Why “Getting Things Done” Isn’t Most Important

It seems that a major theme of the GOP primary race this year is "outsider" vs. "Establishment," with the former being portrayed in a positive light and the latter in a negative one. I get that people are frustrated and/or angry with Congress for "not doing anything" and that many think we should throw out the whole lot and start over. But let's think about this for a second. . .

Yes, there are corrupt Congressmen and Senators, and I'm not trying to defend them. But there are legislators who are men and women of integrity. So just because they're not "getting things done," doesn't mean we should forsake our governmental structure or sell out to an “outsider” who promises to act, act, act.

I recognize that in many cases there is more that our elected officials in Congress could be doing, but I also recognize that legislating is a slow process—because it was intentionally designed that way.

Our form of government (a democratic republic) was created precisely to prevent decisions from being made quickly. Our Founders wisely knew that there needed to be processes in place to ensure that major decisions with profound ramifications for the nation would not be made lightly. That’s part of the reason we have two houses of Congress and three branches of government. They knew checks and balances were necessary to prevent tyranny, and dialogue and debate to avoid blind adherence to unexamined ideas.

So while it can be frustrating when it seems that the people we elected are not doing what we elected them to do, we should examine the causes behind their seeming inaction instead of passing a blanket judgment on all of Congress.

Furthermore, as citizens we need to guard against succumbing to our urge for instant gratification (in any realm of life, but particularly in government) because opening the door for hasty, unilateral decisions at the hands of a powerful executive may give us what we want now, but it doesn’t ensure that what we want will last or that we will get what is best rather than simply what we want. Nor does it ensure that the power used for good today will not be used for evil tomorrow. 

Another reality we must be mindful of is that just because someone has never held elected office before does not mean he or she is not a politician. That is to say, “outsider” is not synonymous with “morally upright” or “immune to corruption.” Many people seem to be supporting an “outsider” candidate with no view to that person’s behavior, attitude, or character, as if being an “outsider” is the golden standard. Additionally, they think an “outsider” can go into Washington and “get stuff done,” but they forget that there are limits to what one person—even the President—can do.

Promises may sound good, but we must recognize the reality of the situation. The next President is still going to have to operate within the form of government we have, which means working with Congress. And that means that a working knowledge of the way Congress has to operate would be helpful.

When looking at it from this perspective, it seems to me that an “Establishment” candidate should not be disregarded simply for being an elected official, but instead should be evaluated based on his behavior, attitude, and character. In fact, such an individual actually might be in a better position to work effectively within our systems of government to achieve a given agenda.

Above all, however, we must beware of letting our fears and frustrations cause us to put faith in a presidential candidate, each of whom is a fallen being like ourselves. There is only one Person who can assuage our fears and turn our frustrated dismay into joyous hope—the God-man Jesus Christ. I pray that if you know Him you will take your concerns for our nation to Him and ask Him for wisdom in carrying out your civic duty at the polls. And if you do not know Him and the hope and joy He brings, I pray that you will not rest until you have met Him for yourself.

For more on how our fear can cause us to blindly place our faith in the wrong places, take a look at this article by Gina Dalfonzo. 

Love and Truth

As followers of Christ, we are to be a people who show love and who proclaim the truth. Many of us are pretty good at doing each of these separately, but when it comes to exhibiting both in tandem we fall woefully short. We either become so focused on contending for doctrine that we forget to be considerate of others or we become so concerned with being loving (which we often wrongly translate to mean “accepting” or “not offending”) that we remain silent when God’s standards have been trampled upon. To do either is to fall off the tightrope strung between two extremes of error. 

Yet the difficulty of maintaining this balanced posture does not excuse us from doing so.

I, for one, have failed miserably in this area in the past and am still wrestling with what it practically looks like to love authentically and to speak the truth concurrently. Perhaps this is why, while reading Romans 12, I was particularly drawn to verses 9 and 10:

 “Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.” Romans 12:9-10 (ESV)

The instruction to “abhor what is evil” and to “hold fast to what is good” is bookended by exhortations to love. This brings to mind 1 Corinthians 13:1-2, which explains that speaking eloquently or accurately means nothing if it is not done out of a heart of love. Clearly, love is crucial.

The verses in Romans, however, do not speak of just any kind of love. The Greek word for love in the phrase “Let love be genuine” is agape, the kind of love exhibited by God toward us. We know that God’s love for us is not contingent upon our merit but upon His character. And being indwelled by the Holy Spirit, we now have the ability to show this unrelenting, unconditional love to others as we have been commanded by Christ to do (Jn. 13:34-35).

Yet the second statement referencing love uses the word philadelphia, which refers to kindness, or as the verse itself expounds, “brotherly affection.” I think it is telling that Paul uses both types of love here. In doing so, he’s basically saying, “Love others in the way God has loved you—oh, and be nice while you’re at it!”

But it is also telling that in the middle of his instructions about love, he pointedly states, “Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.” “Abhor” is the Greek word apostugeo, which, according to Strong’s Concordance, can be defined, “to detest utterly.” That’s some pretty strong language. Similarly, “hold fast” is the word kollas, translated in Strong’s as “cleave” and meaning “to glue” or “to stick.” So we are to utterly detest evil and to be stuck like glue to what is good.    

In all of this, Paul is writing to believers in Rome—to the Church—so his appeal is directed to church life. His “one anothers” refer to fellow believers, and his directions to abhor evil and cling to good are to be carried out not only in individual believers’ lives but within the church community. 

In case you hadn’t noticed, Christians are not immune to deception. We can and do still succumb to evil in a host of different ways. Thus, it is critical that we help one another along in this journey with Jesus, that we hold one another accountable to the teaching of God’s Word, and that we do not abandon each other when failure ensues and things get messy.

Romans 12:9-10 gives us an important blueprint, I believe, for how we are to relate to one another in the church. From these verses we learn that we must begin with genuine agape. We must truly love others with a selfless love that seeks the good of the other person. With this foundation in place, we must speak biblical truth, calling evil and good what they are and “contend[ing] for the true gospel” (Platt and Merida 2014, 21). And in doing this, our manner must be characterized by brotherly affection. In other words, we must always, always, always be kind.

Citation: Platt, David and Tony Merida. Christ-Centered Exposition: Exalting Jesus in Galatians. Nashville: Holman Reference, 2014.

The Importance of the Mind in the Life of a Christian

Several months ago, I listened to Jen Wilkin’s teaching at the Revive ’15 women’s conference and was compelled by her explanation of why we must engage our minds in our walk with Christ and not just our hearts. In making her case, she referred to Mark 12:30, which speaks of loving God with our minds, and to Romans 12:2, which identifies the mind as the place where transformation begins.

I won’t recount all of what she said now (you can watch her message here), but a few statements that stuck out to me were these:

“The path to the renewal of our feelings is through our thinking. Right thinking should inform right feeling. We can’t simply feel to feel differently; we must think to feel differently.”

“The heart cannot love what the mind does not know.”

Since hearing Jen speak, I have been alert to other instances in Scripture that refer to the mind. One such passage is in 1 Corinthians 14. The context is spiritual gifts, particularly prophecy and tongues, but it is telling that in speaking to this topic Paul emphasizes the importance of the mind:

“Therefore, one who speaks in a tongue should pray that he may interpret. For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays but my mind is unfruitful. What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also.” (vv.13-15, ESV)

He then explains that “if you give thanks with your spirit” (and presumably not with your mind), then others cannot be “built up” (vv. 16-17, ESV). Thus, not only is engaging our intellect crucial to our own spiritual growth, but it is important for the edification of our fellow believers.

Paul continues, once again drawing attention to the mind: “Brothers, do not be children in your thinking. Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature.” (v. 20, ESV)

Clearly, our minds are important. Yet how often do we neglect them in our daily life? How often do we let laziness take over, preferring to be entertained or spoon-fed rather than seeking to engage with Scripture personally and to wrestle with tough questions ourselves?

Feelings in and of themselves will inevitably waver. This is why it is critical that we base our feelings in a strong foundation of truth, or what Jen Wilkin calls “right thinking.” One of the ways we can build this foundation is to thoughtfully interact with the Bible, both by reading it and by studying it.

So instead of being content to be children in our thinking or to live out our relationship with Christ solely in the realm of the heart, let’s remember that God has given us a mind and that He’s given it to us for a reason. Let’s ask questions, cultivate our curiosity, exercise our minds, and watch how a growing knowledge of God through His Word will transform our lives.

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind […].” 

~ Romans 12:2a, ESV

To read the Arabic translation of this post, click here.

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