Current Scandals, the Media, and Some Perspective

          Scandals are nothing new to American politics and they are certainly not new to presidential administrations.  But, in the current administration there are scandals stacked upon scandals to an unprecedented degree.  In addition to the scandals themselves, there are policy decisions which are rather scandalous in their scope.   Furthermore, the mainstream media’s lack of moxie for doing their jobs is staggering.  Indeed something very strange is happening today that almost defies explanation; however there is rarely anything that truly falls into that category.

          The heavily liberal leaning media has been a champion of Barak Obama since early in his 2008 run for the presidency (For a look at specific instances of the media’s bias in the 2008 presidential campaign read A Slobbering Love Affair by Bernard Goldberg).  Hillary Clinton was once thought to be a shoe-in for the Democratic Party nomination in that election cycle, but the mainstream media forfeited their support for her and instead gave their support to Obama.  The way they primarily did so was in their failure to hold Obama to the level of scrutiny generally expected of a serious candidate running for President.  Obama was a relative unknown and with only minimal amounts of examination it was clear many skeletons were hidden away in his closet.  He had a number of highly questionable associations, had a profound lack of experience (no executive experience at all), and was on the record with viewpoints clearly to the left of George McGovern!

          A number of explanations for this media phenomenon were offered, but the most plausible seem to narrow to two significant areas.  First, the media, and other influential liberals, were/are ecstatic about having a black President.  Liberals, struggling with what has come to be known as “liberal guilt” believe black Americans are owed much because of past wrongs thrust upon them by society.  It is certainly true that black Americans have suffered much at the hands of white people who were in control.  But the primary reason for liberal guilt is because of what the Democratic Party itself was guilty of doing in the not-too-distant past.  The Democratic Party, particularly in the South, was a hotbed of racial discrimination.  Even a Massachusetts Democrat like John F. Kennedy was certainly no friend of black people.  His successor, Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Bill of 1964 but if you read much at all about Johnson’s motives you quickly find he was a politician first and all other things came after.  Second, the media simply identifies itself much more closely with liberalism.  Polls among the employees of media outlets showed overwhelming support for Obama in both the 2008 and 2012 Presidential elections.  Obama’s ideals are their ideals.  Further, one must keep in mind, the most influential news outlets in America are based on the east and west coasts.  Largely the media is out-of-touch with middle-America.  They generally fail to understand how people in America’s mid-section think and live.  They simply do not relate well to people who shop at Walmart and vacation in Branson, MO.  Members of the media, almost exclusively, associate with people in their bubble who think like they do and see the world as they do.

          Therefore, in trying to understand why many current, and monumental scandals are getting only scant media coverage on NBC, CBS, ABC, and in The New York Times, one must remember it is very difficult for these outlets to give negative press to a President they have gone so far out on a limb to champion (as a black man and a liberal), and in whom they have such a vested interest in his success.  At this point, I believe an unspoken truth among the media elites is that if Obama ultimately fails their careers will never recover because, on some level, I highly suspect they know they have not done their jobs.  A good journalist aggressively follows the facts, regardless of where those facts take him/her.

          When George W. Bush was in office, there was certainly no fear on the media’s part of asking the tough questions.  Nor is there media fear in aggressively covering any hint of scandal involving “any” Republicans.  When, for instance, a state story like the Chris Christie bridge scandal erupted in New Jersey a few months ago they, but for a moment, looked like the old aggressive media we once knew.  Shamefully, that type of enthusiasm for doing their jobs is extremely one-sided.  Comparatively when there is mounting evidence the current Presidential Administration might be covering up facts about what happened in Benghazi, Libya which resulted in 4 dead Americans, when the Veterans Administrations had secret lists and employees were essentially getting bonuses because of these deaths, when the IRS was apparently targeting conservative groups, when the southern border of the U.S. is as porous as a screen door to water with little enforcement; noting the failure to enforce serves as an open invitation for more illegal aliens to cross our borders, when Iraq is crumbling after the President shrugged off the advice of his generals who knew the realities on the ground and called for a residual number of troops, when the President repeatedly lied over and over again about the health care law (Obamacare) saying “if you like your plan/doctor you can keep your plan/doctor . . . period,”  when a probable deserter from the Army was traded for 5 Al Qaeda terrorists housed at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, when Obama’s famous “red line” in Syria was crossed with no consequences, when Vladimir Putin took Crimea with no consequences, when each day we are closer to a nuclear Iran, when the 5 year anniversary of the signing of the stimulus bill came and went without even a mention by the administration or media because it was a nearly 1 trillion dollar failure and any mention of it would have painted the administration in a bad light, when Fast and Furious led to the death of a border agent killed by guns supplied by our government, when members of the Black Panthers were blocking entry to polling places and Attorney General Eric Holder saw no reason to prosecute, when massive corruption was exposed in the ACORN organization for which the Democratic Party has close alignment, when the economy remains flat, when long-term unemployment has become perpetual, when this is the slowest economic recovery in history, when the labor participation rate is the lowest since 1978, when the number of welfare and food stamp recipients has skyrocketed under this administration, when the National debt has been increased in incomprehensible terms, when the U.S. credit rating has been downgraded by S & P, when the administration, via the NSA, was found to be secretly tapping the phones of the Associated Press, Fox News correspondent James Rosen and several world leaders including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, when the President signs executive orders, by-passing Congress in non-emergency situations, and on and on.  Many of these things, by themselves, would be enough to bring down a Republican Presidential administration, mainly because the media would be relentless with wall to wall coverage and the pursuit of answers.  Barak Obama has been the first President in history to truly be given the benefit of the doubt down the line by the media; then when the facts start pouring in the media, by-and-large, looks the other way.  Their double-standard is beyond description!

          Scripture has much to say about corrupt people serving their own interests.  All these things surprise us because we have not seen anything on this scale in America up until now.  But, in other places in the world this is, and has been, the norm.  Remember Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf  “Baghdad Bob” the former Iraqi Information Minister who, as U.S. troops were about to completely overtake the country, was still reporting on Iraqi television that all was well and that America was failing in its efforts to take the country.  In many third-world countries it is completely normal for the news to be controlled by those in power.  One of the hallmarks of Western Civilization, particularly American Civilization, has been a free and adversarial press that acts as a watchdog for the protection of the interests of the American people.  Clearly the watchdog has turned into a guard-dog for this administration; and increasingly more like a lapdog! 

          As I have been spending much time and effort in recent weeks studying about end times, particularly the Book of Revelation, I cannot help but conclude that those who currently try and sculpt and spin all things to their political advantage are going to be in for a rude awakening in what is the not-so-distant future.

          I cannot help but think that what we see today is yet another massive confirmation of the things we already know.  Politics and politicians and those who report, or fail to report, on them are like grass and flowers.  They have a very short season then comes winter.  Investing in this passing earthly system is a proposition guaranteed for failure.  While we look at the chaotic mess in this country today, the most scandalous administration in our history, and the volatility of this world, we need to remember Jesus’ simple and calming words; “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.” (Mat. 24:35)

In Christ,

Dr. Allen Raynor, Pastor

The Urgency of Christian Warfare

 

          Throughout the passing decades of the last half-century the church has, quite ironically, battled itself as much or more than it has battled the world.  Frequently, rather than engaging the world and confronting the world, the church has instead often taken up arms against itself!   Strong opinions about a variety of issues have led to deep divisions, animosity, and even church splits.  This effectual “turning against one another” has been cause for Satan to break out the celebratory champagne.

          Paul wrote to the Ephesian church in 6:12 “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Petty battles albeit defending deeply held convictions may have felt like spiritual warfare to those involved, but frequently these engagements have served to drain the church of its spiritual, emotional, and physical energy and sometimes it’s monetary resources.  Not to mention, caused many pastors sleepless nights.  And it has certainly been cause for delight to the enemy of our souls.  Quite simply, believers in recent decades in particular, have struggled to identify the real enemy and the real battlefield worthy of their attention.

          Much of the language found in the New Testament is of a militant nature.  Believers are often referenced as soldiers.  Warfare is a common overarching theme and words like battle, fight, and defeat are regularly used.  The real enemy is Satan and this worldly, fleshly system he superintends. 

          Believers are called to be warriors in this conflict– not spectators.  Further they are expected to properly identify the true enemy and his tactics.  A warrior is “A brave or experienced soldier or fighter.”  It takes skill, resolve, and determination to defeat any enemy.  Our opponent is formidable and should never be taken lightly by the church of the Lord Jesus.

Sabine Baring-Gould wrote the great hymn “Onward Christian Soldiers” in 1865.  (Follow this link to listen to hymn: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mG78M7g9wRo  )  The hymn has served as something of a “call to arms” for Christians engaged in the battle for Christ in this world.  Debates raged in the 1980s among some denominations as to whether to even include this hymn in new editions of hymnals citing the violent language and militaristic tone. 

          When Winston Churchill and Franklin Roosevelt met in August 1941 on the battleship HMS Prince of Wales to agree on the Atlantic Charter, a church service was held for which Churchill chose the hymns. He chose "Onward, Christian Soldiers" and afterwards made a radio broadcast explaining this choice.  He said “We sang ‘Onward, Christian Soldiers’ indeed, and I felt that this was no vain presumption, but that we had the right to feel that we were serving a cause for the sake of which a trumpet has sounded from on high. When I looked upon that densely packed congregation of fighting men of the same language, of the same faith, of the same fundamental laws, of the same ideals . . . it swept across me that here was the only hope, but also the sure hope, of saving the world from measureless degradation.”  (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onward,_Christian_Soldiers)  While this may have been highly appropriate for this occasion, the ultimate cause of freedom and of nations is not as great as the cause of Christ.  Churchill and Roosevelt were primarily concerned with earthly battles and earthly victories, but Christians have a much greater cause for which to fight.

          Warfare is never as glamorous as some romanticized depictions present.  Paul wrote to Timothy in 2 Tim. 2:3 “You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.”  A soldier’s life is far from easy.  There are certainly plenty of hardships, but Paul admonished Timothy that he must endure.  Unfortunately, to look at the attitude and approach of many professing believers, one might easily get the impression the war had long since ended.  Charles Thomas “C. T.” Studd (1860-1931) the great British cricketer and missionary who served in the Belgian Congo captured somewhat of the urgency when he famously wrote “Some want to live within the sound of a church or chapel bell; I want to run a rescue shop within a yard of hell.”  Studd also wrote a ditty that gave, rather tongue and cheek, a depiction of how some so casually approached the great daily battles.  With words meant to be sung to the tune of the famous hymn “Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus,” he wrote “Get up, get up for Jesus, ye soldiers of the Cross, a lazy Sunday morning surely means harm and loss; the Church of God is calling; in duty be not slack; you cannot fight the good fight while lying on your back.”

          Many Christians today have lost sight of who the real enemy is and are not keenly aware of what he is actually doing.  The second stanza of “Onward Christian Soldiers” optimistically states “We are not divided; all one body we; one in hope and doctrine, one in charity.”  Sadly, we could only wish those words were true in our times.  We are deeply divided across denominations, within our own denomination, and even many times within our own local churches.  An army battling within its own ranks is music to the ears of the enemy.  While many argue over issues, preferences and other minutia that will not even exist in a few years, the enemy is advancing and the church is often in retreat.  Before we are going to be effective soldiers we must first realize there is a war raging and too many believers are not carrying out their assignments.

 

In Christ,

Dr. Allen Raynor, Pastor