Thursday, July 13th, 2017

With a multitude of politically driven stories driving endless debate on our news channels, there comes a time when all of us wonder, “What am I to do about it?” Political parties call their supporters to action everyday over topics large and small, but in some cases, that call to action can become one for unquestioned obedience. As we are all sinners by nature, obedience to a man-made ideology welcomes the opportunity for sin to creep into our lives. When it comes to politics, how are we to know what is sin and what is right? God created us all with free will, which allows us to act in whatever way we believe fitting. However, our actions are a result of our words; our words, a result of our thoughts; our thoughts, a result of our perspective; and our perspective, a result of our beliefs. To prevent sin from creeping into our lives, our beliefs must stay rooted in Christ, not in our political preferences. Consider the story of Cain and Abel in Genesis 4. Cain doesn’t place God first in his life, evidenced by his meager sacrifice compared to his brother Abel. Understandably, Cain is bitter over his lack of favor with God. God says to Cain, “Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.” Instead of placing God first in his life and ruling over sin, Cain gives into sin and murders his brother Abel. Cain’s murderous actions directly resulted from his belief that God doesn’t need to come first. With the increasing political turmoil in our nation today, we will be tempted to act or speak out against those we disagree with. To prevent sin from creeping into those actions, it is essential that our belief in Jesus be the immovable rock from which we operate. Pray today for Jesus to assume his place in your life as your guiding light of your perspective, thoughts, words, and actions.

"Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.” – Genesis 4: 6-7 NIV