Now What? - Episode 10-46, November 9, 2020

Join us as we explore God’s ancient wisdom and apply it to our modern lives. His word is as current and relevant today as it was when he inspired its authors more than two and a half millennia ago. The websites where you can reach us are alittlewalkwithgod.com, richardagee.com, or saf.church.

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Thanks for joining me today for "A Little Walk with God." I'm your host Richard Agee.

I'm preparing this podcast on election day. By the time you hear it, I hope we have elected our officials for the coming terms. I don't want this to drag out forever, as some elections have in the past. Many decry our electoral college system, but I'd like to share why that system is so crucial to our "United" States. The last census, remember that was ten years ago, showed that 50 percent of the population resided in only 146 of more than 3,000 counties in our country, 3141 to be exact. That means less than 5% of the counties hold more than half the population.

Why is that important to elections and the electoral college? Consider the outcry we get when we talk about the power of the small percentage of billionaires and multimillionaires. We scream that everyone should have a voice. We want equality and justice. If that's the case, shouldn't those other 3,000 counties, the other half of the population, not concentrated in those 146 counties also have a voice?

Fifteen of our states do not have a single county among those 146. Should they not be included in the election of our highest leader? Our founding fathers were pretty smart people giving one electoral vote for each senator and representative from each state when choosing the president in a representative election. The states with a higher population get more votes since they have more representatives, but every state gets at least three votes. West Virginia and North Dakota and Wyoming aren't left out of the decision just because they have smaller populations than California, Florida, and Texas.

The magnificence of our Constitution is really pretty incredible. It's a shame more people don't take the time to read it, study it, understand the beauty of its language and fairness to all people within the country. Is it perfect? No. But we need to be careful not to throw the baby out with the bathwater. There is a reason we have millions trying to escape to our country, not from it. It's not just our capitalism that allows you to earn a decent living; it's the freedoms we embrace through our Constitution.

Most, not all, of our founding fathers were deeply religious people. Yes, some were deist, some were even atheist, but most were Christian with deep roots in their faith. And they wanted the government to stay out of their religious practice. They would not separate their religious practice from their operation of government, as we see in their prayers, letters, speeches, books, and biographies. But because of the kings' suppression of religious freedom in Europe, they made sure the government stayed out of the church. That is what separation of church and state is about, not the other way around.

It was Eisenhower who included "under God" in our pledge of allegiance. "In God We Trust" became the nation's official motto in July 1956, replacing "e Pluribus Unum." So what happened? In the 1960s, we allowed ourselves to get turned upside down. We let satan's minions convince us that church and state separation meant church could no longer be a part of politics. Politics and our political system has declined ever since. When you take God out of the state, the state destroys itself. Listen to Joshua's warning to the people of Israel as he stepped away from leadership.

14 "Now then," Joshua continued, "honor the Lord and serve him sincerely and faithfully. Get rid of the gods which your ancestors used to worship in Mesopotamia and in Egypt, and serve only the Lord. 15 If you are not willing to serve him, decide today whom you will serve, the gods your ancestors worshiped in Mesopotamia or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are now living. As for my family and me, we will serve the Lord."

16 The people replied, "We would never leave the Lord to serve other gods! 17 The Lord our God brought our fathers and us out of slavery in Egypt, and we saw the miracles that he performed. He kept us safe wherever we went among all the nations through which we passed. 18 As we advanced into this land, the Lord drove out all the Amorites who lived here. So we also will serve the Lord; he is our God." (Joshua 24:GNT)

    What happened? They didn't get rid of their idols. Within a generation, they forgot God, who led them out of Egypt through the wilderness and defeated their enemies. They ignored Moses and Joshua and the commands God had given them. The book of Joshua ends with the horrifying words that echo what goes on in too many streets in cities in this country and around the world today - "everyone did what was right in their own eyes." It's called anarchy. We saw it in Portland and Seattle and Chicago and too many other places over the last several months leading up to the election that, as I mentioned, takes place as I prepare this podcast.

What are we to do? As Christians, we wholly support the person who will sit in the Oval Office until and after January 20th, whoever that might be. Paul tells us, and Jesus tells us people are allowed into places of authority to keep order. I would refer you to Romans 13:

Everyone must obey state authorities, because no authority exists without God's permission, and the existing authorities have been put there by God. 2 Whoever opposes the existing authority opposes what God has ordered; and anyone who does so will bring judgment on himself. 3 For rulers are not to be feared by those who do good, but by those who do evil. Would you like to be unafraid of those in authority? Then do what is good, and they will praise you, 4 because they are God's servants working for your own good. But if you do evil, then be afraid of them, because their power to punish is real. They are God's servants and carry out God's punishment on those who do evil. 5 For this reason you must obey the authorities—not just because of God's punishment, but also as a matter of conscience. (Romans 13:1-5 GNT)

Paul could not put it more plainly. Whoever sits in office deserves our support. Whether you like the person or not, God allowed him to sit in the seat to provide order and justice to the nation. We, as Christians, do good. Period. We encourage others to do the same. We pray for those in authority. We encourage those in authority to do good. We help the helpless, voice our opinions, but do so in orderly and right ways, not that would cause chaos and disorder. Jesus did not riot. Paul did not riot. The Jews that opposed him did, but neither of them did. They preached the truth.

Whatever the outcome of the election, it is time to act as Christians, pray for our current and next leaders. Do whatever we can to stop the chaos plaguing our country and show both sides there is a better way. King Jesus can solve our problems if we let him. It's not called distribution of wealth; it's called helping the poor. That comes from a generous heart, not from a government tax or community fund. It's time Christians begin to act like Christ and show the world there is a better way – the way of love. Show the world King Jesus is still and always will be in charge.

You can find me at richardagee.com. I also invite you to join us at San Antonio First Church of the Nazarene on West Avenue in San Antonio to hear more Bible-based teaching. You can find out more about my church at SAF.church. Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed it, tell a friend. If you didn't, send me an email and let me know how better to reach out to those around you. Until next week, may God richly bless you as you venture into His story each day.

Scriptures marked GNT are taken from the Good News Translation®: Scriptures taken from the Good News Translation® (Today's English Version, Second Edition) Copyright © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.