Candidacy Criteria
Tuesday, 15. January 2008, 14:05:02
I know many Christians in America today are in favor of differing candidates for president. I myself have come to the conclusion that Ron Paul is the best of the bunch, but that's not what I'm writing this blog for. I think that many have forgotten something very important in choosing representatives and rulers.
"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding." - Proverbs 8:10
"And to man He said, 'Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding.'" - Job 28:28
This tells me that we must choose Christian leaders for our country. We want wise men leading us, yes? Then they must fear the Lord, for if they do not, they are foolish. A Christian is a must for any position of authority. So I encourage all my brothers and sisters in Christ to vote for the candidate who acts on his Christian beliefs. In my opinion, that candidate is Ron Paul, not Mike Huckabee as so many think. Huckabee is not ideal for a number of reasons (not least of which are the ethical violations he committed during his governorship).
Besides simply sharing a Christian faith, which is often hard to gauge, we must choose based on works. Faith is proven by works, so if we see someone professing to be Christian holding anti-Christian policies, we can be pretty sure he is not a Christian. We need to choose a candidate who acts upon his faith, not only by keeping the government in check as he should, but also in his personal life, by helping the poor, by visiting the widows, by being in constant prayer, etc.
I also think the qualifications for choosing elders and deacons found in 1 Timothy hold true for presidents.
Just some thoughts.
Lately I've been working and working on school. We're in the Civil War and reading John Whitehead's wonderful book The Second American Revolution. I took my first practice SAT at home last Saturday, and I got a fairly good score. This will be my control test, so I can measure my progress as I take more practice SATs later this spring, leading up to the real one in May.
Other studies continue as well. I am assured by my father that the SG-1 season which he ordered is coming, but I suspect some kind of evil plot, from some obscure references to "spilling beans" made by Mother. We have this deal set up in which Dad buys a season of Stargate SG-1 for every practice and real SAT I complete. One so far, with a few more later this spring. I rub my proverbial hands together in proverbial glee.
The weather, as you might suppose, has been cold and wet, but not cold enough to make the "wet" bit become "snowy".
I must admit I did get the Duck of Stupidity for an accident involving broken glass. This is only my second acquisition of said Duck, and I still remain far ahead of my family. I must try and help speed up the process for someone else, or burn the Duck when no one is looking. We'll see what happens...
"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding." - Proverbs 8:10
"And to man He said, 'Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding.'" - Job 28:28
This tells me that we must choose Christian leaders for our country. We want wise men leading us, yes? Then they must fear the Lord, for if they do not, they are foolish. A Christian is a must for any position of authority. So I encourage all my brothers and sisters in Christ to vote for the candidate who acts on his Christian beliefs. In my opinion, that candidate is Ron Paul, not Mike Huckabee as so many think. Huckabee is not ideal for a number of reasons (not least of which are the ethical violations he committed during his governorship).
Besides simply sharing a Christian faith, which is often hard to gauge, we must choose based on works. Faith is proven by works, so if we see someone professing to be Christian holding anti-Christian policies, we can be pretty sure he is not a Christian. We need to choose a candidate who acts upon his faith, not only by keeping the government in check as he should, but also in his personal life, by helping the poor, by visiting the widows, by being in constant prayer, etc.
I also think the qualifications for choosing elders and deacons found in 1 Timothy hold true for presidents.
Just some thoughts.
Lately I've been working and working on school. We're in the Civil War and reading John Whitehead's wonderful book The Second American Revolution. I took my first practice SAT at home last Saturday, and I got a fairly good score. This will be my control test, so I can measure my progress as I take more practice SATs later this spring, leading up to the real one in May.
Other studies continue as well. I am assured by my father that the SG-1 season which he ordered is coming, but I suspect some kind of evil plot, from some obscure references to "spilling beans" made by Mother. We have this deal set up in which Dad buys a season of Stargate SG-1 for every practice and real SAT I complete. One so far, with a few more later this spring. I rub my proverbial hands together in proverbial glee.
The weather, as you might suppose, has been cold and wet, but not cold enough to make the "wet" bit become "snowy".
I must admit I did get the Duck of Stupidity for an accident involving broken glass. This is only my second acquisition of said Duck, and I still remain far ahead of my family. I must try and help speed up the process for someone else, or burn the Duck when no one is looking. We'll see what happens...
(100%)
Where are you getting your information about Ron Paul? Chalk one up for our clever media, or one down for Ron's campaign manager -- I didn't even know he was a Christian. Mind you, I don't watch TV or read the newspaper, so I'm perhaps not the best informed person out there ...
By ptum, # 15. January 2008, 14:40:29
Also, careful with characterizing Huckabee. A better statement might have been "alleged corruption" or "questions relating to his integrity". You weren't there and have no firsthand knowledge.
Just some advice--don't get too declarative based on a few things on the internet or on forums.
By edgren, # 15. January 2008, 18:12:51
Perhaps it is my turn to jump in to defend Huckabee. Romney did run some rather questionable "attack ads" in my opinion. I really have not studied these issues too much because I won't be eligable to vote anyway, but I was under the impression that Ron Paul is a libertarian running as a Republican. I do agree with the rest of what you said though.
I really ought to make similar practice SAT arrangements with my family. I didn't get anything but a good score out of my practice PSAT's.
By anonymous user, # 15. January 2008, 18:38:29
As I see it, Mike Huckabee 1) is a social-gospel type pretending to be a good Christian and 2) kind of makes my head want to explode. Actually, I don't like any of the candidates right now, but anyway. You already know that.
Timothy, rather than going so far as to BURN the duck or resort to sabotage, I would suggest that you set a goal for yourself and try your hardest to avoid getting stuck with it. Builds character. ^.^
By anonymous user, # 15. January 2008, 21:58:47
Burn the duck? Gasp. Sacrilege. If it's any comfort, I'm not all that sure you deserved it. But the Duck is ruled by a tyrannous majority.
By anonymous user, # 16. January 2008, 08:40:25
Great post Tim. Indeed. I myself need to be careful...do people think of me as "Steffi the Christian who holds Christ as her priority" when it comes to politics or "Steffi the libertarian".? Christ is what's important in our government and though I believe my political stance is the best way that my Faith is echoed, I can't let my political stance distract from my goal as a Christ-serving Christian.
By anonymous user, # 29. January 2008, 23:48:09