was a little old lady who lived a block from
church, and she attended every Sunday; without fail. The preacher noticed her because her
attendance was so faithful, and because she was the last to shake his hand at
the door when the service was over. As
she was leaving, she always said, “You sure gave it to them today, Pastor.”
One Sunday there was a terrific snow storm. It was so bad the preacher debated whether to
open the church for services. He decided
to go ahead on the chance that a few people would make it in. The only person who showed up was the little
old lady, sitting in her usual place in the front row. The preacher gave the sermon anyway, thinking
that if she took the trouble to come to church, she should get to hear the
sermon he had prepared. He couldn’t help
but wonder, however, what she would say on the way out. As she left, she shook the preacher’s hand
and said,” Well Pastor, if they had been here you sure would have given it to
them today.”
With that said, my wife and I were doing our devotionals
together this morning, and the scripture we were reading from seemed to be
something that we wished our friends in Washington, D.C. might hear and take to
heart.
1 Under these circumstances, after so many thousands of people had gathered together that they were stepping on one another, He began saying to His disciples first of all,
" Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.
3 Accordingly, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in the inner rooms will be proclaimed upon the housetops.”
(Luke 12:1-3 NASB)*
Also,
many today are being falsely accused. The accusers seem to believe that it is
okay to bear false witness if they think it serves the common good (their own
political purposes). Some of these
accusers are highly placed political appointees or elected officials.
If
you are a Christian, if you are filled with the Holy Spirit, and you are being
persecuted for being a Christian, or for standing up for what God says is
right; the Spirit will give you the words to say in answer to your
accusers. In this fashion, the Way of
Christ is proclaimed. Like Steven the Martyr,
there may be harsh consequences, but we are honored to be persecuted for our
Lord. Jesus said:
8 "And I say to you, everyone who confesses Me before men, the Son of Man will confess him also before the angels of God;
10 And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him.
11 When they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not worry about how or what you are to speak in your defense, or what you are to say;
(Luke 12: 8-12 NASB)*
Where there has been wrongdoing, we want justice to be
done. However, we do not want the
process of justice (or the administration of government agencies) to be
perverted into a political weapon. The
country has huge problems to deal with, and that is what we elect people to do.
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