RELEVANT MAGAZINE: Keith Giles Explains Why The Church Has To Reject Politics

I honestly had given up all hope that this interview with Relevant Magazine I did would ever actually get published. But, just when I had given up, it happened!

Click HERE to read the entire interview and please leave a comment after you share it with all of your friends!

Thanks,

Keith

5 MINUTE VIDEO: Why Is The American Church Irrelevant?

In a recent Barna Survey it was noted:

"We live in an increasingly American culture. In this new age, religion is in retreat from the public square, and the role of traditional institutions, like the Church, are no longer functioning with the cultural authority they once held in generations past. Today, nearly half of America is unchurched."

Why is this true?

Take 5 minutes and listen as author Keith Giles explains why the American Church has lost relevance in the culture and how to get it back.

**From Barna Research about those who "Love Jesus, But Not The Church" 

Revival, Resurrection and Reality

Maybe there’s something wrong with me? 

I already know that I don’t quite fit perfectly into the usual American Christian Evangelical mindset. That’s why I blog about things that often get me into trouble, or invite criticisms from those who disagree with my skewed views.

I think I'm also cursed to always see things from a slightly different perspective, and whenever I share that perspective I'm often blasted for it. But, I can't help myself.

So, when I see thousands of Christians gathering in a stadium for a revival, it doesn’t really resonate with me. Maybe because I don’t really expect God to perform for us on command. Or maybe because I don’t believe that God is impressed by large crowds.

Jesus seemed to always be trying to get away from large crowds, not looking for ways to attract more people. Jesus seemed to care more about those one-on-one conversations with lepers, or prostitutes, or outcasts, or women who most people ignored.

Big events don’t move me, and so I guess I tend to assume that they don’t move God either. Maybe I’m wrong about that. Maybe I’m not. I’m just sharing my gut reaction to big-scale events where people equate a trending hashtag with spreading the name of Jesus – especially when that hash tag doesn’t contain the name of Jesus.

 The bottom line is that I’m not in the place to judge anyone. I know that. No one needs to clear anything with me before they host a large Christian gathering.

If this event ignites someone's heart to follow Jesus more fully in their day-to-day life, then that's a very good thing.

But, if it leaves us empty after the emotional high is over and people are unable to see Christ in their sometimes mundane reality, it might create a dependence on emotional experiences rather than keeping us focused on the reality of a life-changing daily relationship with Jesus.

I’m just saying that if Revival truly comes to our nation, it will probably be in the quiet solitude of a prayer closet and not up on the Jumbo-Tron screen. At least, that’s where most Revivals begin, historically.

Can God do whatever He wants? Well, obviously. Yes, He can do whatever. And maybe if He really wants to get our attention, He’ll have to show up to one of our stadium events because that’s where most of us are looking.

But typically, God seems to love to do things differently. He seems to prefer to defy our expectations and to upset our status quo.

If nothing else, maybe we should keep our eyes open for Jesus in the unexpected places, off the main stage, outside the coliseums, in a quiet place, with a still, small voice calling out in rooms where no one is recording anything on their iPhone or live-Tweeting the play-by-play.

Revival, for me, is a word for a people whose hearts are broken. A person whose soul is ripped down the middle at the sight of all the suffering that surrounds them.

Revival is essentially a word that calls attention to the reality that something that is dead needs to come alive again.

Maybe we don’t need another revival meeting. Maybe what we need is more like a resurrection.

A resurrection doesn’t have a soundtrack or an official t-shirt.

A resurrection is simply a miraculous burst of life in a dark place.

When people who are hungry for Jesus and moved by Jesus are willing to go out and act like Jesus in a world that is desperate for Jesus, then we can honestly say that we have experienced a resurrection.

I’d love to host a “Let’s Go and Do the Stuff Jesus Did Conference"

where thousands of Christians spread out over the city

and break into groups of five or ten

to visit children’s hospitals

and pray for cancer patients

and give hugs to the homeless

and reconcile with their gay brothers and sisters

and pray a sincere blessing for their President

and repent publicly from seeking to change the culture through political power

and maybe take up an offering to feed the poor and house the mentally ill who sleep on our streets every night.

Now, that’s the kind of revival I can get excited about, and it just might deserve to go viral on Twitter, too.

What do you think?

-kg

How do you know if your church is really the Body of Christ?

This weekend I was blessed to fly to the San Francisco area to co-lead a weekend gathering for those interested in learning more about Organic Church.

Our event was hosted at a local pizza shop. The sign on the door said “Round Table Pizza” but on the inside all the tables were square.

To me, that felt like an appropriate metaphor of the modern Christian church in America.

We advertise ourselves as being “The Body of Christ” but then once people get inside they quickly realize that we’re not acting like a body at all.

See, when Paul uses that metaphor in 1 Corinthians 12, he is describing how the Church functions in relationship to Jesus, and to one another.

Any church that doesn’t operate the way Paul describes isn’t really the Body of Christ. Sure, it might be a Church in the traditional sense, but it’s not a Body in the Biblical sense.

Simply put, Paul tells us that Jesus is the head of the Body. That means that He is in control. Not figuratively, but actually. He is in charge. He directs the members of the Body, just as your own head directs the rest of your body parts.

We also see from Paul’s description that the members of the Body all share the ministry equally.

God distributes spiritual gifts to each member of the Body for one reason: So they can build one another up into Christ.

In the round table model, everyone is equal; everyone’s voice is just as important and necessary as everyone else’s. Every member of the Body shares in the work so no one gets burned out and everyone gets to participate.

In the square table model, there is a human boss, typically referred to as the Senior Pastor, who makes all the decisions and quite often does most of the spiritual work alone rather than relying on the members of the Body to accomplish the work cooperatively. You know, like the various parts of a human body.

If you’re going to follow a square table model, that’s up to you. But please don’t refer to yourself as a round table when those four corners are so obvious to the rest of us.

For what it’s worth, both tables are useful, but one makes it easier for everyone to serve one another and use their gifts to build one another up.

If you want to keep your focus on the Lord, try putting 1 Corinthians 12 into practice.

If you want to put that chapter into practice, you’ll find that sitting in a circle makes it much eaiser.

Where you meet and when you meet matters much less than what happens when you meet.

Put Jesus in the center, gather around Him and use your gifts to build one another up in love.

That’s called the Body of Christ.

-kg

5 Things I Want To Say After The Election

After the surprising results of this most recent election I felt the need to say a few things in response:

*First, I did not put any hope in Presidents before the election, and I certainly place no hope in them now that this election is over. Jesus is still my Lord and my guide.

*Second, this election serves mainly as a mirror held up to the face of the Evangelical Christian church in America. Now we know what evils may be excused in the pursuit of political favor - lust, greed, pride, racism, sexism, and everything in between can apparently be overlooked as long as you promise Christians the power they crave most. We have a lot of work to do to make the Christian church more like Jesus.

*Third, many are confused by the fact so many Evangelical Christians vocally and enthusiastically supported a man who admitted he had never asked God for forgiveness, bragged about sexually assaulting women, attacked the parents of an American soldier who died in combat, insulted an American war hero because he was captured, called for banning Muslims from entering the country, mocked a disabled man, bragged about not paying any taxes for years, scammed people with a fake university, owns gambling casinos, and created a non-profit foundation that was shut down and is now under investigation for fraud.

*Fourth, our goal now should be to show those confused people that while we love everyone as Jesus does, we do not applaud these sorts of behaviors. We should work to make it clear that we are following a leader who honors women, embraces people of every religious background, and who is not proud but humble, self-sacrificing and kind. Apologize if necessary. Let the contrasts be evident and clear. There is no one like Jesus. We hope in Him alone.

*Finally, let us continue to demonstrate the beautiful Gospel of Jesus without becoming entangled by the slime of politics. Our focus is on Jesus. Our mission to love others as He loved us. There is no room in our hearts for tribal thinking. We are not primarily Americans, or even Baptists or Methodists, or Republicans or Democrats or Libertarians. Our identity is fully and completely found in Christ and in Him alone. In Christ there is now therefore no nationalism, no sexism, no man-made division, but we are all one in Christ Jesus.

Above all, Jesus is Lord. We have to move beyond that bumper sticker slogan and begin to actually live out of that profound reality in our daily lives.

We are not looking for a nation of our own. We are citizens of another country that is from above and not built by human hands; a country whose founder and builder is God Himself.

Let's continue to be ambassadors of our King to a people who have, mostly, never seen Him or heard His message, yet oh so desperately need it now more than ever before.

-kg

A BETTER WAY TO END ABORTION IN AMERICA

Christians in America are stuck on a problem they can’t seem to solve.

It’s a problem that unites nearly all of us together. In fact, other than Jesus himself, no other topic or issue so completely unites Christians than this. I’m talking about abortion, of course.

But we’ve been stuck on how to solve this problem since 1973.

1973. Seriously.

Has anyone ever told you the definition of insanity? It’s doing the same thing over and over again but expecting a different result.

For over 40 years now Christians in America have been trying to stop abortions in this country doing the same thing, over and over again, and expecting a different result.

That’s insane.

My wife teaches 7^th grade Math. Whenever a student gets stuck on a problem, they usually raise their hand and ask for help.

I think we need to do that now.

Why? Because after two terms of Reagan, two terms of George W.Bush, and a Republican-majority congress at various times over the last 40 years, virtually zero progress has been made.

The evidence is clear: A political solution to abortion isn’t working.

But most Christians are totally unaware that there was already a Pro-Life Movement that actually DID significantly reduce the abortion rate in America, and they did it without politics.

Back in the 1800’s abortion was so rampant that ads ran in the newspapers for them. The abortion rate, adjusted per capita for increased population, was higher than what we experienced after the Roe vs Wade decision.

In the book, "Abortion in America" this time between 1840 and 1880 is referred to as “The Great Upsurge of Abortion,” and estimates are that at least 20 percent of pregnancies were ending in induced abortion during that time in history.

Another book, "The Great Crime of the Nineteenth Century," by Edmund Hale, claimed two-thirds of pregnancies during the mid-to-late 1800's ended in induced abortions.

It was a dark time.

As you might expect, the Christian church of the day was determined to end abortion, or at least to slow it down.

By 1910 they successfully cut the national abortion rate in half.

How did they do it?

Simply put, Christians created a movement where pregnant women were provided with positive alternatives to abortion.

They focused on helping young women in poor communities, including prostitutes, who found themselves in trouble.

They came alongside these women and encouraged them to carry their children full-term. Then they helped them to find adoptive parents for their unborn child.

Or, they simply stood by these women and committed themselves to providing childcare to help them finish school, or find work so they could keep their child.

By putting the Gospel into practice, these followers of Jesus transformed their society from within – one person at a time.

It was led by Christians. It was accomplished by loving our neighbor as Jesus commanded. It did not rely on the passage of laws or elected officials.

If our passion is to end abortion in our nation, the best way to do this is to circumvent political processes which, to date, have proven ineffective, and devote ourselves to loving our neighbor as Jesus commanded.

As long as we continue to put our hope in politicians we will never end abortion in this nation. To continue to seek out a political solution is the very definition of insanity.

But, If we commit ourselves to sharing the love of Christ with those around us, we might just discover that Jesus was right all along about how to change our world for the better.

-kg

PS: Believe it or not, the abortion rates in the United States are steadily declining according to a number of sources.

And, Roe vs Wade will probably never be overturned by the Supreme Court due to a long list of Constitutional and Common Law grounds. But if we are successful in transforming the hearts of people around us, it won't matter what laws are on the books.

NOTE: My new book, "Jesus Untangled: Crucifying Our Politics To Pledge Allegiance To The Lamb" is coming soon. Stay tuned for more info.

READ MORE:

*NEVER TRUMP. NOT HER. WHO THEN?

*SOMEONE TO RULE OVER US

*HOW TO SAVE AMERICA

*THE JESUS UNTANGLED BLOG SERIES

HOW TO SAVE AMERICA

In this insane election cycle, which seems as if it will never end, claims on both sides of the political divide are made about the need to "save America" or "restore our nation".

Many Christians are concerned that a vote for the wrong candidate might destroy us all, or even worse that God might be angry at them if they fail to cast a ballot for the right candidate.

It doesn't help when Christian pastors and televangelists on television, radio and the internet declare that "God told them" who His choice is, or that certain candidates might actually be demons in disguise, or in league with Satan himself.

What can we do? How can we save America from certain doom?

Let me assure you of a few things:

*Christians have more than enough power to save America

*We can do MUCH more to transform our nation than cast a vote once every four years

*American Presidents have less power than the average Christian when it comes to transformation

Take that in for a moment.

Christians already have all the power they need to transform this nation and save America.

We are not lacking anything in that department whatsoever.

The Gospel of the Kingdom that Jesus announced over 2,000 years ago is still the most powerful weapon against evil, corruption, violence, hate and every other sin known to mankind.

Do you believe that? I mean, really believe it? 

If so, please don't buy in to the fear-based nonsense that so many Christian celebrities are spouting at you right now.

Put your trust in your King. Jesus is still on the throne. We have nothing to fear. Our victory is already assured.

Start sharing the Good News of the Kingdom. Let everyone know that Jesus is the best leader anyone could ever have. Make sure you remind them that He loves them and that He would rather die than live without them. Give them an opportunity to become an ambassador like yourself. Teach them to follow Jesus daily and show them how to put His words into practice.

Very soon you'll begin to notice that your community, and America itself, is becoming more Christ-like, as the influence of Jesus continues to expand and spread across the fruited plain.

This is how we make America great. 

This is how we save this nation. Not by casting a vote for a politician that is corrupt, selfish, dishonest and absolutely incapable of bringing any positive change to anyone, anywhere, at any time. 

Let's face it. The two major party candidates for President have never been as odious or pathetic as these two are. 

Voting for one or the other is like being told you can choose between a poop sandwich or a vomit smoothie. Yes, you get to choose, but like it or not you will be expected to ingest one of them.

But there IS a third option. His name is Jesus. He has actual power to change humanity from the inside out. 

If He is your Lord, cast your vote for Him and begin campaigning for His election.

[My name is Keith Giles and I approve this message]

-kg

**

NOTE: My new book, "Jesus Untangled: Crucifying Our Politics To Pledge Allegiance To The Lamb" is NOW AVAILABLE on AMAZON.

ORDER NOW

NEVER TRUMP. NOT HER. WHO THEN?

Many Christians today are confused, heartbroken, polarized, angry and conflicted over the current election cycle.

Who should we vote for? Which candidate is "God's Candidate"? If I vote for this one will God be angry? If I vote for the other one will God allow our nation to collapse in moral decay?

Who will rule over us? Who should we pledge allegiance to?

Here's a thought: If we have pledged allegiance to Jesus as our King and now serve as ambassadors to His Kingdom, how can we participate in the political processes of another kingdom?

Didn't Jesus say that we can't serve two masters? [See Matt. 6:24]

Didn't Paul warn us not to become entangled with the affairs of this world? [See 2 Tim. 2:4]

What qualifies as an affair of this world more than politics? [Other than war?]

For many Christians in America, their identity is found primarily as being citizens of the United States of America.

But for many others, they have discovered a new identity as members of a new community which is composed of those who have renounced everything for Christ. They "look for another country that is from above, whose architect and builder is God." [See Hebrews 11:10]

These Christians have a new loyalty to a new "Lord" [Leader, King, President, Ruler, etc.] who has His own Kingdom and His own way.

Our King does indeed have an agenda, a campaign platform if you will, for spreading His Kingdom and transforming the culture. 

He told us that this plan was for us, His followers, to put His words into practice and to teach others to do the same. [See Matt. 28:19-20]

Our leader was offered the opportunity to change the world through politics and He refused, twice: Once when Satan tempted Him in the wilderness, and again when the people wanted to "make him King by force" [See John 6:15]

Yet, sadly, many Christians today are still seeking for a ruler like all the other nations of the earth have. They, like the Israelites before them, have rejected God’s rule and reign in favor of a political ideology that is not of Christ, nor is it seeking to advance His Kingdom or to promote His Gospel.

 Nor should it. Living out the Gospel of Jesus is the job of those who have been transformed into the image of Christ, not those who claim to be Christians in order to sway a voting block and yet live far outside the rule and reign of Jesus in their daily lives.

Many Christians in America refuse to fellowship with other believers if they happen to disagree on political issues, or candidates. Even though Paul would not allow the Christians in Corinth to divide over differences in opinion over other Apostles! Why, then, do we think it's ok to divide with one another over political candidates?

Answer: It’s not.

For those who follow Jesus, we know we are not of this world, even as He is not of this world. [John 17:16]

Jesus had nothing to do with politics. He called us to follow Him and His example. [Matt. 4:19]

We are citizens of another nation. Our King is alive today. He has a Kingdom. He has established His throne over the earth. He has published his campaign platform. Now, He is looking for those who are willing to align themselves with His agenda.

Have you pledged your allegiance to Him, and to Him alone?

Remember, we cannot serve two masters. Your birth nation does not deserve your allegiance.

Here’s what your Bible says about the nations of the earth:

“All nations before Him are as nothing; and they are counted to Him less than nothing, and vanity.” [Isaiah 40:17]

This means that God does not count any nation as being greater than another. To God, all of them are “less than nothing” and are full of pride.

“The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!” [Rev. 11:15]

This means that the Kingdom of God is on a collision course with the nations of this world. One by one, they will all collapse. Every one of them will soon become swallowed up by the Kingdom of God. How? By the relentless advance of the Gospel of Christ! Not by political means which cannot ever change the hearts or the minds of anyone.

“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” [2 Chronicles 7:14]

This means that God looks to His people to change the culture, not to the King, or the Government, or the Laws of the Land. None of those things matter. None of those things can hold back the Kingdom of God.

Our calling as citizens of the Kingdom of God is simple: To live under the authority of Christ right now and to proclaim His Kingdom as ambassadors who have a new identity, and a new home.

“For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” [Gal. 3:27-28]

We are not Americans any longer. We are not identified any longer by our nationality, or by our race, or by our gender, or anything else.

I challenge you to crucify your politics, put to death your nationalism and patriotic pride.

Pledge total and complete allegiance to Jesus your King, and to His Kingdom, alone.

Jesus is the only hope for America, or for any other nation.

Only Jesus.

-kg

**
My new book, "Jesus Untangled: Crucifying Our Politics To Pledge Allegiance To The Lamb" will explore many more ideas like this. I can't wait to share it with you!

Stay tuned for details about where, when and how you can grab your copy.

Revival or Resurrection?

Gather thousands of Christians together. Pack them into a stadium. Crank the amps up to eleven. Jump around. Raise your hands. Empty your pockets.

Bow your heads. Listen to the message.

Drive home.

The world is still the same.

You are still the same.

Is that Revival?

Revival, to me, isn’t about hype.

It’s about a handful of people whose hearts are sincerely burdened for the lost, who are desperate for more of Jesus and who cannot face another second of life-as-usual.

Those people aren’t waiting for a national conference.

They’re not interested in the mega church pastor’s new book.

They couldn’t care less about the worship band whose new album is on sale near the snack table.

They just want Jesus.

They are only interested in Jesus.

They want to know Jesus more.

They want to be like Jesus.

They want a heart like His.

They want to love the people Jesus loves.

They want to serve the people Jesus served.

They want to forgive the way Jesus forgave them.

They are moved by the things that move the heart of Jesus.

People like this open their arms to gay and transgender people.

Those profoundly touched by Jesus step outside and share their food with the poor.

They pray for the sick without stopping to pull out their iPhone so they can post it to YouTube later.

Revival? For me, that’s a word for a person whose heart is broken.

A person whose soul is ripped down the middle at the sight of all the suffering that surrounds them.

Revival is a word that calls attention to the reality that something that is dead needs to come alive again.

Maybe we don’t need another revival meeting. Maybe what we need is more like a resurrection.

Let me ask:

Doesn’t the world deserve a Church that does more than pack stadiums on the weekend?

Isn’t it more powerful and effective to wake up every morning and quietly, yet consistently, live out the commands of Jesus where we live and breathe?

To me, that is what revival really looks like.

It’s not hyped up.

It’s not up on the Jumbo-Tron.

It doesn’t have a soundtrack or an official t-shirt.

Revival is simply a group of people who are hungry for Jesus and moved by Jesus who are willing to go out and act like Jesus in a world that is desperate for Jesus, [even if they don’t know it yet].

I’m not saying it’s a sin to hold a big conference. I’m not saying that it’s wrong to support Christian ministries.

What I am saying is that Christianity in America seems to be hopelessly enamored with spectacle and addicted to events.

Instead of a conference that goes to eleven, I'd rather see a move of the Spirit that sends people out to hang with the zeroes.

I guess I’m just waiting for the big “Let’s Go and Do the Stuff Jesus Did” Conference,

where thousands of Christians spread out over the city

and break into groups of five or ten to visit children’s hospitals

and pray for cancer patients

and give hugs to the homeless

and reconcile with their gay brothers and sisters

and pray a sincere blessing for their President

and repent publicly from seeking to change the culture through political power

and maybe donate ten million dollars to feed the poor and house the mentally ill who sleep on our streets every night.

When I see that, I’ll call it revival.

Until then, I’m really not sure what to call it.

-kg

CHRISTIANS AND EMPIRE

The Parable Of The Unmerciful Nation

By James Douglass

Transposing Jesus' Parable of the Unmerciful Servant (Matt. 18:23-35) into our time, produces the following reading:

Compare the Kingdom of God to a financial lord who wished to settle accounts with his debtor nations. When he began reckoning, they brought to him one who was the President of a Nation that owed him three trillion dollars - the United States. And as the nation could not pay, the lord ordered that austerity measures be adopted by its government. Henceforth, all government services were to be cancelled, millions of employees were to be dismissed, and all health, welfare, and social security payments were to be suspended until the United States could pay their debt. Every available resource was to go toward mounting debt-service payments.

So the President of the United States fell on his knees before the financial lord, imploring him, "Lord, have patience with us, and we will pay you everything." And out of pity for him and his people, the lord of that president released him and forgave him the debt.

But that same president, as he went out, came upon the president of a small African country that owed the United States 100 million dollars. Seizing him by the lapel, he said, "Pay what you owe." So, his fellow president fell to his knees and besought him, "Have patience with us and we will pay you everything." But he refused and his economic advisors forced austerity measures on the African country, whose people died of malnutrition while their own resources were used to service the debt.

When the presidents of the other debtor nations saw what had taken place, because of their great distress they were moved to solidarity. And they went and reported to their financial lord all that had happened and their resolve to stand together: "We shall not pay our foreign debt with the hunger of our people."

Then the lord summoned the president of the United States and said to him, "You stupid man. I forgave you and your people all that debt because you besought me; and should not you have had mercy on your fellow president, as I had mercy on you? Look what you have done now! Those nations are in solidarity, and all of us who have held them in debit will be ruined!"

And in anger the lord delivered him and his nation to austerity measures and a great depression, and both the president and the lord then fell from wealth and power.

The world's largest debtor nation is not Brazil, or Africa. Nor is it any of the other third world countries whose people are being starved by the austerity measures imposed by the International Monetary Fund.

The greatest debtor in history is the militarily most powerful nation in history - the United States of America.

These two characteristics: military might and trillion-dollar debt, go hand-in-hand. It is not accident that during its two trillion dollar military buildup of the 1980's, the US added a corresponding two trillion dollars to its federal debt.

[From the book, "The Nonviolent Coming of God" by James Douglass; page 104-106]

What Would Wilberforce Do?

[Part 14 in the Jesus Untangled Series]

On July 26, 1833, the Abolition of Slavery bill passed in the House of Commons. A messenger rushed to Wilberforce's house and told him that his three decade-long battle to abolish slavery in the British colonies had succeeded. Three days later, William Wilberforce died, his life’s work complete.

As I’ve been writing a series of articles on why Christians in America need to untangle themselves from politics and return to their first love – Jesus – as a means of impacting and transforming the culture, several people have asked me what I think about William Wilberforce and his political struggle (as a Christian) to end slavery in the UK without bloodshed.

Honestly, I’ve pondered this for a while now. At first blush it appears that the work of Christian men like Wilberforce and MLK provide a strong rebuttal to my call for Christians to abandon political aspirations completely.

But after some thought I think I’ve identified a few reasons why the work these men did cannot be compared to our modern situation.

The big difference is this: Wilberforce was focused on advocating for the weak and the oppressed (slaves) who could not speak up or defend themselves against a system of exploitation, greed and corruption, of which he was an unwilling member.

Furthermore, as a Christian, he was greatly troubled by how his faith and scripture was being mangled to justify the treatment of other human beings who were held against their will and used like animals.

In contrast, Christians today are using political power and influence to protect themselves – not an oppressed group of people who have no defense against tyranny and abuse.

What's more, American Christians are seeking to impact their culture through the legislative power of the State rather than by actually loving and living and serving others the way Jesus commanded.

Wilberforce wanted to leverage political power to set others free. American Christians want to use politics to empower themselves. Big difference.

So, to compare the selfless, sacrificial work of William Wilberforce to abolish slavery on behalf of an oppressed people with the selfish, fear-based paranoia of today’s politicized American Christianity is foolish, and practically obscene.

Wilberforce and MLK did more than vote or push for legislation. They, and others like them, marched. They stood up to corporate greed. They endured serious persecution, and sometimes even physical violence, so that others might be set free. They risked their reputations, even their lives and livelihood, to make life better for other people.

They took their eyes off themselves and saw the suffering of others around them. They invested their very lives into improving the lives of others.

If American Christians would be willing to lay their lives on the line and risk personal injury in defense of the most weak, marginalized and exploited people around them, then we might find cause to equate their political wrangling with the valiant efforts of people like MLK or Wilberforce. Until that day, their lust for political power is the farthest thing possible from the historic abolition of slavery and systemic racism on behalf of others.

The sort of political entanglement the Church finds Herself in today is more about advancing the agenda of a specific party, not about helping the weak, the poor, the immigrant, the outcast, the orphan or the widow. Instead, the Church has become more interested in helping to elect a certain breed of politician who cares more about corporate interests and protecting the interests of the rich and powerful.

Finally, if we look closely we will find that the very same enemy that fought the hardest against Wilberforce and his efforts to end slavery is today the greatest ally of the politically-entangled American Christian Church: Money-hungry Corporations.

A modern day Wilberforce would fight with his last breath against the entangled Christian Church.

We should do the same.

-kg

READ THE ENTIRE "JESUS UNTANGLED" SERIES:

Part 1: "Jesus Untangled"
Part 2: "Who Are We?"
Part 3: "Why Do People Think I'm A Liberal?"
Part 4: "Still Embracing Constantine?"
Part 5: How American Evangelicalism Has Been Exploited, by Ross Rohde

Part 6: The Entanglement Agenda

Part 7: "What Would Jesus Say About The American Revolution?" by Chuck McKnight

Part 8: "Ambassadors of Contrast"

Part 9: “AWOL Christian Soldiers”
Part 10: "The Elephant In The Church"

Part 11: "Christian American Horror Story"
Part 12: "Our True Source of Liberty" by Ross Rohde
Part 13: "Welcome To Post Christian America"
Part 14: "What Would Wilberforce Do?"
Part 15: "Crucify Your Politics"

What God Says To America by MLK

EPISODE 13: Dan Notti & Keith Giles - "What Every Pastor Should Realize"

Evangelical Christianity is on a downward spiral in America. Why? What can be done? How can Pastors of Traditional Churches stem the tide? What does it mean for Organic Churches?

Listen as Keith and Dan speak candidly about the challenges facing the American Christian Church today and what is really holding back the Church from the growth and vitality that Jesus intended for it.

Follow Dan Notti's blog at:

www.DanNotti.com

Follow Keith Giles at:

www.KeithGiles.com