Thought of the Day 12.17.09

If you’ve listened to my show at all, you’ll know I’m not President Obama’s biggest fan. I’ve vehemently criticized his policies many times. And yet, just this week I spent an hour praising his Nobel prize acceptance speech both for its explicit content and for the courage he displayed in rebuking the Oslo audience with it. So how is it possible that I can so fiercely criticize him on one thing and then so effusively praise him on something else? Because I’m a Christian.

See, most people who engage in political discourse commit idolatry. They become so enthusiastic about their political ideas that they literally derive their identity from them. This forces them to slice the world up into friends and enemies. And once a person has been labeled an enemy, the political idolater must hate everything about him. Likewise, if a friend, no criticism can be voiced because that would jeopardize the satisfaction derived from being on “our side” of the battle lines.

Though I care about my political ideas, they don’t define me. Since Jesus validates me, I don’t have to accumulate self-worth by first finding enemies and then vanquishing them. I can afford to simply criticize mistakes and celebrate successes.