Today's sermon by Shiloh Church of Oakland, CA Senior Pastor Patrick Kiteley spoke right to the heart of a matter of significant struggle these days. This month's theme is Encountering the Father, and the message was that in this encounter we find strength.
Daniel 11:32b states (NKJV) "the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits." Knowing God in this case speaks of experiencing Him, and strength could result in getting more involved or backing off.
Does what the world sees of you represent the love of God or the cares of this world? We know from Matthew 7 that a tree is known by its fruit—is yours sour or bitter, or sweet and nourishing?
Are you known as a Christian because your fruit is that of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, meekness and temperance—Galatians 5:22-23), or are you known as a Christian because of your politics?
We are not to have the identity of the world but of our Father, much as we carry the surname of our natural fathers. Our idenity may have been stolen by the Enemy, or it may return to God's original design.
Jesus decried the selfishness of the Pharisees and told His people to pay their taxes (Matthew 22:21). He never called for the wealthy to hold onto what they have—Matthew 19:16-24 makes this very apparent. He did repeatedly call for us to help the poor and widowed, the fatherless children and the sick. That is something in the hands of the church and the government.
Of late, an increasing number of so-called Christians are engaging in inflammatory remarks, branding those they disagree with as evil or socialist or degenerate. Did homosexuals boycott JC Penny when their spokepeople happened to be straight? How does it look when the same people decrying the things they do not believe in for government want to force their views on others? We look worse than those we criticize, and that does not witness to God.
The demonizing of liberal values is not Christian. Many of the things Jesus taught us were liberal values. Even the very conservative author of much of the New Testament, Paul of Tarsus, spoke of liberality in Romans 12:8 and 2 Corinthians 8:2. Proverbs 11:25 tells us of the blessing upon the liberal soul.
These speak not of politics but of the person who gives from a little. But having our house in jeopardy has only increased my empathy and compassion for those who suffered worse. And the lesson does apply politically to those who have more to give and want even less than the already post-Depression low tax rates. And Americans tithed at increasingly low levels even under the previous administration that authored the last tax-cut, according to Texas Faith Blog, leaving the most vulnerable without government or church support.
This does not mean the Church should begin to endorse living in sin or broken homes or hedonism or abortion. We simply must recognize that the concentration of wealth among an increasingly smaller percentage of the population (more disparate than any time post-Depression) is un-Christian when it results in suffering of an increasing segment of the nation that is either below the poverty level or at-risk.
This month's giving statement shows Shiloh understands this problem—note I am quite certain this speaks of liberalism from outside of political spectrum:
I choose to give with a liberal spirit, a liberal heart and an open hand. I will not shrink back because of fear or greed. I will open my hand and give back to the Lord abundantly and generously. I will not allow a stingy spirit to overtake my heart.
Instead of being known for condemning one political side or another, how about we be known for providing a solution.
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