Finding Our Christian Voice!

So we all know that if you want people to like you or to make a good impression they say you should never talk about religion or politics, let alone both! If you do, open mouth, insert foot. These topics divide. These topics get people riled up! People often have very opinionated positions on their beliefs or lack thereof on religion and politics.

So, after a couple of cups of coffee in the wee morning hours, I have to go there. Well, immigration is a complex and perplexing issue to say the least. Oh so many related discussions, legal, illegal, borders, coyotes (those that smuggle illegals), children of illegal immigrants, education of non-citizens, deportation, asylum, and college tuition breaks. I would even bet by now that your blood pressure is increasing and you have at least one opinion on the matter. Here are some common immigration opinions I have encountered and read about: 1. Deport all the illegals now! 2. Close the borders! 3. Illegals take jobs from Americans! 4. Illegals bring their kids and then they get a free education at our expense! 5. They won’t even learn English! If you live here, you should speak English! OK, so maybe you have heard some of these comments yourself? Our FIERCE topic today goes like this, what do you believe about the immigration problems and solutions in our country? What do you base that understanding on? Is it a worldview developed by media and culture? Or, is it a Godly view developed by our Christian perspective? Is there a difference? So, what next? Do I share my opinion? Do I dispel myths? Do I inform on problems or possible solutions? Do I avoid the topic all together and let you figure it out?

OK, so you may chuckle that I would just avoid the topic, but in fact, that is what the Christian community has basically done so far. I don’t mean to be controversial, but we have to talk about these things! Let me first just say that the enemy has used the taboo nature of religion and politics to blockade us, to divide us, to separate us, to silence us! Is not separation of church and state one of the most debatable topics of our time? As for the topic then of immigration, in particular, illegals in our country, what is our Christian perspective? Are we silent? If so, why?

What I found was that essentially, there isn’t a Christian voice on the matters at hand. As a matter of fact, I found that the Christian community has even been scrutinized by the media that we have not voiced our position on the matters. Why haven’t we found our unified voice on the matters at hand? Please do not take my opinion as judging or condemning.

Take our moral directives in Leviticus 19:33-34, “When an alien resides with you in your land, you shall not oppress the alien. The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.” Now, take our moral directives in Romans 13:1-2, “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities; for there is no authority except from God, and those authorities that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists authority resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.” We have a lot of searching of God’s Word to find how to reconcile even these two Scripture passages on the subject of illegal immigrants!

But, I’m writing a commentary on the subject, not a book. So, I’ll try to keep it short. In my limited, humble opinion, the problem starts with theology and the spectrum of theological variances between orthodox and post modern Christianity. Throw in some economic issues, homeland security, legal theory, and a dash of political rhetoric, and we have a huge debate on our hands! Perhaps my point is that it is very hard to shuffle through all the levels of information to form an opinion, let alone defend our position, or develop and implement a plan to affect the world around us for God’s will and plan. But, it is just this kind of confusion and apathy that the enemy is deceiving us with! He and his principalities have us believing that our understanding and passion on any topic affecting our social and political views is just that, a lonely, little, uneducated, wavering opinion. In fact the truth is that we have been given all authority in the name of Jesus to affect this world.

We stand on the rock of salvation! We have been given the Word of God to inform and guide our spirit to work in the world for Jesus, as Jesus, like Jesus did! We have got to take a stand on matters such as immigration. The tricky part is that we must SEEK God’s perspective and direction on the topics. We have to be active in seeking the facts on the issues. We need to study, seek, review, meditate and discuss these issues from a Christian perspective. The point of our FIERCE Christian living component is that we must engage. We must not be afraid to search out a Godly position on the issues, and then talk about them and share them in love and grace. We must not be afraid to believe in our Christian perspective and to desire to work towards influencing our laws and policies to handle these issues.

The encouragement for our FIERCE Christian living is this, you are not alone! Your voice does matter. Think of it this way, you have thirty individual voices in a choir, but when they sing at the same time, what a beautiful sound it makes (at least if I’m not singing with them). It is this unified, harmonic voice that we must come to boldly sing in the name of Jesus. Let the Word of God illuminate your passion for understanding these modern day issues! Seek God’s wisdom in these matters, talk about them and counsel with others. Develop, redevelop and develop again, your Christian worldview. It’s the nature of who we are, gaining wisdom and direction from God moment by moment. Trust in His word to transform and provide knowledge. Don’t be afraid to be challenged or to be wrong. Your Christian worldview is static. It will change, it will continue to develop and mature. But, remember, we are human. We make mistakes. Be gentle on yourself, and don’t be discouraged when you take a few steps backwards. Don’t let the enemy shove you back into a state of silence. Be FIERCE and loving dear brothers and sisters in Christ! Author, Renee Crosby