Beginning October 22, 2009, The Paphos Paradigm has a new home.  There will be no more postings at this site.  So, www.capminmd.wordpress.com is shutting down and www.capitolcommd.wordpress.com is the new URL to access the blog.  I hope you will continue to stop in to read new postings, think about our mandate to pray for and disciple governmental leaders, and leave your thoughts on the comment page.

One other change is the name of the organization I work with.  I have moved on from Capitol Ministries and now serve with Capitol Commission, still doing the same thing, just with a different name and leadership.  You can find out more at www.capitolcom.org.

Thanks for making the switch to the new address.  Please change the URL if you had bookmarked it or followed the RSS feed.

I had coffee today with a member of the Maryland General Assembly and a comment he made has stuck with me.  He said, “Brent, if Satan himself sat down with a pad of paper to design an environment effectively suited to derail a person from thriving spiritually, it would be politics.”  No field, according to this delegate, causes one to reject the crucial and eternal things of life and to embrace the fleeting and temporal things as much as politics.  That’s a significant statement coming from a politician.

C. S. Lewis, author of "The Screwtape Letters"

It got me thinking about The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis’ effort to describe Satan’s strategy of distracting humans from following God (who is referred to as the Enemy in the book).  In a series of letters the demon

Screwtape, an experienced tempter, is writing his advice to his nephew, Wormwood, on how to draw his assigned human away from God.  Consider these quotes through the filter of the life of the believing or unbelieving politician (really buckle down and think about these; it’s not always easy reading):

“Prosperity knits a man to the World. He feels that is ‘finding his place in it,’ while really it is finding its place in him. His increasing reputation, his widening circle of acquaintances, his sense of importance, the growing pressure of absorbing and agreeable work, build up in him a sense of really being at home on Earth, which is just what we want.”

“This, indeed, is probably on the Enemy’s motives for creating a dangerous world — a world in which moral issues really come to the point. He sees as well as you do that courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point, which means, at the point of highest reality. A chastity or honesty which yields to danger will be chaste or honest or merciful only on conditions. Pilate was merciful until it became risky.”

“The Enemy loves platitudes. Of a proposed course of action He wants men, so far as I can see, to ask very simple questions: Is it righteous? Is it prudent? Is it possible? Now, if we can keep men asking: ‘Is it in accordance with the general movement of our time? Is it progressive or reactionary? Is this the way that History is going?’ They will neglect the relevant questions. And the questions they do ask are, of course, unanswerable; for they do not know the future, and what the future will be depends very largely on just those choices which they now invoke the future to help make.”

“Talk to him about ‘moderation in all things.’ If you can once get him to the point of thinking that ‘religion is all very well up to a point,’ you can feel quite happy about his soul.”

“Aggravate that most useful human characteristic, the horror and neglect of the obvious. You must bring him to a condition in which he can practice self-examination for an hour without discovering any of those facts about himself which are perfectly clear to anyone who has ever lived in the same house with him or worked in the same office.”

Marriages can be devastated by working in the political world.  Satan knows this and exploits it, which is another reason to soberly pray for our leaders’ homes:

 “Make full use of the fact that up to a certain point, fatigue makes women talk more and men talk less. Much secret resentment, even between lovers, can be raised from this.”

Even when someone enters politics with the intention of being careful about Satan’s attacks, it is also true that

“Suspicion often creates what it suspects.”

When it comes to a Christian’s political involvement as a citizen, these might be helpful:

“We produce [a human's] sense of ownership not only by pride but by confusion. We teach them not to notice the different senses of the possessive pronoun–the finely graded differences that run from ‘my boots’ through ‘my dog’, ‘my servant’, ‘my wife’, ‘my father’, ‘my master’, and ‘my country’ to ‘my God’. They can be taught to reduce all these senses to that of ‘my boots’, the ‘my’ of ownership.”

“On the other hand we do want, and want very much, to make men treat Christianity as a means; preferably, of course, as a means to their own advancement, but, failing that, as a means to anything-even to social justice. The thing to do is to get a man at first to value social justice as a thing which the Enemy demands, and then work him on to the stage at which he values Christianity because it may produce social justice. For the Enemy will not be used as a convenience.”

The plan and schemes of the real “enemy” of men’s souls can be overcome, but only by God Himself.  Do you want godly leaders?  Are you praying for them to desire Him and His ways?  Are you communicating to them that you care for their souls more than their votes?

 Satan has conjured a plan to lead people astray from God.  Many inside and outside of the Church are falling prey to his subtle attacks.  We are in a battle in the spiritual realm and must know our enemy and his tactics, but also trust the One who has the power to defeat him.

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Ephesians 6:12, 13

The pictures that came out of Washington D.C. this weekend showed huge crowds passionately protesting against their government’s direction. The motivation to show up at a public rally comes from a desire to change things. If one agrees with the current conditions, no need to make a sign or start a chant. The bottom line is we can’t sit still when we disagree with the way things are. 

I think there were well-meaning people making up the crowd. I’m sure there were followers of Jesus who were in the crowd. As good citizens, we have a privilege and responsibility to voice our views. I just hope those who know Christ don’t come away from a Tea Party thinking they have finished their task to impact their culture.

Jesus knew about crowds. Just take a cursory glance through the gospels and you will see how popular He was once word got out that He could heal diseases and cast out demons. Sometimes He and the disciples could barely move or have time to eat because they were so busy with the multitudes. Sometimes, at the last minute, Jesus even had to cater dinner for several thousand.

But the big event wasn’t the main vehicle Jesus used to get his message out. The excitement of the masses didn’t drive His strategy to turn the world upside-down. As a matter of fact, for someone who only had three years to spread His global message, He seemed to systematically avoid filling arenas or promoting the huge gathering. Instead, He poured Himself into small groups of people and many times, individuals.

Whether teaching His twelve disciples, His inner circle of three, a rich young ruler, a tax collector in a tree, a Samaritan woman at a well in the middle of the day or a religious leader who sought Him out in the middle of the night, Christ masterfully showed that conversations allowed for questions and answers better than big crowds.

Can our world be reached the same way? Is the Church more comfortable with large groups rather than one-on-one encounters? If we follow Jesus’ example, we will focus on opportunities to share our faith individually with those He has purposed us to know.

Political involvement only satisfies a small fraction of Christianity’s effectiveness in the world. The gospel is our message and relationships are the context in which we share it.

Concerned about our country? Good. We should be.

Convinced the Church is the solution? Great. We can be.

Committed to making disciples? Super. We have to be.

The following is an excerpt of a prayer email I sent out on Labor Day 2009:

Since today is Labor Day and this is our monthly prayer email, a verse came to my mind.  What a convicting example is presented to us in Colossians 4:12 which says, “Epaphras, who is one of your number, a bondslave of Jesus Christ, sends you his greetings, always laboring earnestly for you in his prayers, that you may stand perfect and fully assured in all the will of God.” 

 Why don’t we take the opportunity on this Labor Day, a day generally given to the opposite of laboring, to let that verse sink in and challenge us.  When Epaphras prayed, he labored, struggled, strained, strove.  It’s a sports mindset where the athlete contends intensely with the one goal of winning.

 Now pick an adverb to describe your pattern of prayer.  Where does it happen?  How often?  How long?  How strenuous?  How easily distracted?  The prayers of Epaphras were wrestling matches, with a foe to defeat.  I have so much growing to do in my praying. 

Could we learn to pray more like that?  I need to.  Would you repeat the prayer of Epaphras for your political representatives and their staffers and families?  What if we really prayed, believing that the hearts of our leaders could “stand perfect” and be “fully assured in all the will of God”?

Thank you for remembering Capitol Ministries Maryland in your prayers.  The people-group we seek to serve face many pressures and temptations in very public positions.  Pray evangelistically for those who need to repent and call on Christ.  Pray for growth and deepening obedience for those who already know the Lord.  The stakes are high, not because our laws need changed but because God must be glorified.

And when we pray, let’s labor like Epaphras.

On Tuesday, a celebration was held at the White House for the Muslim observance of Ramadan.  In his speech for the occasion, President Obama continued his effort to find common ground for the nation’s various religious views.  To support his point, though, he chose an ill-advised quote from boxer Mohammed Ali: 

“A few years ago, he explained this view – and this is part of why he’s The Greatest – saying, ‘Rivers, ponds, lakes and streams – they all have different names, but they all contain water. Just as religions do – they all contain truths’. . . They all contain truths.  Among those truths are the pursuit of peace and the dignity of all human beings.  That must always form the basis upon which we find common ground.”

All citizens in a society built on the principle of freedom of worship should respect and tolerate one another.  The freedom of others to worship as they see fit should ensure the same freedom for you and me.  But quotes like Ali’s feed a dangerous notion that all faith systems eventually lead to the same place.  They may all contain some truth, but they cannot, by their own admission and beliefs, all lead to God.

How can Christianity’s claim that Jesus is the only way to God possess the same validity as Islam, which claims that Allah has no son?  They may share some teachings on peace and human dignity, but you can only follow one to reach God.  Follow the other and you will perish.

In his defense, the president was making a political point of seeking harmony in a pluralistic democracy.  But when he publicly declares his approbation of a statement that sounds like “all paths take you to heaven”, many untaught souls can be led astray.  It would be better if our leaders stuck to their calling of protecting freedom, not making theological commentary.  The president will not say (nor is it his role to say) things like

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him.”  John 14:6, 7

. . . and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.  However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. . . For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.  Romans 8:8, 9, 14

Enter the Church.  It is our responsibility, as well as God’s plan for societal Christian education to rightly divide the Word of truth for the world around us.  This includes our political leaders.  The Church must be proactive in going to lawmakers to share the truth of the gospel, praying for receptive hearts.  The Church should be the theological gatekeeper to see that a loving, but accurate message is clearly presented to the world.

Each time you see President Obama on the news, breathe a prayer for his spiritual inner man.  “This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth”  1 Timothy 2:3, 4.

Senator Ted Kennedy (1932-2009)

The news is full of remembrances of Senator Edward Kennedy, who died yesterday of a brain tumor.  As I listened to dozens of politicians, friends, media members and others share their recollections of “The Lion of the Senate”, one in particular stood out.  It was from Cal Thomas, the syndicated columnist.

Thomas, who was a polar opposite from Kennedy on most political issues, had fascinating things to say and write about his decades-old relationship with the senator.  On his website, he writes: “Over the years, I came to see Sen. Kennedy not as a symbol, but as a fellow human being who did not get up each morning seeking ways to harm the country. I know of things he did for the poor and homeless on his own time and in his own way without a press release or a desire for public approval. I know of other hurts and concerns he shared with the very few he could trust about which I would never speak.”  (Read the full article here)

Cal Thomas

On a sidebar of the same homepage, Thomas added, “I wonder how many Christian conservatives took the time to pray for Ted Kennedy.” This isn’t just a casual thought by Thomas.  I had the chance earlier this year to have breakfast with Cal at an Arlington, Virginia diner.  Over omelets, he told of his testimony of faith in Christ and the opportunities he has had through the years to share it with many in the political and media spheres.  Some of the people he mentioned are hated by political conservatives (some of whom are Christians).  So when Cal Thomas says he wonders who prayed for Senator Kennedy, he means it and he’s not being hypocritical.

Let Kennedy’s passing remind us all to pray “for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:2-4).  Let us also pray that other leaders will consider their own mortality, realizing that “it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27).

Pastor John Piper, Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota

I came across a sermon in John Piper’s resource library at Desiring God from 1991 that, I believe, helps Christians sharpen their focus on virtually every area in their lives.  The text is from Acts 8:9-24, the account of Simon who offered Peter and John money for the secret to their ministry of sign gifts.  Simon is described as a magician and when he saw Peter and John working miracles, he was amazed – at the miracles.

Dr. Piper’s illustration of Simon’s lack of focus on the apostles’ true ministry of pointing people to Christ is striking.  When a baby is on your lap and you point to something interesting for them to look at – say, a bird outside – what do they look at?  Your finger!  They miss the whole point of something more interesting because they fixate on the finger that’s pointing, not what the finger is pointing to.

What a great picture.  Simon was amazed at the sign gifts, not on the Savior they pointed to.  We can all do that in so many areas.  How often do we get fixated on physical trappings around us, even amazed at them, and miss seeing Jesus to whom our world points?  The beauty of creation, a powerful sermon delivered by a gifted communicator, a great song on the radio sung by an incredible singer, the encouraging card sent by a caring friend.  So many areas of our lives can be sources of amazement while we completely miss the Lord inspiring it all and the Giver of it all.

Politics can be one of those areas.  The power, the change, the instrument for good in our world, the institution of rewarding those who do good and judging those who don’t.  The danger is always present to concentrate on the political process or charismatic personalities or the desire for better law and lose the focus on Christ Himself, who is supreme and “is all and in all“ (Colossians 3:11).

Simon had a form of belief, but it was misdirected.  “Even Simon himself believed; and after being baptized, he continued on with Philip, and as he observed signs and great miracles taking place, he was constantly amazed” (Acts 8:13). 

By contrast later in Acts, the governor of Cyprus, Sergius Paulus, also believed but his amazement was caused by something else.  ”Then the proconsul believed when he saw what had happened, being amazed at the teaching of the Lord” (Acts 13:12). 

We are far too easily amazed, just like the baby’s eyes following the pointing finger.  Christ is the point.  The gospel is the message to reconcile sinners to Him.  Other earthly pursuits and interests have been given for our enjoyment, but we can’t become overly enamored by them, lest we miss Him, the beginning and end of everything.

I commend Piper’s message to you. Click here to read or listen to it.

The following is an excerpt from a reply I posted to a comment on the recent entry “Counter-Cultural Anger”.  Since media reports are still filled with accounts of Americans outwardly expressing outrage to their leaders, I thought I would publish this response to a thoughtful reader of this blog:  

I don’t deny that it is great to live in a representational system of self-governance (as America is, ostensibly). I also don’t deny that we have a responsibility to speak up for right thinking and living in our world based on biblical principles. I also think it is important to let our voice be heard, from the ballot box to the letter or phone call to our representatives’ offices. It can be a great witness to them and their staffers why we hold certain views and values. I just think the way we convey the message says as much about us as it does about our opinion on policy.

If Christians are expressing outrage in the same way as the world, I believe we lose the effectiveness of our witness because there no discernable difference to their actions, regardless of our motivation for seeing a godly policy enacted. Christ turned over the Temple tables and angrily confronted the religious leaders there, but we could never say it was “rather unkind” since He was without sin. The reasons for His outbursts never had to do with public policy, but a holy anger that God was not being worshiped as He should be. As a matter of fact, the examples of Jesus, Peter, Paul and others show an amazing indifference to the politics of the day, with the exception of the souls of these leaders.

The church is indeed called to be in the world, but not of it. How that looks is guided by many Scriptures that are unchangeable and applicable to all time periods and forms of government. My concern is that many believers spend more time, energy and resources trying to impact the temporal facets of this passing world rather than pour themselves into Christ’s command to make disciples as we should. Many are more invested in leaving a better earthly culture for their children rather than investing in the higher prize of leading others to a heavenly kingdom.

Can we do both? As I read the Word, talk to more folks, and reflect on my own experience, there’s no question we can carry out the Great Commission while expressing our values politically, if we keep these in the right priority.  Honestly, though, the more I think of these issues and work in ministering to people in the political field, the walk is not all that complicated. When we are commanded in Scripture to make disciples, pray for authorities, be salt and light, be filled with the Spirit and reflect His fruit, submit to governing authorities, trust in God’s sovereign control of our world, love our enemies, expect (and even rejoice in) persecution, seek to live quiet and godly lives – and many others, the walk is pretty straightforward.

Have you been watching the news the past few days? I have, and I’m seeing some irate Americans out there at these town hall meetings. I suppose we can expect more of the same through the summer break for Congress, but what are we to make of such outbursts? If you agree with the tirade of the protester, do you smile a bit, vicariously living through them to express what you wish you could? Does your heart share in the anger and silently cheer them on?

I received a good quote from a friend today. He related these words from Vance Havner: “We are not going to move this world by criticism of it nor conformity to it, but by the combustion within it of lives ignited by the Spirit of God.”

What provides the combustion, the energy, the explosion? “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16).  Take part in the rantings against your government if you want, in the privacy of your living room or out at your local TEA party.  You’ve got the right to do that as an American, but before you do, consider this:  You are exchanging the true power to change this world for an inferior, pathetic method.

It’s the difference between the H bomb and a firecracker.  It’s internal versus outward change.  It’s lasting versus superficial change.  Eternal versus temporal.  Your anger may be assuaged by winning some key seats in the next election, but you and I know what’s going to happen – those seats will be lost again sometime. 

Also consider that if you are a follower of Christ, you don’t have the luxury of deciding how you will impact your world.  You’ve been given your commission:  “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you...” (Matthew 28:19, 20).  If the church would just focus there, even to our elected officials, we would be following Christ’s mandate.

Consider one last thing.  Our anger does not bring about eternally beneficial results: “This you know, my beloved brethren, but everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God” (James 1:19, 20).

Did Jesus get mad?  Sure.  Did Paul get outraged?  No question.  Did Peter disobey his rulers?  Yes.  But why?  Righteous indignation is borne from a desire to see God magnified and made known.  In all biblical examples of righteous anger, the motivation is always centered on God and following His mandate to teach His truth to all nations.  Is that the motivation of angry American Christians today?

Christianity is meant to be counter-cultural, but we Christians in America are blending in pretty well when it comes to our political involvement.  Havner was right.  Criticism and conformity will not only fail in changing our world,  they will keep us distracted from the very power we’ve been given to make that change.

If we’re going to get hot under the collar, we’d better have the right reason behind it.

An article by former president Jimmy Carter earlier this month in a British newspaper again confirms the need to pray for our leaders in government and importance of fidelity to the Scriptures.  In the article, Carter resigns from the Southern Baptist Convention, something he has done several times in the past dating back to 2000.  It’s a curious recurring action since no individual can hold membership in the SBC, but he resigns every few years anyway.

Carter’s main beef right now is the SBC’s statement on gender roles and his arguments reveal a view of the Bible that naturally leads to his conclusions.  He begins the piece by quoting first from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 2) which ensures all rights and freedoms regardless of status.  Then he quotes Galatians 3:28 which says “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”  

For Carter, and many others who share his view, these truths are incompatible with defining separate roles for men and women.  Any other verses from Paul’s writings that clarify the definition of gender roles in the church or home are not to be rigidly followed or taken as authoritative.   According to Carter, “quoting a few carefully selected Bible verses and claiming that Eve was created second to Adam and was responsible for original sin, ordained that women must be “subservient” to their husbands and prohibited from serving as deacons, pastors or chaplains in the military service. . . was in conflict with my belief – confirmed in the holy scriptures – that we are all equal in the eyes of God.” (Click here for the full column)

The point of this post is not to discuss the domestic or ministerial role of women, but to defend Paul’s writings as the inspired Word of God which do not present an inconsistency here.  Letting God speak for Himself through the Bible allows one to see the complementary nature of different passages which are completely reconcilable with one another.

In thinking of the Paphos Paradigm, the government official, Sergius Paulus, was amazed at the teaching of the Lord through Paul and believed (Acts 13:12).  Jimmy Carter does not believe in the inerrancy of Scripture, along with many others in our world.  For this reason the church should take seriously the responsibility to pray for the spiritual eyes of leaders to be opened to the authority of God’s Word and to be active in making this teaching available in the political sphere (1 Timothy 4:1-4).

Jesus’ mandate to His Church in Matthew 28 is to teach others to observe all He commands through His Word, not to hold the Scriptures to the standards of our human reason.