The drama is the same. Only the stage and cast are different. The politics of power have raged since a time before Genesis 1. “And there was war in heaven.” Revelation 12:7. “I will ascend above the heights of the cloud, I will be like the most high.” Isaiah 14:14.
The stage changed but the battle continued. The politics of fear mongering – “If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and destroy both our holy place and our nation.” The politics of practicality – “Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, ‘You know nothing at all! You do not understand that it is better for you to have one man die for the people than to have the whole nation destroyed.’” John 11. The politics of smear by association – “Now all the tax collectors and sinners were gathering around to listen to Jesus. So the Pharisees and scribes began to grumble: ‘This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.’” Luke 15. The politics of half-truths and distortion – “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple made with human hands and in three days will build another, not made with hands.'” Mark 14
Jesus said, “ . . . be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” Matthew 10:16. Maybe, just maybe, wisdom would be for us to recognize that our high calling is to spread the Gospel, the Good News about Jesus, and to refrain from casting our pearls out on behalf of a cause so much inferior to the greatness of God’s Kingdom. Perhaps the best use of our email, our Facebook accounts, our tweets, our influence, would be to spread love and forgiveness and leave the ugly for others. Paul did say, “Whatsoever is pure, … Think on these things.” Philippians 4.
Spring Of Life