Derek Webb may be one of the greatest Christian songwriters of our day. He is never afraid to say it like it is and let his lyrics hit home. Many of you know that he was once a member of the band Caedmon’s Call. Though he did cut a few solo albums, he has recently returned to the band for their new album/tour. The following is an excerpt from the song “A King A Kingdom” on his 2005 album Mockingbird:
There are two great lies that I’ve heard
The day you eat the fruit of that tree you will not surely die
And that Jesus Christ was a white, middle-class Republican
And if you want to be saved you have to learn to be like Him
So my first allegiance is not to a flag, a country, or a man
No my first allegiance is not to democracy or blood
It’s to a King and a Kingdom.
It’s the white, middle-class Republican part that rocks my world. For any of you who have ever lived in the Bible Belt, you know this mentality quite well. I once encountered this thinking in Missouri during the last Presidential election. A Pastor actually said to me with sadness in his voice, “You know some people in this church actually vote Democrat. Can you believe that?” The tone in his voice seemed to indicate that this was a declaration of the church’s spiritual collapse – that no God-fearing man could ever vote for the Democratic Party.
I am becoming more and more convinced that no God-fearing man can in good conscience support either party. As the bumper sticker says “God is not a Republican (or a Democrat)” AMEN. Despite all of this, I do believe we have a responsibility to exercise our vote and play a part in democracy. The key is that our civic duties should always be dictated by our faith. But by no means does this mean voting for one party or another. After all, the main question when standing at the pearly gates is not going to be “What was your stance on healthcare?” It’s going to be “What did you do with the gift of my Son?” Everything else is secondary.
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Caught in the Webb
Posted by Josh at 8:26 AM
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3 comments:
Let me throw in my AMEN and maybe even a HELL YEAH to this post. :) Living in Kentucky at the time of the last presidential election, I got many worried comments and propaganda emailed to me when I at first stated I wasn't sure who I was going to vote for. Sojourners has become one of my favorite magazines because they understand that it is not just family values and abortion stance that Jesus was concerned with, but He was also deeply concerned about social justice and how we care for creation.
as each individual has a sense of his own political direction through passion and belief there is no other way than to exercise that than in a voting booth. so one should not neglect or be denied an opportunity a voice. i would hope all who are being lead by christ would align themselves with a party or platform that is defending and believing in the rights of man in his humaness. it is a believers obligation to do such as that!!
I read about the first lie in Geneses. It was spoken by the most crafty beast in the garden.
I've never heard anyone say that Jesus was a white middle class Republican; that is before reading Mr. Webb’s Lyrics. You know it could end up hurting him by going political like that. Just a thought.
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