Is Religious Right Finished?

[Soldier4Christ]

Is Religious Right Finished?

One of the major players in what came to be known as the "Religious Right" in the 1980s has shut its doors. The Center for Reclaiming America, based in Ft. Lauderdale, part of Dr. D. James Kennedy's Coral Ridge Ministries, has decided to close. It will also shut its Washington, D.C., office known as the Center for Christian Statesmanship.

Kennedy, who is 76 years old and recovering from a heart attack he suffered in December, is one of the best educated and most compelling of all the cultural conservatives who sought to use the political process to reverse the "moral slide" in America. Most of Kennedy's televised messages in recent years have strayed from traditional preaching and focused primarily on politics and social issues.

Brian Fisher, executive vice president of Coral Ridge Ministries, told the Miami Herald, "We believe that by streamlining the operations we will be able to return to our core focus." One hopes that will be preaching the unadulterated Gospel of Jesus Christ, unencumbered by the allures of the political kingdoms of this world, because that is where the greatest power lies to transform lives and ultimately nations. It does not lie in the Republican Party, with which Kennedy's organization was almost exclusively associated.

Politics is about compromise. The message of the church is about Truth. One has to look no further than the Al Sharptons and Jesse Jacksons - who long ago gave up speaking of another kingdom and another King (if they ever did) in favor of faith in the Democratic Party - to see how quickly the church and its primary message can be blurred when it enters into a shotgun marriage with politics. Jim Naugle, the mayor of Ft. Lauderdale, told the Herald that the last election persuaded candidates to package themselves "in the middle, rather than to the right."

Nearly 30 years after religious conservatives decided to re-enter the political arena - after abandoning it as "dirty" and leading to compromise - what do they have to show for it? The country remains sharply divided and the reconciling message they used to preach has been obscured by the crass pursuit of the golden ring of political power. In the end, they got neither the power, nor the Kingdom; only the glory and even that is now fading, as these older leaders pass from the scene.

This is not to say there is no role for conservative Christians in the civic life of their nation. There is. But Christians must first understand that the issues they most care about - abortion, same-sex marriage and cultural rot - are not caused by bad politics, but are matters of the heart and soul. Some evangelicals wish to broaden the political agenda beyond these issues to poverty, social justice and the environment. Politics can never completely cure the ills of any of these, but the message Christians bring about salvation and redemption can. Besides, they can never "convert" people to their point of view.

Too many conservative Christians have focused on the "seen" rather than the "unseen," thinking appearances at the White House, or on "Meet the Press," is evidence that they are making a difference. And too much attention has been paid to individual personalities, rather than to the One these preachers had originally been called to exalt.

Nothing in the Bible commands believers to reform or redeem society through government and politics alone, or even mainly. Neither is there any expectation that non-Christians will be converted to the Christian point of view, which can vary on some topics, through politics.

Corwin Smidt, executive director of the Henry Institute for the Study of Christianity and Politics at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich., told the Herald that evangelical groups that are built around a single charismatic leader often struggle when the leader is gone. "These televangelists are able to generate a fair amount of money," he said, "but in terms of their institutional longevity, it's really at risk."

To paraphrase a verse familiar to most Christians, what shall it profit a man if he gains the White House, but loses his own soul?

Christians are also fond of saying God never closes one door without opening another door. The "door" of the Center for Reclaiming America has closed. The new doors can produce a more effective politics, if what's on the other side is based on a message that has less to do with partisanship and more to do with the One who transcends all politics and Who lends His power only to those who will use it as He instructed.

[nChrist]

Brothers and Sisters,

This is an interesting argument. I certainly agree that the main and most powerful message is and will always be JESUS and the CROSS. However, I don't think this hints that we should be silent about right and wrong. I think that most Christians will quickly agree that silence many times amounts to calling evil good, and who's left to stand up to tell what is good?

The devil isn't going to be silent until he is silenced by JESUS CHRIST. If Christians decide to be silent, what voice will be heard, and what will the consequences be? I'm certainly not suggesting that politics should be at the top of our priority list, but standing up for good and against evil MUST be a part of every Christian's life. Our most powerful weapon in this effort will always be GOD'S WORD.

I also understand the dangers of compromise, and compromise is a part of politics. SO, should Christians step aside and let the devil have everything without a fight and struggle? The same arguments would apply to most professions unless someone is self-employed. SO, should only self-employed Christians keep working? After all, only self-employed Christians have the power to work without making any compromises, but this really isn't true for even self-employed Christians. Do self-employed Christians pay taxes that provide money for abortions and other actions that are against the teachings of the HOLY BIBLE? Compromise is really a dirty word, but don't we all have to compromise in one way or another. What about rendering unto Caesar?

All Christians are forced into situations of doing things that we don't agree with and are against the teachings of the HOLY BIBLE. Christian politicians have limited those things that are wrong in the past, so what will happen if Christian politicians withdraw or quit trying? As for ordinary Christians who are simply citizens, what would happen if we all remained silent? How quickly would everything become unbearable?

SO, I'll never agree that Christians should sit down and be quiet, and I'll always know there is a valid calling for Christian politicians. We will lose many of our battles, but that isn't any excuse to stop trying. LORD Willing, I will always call evil "evil", and I will always call good "good". Things will definitely get hard and discouraging from time to time, but that won't be a sufficient excuse to sit down and be quiet. May GOD give all of us the guidance and strength to keep standing and speaking until JESUS comes to take us home. May our primary message always be JESUS and the CROSS.

Love In Christ,
Tom

1 John 5:4-5 NASB  For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world--our faith. Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

[Soldier4Christ]

No brother it is not telling us to sit down and be quiet. We need to keep striving to fight the good fight in all that we do and say.

[nChrist]

Pastor Roger,

Brother, this article simply made me sad. It's major Christian organizations just giving up, and I must say that they've done a lot of good. Where would we have been without the struggle? I think this organization is wrong in giving up, and I'm very disappointed to hear this news.

I don't want to live in a sewer, and I don't want my children and grandchildren to live in a sewer. Isn't this really what this finally boils down to? I really don't want to give the devil one square inch without a fight. Some in this article spoke about spending all of their time in sharing GOD'S WORD, and I want to know how they will do it without freedom. Isn't the devil trying to remove this freedom RIGHT NOW AS WE SPEAK? The answer is YES!

I'm thinking about generations of men and women who bled and died for our freedoms. SO, is it too much to ask our Christian politicians to stay in the fight and keep trying? For one, I think it's a reasonable service to GOD, country, and future generations of Christians.If religious freedom is lost, what else will be lost?

Let's all get real and think about what liberals and ultra-liberals want to do in this country. Would NAMBLA be running the daycare centers? Bluntly - I think this whole part of the world could be turned into a sewer fairly quickly if Christians sat down and quit trying. I know that POLITICS is a dirty word, but let's make an analogy and let everyone use their own imagination. Politicians are in complete control of the waste water treatment plants.

[Soldier4Christ]

Amen, brother, it is a sad state of affairs. As the article did say though where one door closes another one will open. God will insure that His work is being done according to His will. I just read in another article where the Center for Christian Statesmanship, which had previously closed, just reopened again and has plans to expand even larger than they were before. As long as it is in God's will there will not be a void in people doing His work and this includes the area of politics.

[nChrist]

That does make this news a little bit easier. I do hope and pray that strong Christians with some backbone will step in to fill the voids when others fall or give up.

Love In Christ,
Tom

1 Corinthians 3:16 NASB  Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

[Faithin1]

As Christians, we must fight until the bitter end.  Satan is hoping we will give up, and just lie down and allow evil to prevail.  We are children of the one and only God, and our Father cannot, and will not lose!