Bigger, better, more important, and longer lasting

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “The Great Adventure”

Our Bible verse for today: “Be sober-minded, be alert. Your adversary the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for someone he can devour. Resist him, firm in the faith, knowing that the same kind of sufferings are being experienced by your fellow believers throughout the world.” 1 Peter 5:8-9 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Bigger, better, more important, and longer lasting”

This devotional message is coming to you on Thursday morning, September 12^th, but I’m writing it on Wednesday morning, the day after the presidential debate. Last night, Donald Trump and Kamala Harris squared-off and had at each other. The consensus seems to be that Kamala Harris won this one. So, the Democrats are happy and the Republicans are not. In the previous debate Donald Trump did well and Joe Biden did not, and so the Republicans were happy but the Democrats weren’t.

Politics in America moves on a pendulum – back and forth, debate-to-debate, election-to-election. For a while the Democrats are in power and the Republicans are complaining, then the pendulum shifts and it’s the other way around. Does it really matter? Of course, it does. And as Christians we have a biblical responsibility to be good citizens, to be engaged with the issues, and to vote.

But political outcomes are not really the most important factor for Christians. There is a higher, bigger, better, more important, and longer lasting reality that governs our thinking and conduct. It is the kingdom of God. God is sovereign over the affairs of mankind. His kingdom will come, His will will be done, and in the end, Jesus wins. Earthly kingdoms rise and fall, worldly leaders come and go, the political pendulum swings back and forth, but God and His kingdom are constant and unchanging and will remain forever.

Sometimes Christians in the USA get a little too caught-up in their politics and not caught-up enough in the business of the kingdom of God. A little too enraptured with their candidate of choice, and not enraptured enough with their Savior and Lord.

Most Christian historians who study church life seem to agree that the most dynamic, strongest, healthiest, and most faithful segment of the Christian church on earth today is found in Communist China not in the USA. The Christians in China have little say in government affairs or in electing their leaders. Instead, they are highly focused on life in the kingdom of God and in advancing His kingdom on earth.

For almost 2000 years – across generations, cultures, geography, and political structures, Christians have thrived when their primary focus was on the kingdom of God, and they have struggled and suffered when they have become too focused on worldly affairs. In 1 Peter 5:8-9 Peter reminds us that our real struggle is against Satan. It is the same struggle our brothers and sisters around the world are engaged in regardless of the political system they live under.

We Christians in the USA have much to be grateful for. We are blessed to live in a democracy and we do have a responsibility to be politically aware. We must be active and engaged and we should vote for those who most nearly represent our values. But we also need to take a breath and keep it in perspective. As important as political outcomes are, the kingdom of God is more important. It is also more real, higher, bigger, better, more important, and longer lasting.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00, in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

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