Address to Georgia State Senate

CHAPLAIN OF THE DAY ADDRESS
To the Georgia State Senate
By Dr. Bob Rogers, pastor, First Baptist Church of Rincon, Georgia
January 27, 2010

Good morning! Thank you, Senator Jack Hill, for your invitation to speak. It's good to see Buddy Carter, my former state representative, who is now in the senate. It's good to have Ann Purcell, my current state representative, visiting today.
Scripture understands what it's like to face challenging problems with the government. Listen to what Moses faced in Exodus 7:1-4:
1 And the LORD said to Moses, "See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet. 2 You shall speak all that I command you, and your brother Aaron shall tell Pharaoh to let the people of Israel go out of his land. 3 But I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and though I multiply my signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, 4 Pharaoh will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and bring my hosts, my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great acts of judgment. -- Exodus 7:1-4 (ESV)

I have more in common with you who are in politics than you might think. I was student body vice president of my college and I presided over the student senate, but that's not the main reason we have a lot in common. The main reason is that I have been a Baptist pastor for 30 years! So I know about politics. In fact, it was a member of the Georgia legislature who gave me the best advice I received about Baptist politics.
The late Tom Triplett, a former member of the State House, was a member of my church. About 8 years ago, I brought up the idea of moving our church business meeting from Sunday night to Wednesday night, since we were having visitors on Sunday nights who came to hear a sermon, not a business conference. But to my surprise, the proposal was voted down. Tom Triplett pulled me aside and said, "Preacher, your idea is a good one. Wait six months, then explain it fully to all of your leaders to make sure they're all with you, and bring it back up." That's exactly what I did, and business meetings are now on a Wednesday!
I wish that was the hardest issue I've had to deal with, but there have been political issues in churches I've faced much worse than that. So I know that leadership in a political environment can be as tough as nails. So where do we get wisdom for it? What qualities do you need?
Five leaders of the Bible come to mind as role models for us: Abraham, Moses, David, Peter and Paul.
Abraham was willing to take risks. He was told to go to a land the Lord would show him. Are you willing to take the risk to go where you've never gone before for the good of your constituents?
Moses was willing to stand alone on his convictions against Pharaoh and later against his own fellow Israelites when they rebelled against the Lord. Are you?
David was willing to face a giant. Are you ready to take on giant tasks?
Peter was willing to admit his mistakes and change, after denying the Lord and after denying fellowship with Gentiles. That's an important quality in leaders to be willing to admit when we are wrong and change.
Paul was able to get a vision and follow it. When he saw a vision of a man of Macedonia saying, "Come over here and help us," Paul took the gospel into the continent of Europe for the first time. Do you, like Paul, have a vision for your work, and see the big picture?
As helpful as these five role models are, I have not mentioned the greatest example: Jesus Christ. Jesus was willing to sacrifice Himself for the good of others. Jesus said, "Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:13). If you and I will follow the example of Jesus, and be willing to sacrifice our own desires and put others before ourselves, then God will bless our leadership. After all, Jesus knows better than anybody, that life can be as tough as nails.

Post-election thoughts

However you voted in the recent election, let us remember that rulers change on earth, but God still reigns over all. Isaiah was probably worried about the future when King Uzziah died after reigning nearly all of Isaiah's life, but we read in Isaiah 6:1 that "in the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord..." He got a vision of God's greatness, and forgot about the change in power on earth. Regarding our new president-elect and other newly elected leaders, 1 Timothy 2:1-2 commands us to pray for those in authority. Some people might object that they don't agree with the politics of their leaders. I share that concern, particularly on the issues of protecting life and marriage. However, let us remember that in Paul's day, their political leaders were throwing the Christians to the lions, and Paul still said we should pray for them. So should we.

Divided vote eventually unites church

I heard about a church that called a pastor with a vote of 200-3. The pastor spent his first six months trying to find out the names of the three who voted against him. Then he spent the next six months trying to please those three. At the end of the year, the church voted to fire the pastor. The vote was three to keep him, and 200 to get rid of him!

There's an old saying that you can't please everybody, and that is certainly true in church, which is why we need to try to please the Lord first. However, if the church is evenly divided, it is wise to back off a decision and seek to bring spiritual unity before proceeding, especially when voting on a pastor.

A pastor told me an interesting story about a close vote to call a pastor in a rural Baptist church near Claxton, Georgia. The church voted 51% in favor and 49% against calling a man as their pastor. Ignoring conventional wisdom, the preacher accepted the call, and came to the church as their pastor. After a couple of years, however, he resigned. Upon his resignation, he said, "I have unified the church. When I came, half of them were against me. Now all of them are against me."

Elections can either unite people or divide people. Unfortunately, our country is pretty divided over politics. But as Christians, God calls us to be uniters, not dividers. In fact, however we voted, we are called upon to pray for those in leadership. Scripture says, "I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone-- for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness" (1 Timothy 2:1-2, NIV). Someone might say, "Yeah, but our politicians are so bad these days." I would remind that person that in New Testament days, the politicians threw the Christians to the lions, but the Christians still prayed for them.

We can do no less.

Copyright 2008 by Bob Rogers.

Barack Obama quotes the Bible (sort of)

Democratic Presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama (D-Ill.) quoted the Bible in Ohio yesterday. Unfortunately, his references were sloppy, slippery-slope distortions of God's Word.
According to CNSNews.com, Sen. Obama was at Hocking College in Nelsonville, Ohio, when he was asked about homosexual marriage. His reply: "I don't think it [a same-sex union] should be called marriage, but I think that it is a legal right that they should have that is recognized by the state," said Obama. "If people find that controversial then I would just refer them to the Sermon on the Mount, which I think is, in my mind, for my faith, more central than an obscure passage in Romans."
Say what?
It is not clear what he meant by the reference to the Sermon on the Mount, since Jesus' sermon, recorded in Matthew 5-7, never mentions homosexuality. Perhaps Obama was referring to not judging others (Matthew 7:1) or the Golden Rule, doing to others as we would have them do to us (Matthew 7:12). The only thing that is clear is that there are no clear references to homosexual marriage in the Sermon on the Mount, although Jesus does teach faithfulness in heterosexual marriage (Matthew 5:27-32).
As for the "obscure passage in Romans," the Illinois Senator was obviously referring to Romans 1:24-27. Hardly an obscure passage, the apostle Paul begins his greatest theological treatise by stating that men are "without excuse" in their sin, and illustrates this with the sin of homosexuality, which the apostle describes as degraded, unnatural, shameless and a perversion.
Thus Senator Obama dismisses a clear passage of scripture as "obscure", and then makes his own obscure reference to another passage. If anything is "obscure," it is Senator Obama's ability to interpret God's Word.

Living across the street from a tavern

The county sent word to me that the Effingham Family Association would be fined if we didn't remove all of our "Vote No" signs by tonight. Since I had to go to Springfield to visit a man in the hospital, I was picking up signs wherever I saw them, and I knew there was a home across the street from Kelly's Tavern in Springfield with a "Vote No" sign. I figured Kelly's would be upset about that sign, so I drove to the home. Sure enough, the "Vote No" sign was still in their yard, which sits directly across the street from Kelly's Tavern. I knocked on the door, and when the woman answered, I explained who I was and why we had to take down the signs. She let out a long sigh, and said that she was not even warned that Kelly's Tavern was going to open across the street. She said that on Super Bowl Sunday, they had lots of people bringing their own booze and having a party, and she was worried about the bar atmosphere that was going to come now that they would also be able to apply for a liquor license. That's why she was so reluctant to take down her sign, even after we lost the election. But she was nice about it, gave me her sign, and thanked me for being a voice for her viewpoint in our community.

"Amazing Grace" was an amazing story

Two hundred years ago this weekend, the slave trade was abolished in the British Empire. The story of how that happened, however, is largely forgotten. The new movie, Amazing Grace, tells the true story of how it took the tireless efforts of William Wilberforce, who was inspired by his faith and his boyhood pastor John Newton, former slave trader himself and author of the hymn, "Amazing Grace."
My wife Mary and I went with our friends Chris and Janna Dyals to see it today. The first two showings were sold out, so we had to go to the later showing, and that theater was packed, although the theater was one of the smaller theaters at the Wynnsong 11 Cinema in Savannah.
Chris was impressed by the quality of the production. Mary was moved by Wilberforce's determination to keep trying and not give up. I noticed how they brought out the Christian faith of Newton and Wilberforce, yet it is not so "in your face" as to turn off the non-religious movie viewer. I also found it fascinating how they connected the history of the time to the story, including the American Revolution and the French Revolution.

The movie is rated PG for scenes of slavery and some mild language.
Here's how I would grade the movie:
Storyline/plot: B+
It is difficult to retell a story when the ending is already known going in. But although I knew Wilberforce led the crusade to end the slave trade, the story of how he almost gave up, how he was inspired to continue and how a little political trickery helped get it done was all new to me. The movie tells the story well, bringing out the highs and lows of the effort, and using some moving back and forth in time. For many people who are not familiar with the story, the involvement of John Newton, author of "Amazing Grace," is also very inspiring part of the story. I think the story could have been stronger if they had shown more scenes of the suffering endured by the African slaves. They showed white people discussing how the slaves suffered, and they showed one African who revealed his scars and showed Wilberforce around an empty slave ship. I think the movie could have been more forceful by showing Newton's younger days as a slave trader and showing the suffering of the slaves on the voyage. That possibly would have made it a PG-13 movie, but I think it would have strengthened the story.
Acting: A+
There are no famous actors in this movie, but all of the acting is excellent. The actors are all British, and speak comfortably in 18th century English. Ioan Gruffudd plays William Wilberforce with a passion, and Benedict Cumberbatch is equally real and believable as Prime Minister William Pitt, Wilberforce's friend. Albert Finney as John Newton nearly stole the show with the scene where he shares his confessions with Wilberforce. Romola Garai was captivating as the beautiful Barbara Spooner, Wilberforce's wife. The rest of the supporting cast, from the abolitionists and members of parliament down to the butler and cooks in Wilberforce's household, made the entire story come alive.
Costumes/scenery: A+
Chris commented after the movie that they must have spent a lot of money on it, and I agreed. The old ships, scenes in London, costumes of actors wearing powdered wigs, and details such as food and candles took the viewer back in time. For example, in one scene as Wilberforce and Barbara Spooner talk late into the night, the way that he replaces the candles as he is talking looked so natural as if it was a common practice in the 18th century that he had done many times before.
Musical score: A
How can I give a low musical score to a movie featuring the greatest hymn ever written? The way they use the words to the song at key times is effective, without being overdone. If you go see the movie, don't leave when they begin to show the credits for the lead actors, or you will miss a moving bagpipe rendition of "Amazing Grace" done in the square in front of Westminister Abbey.

Legislating morality

I had the honor and opportunity to address the Georgia House of Representatives last week as the "chaplain of the day," at the invitation of my representative, Buddy Carter. I gave an 8-minute devotional, and led them in prayer, at the opening of the session on Monday, January 29. The video is now online. You can view it by clicking here and then clicking on January 29. Unfortunately, the camera was not turned on until after I had finished more than half of my talk, but you can still catch the last 3 minutes or so, and you still see the key statement I wanted to make about how we can and should legislate morality.

You can read the full text of my speech in the first comment below. Again, you can view the video online by clicking here and then clicking on January 29.