Andrew Strom was a New Zealander ministering in the Kansas City area when I ran across his website some years ago. His teachings about living out Christ's teachings very often seemed to hit the nail on the head, and I began reading his website regularly.
About 10 or 15 years ago he felt like God called him back to New Zealand. I think he currently has a church in the Auckland suburbs; and frequently travels to Africa to teach, and has a ministry to the Maori. And he still has a heart for the American Church, often addressing spiritual issues and events in the U.S.
His e-mail teaching-letter recently reprised this warning from 2006, when I believe he was still in the U.S. It seems even more relevant and even more critically needed today, than it was 17 years ago. Even if what he then called "Republicanism" might now be understood as "Conservatism," his prophetic warning remains spot-on.
His characterization of this danger to the Church as "Political Idolatry" also seems to put it in exactly the right terms: worship of what mankind has created, above worship of The Creator of mankind.
Amen !!
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REPENT of POLITICAL IDOLATRY ! by Andrew Strom
Something I find a little distressing in America is that the Christians
are so often relying on POLITICS to accomplish SPIRITUAL results.
Thus they ally themselves fervently with one particular party and
treat it like "God has won" if that party wins - and "God has lost" if
it doesn't. I almost see this as a kind of BLINDNESS.
The fact is - most of America's problems today are SPIRITUAL
problems that can only be solved by a sweeping move of God's
Spirit. Yet we are relying on Politics and Politicians to accomplish
many of these things?? How bizarre!
How bizarre that we strive and strive to get the "right (worldy) guy"
elected. How bizarre that we treat the President like some kind of
mega-preacher or mega-minister. We put our "hope" in him and his
Political party for all kinds of SPIRITUAL things! What is wrong with us?
I don't know of any other country where the Christians put such
hope in worldly political parties for things that ONLY GOD CAN
DO. Is this not a kind of IDOLATRY??
Yes - there are issues of righteousness to be concerned with - and
it is good to vote. But what is with this OBSESSION with Politics
amongst the Christians? Do we not realize it is a kind of "phony
war"? Imagine if we spent all that time PRAYING instead of
STRIVING for Political victory. We might be actually having a
Revival right now!
Can Politics make America truly righteous? NO! Only GOD can do that!
I want to issue a call to all true Christians right now: "REPENT of
trusting in MAN instead of God. REPENT of trusting in Politics to
do things that only God can do. REPENT of striving and striving to
get the "right party" in power - and thinking that will solve this
country's SPIRITUAL problems. REPENT of making an IDOL out
of any party or any PRESIDENT. The Presidency does NOT equal
God's move! REPENT of putting so much energy and effort into
things that WILL NOT SOLVE the PROBLEM!
If only the Christians of this nation would PRAY instead of running
to POLITICAL ACTIVISM - everything would be different.
What if all of this is a false trust - a false hope - a false gospel?
What if our worship of Republicanism is out and out IDOLATRY??
God help us all.
