Romans 12:2-5 - 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. 3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of themselves more highly than they ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. 4 For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, 5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.
Last week I made a compounding mistake. It started by going on Facebook, I usually try to avoid Facebook because I don’t scroll very far before I’m disappointed by a post from someone that I loved or respected. Facebook (at its worst) has been a garbage fire of competing echo chambers for years and my heart is better when I avoid it. To make that mistake worse I participated in a post a pastor friend of mine made.
I won’t discuss what he posted further than to say I agreed with him. I think I was in the majority, but it was close. And the majority of people who disagreed didn’t argue facts; my friend was mostly getting shouts saying, “don’t get political just stick to teaching the Bible.” We see statements like this a lot, many times aimed at athletes, and they always convey one thing: I don’t care about you as a person just the role you fill for me, and I want to ignore all that’s left.
It is extra disappointing to see it aimed at Christians from Christians. Millions of books have been written about Christian parenting, running a Christian business, how Christians should spend their money, and on what it looks like to live out the Christian worldview. To say politics is off limits ignores the whole-life surrender we are called to. If a Christian has a platform to denounce being misrepresented, then they should use it. Many times, Christian leaders must use their platform to say, "that person who is claiming to be with us or speak for us does not."
Whether it is false teachers or political leaders, condemning falsehood and sharing truth is our duty as believers. Saying, "don't get political" tells someone I don't want to see all of you because it makes me uncomfortable that we might not agree. We must use these as opportunities to learn and grow and appreciate the wonderful span of Biblical opinions that make up the body of Christ.
Lord, we want to serve you in the love we show our neighbors. Teach us to embrace each person made in your image as if we were greeting you. Amen