History often repeats itself. Maybe not with exact precision, but familiar snippets of past historical events emerge from time to time, triggering foggy memories of days gone by. Fads come…go…and come again. Fashion, to a certain extent, functions in the same cyclical manner. (My Dad needs to flick the mothballs off of some of his polyester pants and sport those again.) Even Biblical history repeats itself. Most recently, an occurrence at the Democratic National Convention shared a commonality with an account in the life of Christ. No…no one walked on water; nor did anyone turn water into wine. But a significant percentage of the party delegates played the role of Peter in one of the Apostle’s most notorious moments, the occasion of his thrice denial of Christ.
One of Jesus’ closest confidantes, Peter assured his Master of life-long loyalty, even after Jesus warned of a day when his disciples would flee to escape persecution. Peter bragged that he’d fight the enemies of Christ to the bitter end. The night of Jesus’ arrest, Peter drew his sword, striking one of the Lord’s captors, cutting off his ear. After the angry mob whisked Jesus away, Peter cowered in the shadows, following the angry mob at a distance in hopes to gather information about Jesus’ charges and well-being.
While waiting in the courtyard, Peter’s presence garnered unsolicited attention. Others milling in the courtyard, asked Peter if he was one of Jesus’ followers. Peter denied having any relationship to Jesus, and after being asked a third time, he emphatically disavowed any connection between himself and Christ, the third time with an oath. The rooster crowed. Peter slunk into the darkness, weeping over his disloyalty.
Obama Sculpture
So, how does the aforementioned Biblical account apply to the Democratic National Convention? Abandoning language from previous gatherings, the DNC presented a platform without the mention of “God” and without the designation of “Jerusalem” as the Capitol of Israel. These head scratching deletions ignited a firestorm. Social media disseminated the news that the Democrats could now be categorized as “Godless.” Within a few hours, a delegate presented a resolution to amend the platform, re-inserting both “God” and “Jerusalem” to the document. Aiming to right the “oversight,” DNC Chairman Antonio Villaraigosa announced the party required a two-thirds vote to amend the party platform. Calling for a voice vote of “ayes” and “nays,” the Party Chair squirmed as the volume of affirmative and negative votes sounded identical. After three separate votes, he unilaterally passed the amendment as the naysayers booed the correction.
Three times he called for a vote, and three times at least half of the delegates chorused contempt for God and Jerusalem. There’s no doubt that Party leaders, including the President, told Mr. Villaraigosa, “No matter the vote, pass the amendment.” At the DNC, a political party chair resorted to cheating to acknowledge God’s Providence, a truly sad commentary on the state of America. Half-of the Democrat delegates unabashedly denounced the platform’s rectification…not once, not twice, but three times.
Sound familiar?
I happened across the results of a recent Gallup survey, and I’m copying this verbatim from “The Pathway,” the Missouri Baptist newspaper.
Most Democrats- 52 percent- say the seldom or never go to church, according to Gallup poll results published November 7. Another 20 percent said they go to church nearly weekly or monthly. Thirty-eight percent of Republicans said they seldom or never go to church, while 21 percent said they go to church nearly weekly or monthly. When asked what their religious denomination was, 19 percent of Democrats said they had none, while 9 percent of Republicans said they belonged to no denomination.
Just recently, a friend of a friend quipped Democrats have no hope of going to heaven. In no way do I agree with such remarks. “Man sees the outward appearance , God sees the heart.” However, the poll answers some questions about the liberals’ stance on social issues, particularly abortion and homosexuality. If a majority of democrats steer clear of church, then the odds of adopting a biblical worldview seem slim.
It’s ironic. As the President and Secretary of State prepared to deliver remarks at a memorial for those lost in the attack on the U.S. Consulate in Libya, a military band played a beautiful rendition of Nearer My God to Thee. A few weeks ago, the DNC attempted to boot God from the Party and at the memorial service, Democrat leaders mourned American losses to the hymn “Nearer My God to Thee?”
America can’t have it both ways.
Let us never forget:
“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.” (Psalm 33:12)
Get that? Blessed! So, what’s it going to be America?
November awaits….
