Political Idolatry is Corrupting the Church
Just a few days ago, I saw a post from and old friend and dedicated Catholic to a young woman about her husband. This woman was married to a husband who, according to her, didn’t do much to help out around the house. She claimed that she’s “tried everything” to get him involved, but he still wouldn’t conform. In an attempt to get some ideas about rectifying her dilemma, she asked the Facebook community for advice. My friend’s advice was this:
“So you need a new husband. End of story.”
This is appalling advice for anyone to give to someone trying to fix a marriage. If a Christian gives it in cases other than adultery, he or she is committing a sin by tempting someone else into sin. I called my friend out on this, to which he responded:
”Doesn’t Trump have some divorces?? Seems you should worry about who you follow instead.”
A response like this to something completely unrelated is a key red-flag indicating that the person has succumbed to political idolatry. My friend seems to have quite a severe case, for I could not get his mind off of the subject of Trump. The man is basically a devil to my friend, and anyone who does not see him the same way is a “follower.” Supporting Trump is a mortal sin in his view, far more egregious than advocating for the dissolution of a marriage and the subsequent adultery that likely follows.
He is far from the only one that has rewritten their moral code. Several other political causes have replaced other biblical moralities. and what has not been replaced has been reprioritized. For example, abortion, which is clearly murder by the biblical standard, and almost universally considered the number one political priority in Catholic churches, takes a backseat to the Democratic Party agenda of abortion on demand up until the point of birth. Breaking this down by party affiliation and filtering by religion, we see the extent of political party impact on moral codes:
Source: Pew Research Center
As the quantities of Christians who allow moral corruption within themselves to grow, so does the corruption of moral codes in the church. This effect explains why so many churches have bent a knee to secular morality; and have begun lashing out at those that keep God’s word faithfully. These Christians have driven both themselves and their churches to serve two masters, which Jesus explicitly warned us not to do:
“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” - Jesus Christ (Matt 6:24 NKJV)
By serving two masters, Christians and compromising churches choose to sacrifice loyalty to Jesus for worldly aims and goals that oftentimes run completely counter to biblical teachings. In recent years, we have seen clergy bless abortion clinics, calling abortion-performing doctors workers of God’s will. We have seen churches promote fornication and promiscuity through “safe sex” campaigns, sometimes even purchasing and providing condoms to young people. Some even fly LGBTQ flags in support of homosexuality. There are many parallels between these churches and the Church of Pergamos, which Jesus spoke of in Revelation 2:
And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write, ‘These things says He who has the sharp two-edged sword: “I know your works, and where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. And you hold fast to My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas was My faithful martyr, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. But I have a few things against you, because you have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality. Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate. Repent, or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth. - Jesus Christ (Rev 2:12-16 NKJV)
It is clear from Jesus’ words to Pergamos that He did not want churches becoming public spaces in which contrary doctrines are accepted. It is one thing to be loving and accepting of sinners, but it is another to be welcoming and accepting of sin. The effects today are also the same as they were for Pergamos. The churches that have accepted political doctrines have subsequently set stumbling blocks before themselves and their children, have dedicated feasts and celebrations in the name of anti-biblical causes, and commit and promote sexual immorality, thus they risk facing Jesus’ harsh judgment.
In order to keep our moral codes pure, we need to ensure that we only serve God. These politicians are not demons or saviors, and the agendas they put forth are not to be considered supplemental or superior to God’s word. Allowing these worldly, political ideologies to take hold both in the mind and in the church is exceptionally obstructive to our primary goal of perfecting ourselves and our churches in serving Christ. Let us not strive to serve two masters, nor set up our own stumbling blocks. Let us follow only Christ and keep God’s word.
