Posted on 10/13/2013 9:48:23 AM PDT by Kaslin
The headline of the full-page ad asks, "What Would Jesus Cut?—A budget is a moral document." The text continues, "Our faith tells us that the moral test of a society is how it treats the poor."
The ad was produced by Sojourners, a self-described "evangelical" organization whose slogan is "Faith in Action for Social Justice." The ad was signed by Sojourners president Jim Wallis and more than two dozen Religious Left pastors, theologians, and activists. They urge our legislators to ask themselves, "What would Jesus cut?" from the federal budget.
How would you answer that question? My answer would be, "It's a nonsense question. Your premise is faulty. Your priorities are not His priorities."
Jesus had many opportunities to confront the Roman government about its spending priorities. It was, after all, one of the most brutal regimes in history. If the question "What would Jesus cut?" has any biblical relevance, we should be able to cite instances where Jesus lectured the Roman oppressors the same way the Religious Left lectures America.
Just compare ancient Rome with America today. Rome sent its armies out to conquer; America sends its soldiers out to liberate. Rome demanded tribute from other nations; America sends aid and emergency relief around the world. Rome enslaved nations; America rebuilds nations.
If the federal budget is a "moral document," what does it say about America? It suggests to me that America may be the most moral nation on earth! Name one other country that has spent $15 billion fighting AIDS in Africa. Name one other country that has provided more disaster relief, that has built more schools and water treatment plants, that has supplied more food aid around the world, that has sent more doctors, teachers, and technical advisers to developing nations.
Even America's military budget—much of which is being spent to rebuild Iraq and Afghanistan—reflects the basic compassion and unselfishness of the American people. Clearly, America hardly deserves any scolding from the Sojourners soapbox.
Did Jesus ever lecture the Roman Empire about its budget priorities? In Matthew 8, when the Roman centurion approached Jesus in Capernaum, our Lord could have said, "How dare you, a Roman warmonger, come to Me asking favors? Change your priorities! Tell your bosses in Rome to stop buying chariots and start funding welfare programs!" But Jesus didn't lecture the centurion. He said, "I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith!"
In Matthew 22, when the Pharisees asked if it was right to pay taxes to Caesar, the Lord could have thundered against Caesar's misplaced budget priorities. Instead, He said, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's."
In John 18, Jesus stood before Pontius Pilate, the Roman prefect, a friend of Caesar. Why didn't He give Pilate an earful about the injustice of Roman rule? If ever there was a time for Jesus to "speak truth to power" and become the "social justice Messiah," that was it!
But Jesus didn't preach the social gospel to Pontius Pilate. Oh, he spoke truth to power, all right. He delivered a profound message to Pontius Pilate—and to you and me: "My kingdom is not of this world."
Now, I'm not saying that Christians are never called to confront their government. God bless Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the Confessing Church for standing against Nazi genocide. But that's not the situation here.
And I'm not saying there isn't a social and compassionate dimension to the Christian gospel. There certainly is! Jesus had great compassion for the poor.
He preached in Nazareth, "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because He has anointed me to preach good news to the poor." He sent word to John the Baptist, "The deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor." Jesus presented the obligation to help the poor as an individual responsibility, a Kingdom responsibility—not the duty of the secular government.
Both the religious and secular Left in America seem to want government to replace the church in ministering to the poor and needy. One of Barack Obama's first proposals as president was a plan to slash tax deductions for charitable donations by high-income taxpayers. President Obama reasoned that a tax deduction "shouldn't be a determining factor as to whether you're giving that hundred dollars to the homeless shelter." Maybe so—but since private charities do so much good for the poor, why eliminate incentives for charitable giving? Could it be that liberals see private charities as competing with the big government welfare state?
In Romans 13, Paul tells us that we pay our taxes and support the government so that we will have a just, orderly society in which law-abiding citizens are protected from wrongdoers. But the responsibility for mercy and compassion belongs to the church—not the government.
What would Jesus cut? When He stood before the Roman Empire, He didn't suggest cuts. He received cuts. His flesh was cut by Roman nails and a Roman spear. He was bruised for our transgressions, and with His cuts we are healed. That's the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Stay tuned. In Part 2, we'll see how Jesus dealt with the "radical leftists" among his disciples.
Perhaps they should see what the Disciples had to say after being taught by Jesus - something about how, if a man will not work, he should not eat....
What would Jesus steal from Peter to buy Paul’s vote?
That applies to individuals, not governments.
Charity at gunpoint is not charity.
The commandment is "Thou shalt not steal", not "Thou shalt not steal unless you're a government".
He’d cut abortion funding for sure, the execution of the most helpless, weak and poor of our society.
I think they’re confusing Jesus with Robin Hood. Yes, Jesus taught us to be generous, caring, and charitable. But that’s not what they’re pushing. Jesus didn’t take money by force from some, by threat of imprisonment and death, and then give it to others, yet that’s what they’re trying to bend his legacy to justify.
When ever someone uses the WWJD argument, you can be sure they have no idea of who He is and what He stands for.
If anyone pays attention to the libertarian threads here, we are seeing libertarians getting extremely religious and preachy on why we Christians should not be against the homosexual agenda etc, in politics.
I think as we see (are witnessing) the weight shift from an actual Christian adult population, to a growing anti-Christian population that views Christians as ignorant and pliable, that we will see this more and more.
Political movements sense a Christian structure within American society, and more and more will want to construct their political messages to fit within that structure, as they try to reshape their messages to reach the Christian holdouts to liberalism/libertarianism.
That is why we are seeing many posts now that call for us to become libertarian on social issues, BECAUSE we are Christians, not in spite of it.
Should Government tell people Homosexuality is wrong, or should Christian communities influence those decisions ?
“Our faith tells us that the moral test of a society is how it treats the poor.”
These people don’t get it. Proper morality wouldn’t create a welfare state where inter generational poverty and dependency is created with the welfare state.
The welfare state is completely immoral. The tax burden keeps rising and taking everything from people who work increasingly long hours just to keep up. Hard working people are becoming stressed and burned out trying to work to pay all the taxes demanded by the welfare state.
That’s immoral.
Jesus said render unto Caesar those things that belong to Caesar.
He didn’t say render everything to Caesar and then let Caesar decide who should get what.
Matthew 7:3-5. Tell any leftwinger to look that up.
Even Robin Hood’s story has been bastardized by the leftists. He didn’t steal from ‘the rich’; he stole from the tax collector.
Socialism is a de facto religion, and it is an intolerant one. I have seen MANY socialists on my local newspaper message boards who explicitly say that people who oppose gay marriage should be imprisoned, that businesses run by gay marriage opponents should not be allowed in the city, that the government should shut down Fox News, that the churches should be taxed out of existence, etc. They are intolerant of differences, and they are haters.
Who would Jesus abort? How many genders does Jesus acknowledge.
Sojourners are Marxists pretending to be Christians. Jesus’s worldview was utterly theocentric, not left-wing politics masquerading as religion.
Could you ask a more ridiculous question? I doubt it.
Excellent point, but I also think that money you donate to charities only for income tax purposes are not really charities.
thanks Kaslin.
The Jesus Christ Show
KFI 640, Los Angeles | 10/13/13 | nully
Posted on 10/13/2013 7:49:15 AM PDT by null and void
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/religion/3078335/posts
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.