Dark Ages-- Barbarians in Government
3rd in 4-part series
Picture this. Politicians who cry out against government spending, but who previously passed a statute allowing them to get a raise automatically. A day after the raise takes place, they take a symbolic vote against the same thing. They are then able to go to their constituents and tell them they voted against the raise they had already automatically received! It happened in 1987, and again, things haven’t gotten better in the years since then. Looking out for number 1 certainly takes place in the halls of congress.
Congressman Henry Hyde once tongue-in-cheek said, “The only thing preventing lawmakers from seeking an exemption from the law of gravity is the fact that they would have to violate the separation of church and state to pray for it.”
Here’s an interesting note. Back in the 1988 presidential campaign, two Democrats bowed-out of the race. One, you might remember, was Gary Hart, who could not control his libido long enough to run his campaign. The other one? Joe Biden, who couldn’t control his urge to creatively alter his resume and it caught up with him. But people forget.
Remember, the philosophers who have been influencing us for years have said there should be no moral absolutes, no right or wrong (unless they see it as wrong). And when such values are set aside, each person “does what is right in his own eyes” (Judges 17:6). The consequences are not good.
In Charles Colson’s book that I’m using for much material in this series, he says “Traditionally, pluralism meant that all conflicting values could be voiced and weighed against one another, and against a transcendent and recognized standard, within the public arena. From such debate would emerge a consensus of values by which the community could be governed.” But in an age of relativism, with no objective truths, and nothing to provide a recognized standard (the Bible), such consensus is doubtful. Dorothy Sayers (English writer and poet) has said, “In the world we call it tolerance, but in hell it is called despair…the sin of believing in nothing, interfering with nothing, enjoying nothing, finding purpose in nothing, living for nothing, and remaining alive because there is nothing you believe worth dying for.” Of course, she’s not all correct. Many die (suicide) because they have nothing to live for.
But Colson says we must look in the mirror. Lest we err in blaming all our problems on government. He says that in a democracy, people get the government they deserve. And we are a fickle people. A poll found that 74% of Americans favor more spending on government programs, while 70% also oppose higher taxes. The money for all the programs needs to magically appear, I guess. And we turn a deaf ear to the ever-growing debt our government has incurred while promising the moon and mortgaging the moon all in one fell swoop. Bottom line? If there is a loss of higher purpose among our politicians, you can bet it is because there is a loss of God-driven values among the electorate.
Chances are the Romans of the day watched their empire crumble in shock and with surprise. How did this happen, they would have said. Have we wondered the same with our country? Barbarians surround us, doing their evil work. We’ll look at another next week. One you might not expect.
Cross Point: We are to pray for those in authority (I Tim. 2:1-4), and there were plenty of corrupt politicians in biblical days. So do that. Meanwhile, be a conscientious voter and live a faithful Christian life.
Picture this. Politicians who cry out against government spending, but who previously passed a statute allowing them to get a raise automatically. A day after the raise takes place, they take a symbolic vote against the same thing. They are then able to go to their constituents and tell them they voted against the raise they had already automatically received! It happened in 1987, and again, things haven’t gotten better in the years since then. Looking out for number 1 certainly takes place in the halls of congress.
Congressman Henry Hyde once tongue-in-cheek said, “The only thing preventing lawmakers from seeking an exemption from the law of gravity is the fact that they would have to violate the separation of church and state to pray for it.”
Here’s an interesting note. Back in the 1988 presidential campaign, two Democrats bowed-out of the race. One, you might remember, was Gary Hart, who could not control his libido long enough to run his campaign. The other one? Joe Biden, who couldn’t control his urge to creatively alter his resume and it caught up with him. But people forget.
Remember, the philosophers who have been influencing us for years have said there should be no moral absolutes, no right or wrong (unless they see it as wrong). And when such values are set aside, each person “does what is right in his own eyes” (Judges 17:6). The consequences are not good.
In Charles Colson’s book that I’m using for much material in this series, he says “Traditionally, pluralism meant that all conflicting values could be voiced and weighed against one another, and against a transcendent and recognized standard, within the public arena. From such debate would emerge a consensus of values by which the community could be governed.” But in an age of relativism, with no objective truths, and nothing to provide a recognized standard (the Bible), such consensus is doubtful. Dorothy Sayers (English writer and poet) has said, “In the world we call it tolerance, but in hell it is called despair…the sin of believing in nothing, interfering with nothing, enjoying nothing, finding purpose in nothing, living for nothing, and remaining alive because there is nothing you believe worth dying for.” Of course, she’s not all correct. Many die (suicide) because they have nothing to live for.
But Colson says we must look in the mirror. Lest we err in blaming all our problems on government. He says that in a democracy, people get the government they deserve. And we are a fickle people. A poll found that 74% of Americans favor more spending on government programs, while 70% also oppose higher taxes. The money for all the programs needs to magically appear, I guess. And we turn a deaf ear to the ever-growing debt our government has incurred while promising the moon and mortgaging the moon all in one fell swoop. Bottom line? If there is a loss of higher purpose among our politicians, you can bet it is because there is a loss of God-driven values among the electorate.
Chances are the Romans of the day watched their empire crumble in shock and with surprise. How did this happen, they would have said. Have we wondered the same with our country? Barbarians surround us, doing their evil work. We’ll look at another next week. One you might not expect.
Cross Point: We are to pray for those in authority (I Tim. 2:1-4), and there were plenty of corrupt politicians in biblical days. So do that. Meanwhile, be a conscientious voter and live a faithful Christian life.
Posted in Cross Points