25 Years After 9/11

Posted on September 11, 2026 by Steve Foster

In May 2001, Liz and I were living in New Jersey. Some friends of ours wanted to take us on a dinner cruise in the New York harbor. We arrived early enough to walk along the water and admire the skyline of New York City. They snapped a picture of us in front of the Twin Towers. That picture still sits on our mantle to this day. It reminds us how quickly life can change, how uncertain the future can be, how never to take one day for granted.

Because four months later those Twin Towers would be gone and our world would never be the same.

I remember September 11, 2001.

I can almost relive its every moment. Sitting in a church staff meeting talking about my own personal woes (I was actually in traffic court the night before), when suddenly a lady in our church interrupted our meeting with the words I will never forget…

“Pray for New York! There are planes flying into buildings!”

How do you even begin to interpret that statement?

We ended our staff meeting early and found a TV. We turned it on and sat mesmerized at the screen. We could not process what we were seeing. It made no sense. It seemed surreal. Was this literally happening in a city 40 miles from where we were sitting? When we went outside, we could see the smoke plume of burning buildings beginning to form in the sky.

Yes, it was very real…and very shocking.

The next few hours were spent alternating between the TV and the phones. We were calling people in our church, many who worked in New York City or had relatives that did, trying to find out what was going on…trying to see if anyone that we knew was in those buildings.

No one in our church died that day. One person who worked in the Twin Towers was late for work, stuck on a bus in the Lincoln Tunnel. He would never complain about traffic jams again.

But people that people knew, some very closely, did die that day.

Over 3000 people. And then when the plane crashed into the Pentagon and one in the fields of Pennsylvania, we knew that this was an act of terrorism. An act of war.

Life would never be the same.

At that very moment, my wife was eight months pregnant with our third child. Fear gripped me. Uncertainty. Panic. What kind of world would my unborn child grow up in? What kind of world would all of my children grow up in? Was this the end of our nation as we know it?

I didn’t want our lives to change. I didn’t want our nation to fall. It is amazing how you can easily forget about your daily blessings until they are threatened.

We are blessed every day. And, unfortunately, we are forgetful every day.

We spend more time griping than being grateful.

That day I was grateful for every blessing that I had.

I took nothing for granted.

Neither did millions of others in our nation.

For a limited time in my lifetime, I sensed a national unity that I had never sensed before. We were in this together. We gathered in prayer. We talked with our neighbors. We put out an American flag. We volunteered to go to the city and help clean up. We praised God for our freedom and our blessings. We remembered what truly made our nation great.

For a brief moment, political differences were put aside. We were Americans first and foremost. We loved our nation and we prayed for its protection, renewal, and healing.

Now, 25 years later, I sit here and still wonder where we are going as a nation. What does the future hold? Will our nation survive? What kind of world will my boys, their wives, and any future grandchildren grow up in?

Fear can hit. Uncertainty. Panic. Discouragement.

Our world has changed…and not for the better. Any sense of national unity has evaporated. Partisan, political differences are more heated than ever. Few talk to their neighbors. Few thank God for the remarkable blessings of this nation. Some even hate our nation and want to see it dismantled.

The very forces that sought to destroy us on 9/11 now seem to be embraced.

How do we live in such a world? What do we do?

I come back to Scripture. I really have no other place to turn.

If My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:14)

A promise to Israel at the dedication of the temple in 950 BC.

But I think an abiding principle and promise to us as well.

What can we do when our nation is divided? In decline? In distress?

We can yell at the other side. We can blame every politician and person we do not like. We can curse the darkness.

Or we can humble ourselves. Get on our knees. Seek God’s face. And repent of our own selfishness, bitterness, divisiveness, and stubbornness.

It’s funny, and sad, that we would rather complain and get angry about the things that we cannot change than humble ourselves and change the things that we can change.

Love God. Love your neighbor.

It doesn’t get any simpler than this.

And never forget.

Never forget your blessings. Never forget to say “I love you.” Never forget to pray for this nation. Never forget to thank God for freedom. Never forget to take each day as a gift.

Never forget 9/11.

Posted in Random Thoughts | 3 Comments

The Necessity of Awe

Posted on July 18, 2026 by Steve Foster

My wife and I just returned from the Canadian Rockies. It was one of the most beautiful places that we had ever seen. Snow-capped mountains. Turquoise lakes. Rushing, clear mountain streams. Wildlife and nature all around us. Absolutely, stunningly, breathtakingly beautiful.

Apparently we are not the only ones who think this. As we hiked and toured through Jasper, Lake Louise, Lake Moraine, and Banff, we met people from all over the world. India. Columbia. Great Britain. Denmark. Australia. Argentina. Thailand. Ukraine. China. Japan. Different ethnicities, languages, skin colors, clothing, religions, and, I’m sure, political persuasions.

But there was something unique and beautiful that brought everyone together. No matter where a person was from, they had a camera or a phone and, just like us, they were trying to capture the splendor, remember the moment, share the transcendence with others.

It got me thinking.

Maybe awe is a necessity.

Maybe awe is what we are missing.

Maybe awe is something that we all could use a little more of.

Biblically, theologically, and practically, I believe that we were made to worship.

We have a hunger for the transcendent.

We want to be awed.

We are uniquely created in this way.

It is humans who gather by the thousands, in stadiums all over the world, to watch sports, to attend concerts, to cheer, to chant, to sing, to be awed.

And if we miss the event, then we watch it on TV or revisit it on YouTube, wanting to see the “highlights,” the moments that capture something incredible, something amazing, something that commands, demands, expands our wonder.

You don’t see animals doing this. There are moose, marmots, birds, bears, cow elks, and chipmunks all over Banff and none of them are gathered together in groups, staring at the mountains, taking pictures, ooing and ahing at the beauty around them.

You have never seen a group of animals in a circle watching another animal doing tricks, jumping around, and showing off his skills to the others.

This is a uniquely human trait.

We were created to worship.

David Wallace Foster perhaps said it best in his renowned commencement address at Kenyon College.

In the day-to-day trenches of adult life, there is actually no such thing as atheism. There is no such thing as not worshipping. Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship.

At the core of everything that we think, say, and do is the element of worship. What do we worship? What dominates our mind? Where is our focus? Where is our heart?

That is why I think awe is a necessity.

Awe does at least four things to us.

1.  Awe humbles us.

When you stare at the mountains and see the glory and majesty around you, it has a way of reminding you of how small you are and how big the universe is around you.

Liz and I went on a late-night hike just to see the stars on the top of Mount Standish. As we looked up, we found ourselves literally “looking up.” You want to sing. You want to try to take it all in. You even want to try to take a picture (which is hard to do in the middle of the night!).

It is no wonder that one of David’s greatest psalms (Psalm 8) was written as he stared at the same night sky that we saw.

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
The moon and the stars, which You have ordained,
What is man that You are mindful of him,
And the son of man that You visit him?
For You have made him a little lower than the angels,
And You have crowned him with glory and honor.

We all could use a little humility. And awe helps us find it.

2. Awe enlarges our perspective.

In the craziness of life, the fast pace, the running to and fro, the stressful demands, the annoying traffic, the ubiquitous noise, it is easy to develop a myopic view of life. Everything shrinks in. You get caught up in yourself. You can’t see past your own nose.

Awe expands your vision.

It reminds you that there is something bigger out there than your own little world.

It reminds you that there is something bigger out there than the talking heads telling you that all that matters is the news of the day

It reminds you that you are part of a bigger world, a bigger universe, a bigger story.

It is not all about me.

There is something greater out there.

And unless I am willing to see it, then I will miss the most important things in life.

3. Awe leads us to gratitude.

I don’t know how to describe it but there is something that wells up in you when you see something majestic, something glorious, something beautiful. You want to hold onto it. You want to share it with others. You want to give thanks to someone.

Of course, I think that “someone” is God.

It is interesting that Paul says the first step away from God is when you see the glory of creation and you refuse to give thanks.

For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—His eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. (Romans 1:20-21)

If that is the first step away from God, then it would make sense that the first step back to Him would be simply learning to be in awe of the creation around you and to give thanks.

It is a gift to you.

It is an invitation to worship.

C. S. Lewis, in his autobiography, Surprised by Joy, describes these moments as “Joy.” Not joy in small letters. But Joy capitalized.

All Joy reminds. It is never a possession, always a desire for something longer ago or further away or still ‘about to be’.

Even as an atheist, Lewis could not escape these shots of awe, these moments of transcendence, this desire to give thanks, this hunger for Joy.

That’s why he finally surrendered to God. He called it being “surprised by Joy.”

Lewis then gave this practical advice.

Shut your mouth; open your eyes and ears.

In a world where there is a lot of talking but a lack of thanking, maybe the best medicine is a good shot of awe.

4. Awe points us to God.

This is where it all leads.

Back to God.

We were created to worship. We were created to be in relationship with Him. We were created to love and be loved.

Sin has turned us inward. Sin has made us self-focused. Sin has narrowed our vision. Sin has darkened our hearts. Sin has distorted our minds.

Awe calls us out of this.

Awe calls us to a greater vision.

Awe calls us back to our Creator.

Awe is not enough but it is a necessity.

Awe reminds us that we need God.

Who else can you thank when you see the glory of creation?

Do you really believe it was all put together by random chance?

Can you really deny your hunger for transcendence?

Can you really resist the love of a God who not only created you, but also entered your world and died for you?

Yes, I know I jumped from Banff to the Bible, from Lake Louise to the Lord Jesus Christ.

But I really don’t think it is that big of a leap.

At least allow yourself to be in awe of the creation around you.

Learn to shut your mouth and open your eyes.

Humble yourself.

Enlarge your perspective.

Give thanks.

And be still and know that He is God.

Posted in Chewable Wonders | 5 Comments

The Things That Matter

Posted on June 16, 2026 by Steve Foster

My parents celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary this weekend.

70 years!

What a testimony of faithfulness.

My parents did not have it easy. When you know their story, there is nothing inherent in it that would predict they would end up at this point. An abusive background. A poor upbringing. An early marriage. A lot of financial uncertainty. A lot of moving around. Their first five children born in their first six years of marriage.

But they stayed together. Fought through the difficulties. Remained true.

No fanfare. No accolades. No awards.

There is really nothing special about their story. No news station has interviewed them. No podcaster or influencer has sought them out. No magazine has featured their journey.

They are two simple Midwesterners who met in a small town, got married younger than they planned, had more kids than they expected, had more trials than they wanted, and just tried to make things work.

And they stayed together.

Six kids. One dying early from cancer.

Twenty-three grandchildren.

Seventeen great-grandchildren (and more on the way).

Seventy years of marriage.

Only one word describes this…

Faithfulness.

Commitment lived out over time.

It is what the Bible says is the ultimate measure of a follower of Christ.

Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful. (1 Corinthians 4:2)

It is what our Lord applauds in the final evaluation of life.

“Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.” (Matthew 25:21)

I have often taught on the importance of faithfulness but I am not sure if I have ever understood how important it is…how unique it is…how inimitable it is.

Faithfulness cannot be faked.

It cannot be AI-generated.

It cannot be counterfeited.

Time will eventually expose it.

The very genuineness of faithfulness is its genuineness.

Time is the ultimate verification.

In our world of instant everything. Instant information. Instant fame. Instant wealth. Instant access. Instant attraction. Instant gratification. It is hard to find something that is going to last. Something real. Something enduring. Something foundational.

But I think we all long for it.

We long for something that can stand the test of time.

My parents’ marriage stood the test of time…and it is still standing.

I watched this weekend as my Mom and Dad sat in the living room, holding hands, reading their Bible, and praying together.

I watched as they loved on their children, their grandchildren, their great-grandchildren, their friends, and their church family.

I watched this morning as my Mom came out of surgery (yes, she had back surgery scheduled just a few days after their 70th anniversary celebration) and my Dad came into her room, held her hand, smiled at her, and kissed her.

And I continue to watch their marriage get stronger every day. What started off rocky eventually became a rock. What started off bitter eventually became sweet.

And what held it all together was the goodness, grace, providence, and faithfulness of God.

Their faithfulness is built on the faithfulness of God.

And that’s when it hit me. Our world is selling people a bill of goods. People are running after the latest thing, the newest thing, the most popular thing. Things seem to move faster and faster to keep people from thinking deeper and deeper.

Things are available in an instant…but they only last for an instant.

The really important things in life take time.

The really important things in life endure time.

The really important things in life extend beyond time.

My parents’ faithfulness is just a small picture of God’s faithfulness.

My parents’ love endured because God’s love for them never failed.

He loved them before they even knew Him.

He protected them before they even acknowledged His hand.

And He saved them through the precious sacrifice of His Son.

I am a witness of God’s grace.

I am a recipient of God’s blessings.

And I am a son of two amazing parents.

Posted in Random Thoughts | 3 Comments

Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread

Posted on June 3, 2026 by Steve Foster

Most of us are familiar with the Lord’s Prayer:

Our Father which art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. (Matthew 6:9-13)

It is a beautiful prayer. A simple prayer. A model prayer.

Jesus teaches us how to pray to our heavenly Father. No public show. No long-winded monologues. No vain repetitions. No pretense. No pride. No hypocrisy.

The prayer as a whole has seven petitions. The first three are focused on God. The next four are focused on our own needs and requests.

  1. Let Your name be set apart and magnified.
  2. Let Your kingdom come to earth.
  3. Let Your will be done on earth just as it is done in heaven.
  4. Give us this day our daily bread.
  5. Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.
  6. Lead us not into temptation (or into the place of testing).
  7. Deliver us from evil (and the evil one).

Sitting right in the middle, connecting our focus on God’s glory and our own practical needs, is the request for “daily bread.” You could say it is the heart of the prayer.

But what does it mean?

On the surface, it is simple. As we face a new day, we are asking God to give us the sustenance that we need for the day. Provide for us. Guide us. Strengthen us.

But what makes the request so intriguing is the one word translated “daily” in English. In the original Greek language, it is the word, epiousios. This Greek word is only found, in all the known ancient Greek language, in this prayer, as recorded in Matthew and Luke’s gospels (Matthew 6:11; Luke 11:3). In other words, we do not know exactly what it means. It appears to be a word crafted and created specifically for this prayer…and used nowhere else.

Theologians have debated its meaning for centuries with no firm conclusions.

Etymologically, the word appears to be the combination of two Greek words, epi- and ousios. Epi is a prefix, a preposition, that generally means “upon, over, above.” We can recognize it in such English words as epidermis (“over skin”) and epitaph (“over a tomb”).

The second part of the word, ousios, is a little harder to discern. It is a Greek word that carries such meanings as “substance, being, essence, or existence.”

So putting these two parts of the word together, we have something like “over substance” or “upon being” or “above essence.”

You can see the difficulty in understanding the exact meaning of the word.

But though the exact meaning is enigmatic, most Bible scholars acknowledge that, whatever the word means, it alludes back to the idea of manna in the Old Testament.

In Exodus 16, God’s people are starving. They are without bread and out in the middle of the desert. There are no resources available. There is no grocery store nearby. They are in dire straits. And like they do so often, they start to complain and grumble and question why Moses (and God) had ever led them into such a desolate land and a miserable existence.

Moses cries out to God and God does something miraculous. He rains down bread from heaven. Every morning, as the dew evaporates, there is a layer of bread all over the ground. It is wafer-textured, coriander seed-looking, honey-flavored bread.

Psalm 78:25 calls it “the bread of angels.”

It had to be the most nutritious, delicious, healthy food that man ever tasted and ate. It was what we would call a “superfood.” Or more accurately, a “super-superfood.” It was beyond anything that man had ever seen before. In fact, the name “manna” literally means “what is it?”

Every morning…every day…for forty years while the Israelites are in the wilderness, God provides them with just the right amount of bread that they need for the day. Nothing more, nothing less. Exactly sufficient for the day.

Knowing this background helps us understand the meaning of epiousios. It means something like “super-substance,” something that comes from above, something that comes upon you, from outside you, giving you the exact strength and sustenance that you need for the day.

No wonder the Gospel writers had to invent a new word!

So now what does it mean from a practical standpoint? How do we find this “super-substance”? How do we experience this “above-sustenance”?

Our Catholic friends point to the Eucharist. It is an interpretation that has been around since the 4th century with the writings of Ambrose, Augustine, and Jerome. After all, what else could “super-substance bread” be? But this interpretation fails on many accounts. First of all, the disciples would have absolutely no idea what this would mean. The Eucharist was nowhere in their thinking at this time. Plus, the very idea that Jesus is saying that every day you need a priest to transubstantiate bread into the body and blood of Jesus so that you can eat it every day of your life goes against the very simplicity and practicality that Jesus is teaching in this prayer. This kind of interpretation is called eisegesis, reading into the text what you want to read into the text.

Instead, we go back to the story of manna in the wilderness. This is what Jesus would be alluding to. This is what the disciples would be thinking. This story would be ingrained in their heads from the time that they were young.

Deuteronomy 8:3 makes it clear what God was teaching Israel through the gift of manna.

And He humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.

In Jesus’ own experience in the wilderness (in Matthew 4 which immediately precedes the Sermon on the Mount), He makes it abundantly clear what enables a person to endure testing, withstand temptation, and overcome the evil one.

It is written…It is written…It is written…

In fact, Jesus’ first temptation was to turn stones into bread and He replied with the words of Deuteronomy 8:3. Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.

It is the Word of God that is our daily manna from heaven.

The Word of God is our bread, our milk, our meat, our light, our sword. Our sustenance, our guidance, our protection for each day.

God created the entire universe with His spoken Word. He presently sustains the universe with His spoken Word. Upholding all things by the word of His power (Hebrews 1:3).

Even physicists are beginning to recognize that when you examine the universe down to its most basic level you find two things…energy and information. The universe around us is literally pulsating and proclaiming the Word of God.

David sang about the Word of God, saying that it converts the soul, makes wise the simple, rejoices the heart, and enlightens the eyes. It is more valuable than gold and sweeter than honey. (Psalm 19)

Honey-flavored manna.

So what am I asking for every day?

I am asking God to give me the sufficient, sustaining, strengthening sustenance that comes from His Word.

I need to know His truth every day. I need to hear from Him. I need to meditate on His Word, chew on it, digest it, make it part of my daily diet.

The blessed person is the one who delights in God’s Word and meditates on it day and night. He will be like a tree planted by rivers of water, bringing forth fruit in its right season, never withering, always flourishing. (Psalm 1)

All people are like grass,
and all their glory is like the flowers of the field;
the grass withers and the flowers fall,
but the word of the Lord endures forever. (1 Peter 1:24-25)

Lord, each day, give me Your super-sustaining, super-essential, super-strengthening Word to help me through the day. May I latch onto Your truth. May You put a verse, a song, a promise from Your Word into my heart that will carry me through the difficulties that I will face and enable me to overcome every temptation and trial that comes my way.

Give me this day my daily bread. 

Give me Your truth.

Give me Your Word.

Give me Jesus.

Posted in Sermon on the Mount | 1 Comment

Marx, Trump, and Jesus

Posted on May 25, 2026 by Steve Foster

Flag July 4th Independence DayMemorial Day tends to make me reflective.

As Americans, there is so much to be thankful for. We are blessed. We live in one of the most unique nations in human history…and one of the most diverse nations to ever be born. We are joined together by a creed not an ethnicity.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

An estimated 1.3 million Americans have died in defense of these God-given unalienable rights.

That is what makes Memorial Day a day in which all of us should be thankful.

But recently, while reading about the history of Memorial Day, I noticed that half of these 1.3 million deaths occurred in the Civil War.

An estimated 655,000 soldiers died in the Civil War. This is more than the total of all the other wars combined. More than the Korean War (36,000), Vietnam (58,000), World War I (116,000), and World War II (405,000).

We were more effective at killing each other than defending ourselves against foreign enemies.

Sad.

And, unfortunately, the same spirit of the Civil War seems to be pervading our nation again. We are more divided now than we have been since that time. And we seem to be running headlong toward pulling the seams further apart.

What is going on? What is happening in our culture? Why have we reached a point where we seem to hate each other more than we seek the good of each other…and the good of our nation?

Three names come to my mind today.

Marx. Trump. Jesus.

MARX

Why do I bring up Karl Marx? Because I believe that the philosophical undercurrent underneath our current cultural moment is a form of Marxism.

By all accounts, Karl Marx (1818-83) was a miserable man. A heavy drinker and smoker. Angry. Vindicative. Miserly. He had an intense hatred for his father, for his background as a Jew, for his religion as a Christian, for himself. He was generally unkempt. A loner who rarely washed his hair, bathed, or changed his clothes. His home was a hazardous wreck. His son appears to have died of neglect. Two of his daughters committed suicide. Marx himself died at the age of 64 with numerous health issues (many self-inflicted). Only eleven people attended his funeral.

He is not the model of health…physically, emotionally, relationally, or spiritually.

Yet his philosophy and his writings have impacted the world and continue to do so. And not in a positive way. Lenin. Stalin. Mao Zedong. Castro. Pol Pot. Some have estimated that 100 million people have been killed due to Marxist ideologies.

Yet Marxism is still alive and well.

At the core of Marxist thinking is the idea of class struggle. At the beginning of the Communist Manifesto, Marx wrote these words:

The history of all existing society is the history of class struggles.

In the simplest of terms, Marx divided all of history…and all of society…into a war between the powerful and the weak, the rich and the poor, the bourgeoisie and the proletariat, the oppressor and the oppressed.

Marx’ goal was to incite the oppressed to rise up in revolution and destroy the oppressor.

In fact, Marx wanted to see all the structures of society destroyed. What drove him was not a utopian dream as much as an intense hatred for God and the “powers that be.”

I wish to avenge myself against the One who rules above. …Then will I wander godlike and victorious through the ruins of the world and, giving my words an active force, I will feel equal to the Creator.

Marxist ideology is built on destruction. The enemy is the “other.” Destroy them at any cost. Destroy the systems around them too. It is an ideology that feeds our selfish human tendency toward hatred, towards victimization, towards finding someone else to blame for our problems.

Marxism wants anger, division, and revolution to grow in a society…whatever the cost.

TrumpTRUMP

Just bringing up the name “Trump” creates a visceral reaction in most people. You either hate him or you love him. You either have “Trump Derangement Syndrome” or some kind of quasi-religious devotion to him as the “savior” of America.

It is really strange.

But Trump’s persona seems to feed this dichotomy. He seems to even want it at times. Perhaps, in his mind, whether you love him or hate him, you are still thinking about him…and thus, feeding his ego.

And I am not trying to make a political statement here. Whether you like Trump or hate him is really not my point. It is the fact that his presidency has exposed the growing division that was already present in our culture.

I have been alive long enough to see the division grow over the past 50 years. It seems like, with each successive president, the hatred toward “the other side” becomes more and more palpable. The rise of social media has only furthered this divide. And Trump is the culmination as the “Social Media President.”

Trump is not a Marxist…nor a socialist or communist for that matter. He is perhaps as far away from these ideologies as any president in recent memory. I am not sure how deep Trump’s political convictions go, but I really do believe he loves America…or at least his perception of it. After all, this nation has made his family prosperous and powerful. He wants America to return to its former glory (i.e., MAGA). There is a good, patriotic element to his motivation, even if you disagree with his methods.

And it is his methods that are the focus of my concern. Though Trump is an “anti-Marxist” in policy, he is very similar to a Marxist in mentality.

What do I mean by that?

Marxism is rooted in a power dynamic. “A will to power,” as Nietzsche might say. A desire to deride, debase, demonize, dehumanize, defeat, and destroy one’s political enemies.

Consider this description of Karl Marx by Carl Schurz (1829-1906), a contemporary of Marx and later an immigrant to the US and an elected Republican Senator:

Never did I meet a man of such offensive arrogance in his demeanor. No opinion deviating in principle from his own would be given the slightest consideration. Anybody who contradicted him was treated with barely veiled contempt. Every argument which he happened to dislike was answered either with biting mockery about such pitiful display of ignorance, or with defamatory suspicions as to the motives of the interpellant. I still well remember the sneering tone with which he spat out the word “bourgeoisie.” He denounced everybody who dared to contradict his views.

Substitute “Democrat” for bourgeoisie in the above quote and I think you will get the picture.

Marx wanted to destroy his enemies at any cost. Trump is simply the other side of the coin.

And that is why I contend that, though diametrically opposed, MAGA-influenced conservatives and Marxist-influenced liberals are still playing the same game.

It is sort of like Alabama and LSU.

In the world of college football, these two teams are diametrically opposed. Their fans generally do not like each other. They are “sworn enemies” in the college football stratosphere. But though they may scorn each other, they are still functioning in the same league,. They are still playing on the same field. They are still locked in the same battle in the same game.

Though they may be seen as “enemies,” they are very much the same.

This is how I picture the “world of politics” today.

We may “hate” the other side…but we are still playing the same game.

And no matter what side of the aisle we may land, we all are caught up in it.

We are all breathing “Marxist air” whether we want to admit it or not.

Here is what Carl Trueman said in his magnus opus, The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self:

In regarding all history as a political struggle determined by economic relations, Marx makes all intentional human activity political. Everything, from religious organizations to the structure of the family, is politicized. There is no private, prepolitical space in Marx’s world. And that is now basic to the world of today, where all things are politicized, from kindergartens and Girl Scout troops to adoption agencies, sports teams, and pop music.

When we see everything through a political lens, when we feel like the most important thing in the world is to “get our guy in power,” when we get angry at “the other side” and long for them to be destroyed, then we have adopted a Marxist mindset no matter how much we may say we hate it.

Trying to defeat a Marxist ideology with a Marxist methodology is still a Marxist victory. 

We are like the red-faced parent shouting at the top of her lungs over the rising clamor of her squabbling child,

“STOP SCREAMING, YOU CRAZY KID, OR I WILL GIVE YOU SOMETHING TO REALLY SCREAM ABOUT!!!!”

She may think that she is addressing the problem but, in reality, she is adding to it.

Welcome to politics in America.

JESUS

So what does Jesus have to do with all this mess? And specifically, what does He have to do with Marx and Trump?

In a word…EVERYTHING!

Whether you are pro-Marxist or anti-Marxist, whether you absolutely love Donald Trump or despise him with a passion, you are still somewhere on the same horizontal axis. You are still operating in the same paradigm, assuming the same rules of power.

Imagine a world leader coming from another part of the globe where real life and death are constantly on the line and seeing the animosity between Alabama and LSU football fans. He would think that such animosity is petty, insignificant, and even incomprehensible.

That’s how I think Jesus sees our political battles.

Every political group on earth at the time of Jesus tried to label Him, bridle Him, buckle Him to their own agenda. The religious conservatives (Pharisees), the elite progressives (Sadducees), the ultra-nationalists (Zealots), the political opportunists (Herodians), the apocalyptic isolationists (Essenes), and the cultural conformists (Hellenists) all tried to make Him their own or attack Him as “one of the others.” But Jesus didn’t fit into any of their categories. He exceeded them all. He exploded them all.

Jesus confronts every philosophy, ideology, leader, politician, and political party.

Jesus confronts us all.

If you can read the Gospels and not be convicted, confronted, and cornered by Jesus, then you are not reading them correctly. You may be reading them to gain ammunition for your political fight or to convince yourself that Jesus is “on your side,” but, in reality, Jesus stands above us all.

He does not bow to our political whimsies.

We bow to Him.

Ultimately the dividing line is not between the rich and the poor, the powerful and the weak, the oppressor and the oppressed. The dividing line is between Jesus and everyone else.

Jesus…and the rest of us.

Jesus…and you and me.

He is righteous. We are not.

He is holy. We are not.

He is morally perfect. We are not.

He is Lord. We are not.

Think about it. Unless there is a Lord above us all…a Truth above us all…a righteous Law governing us all…then we will all continue to fight for power, point the finger, puff up our pride, promote our “tribe,” and pummel our opponents.

It is only the recognition of a higher authority that leads to a deeper humility.

And it is only a deeper humility can ever lead to a greater unity.

And that is what gives me hope on a day like Memorial Day.

My hope is not in politics…or in the president…or in the next policy that passes through Congress…or in the next election that puts my preferred person in power.

My hope goes deeper and further than that.

My hope is in the One Person who can defeat our true enemies, conquer death, and change the human heart. More importantly, the One who can change my heart…teaching me to love “the other,” even the one who could be called my enemy.

In a world of growing division, there is only one Healer.

And His name is Jesus.

And that is worth remembering on Memorial Day.

O Lord, heal our land.

Posted in Government/Politics | 2 Comments