When the Democrat National Convention kicked off this week they approved the party platform for the next four years. As usual, the right to abortion on demand was included in the platform, but this year there were two first-time changes.
The first was the addition of gay marriage. This has never been a part of any party’s platform in the United States, and quite frankly, would not be a part of this year's if our president and vice president didn’t both suddenly switch their positions just three months ago, citing the sitcom Will and Grace as being foundational to the switch.
The other shocking change was not what was included, but rather in what was left out of the platform. The words God and Jerusalem were both omitted, causing quite a stir among both parties. In the past both parties have included in their platform that they believe that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, which might not sound like a big deal, but it is the Muslims’ position to not recognize Jerusalem. By leaving out Jerusalem from the platform the Democrats were in essence embracing Muslim theology.
That is what makes the omission of God an even bigger deal. In 2008 the DNC had a single reference to God, while in 2004 there were seven; that there were zero this year should not have come as a surprise since the party was obviously moving slowly towards that end.
The platform language that was omitted this year was an encouragement for Americans to “make the most of their God-given potential.” Even that language from 2008 appeared to be merely a token reference to God to satisfy Jews and Christians within the party.
As you get ready to cast your vote in November this is something important to keep in mind. President Obama has insulted Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu when he didn’t know his mic was on, and he has publicly encouraged Israel to recede back to their pre-1949 borders; in other words, he is suggesting that they give their rightful [“Promised”] Land to the Arabs. Secretary of State Clinton has made similar anti-Semitic remarks off camera, and Vice President Biden, well, he has insulted every ethnic group out there.
Two days after approving the new platform, the party chairman came back and called for a vote to reinstate the language from previous years. Needing a two-thirds majority to pass the update, the chairman had to call for a vote three times. In each vote the nays were either tied with or louder than the yeas, but there was never a two-thirds majority. The motion carried anyway, because that is what the chairman was clearly told had to happen to limit the damage that had been done.
This blog is not about Republican vs. Democrat, or about trying to tell anyone how to vote. If the Republicans had behaved this way then I would be writing the same article about them. This is not a red state/blue state issue; this is about who we are as Christians. I encourage everyone to watch the movie Monumental and then you will understand why I have written this.
I’m not saying that there are no Christian Democrats or that all Republicans are Christians. What I am saying is that we need to take a long, hard look before we cast our vote.
You might consider voting Democrat because you are interested in green initiatives or some social cause, but you cannot get around the fact that you will also be voting for your taxes to pay for abortion, for gay marriage legislation, and to further violate the Abrahamic covenant between the US and Israel.
This Administration is the most powerful foe to Israel that America has ever produced. It is also the biggest defender of taxpayer-funded abortion, including for minors with no parental consent, and the first to publicly push for gay marriage.
One thing is clear: the party didn’t need to leave the word God out of the platform. Their actions did that long before the platform was written.
(Related Blog Series: Should Christians Vote?)
Comments
I love you man, but this is frankly terrible. Hopefully you understand that the Abrahamic Covenant was not "between the US and Israel." I'm assuming that was an oversight or a typo. The Abrahamic Covenant was between God and his covenant people, into whom we Gentiles have been grafted. All of God's promises find their yes in Jesus (2 Cor. 1:20) Jesus is the seed promised to Abraham and the Promised Land promised to God's covenant people. There is no covenant between God and the modern, secular nation-state of Israel, which was founded in 1948. Nor has God bestowed any special favor on this secular nation. God does not bless modern nations on the basis of whether they ally with secular Israel, but on the basis of their relationship to God's covenant people (Jew and Gentile united). This bad dispensational theology (which incidentally didn't pop up till the nineteenth century; hardly historic, biblical theology) has produced so much wackiness in the twentieth century, both theologically and politically. It makes Christians sound much more like political zealots with a Zionist agenda, than followers of Jesus who have renounced political power as the means of spiritual and cultural renewal.
For a helpful analysis of the flaws of Dispensationalism, check out the book, "Christ of the Covenants," by O. Palmer Robertson.
I don't appreciate that you referred to this as "frankly terrible" and "bad dispensational theology." I think you have gone overboard and missed my point.
The Abrahamic covenant is wider than you might think. God's promise of "I will bless them that bless you and curse them that curse you" certainly applies to the United States. I am not of the persuasion that the US is central to any prophecy, but I believe that God's blessing on this unique nation is grounded in the fact that we have been friends of Israel from our earliest days.
I understand your position, but you are focusing in on a narrow point. My blog is about the general moving away from Christianity as evidenced by abortion on demand and same sex rights, and the removal of the word God from the platform.
Please don't take my comments personally. I just think some of the points you made were terrible and that dispensational theology is screwy (though there are a great many Christians I love and respect that buy it). I do love you and wish the best for you, your family and your ministry. Just saw this topic as ripe for robust dialogue and friendly disagreement.
God bless!
With that said, the Middle East is filled with countries that produce oil and natural gas and export it all over the world while they still live in poverty and have no indoor plumbing. On the other hand, America has enough oil to be the Sadi Arabia of the West, and we refuse to use it. Meanwhile we are still the richest nation that ever existed, even after giving billions of dollars to the poor countries mentioned above.
America "blesses" Israel and those Middle Eastern countries" curse" Israel. I realize that financial prosperity and indoor plumbing are not guarantees of the Lord's blessing, but it sure seems to me that the Abrahamic Covenant is true. God has blessed us for hundreds of years because of our friendship with Israel, and nations that are constantly at war with them have seemingly been cursed for centuries.
I'd like to continue the conversation without spamming your comment thread. What's your email address?