Defending the Faith

As a Christian I make an effort to not sit in judgment of other people or presume to know the condition of their hearts. When a person decides to put himself in the public eye and run for political office, I believe that we must look at them with a certain level of scrutiny and discernment before giving them our vote. Barack Obama claims that he is a Christian, but his own words make it very hard for me to imagine that is true. To me it would be much better for him to be honest about his faith than pretending to be something he is not.



In that video clip, Obama first states that "if" he could talk to Jesus Christ... If? Christians have assurance that we can approach the throne in prayer (Hebrews 4:14-16). We can and do talk to Jesus. There's no "if" about it. Next, he says he would ask Christ whether he is "going up or down." Again, as Christians we know that our souls are bound for Heaven. We have the assurance of our salvation, as promised by Jesus' death and resurrection (John 3:16; 17:3). We don't wander through life not knowing what will become of us. For a man whose campaign speaks of hope, this would seem pretty hopeless.

Obama also says that he doesn't think it is appropriate to assume that his faith is absolute. Again, it is a fundamental Christian belief that Jesus Christ is the only way to the Father (John 14:6). We call ourselves Christian because we are followers of Christ! Of course we are expected to live peacefully with people of other faiths, but to claim that your own religious belief is not absolute is to negate your entire reason for choosing to believe it. Furthermore, Christians should seek to be more like Christ, and as Alan Keyes points out in the clip, Obama's voting record proves that he is headed in a different direction.

Today, Election Day, is a big day here in the United States. Because I am a Christian, I must vote with my mind as well as my heart. I have made an educated and moral decision not to vote for Barack Obama (trust me when I tell you that religion is not the only reason). The purpose of this post is not to debate politics as much as it is to encourage you to defend your faith (1 Peter 3:15)! I can't hear a clip like this of a man presuming to speak on behalf of Christianity while having his facts completely wrong, and not feel the urge to speak up. Obama's lack of knowledge of the fundamentals of the Christian faith leave me feeling very sad and wondering why he would choose to associate himself with it.

If I wake up tomorrow with Obama as my President, I will continue to respect the office and trust for God's will to be accomplished through it. Either way, I am not without hope! I have been greatly encouraged by this video clip of John Piper that I found on his blog, Desiring God. I'd like to leave you with these thoughts: