Soon after the news hit, as with each and every issue in the US, a dark, nasty, wide line was drawn in the sand with conservatives on one side and liberals on the other. The nation once again showed how divided it was. But "a house divided" platitude aside, what struck me the most was the support Kim seemed to gain from the Christians in America.
One article I read even canonized her including several quotes from Davis emphasizing that she considered her efforts to be rooted in her unwavering faith. Even the picture included of the Kentucky clerk captured one of the few moments that she didn't look furious with whomever she happened to be talking to at the moment. The comment section on the article praised Kim's efforts claiming that she was being persecuted and that prayers were being sent her way.
This is a difficult situation. One that requires us to actively avoid knee jerk reactions and try to think long and hard before we join the protesters in their display of prideful anger. Kim refused to give licenses to any same sex couples because it did not line up with what the Bible says. I agree with her on that point. If one reads the Bible with a renewed mind-one without political influence or sway from anything present in the world- the conclusion is that God considers homosexuality a sin. But I'm not sure I'm ready to jump on the Kim D bandwagon just yet. There are a few things that I find troubleing about the Christian movement to rally around her, and I think they are worth risking the uncomfortable moments that come when you disagree with others.
I'll be the first person to back down from any unnecessarily rocking of the boat. If it's a nonessential issue, I tend to let it be, especially if it has roots in politics and government. I believe that politics can tend to be a tool that the devil fluidly operates in order to divide the church. Because of that, I find that very little glory can be brought to God and His name by diving headfirst into every situation that calls for a choosing of sides. But this is very different.
Kim Davis is being called a martyr. She is being elevated as an example of who Christians should try to emulate. We have chosen for ourselves a king that was a head taller than the rest, and I'm just a little concerned that God is thinking something entirely different. Here are some of the issues I have with all of the Kim Davis support:
1. Government celebrities cannot be regarded as spiritual authorities.
In American Christian culture, we have started listening to and respecting the words and policies of Christian claiming politicians as if they were quoting scripture. The Christian-political stance has become dangerously sacred to the body of Christ. Some even consider their political beliefs to be equal to or greater than that of the truths found in the Bible. This is a very slippery slope to go down.
The single time that Jesus acted with force in the Bible, it was because money changers had been brought into the temple. Shouldn't that give us a heads up as to what God's heart might be towards those sorts of things? Politics are full of motives that do not line up with God's heart. Even the best motives are lost to the world because they still are driven by pride and anger towards certain groups of people.
God resist's the proud. Proverbs 6:16-19 says, "16 There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him: 17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, 18 a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, 19 a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers."
Lying, wicked plans, false witness, sowing discord (the opposite of peace) among brothers? These are all things that anyone who follows politics would have to be blind not to notice. And they aren't unique to one party or another. Just a few minutes of watching any political debate should be enough time to witness a barrage of prideful, angry, biting remarks from both sides.
Political figures do not have the goal of loving God, loving others or leading others to Christ. There is a lot of money, and working of the system that needs to happen for men in this world to come to power. America is not an exception, and neither are any of the political parties in play. We need to stop acting as if the government is the United Church of America. It is damaging our core beliefs, damaging the name of Christ, and turning people away from salvation.
Yes, we should be politically aware of what is going on in the world. But we should not be so quick to pledge our fiery, unwavering support to people in political office. Politics are largely a choice between the lesser of two evils for Christians. There are glaring flaws on either side of the voting ticket. We are not trying to elect the next Christian king. We are trying to choose amongst men who consider politics to be their top priority. We cannot treat our political leaders with the same consideration and respect as we would a trusted pastor. Doing so will dilute the message of the gospel and render us weak spiritually.
2. The government is not going to bring anyone to salvation.
The government is a secular entity. It helps maintain our country's status as one with freedom of religion. In order to do that, it will hold laws that we as Christians do not agree with. That is because a government that has freedom of religion cannot itself be religious. If our US government were to implement laws that line up only with the Bible, we would be forcing an entire country to serve God regardless of their free will. Being forced to serve God does not equate to loving God. And it certainly does not mean anyone is more saved than before.
Often, I think we focus far too much on our government and whether or not it is Christian. Making the government and it's laws and regulations line up with the Bible is never going to save anyone. We cannot "save America" by changing her laws and actions. That would be not only forcing Christianity on someone, but also making the entire religious experience and relationship with God based upon works. And quite frankly, works and works based "salvation" are straight paths to hell.
So as to the question of whether or not we as Christians are or aren't religiously free, I would say that our freedom was more intact after Kim was arrested than before. Kim Davis was representing an official section of the government. In doing so, she was well aware that that meant that she was going to have to uphold the Constitution. Part of that Constitution includes a bit about religious freedom. If she is going to represent the government and the religious freedom it promises, she cannot bend the rules based upon her religion of preference.
I am not here to split hairs and get off on a tangent about who or what is or isn't upholding the Constitution. That's a quibble for another day (one I hope to not be there for). But what I am saying is that if Kim Davis' actions of imposing religious laws on citizens were allowed to go untouched, a precedent could have been created that would allow for others to do the same thing. If other government officials were allowed to follow in suit and happened to not be a Christian, that would be a disastrous path for our country to go down.
Kim Davis knew the day that they made gay marriage legal in the USA that she would not be able to accurately represent the government any longer. That doesn't mean that Kim's rights were infringed. Having religious freedom does not mean that every job should conform to your beliefs. If so, Kim should be able to be a bartender and only serve non-alcoholic drinks. Kim should be able to work at a movie theatre and only sell tickets that are PG or PG-13 (do they even have G movies anymore?). Kim should be able to work at Hooters while wearing her signature full length skirt with a long sleeved shirt. But that's just not the case.
Kim is free to make whatever religious choices she desires, as are we. We can go out and tell everyone we know about Jesus right now, and the government will not do a thing! Our mandate from Jesus is completely protected, because we have the freedom to say whatever to whomever. But we simply will never be free to control other's actions. And we will not be free to work for the government and represent them as a Christian government rather than a secular one. That would not only infringe on the rights of other's to freely choose, but it would eventually come full circle when someone who doesn't follow Jesus Christ decides to pull their own Kim D.
3. We are to love.
Something that stood out to me when I first saw the footage of Kim Davis
I will not dissect every one of Kim's actions and words. She did keep her cool amidst what looked to be a tense situation. If you're interested, there are multiple videos online that one can find with a simple search. And I am not here to bash someone who was trying to live out her faith. But what I am trying to bring to light is how easily we as Christians tend to accept a lack of love when someone's sin, especially homosexuality, is involved.
Jesus once said that the two greatest commandments are to love God and love others. He then immediately followed that statement by saying that all the commandments line up with the two he listed. Jesus wasn't trying to streamline the commandments, he was making a point. When Jesus said that loving God and loving others was the most important thing, he was answering a pharisee who asked him which of the commandments was the most important. The pharisee had the motive of stumping Jesus, but Jesus had something better in mind. He took the opportunity to make the point that all of the ten commandments are rooted in love. It had always been about loving others, the pharisees were just a little too caught up in their religious pride to see that.
I wonder sometimes if we as the church are doing a better job at embodying the pharisees than Jesus. In the case of Davis, I have to conclude that there had to have been a more loving way to talk to those who came to her for a same sex marriage license. Love is patient up to a certain point. Love is kind unless you happen to be wrong. Love does not insist on it's own way except when it comes to homosexuals. Or wait-no. Because the love God desires us to walk in is not conditional. The love in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 is described as bearing all things and not being irritable or resentful. Is it easy? Not at all. Is it possible in this day and age? Matthew 19:26 “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
We cannot forsake our godly mission to love others. That is the only difference between Christians and the world. The world looks out for number one, but Christians love. We love because God first loved us. And our loving unity will be what causes the unbelievers that we think are so far gone to take one look at us and say, "there has to be a God, and I have to know Him". If we do not love, we drastically lessen the chances that the two men talking to Davis (and so so many more) had for being brought to salvation.
4.We are to spread the good news.
This goes hand in hand with the last point. Some see our mandate to love as an excuse to never say anything to anyone. Being absolutely non-confrontal and never saying a thing about your faith would be a tragedy, and one for which we would have to answer. The fact is, the truth will set you free. We must speak out. And what we say is important.
There is power in the gospel. There is real life changing power that comes when the story of Jesus Christ is told. When we plant the seed of the good news, the Holy Spirit will soften hearts and bring multitudes to Jesus! But we must remember that this is the good news. Not the "naggy" news, as my mom refers to it. What she means by "naggy news" is that part of the gospel is not to scoot the plank in our eye over just enough to tell someone all about the "good news" of the splinter in their eye.
Let me say it this way, because this is an important part of Christianity to understand. The gospel is everything. Everything that we do and know about God stems off of it and goes deeper into it. The gospel is not a mirror that we use to point out the sins of others. The gospel is about Jesus, and what he did to make a way for us. So the fact that we need a way is important, yes. But if all we get out of our mouths it the fact that our Savior doesn't like their sin, then we are editing the gospel at a disastrous cost.
Think back to Kim and the two men who were trying to obtain a marriage license. Do you think either of them are going to look back on that day and turn to Jesus because some woman behind a desk told them that God didn't like them? If so, I would love to hear the testimony, because I'm sure it would have to include some sort of visitation and explanation from the Lord. Not that that isn't entirely possible or that I think that they are never going to turn to Jesus, but I am trying to make a point.
The salvation of those whom Kim Davis turned away was not her main concern. Her main concern was the law of God vs the laws of man. As a result, real people with real souls that desperately (just like you and I) need Jesus were steamrolled. If we are to be fishers of men, we cannot omit the gospel because we find certain sins more in need of pointing out than others. If we are to love God and love others, we must make sure and share the gospel while allowing the Holy Spirit to be the great convector and changer of hearts.
Could you imagine how this could have gone if Kim had compassionately and fervently shared the gospel and her testimony rather than dismissively telling others how wrong they were? People might not have accepted Christ in that moment. Maybe they might have. But even if they didn't, they could look back and honestly say, "Kim Davis was concerned about whether or not I get to spend eternity with Jesus." Yah it probably would have felt weird to be a county clerk talking to gay men and women about Jesus; likely a lot weirder than being dismissive and perturbed. But people could be brought into the kingdom. There's heaven or hell-no in-between. And people's eternal souls are important enough to sacrifice our need to point out their sin instead of spreading the good news.
That is why I write. Not because of a political preference or affiliation with a party of man. I speak out because as Christians, loving God and loving others must be the most important thing. The gospel must be our battle cry, and our battle cannot be against flesh and bone. The moment we start glorifying those who's priorities are not just as Jesus said they should be, the gospel gets lost in translation.
Kim Davis is not a martyr. She is stubborn, and she is trying. But she should not receive support as someone who is representing Jesus and God's love for the world. We can and should pray. We should strive to spread the good news. But we should refrain from adding to the gospel by pledging our support to those who do not deserve it. To do so would sacrifice the validity and purity of God's message to mankind. We should avoid that at all costs.
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