Lastly, I wish to pose a question to all who read this.
How would Jesus respond to the current crisis in the White House?
We know what his stand is on the issues addressed in this essay.
It is black and white, no gray issues here. But, if we take ourselves back to the days of Jesus’ life in 30 A.D., in Palestine, under Roman occupation, and under the ungodly dictatorship of Caesar. If we sit back and observe Jesus’ response to the current leadership in the Praetorium (the White House), what words could we glean from him? What long and arduous speech could we hear from Jesus concerning the immoral and pagan lifestyle of Tiberius Caesar?
The answer is absolutely nothing.
Not once did Jesus ever speak out against Caesar. He had all the right to. For Tiberius Caesar was as Tacitus and Suetonius describe him, “a man ever-ready to spill blood, and living a life of odious seclusion on Capri.”(4) He was also widely credited with sexual perversions and abuse, which even extended to infants. Additionally, Tiberius worshipped the numerous pantheistic gods of ancient Rome as well. Tiberius, like many subsequent Roman emperors after him, was an ungodly, violent, sexually perverse, and murderous madman. Oftentimes they gained the throne of leadership by means of murder.
President Clinton is a saint when compared to the leaders of Jesus’ time. Yet Jesus never spoke out against them. Why do you suppose? I’m sure there are numerous reasons, but we can be sure of one thing. It simply wasn’t his objective. Jesus came to earth to be a light to the world as John wrote in the beginning of his Gospel. He came to carry the Father’s message of love and hope to a hurt and depraved world. A world in need of a savior. He came to seek that which was lost, and Christ fulfilled that obligation.
If Jesus is our mentor and our role-model, then shouldn’t we, as Christians, model our lives after him? Should we not be a reflection of Christ’s love on earth? I know many Christians, myself included, who would gladly welcome the opportunity to step up onto a soap box and give their two cents worth about the immorality currently taking place in the White House. But Jesus never did, neither should we.
Nevertheless, this doesn’t mean that we stand by idly in the shadows either. We need to continue to take an ardent stand against the evils that inhabit our country, both in the White House and in our local towns and communities. When given an opportune time, we should speak out against that which is wrong and admonish the wrongdoers. Similarly, we must pray for the leaders of our country at national, state, and local levels. When given a chance to vote against something that goes against the very moral and spiritual nature of God, such as abortion, legalization of drugs, special rights for homosexuals, etc. we must be there at the polls.
Last and foremost, we must pray diligently for the President and for our country.
(4) Chronicle of the Roman Empire, pg. 28
