My Hope & Prayer for Barack Obama
“When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice, but when a wicked man rules, the people groan.” (Pro. 29:2)
How important is government in the daily activities of a people? Is it some benign force or power? Surely, citizens care about who is in political control. Should a Christian?
There is no doubt but that government affects the daily lives of its citizens. Government and its policies tell a people what kind of behavior will be allowed, and what behaviors are “off limits,” and thus prohibited. Prohibited activities in general are those that will harm one’s fellows, but not always.
In 727 BC, Hezekiah became king of Judah, and he did what was right in the sight of God (II Kgs. 18:1 – 7). The worship of God was restored, and people (in general) behaved. The king exemplified trust in God, an example that the rest of the nation could follow. The power of his Godly example sustained Judah through a fearful national crisis: the very real, deadly threat of a very powerful king: Shalmaneser, the Assyrian king, who had just subdued Samaria to Judah’s north!
King Hezekiah, on his knees before God, begged for God’s intervention. God did so, and the nation was spared the ravages of a heathen king (II Kgs. 19:34 – 36). Hezekiah never forgot Who was in power! The nation rejoiced!
The very opposite happened in the next administration, that of Manasseh, Hezekiah’s son. During his reign, “all hell broke loose,” and people were allowed to do whatever they wanted (II Kgs. 21:1 – 16). Even innocent babies and children were killed, for the sake of the adults’ sexual pleasures. God “drew the line,” and said, “That’s enough!” So evil was this disrespect for life, that God would neither forgive nor pardon Judah for this crime against humanity (II Kgs. 24:3 – 4). The people groaned.
Christians are called to care about their civil governments, to the point of praying for their leaders (II Tim. 2:1 – 4). Leaders can set policy that help Christians to tell the Gospel to their fellows, as well as to practice their Christian ethics. When the unilateral will of God is honored and practiced and encouraged, people (in general) behave. People rejoice.
We can only pray that Mr. Obama is, or will be, a God-fearing man, who will respect God’s policies for human behavior. Pray for him!
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