A New Day- GOING FORWARD

I wrote this devo last week.  Therefore I have no way of knowing the outcome of the election.  I only know that whoever was elected, I have been given my marching orders from my Father in Heaven in what to do about my next steps.  I am to be subject to those authorities, whether they are bad or good.  What does that mean, for I think it will apply to whatever government we wake to next?

The authority of government with its citizens and the citizens to government is to be a system of legal fairness to all people.  That is the right way to govern people and follow those in authority over us.  Historically we have rarely seen this balance in government with its people except in a free democracy.  Those countries that have treated their citizens with fairness and protecting their freedoms have done well.  It has been a good system.  Even so, eventually most free governments will have a tyrant or dictator or an idealism emerge that will attack the foundation that inspired and built the nation, as has been done lately.  The freedoms of the people begin to be systematically removed as we have seen and the government we once loved and thrived in is altered, often in a bad way.  So this becomes a big question for believers.  What if this happens for Christians in American if new government leaders take us away from our freedoms?  What happens if God's people in a nation like America are treated unfairly because we are Christians?  Do we have a way out of the marching orders God gives us about obeying the authorities over us?  I don't think so for we still must obey as if we are obeying God, and trust his intervention to deal with the tyrannical government we are dealing with.  To understand this concern we need to study some history of the Church to grasp the point, for we in America have had it very good until now.

We must be very clear about something Jesus taught and modeled to understand our response.  Jesus did not have a political agenda and He was not then nor now interested in politics or those things we tend to worry over.  Jesus did not see a political solution as a means to evangelize and make disciples.  Jesus' efforts and thoughts were not driven to change Rome or the oppressive iron-handed rule of Rome.  Instead He wanted to change Roman hearts beginning with His own people, the Jews, and go from there.  His mission was simply to obey His Father and the Father's mission which was to redeem and save the lost people of this world.  The Father did not make Jesus' mission any easier on Him just because there was resistance from the government He lived in or because He was God's Son.  Jesus had to press on with His mission in spite of those things.

Our mission is the same as Jesus' mission.  Our mission as God's family, the Church, is not to change America and the American governmental system, but to change the heart of its people and turn them toward Jesus.  As with Jesus there will be resistance.  There will likely one day be persecution, toil and trouble.  Jesus promised this.  But He is with us and His plans will prevail, even with what we are facing from this day forward with our government.  So what do we do if we are discouraged by the election results?  It will be the same if we are encouraged by the election results.  Now is the time that we focus our attention on our call from God and get back to His and our effort in making disciples.  The new place we find our self in today will likely open more doors for us than we've seen before.  This is a new day with a new start, so let's start it right.  Let's get this political stuff behind us and press on with our purpose of doing those things that Jesus would have us do.  He will take care of those things that deal outside our call.  That should not be our concern.  WE HAVE BIGGER FISH TO FRY.  Let's go where He has instructed us to go and do what he has instructed us to do, for that is the mission He has instructed us to chase.