I hope to write an article on Christians and government, for a very good reason... there are Christians out there who actually pray for Obama and Cameron and their respective governments, despite the fact that both are anti-Christian and wicked.
Such Christians are agents, with the wicked, of further wickedness, by simply being ignorant and not 'getting involved in politics', and not understanding that to pray for the wicked to continue is actually to pray for sin to continue. Anyway, I hope to write it soon.
Meanwhile, one argument that has been used is that Daniel did not act against the 'wicked rulers of his day', so why should we! I found this to be a very odd, and unscriptural argument. For example:
- Daniel was captured from Jerusalem as a teenager.
- Because he was both a courtier at Jerusalem because of his birth, and had probably the highest IQ in the land, he was allowed to attend the Babylon court with the king.
- He was taught the language and politics of Babylon and helped to rule. He would not have done so if the politics were foul.
- He then became a very long-serving ruler of Babylon and its various districts, alongside his three friends. In effect he was the president or prime minister.
- He was deposed for a short while but was again put back into power before Darius invaded the land.
- Throughout all that time, Daniel did not have to speak against the 'wicked rulers' of Babylon because they were not as wicked as some like to think! The Jews were allowed to follow their own God, and Daniel ruled wisely, with the consent of the kling. He would not have ruled as he did if the king was as 'wicked' as some make out. Thus, his situation was not like our own, where politicians are commanding us to disobey God.
- BUT when the king was duped into signing a command for the people to worship him, and no other God, Daniel refused to follow the edict and continued to worship God. For this he was to be executed. But, all worked out in the end when the king realised he had been duped!
So, friends, where in all this was there room or need for Daniel to fight against the government of his day... a government that he personally ruled on behalf of the king.
The point is this - if you wish to bring down a fellow Christian's stand, at least have the decency to check out the scriptural argument you are using! We must pray for leaders WHEN THEY OBEY GOD and DO NOT OPPOSE GOD's PEOPLE. Otherwise, we are free to pray imprecatory prayers for their downfall and, if necessary, we may disobey their laws.
It is about time Christians in the comfort zone stopped playing games with words and saw what was going on.