Posted by
Doctor Bart on Thursday, May 24, 2007 1:00:15 AM
At the annual Medical Group golf tournament today I was taken aback when my playing partner decided to ask me something he had always wanted to ask a "religious person". He was very proud of his question and the challenge he thought it presented to someone of faith. His question- "If Jesus were alive today would he be a Democrat or Republican?"
My answer- "Neither- He wouldn't care", took him by suprise. Wouldn't Jesus care abour poor people? Wouldn't Jesus be bothered by the fact that one person can make $100 million a year while someone else starves to death?
Again I replied, "He wouldn't even address such things." I explained that when He was on earth, Jesus wasn't very concerned about the temporary state of government oppression. He did not speak out, to our knowledge, against Rome, slavery, taxes or social injustice. He didn't feed every hungry person, or heal every sick person. (If you doubt this, remember only 1 man was healed at the pool of Bethesda.) Jesus was concerned about a person's eternal soul and standing with God. He was concerned with wrong thinking about salvation, righteousness and God. He was concerned about hypocrisy (not because it was the worst sin, but because it signified a lost and unrepentant heart that could lead others astray). When confronted with questions about Rome, He dodged them.
None of my points made sense to Him. I think this is because, like so many people who do not have true faith, he was concerned totally about this life, and injustice as he defined it, and not at all thinking about eternal matters. For him, it is all about equality and fairness. (Yet he was acceting a free round $120 of golf, free beverages and enjoying this all in the Paradise that is Southern Califoprnia- a scenario that 95% of humanity could never hope for. How fair is that?)
OU rperception of fairness could not be more irrelevant. One of my goals in life is to get people to understand how what matters is people living consistent with God's eternal perspective. When we wallow in discussions on issues such as Jesus' political affiliation, we miss the greater points. We are all sinners, and we all need a Savior. We are all selfish and self serving. Whether we are republican or Democrat, when compared to eternal issues, is just not important.