Light Light in a Political Environment

Light

Light in a Political Environment

It seems politicians on the Right and Left have no problem revealing their heart

America is angry and full of hate

The media out of the abundance of its heart speaks

And their voice fills the hearts of Americans with fear and darkness

The Left and the Right look across the aisle at each other

The darkness of anger and hate remove hope in the hearts of Americans

Is there a better way?

YES!!! Look up

Even if you do not believe in Jesus Christ, His message is what we need

It is a message of looking beyond ourselves

A message of personal accountability to the God of Love

Jesus came into a dark political world

His Light shined out of the darkness

And into the hearts of billions over the last 2000 years

 Don’t get caught up in the arguments of politics which only brings division

Just preach the message of Jesus Christ and who knows

Maybe that Light will shine in a dark blind heart full of anger and hate

Let people see your Light, what is written on your heart by the life you live  

Light in a Political Environment

I know people who will not listen to the news.

The political environment troubles

them so much they ignore it.

As I talk to people and listen to the voices on

social media, I see people full of emotion.

  

I understand the emotion.

 I try to catch a little news every day.

That little bit of news always

pushes my emotional buttons.

I guess that is one thing the

news media is very good at.

All of us are responsible

for handling our emotions.

Sadly, the media news is pushing the emotional buttons

in a way that many are having a hard time

keeping their emotions under control.

Arguments of anger and hatred are

streaming out and filling people’s hearts.

The political divide on both

sides is oppressing America.

The Left and the Right are doing all

they can to define right and wrong… 

Justice and Freedom.

It is hard not to get sucked up into

the emotional drama and lose focus.

Most of what we hear is

words to make others look bad.

As much as the Right and Left say they

want peace, their support of slander and

unsubstanuated words reveal emotional

hatred rather than peace.

 

The support of rallies and looking the

other way when evil supports

their cause brings further divide.

You, like me, probably lean

to one side or the other.

If you feel like the political Right and the Left

have pushed your emotional buttons and

your heart is filled with more sadness than glad…

 

If you feel the political environment

has become blind to Truth and Justice…

If you feel like the focus is on

making the other side an enemy…

If you feel like all you hear is hatred fighting against

the other side rather than the joy for what you love…

 

There is hope!

There is another way!

There is not only political choices

surrounding our right and left.

 It is not looking to the right or left…

 It is looking up.

It is time to look up for hope.

2 Corinthians 4 gives us some good advice

 when the political environment fills

your emotions with sadness and anger.

Verse 1 reminds us of God’s Mercy and

that there is a ministry not from the left or

right but from above and because of this…

 “We do not lose heart.”  

Verse 2 tells us what we do…

We renounced secret and shameful ways;

we do not use deception,

nor do we distort the word of God.

On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly

we commend ourselves to every man's

 conscience in the sight of God.

WOW!!! That is a breath of fresh air.

Image if the Left and the Right could do these 5 things.

When I watch the news I find

myself saying, “Why can’t they see”.

There becomes a time when people see only

what they want to see and that will make you blind.

Let me say that again…

 “If you chose to see only what

you want to see you will go blind.”

Verse three says…

  

And even if our gospel is veiled,

it is veiled to those who are perishing.

A veil obstructs vision.

 There is a veil that keeps us from the truth

when we choose what we want to see.

Verse four tells us where the veil comes from…

The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers,

so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ,

 who is the image of God.

“The god of this age”.

 A Christian might say that god is Satan.

 But let’s imagine a god being

only what we worship, if so...

What is this generation worshiping?

You won’t get many people on the Right

or Left saying their god is Satan.

But actions and voices make

gods, just like hand carve idols.

These gods are only what we make them to be.

It is rare to see bipartisan, because the veil

of personal agenda and hate make us blind.

When we look up, we do what verse five says…

 For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord,

and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake.

“We do not preach ourselves.”

This is an excellent point.

But we preach Jesus Christ.

What is it to “Preach Jesus Christ”?

According to John 1, Jesus was,

from the beginning, His Word created

and established the earth and all that is in it.

Jesus Christ came in flesh, like us, and preached

a message of love and that love was just.

Jesus did not come to condemn, even though,
 He rebuked the political leaders of His day.

Jesus’ message was not formed by earthy government.

His message was the Kingdom of God.

Now those who struggle with preaching

Jesus Christ, should think about this…

If Jesus was not who He claimed He was,

 what would the world be like and

 if no one lived by His message of Love?

I, like many others, have said if God

did not exist I would still be a Christian.

There is no greater message than the

Bible gives us on how to love one another.

There are those who call themselves

Christians and hurt others.

 But no one walking as a Christian will hurt others.

For the Christian, what we preach

is love, even your enemies.

  Verse six says…

For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,”

made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the

knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.

Is it possible for light to shine out of darkness?

Surely Jesus came into a dark world and

His Light shined in the darkness.

 And amazingly 2000 years later His Light still shines.

The Light starts shining in our hearts.

Changing darkness to light will not take place

by Congress or the President or any other

political leader signing a Bill into Law.

Light must start in the heart where

selfishness, anger and hatred keep it dark.

So make it your goal to look up for the Light

and answers we and this world need.

Don’t get caught up in the arguments

of politics which only brings division.

Just preach Jesus Christ and who knows

maybe that Light will shine in a dark

blind heart full of anger and hatred.

Remember preaching at people and

about people is what politicians do.

Your greatest preaching will

come from living the changed life.

Paul in 2 Corinthians 3:2 & 3 says…

You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts,

 known and read by everybody.

You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry,

written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God,

not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

We, who have received the message, are

known and read by everybody.

Actions speak louder than words.

Let people see what is written

on your heart by the life you live.   

Scripture Reading

2 Corinthians 4:1-6 NIV

4:1 Therefore, since through God's mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart. 2 Rather, we have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. 3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. 6 For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.