2nd Timothy 3:
But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.
When I read this passage today it got me a little riled up. I started thinking about the small but significant number (significant enough that I run into them) of Christians whom I would call radically political.
This term does not just mean conservative or liberal Christians, because I know a lot of people and friends who are conservative and many who are liberal, and on both sides they can explain their views and I understand them. I understand why they are taking their stand where they take it and I can be ok with that. I can even agree with them at times because I think they really are considering God.
What I mean by radically political is this group that has given up trying to explain why they feel the way they feel. Instead they have turned to rash, brutal, and slanderous talk about everyone not on their side.
In an effort to serve the Lord, they have begun to serve a new master, who will do anything to get his view across. They have traded God for the god of politics. In many areas I think they are trying to accomplish goals of the Kingdom, but they are going about them in a totally contradictory way. Derek Webb makes the point clearly in a song: “Tell me since when, do the means justify the ends, and you build the Kingdom using the devil’s tools, can time be so short?” Do they think that the Lord can not accomplish his goals in the ways he has set out to do it? through love, humility, mercy and righteousness? They have the form of godliness but deny its power. They have become a crashing symbol and a resounding gong.
