Somber, Sober Reality

I am in a somber frame of mind and heart today. I didn't vote for Obama due to his extreme stance on a number of issues, which we are all a bit weary of discussing. Not the least of those is the wholesale destruction of a human life via abortion. That, as they say, is a deal-breaker. But win he did. So what now? There are a number of responses circulating in the blogosphere, one of the most cogent of which can be found on Justin Taylor's site Between Two Worlds. It would seem that Christians will now become very familiar with the Bible's teaching on our responsibility as believers. Most commonly cited are Romans 13:1-7 and 1 Timothy 2:1-2, which describe our need to be submissive to our rulers as having been placed there by God, and to pray for those in authority. Mind you, that was during the days of the Roman empire with it's corrupted Caesars. 

I am sobered by something else though--imminent questions regarding our religious freedoms. Will "hate crimes" legislation accelerate placing more true ministers in jail for preaching the truth? Will our Christian radio stations be "forced" to give equal time to the opposing point of view? How many of our accepted freedoms will continue to erode? I think what sobers me about this is the realization that my faith--the faith of our fathers--is now going to require gutsy commitment. There are likely to be consequences for speaking the truth in my pulpit. I could go to jail! OK, you say. We have spoken to this issue before haven't we? Yes. But somehow we could relegate that to someone else in another time. But not me, and not now! It was more of an eventuality rather than a reality. I've read of persecution with respect to the early church, and of personages like Wycliffe, Huss, Latimer and Ridley, and Luther. I read of groups like the Puritans, various missionaries, and the seemingly interminable list of the persecuted from the Voice of the Martyrs. But not me!

Here's the kicker, all of this has caused me to reflect on ministry in a much more realistic manner. In a sense, not to sound cute, I am sobered that I am sobered! My Christian faith, though long in years (47), seems to have been fostered in ease. Other than a few folk who made fun of me or poked at my faith on construction jobs, I have lived a fairly innocuous Christian life. I suspect that this is the experience of most of my compatriots in ministry. 

That's all I wanted to say . . . today.  I am not saying that Obama is the antichrist, or the end of the world religiously. We will pray and labor for Christ regardless. That's the way it is. What I AM urging is that anything that causes us to become more sober in our lives should not be easily dismissed, but thoroughly considered. May the Lord drive us to our knees where we may find both clarity and courage.

Hope-filled in Christ alone,

Dave