Some reflections on the 2019 General Election.

A message of hope and caution

As with Haman, threat to Jews comes back on its own head

A new era has begun in British politics.

When all is said and done, the divine choice is what counts

…and join with Gentiles in a traditional wedding dance!

What to expect from the general election.

Trump vs Macron and the battle for all our futures.

These days, I am routinely and necessarily suspicious of the BBC. So when Auntie reports a major international speech given by the most powerful man in the world by poking fun at him, it makes me want to listen to the speech in full and see what I’ve missed!

The speech was given by President Donald Trump to the annual UN General Assembly meeting in New York. The UNGA brings together in one room world leaders of vastly different political backgrounds, from 153 nations. Since a lot of politicking is done off-camera, the podium is the tip of the iceberg; a nonetheless vital indicator of a more extensive reality just below the surface.

Podium Wars

It is fascinating to watch Trump’s speeches and the reactions of other world leaders. Ever since his arrival on the world scene, things seem to have become more threatening and unstable – or more exciting and hopeful, depending on your perspective. He has certainly succeeded in exposing to the air an ideological war that has been raging in the West for decades.

As with ‘populist’ movements like Brexit, such an open challenge to the left-wing secular humanist orthodoxy is usually decried (by left-wing secular humanists) as divisive. But what else should be expected of any attempt to stand against the prevailing direction of Western politics?

And if Trump embodies one side of the ideological war, the other is embodied by French President Emmanuel Macron, whose UNGA speech was essentially a point-for-point rebuttal of Trump’s. This article looks at some of the key issues over which they tussle, putting them both into biblical perspective.

Polar Opposite Views

President Trump dedicated much of his speech to a solidly conservative defence of nationhood, vowing to “never surrender America’s sovereignty to an unelected, unaccountable global bureaucracy” and to reject “the ideology of globalism.”

His argument was that whilst supra-national organisations like the UN have “unlimited potential”, they cannot and should not replace the “beautiful constellation of nations”, since “Sovereign and independent nations are the only vehicle where freedom has ever survived, democracy has ever endured, or peace has ever prospered.”

If Trump embodies one side of the ideological war for the West, the other is embodied by French President Emmanuel Macron.

Meanwhile, President Macron took the podium to exalt the virtues of global government as the only way to solve mounting international crises and ensure prosperity for all. He argued that “nationalism always leads to defeat”, blaming it for two world wars, genocides and countless worsening global emergencies.

He then claimed that we are witnessing a “crisis of the Westphalian world order" (i.e. a world of individual sovereign states) and “this is a turning point” where we need “a new world order” based on “new rules” and “a re-forging of the global collective system”.

Trump addresses the 73rd session of the Assembly, 25 September 2018.While Macron waxed lyrical about international co-operation, Trump criticised the dangerous lack of accountability of global institutions (e.g. the ICC, the WTO). Declaring that they have “no jurisdiction, no legitimacy and no authority”, he then proclaimed:

America is governed by Americans…we believe in the majesty of freedom and the dignity of the individual. We believe in self-government and the rule of law. And we prize the culture that sustains our liberty - a culture built on strong families, deep faith, and fierce independence.

Macron denounced this thinking as ‘isolationism’. He argued that populist movements championing democracy are mere expressions of frustration from groups ‘left behind’ by the modern world. To combat this, he argued, what is needed is not insular nationalism, but more and better globalism.

These are just a few examples; I recommend comparing the full texts of both speeches (links below).

More Than Different Opinions

Importantly, Trump and Macron do not simply represent different opinions about how government should be done: they embody two diametrically opposed worldviews.

Underlying Trump’s defence of national sovereignty is a biblical valuation of individual dignity and freedom, as given by God. From this starting point, the role of government is to protect and encourage individuals, not least by investing in the structures (also God-given) that enable them to flourish, such as the family, the rule of law and the nation itself.

Underneath Macron’s ‘new world order’ is precisely the opposite: a firm belief in the pre-eminence of the universal rather than the individual. The role of government is then to impose freedom from the top down, not by protecting units like the family and the nation, but by subordinating them to a ‘universal’ moral and political system:

I believe in universal values…I think there should be unconditional protection of our values…Let us address the crises, let us work together…mindful of the principles guided by our history and the principle of universality and universalism.

Under Trump’s defence of national sovereignty is a biblical valuation of individual dignity and freedom, as given by God. Underneath Macron’s ‘new world order’ is precisely the opposite.

Digging even further down, underneath these different claims lie very different visions for humanity’s future, and very different beliefs about human nature and God.

Macron’s vision is the realisation of a world where poverty, disease and conflict are gone, climate change is reversed and prosperity is enjoyed by all. Appealing though all this sounds, it is grounded in a utopian fantasy: the creation of heaven on earth, without God, humanity dictating its own morals and working out its own salvation.¹ Both history and Bible prophecy testify to the terrible ends of such millennial dreams.

Trump’s world-view is not nearly so grandiose. He does not assume that a universal utopian vision is necessary, possible or desirable, but instead concerns himself with unleashing individual potential: enabling people to make the best of a fallen world, responsible for their own lives before God.

This does not preclude impulses to international co-operation; it just does not prescribe them as the way to humanity’s ultimate self-realisation.

The Spiritual Dimension

These two men and their two speeches remind me that ultimately there are really only two worldviews, or two directions in which to move: to pay respect to the God of the Bible and his created order, or to write God out of the picture, revising the world accordingly.² Whichever side wins out will change the lives of millions, even billions of people.

The biblical context of all this, of course, is the spiritual battle spoken of in Ephesians 6:10-19. This invisible battle is for the hearts, minds and eternal destinations of all mankind. It is therefore fundamentally a battle for the freedom of the Gospel to be proclaimed, heard and accepted. Satan’s strategy is to deceive with counterfeit offers of salvation and freedom, working meanwhile to close down opportunities for the truth to be heard.

One day, Macron’s vision of a ‘new world order’ will be realised, temporarily (Rev 13), though Satan’s attempts to achieve this through history have so far been allayed. By God’s grace, until the appointed time the Holy Spirit is acting as a restraint, safe-guarding our freedom to proclaim the Good News:

For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendour of his coming. (2 Thess 2:7; also 2 Pet 3:9)

In these two men, and in these two speeches, we are reminded that ultimately there really are only two worldviews.

For Believers

Why is it important to understand the battle raging between our political masters, especially if God ultimately scoffs at their posturing and plotting (Ps 2)? It’s important because it should jolt us out of complacency and galvanise us:

• To make bold use of our Gospel freedoms while we still have them,
  
• To take care that we are not deceived into aligning ourselves with ideologies behind which lie the ‘powers of this world’s darkness’,
  
• To be deliberate in applying God’s truth to our political thinking and acting, and
  
• To pray with understanding, listening to the heart of God and (if so called) yielding ourselves to the vital ministry of intercession.
  

It is a mistake to poke fun at Trump instead of listening to what he has to say. This is a debate – nay, a war – about human nature and purpose, and ultimately about God. Ephesians 6 makes no provision for Christians sitting on the side-lines: it is a call to arms.

Listen to/read the full speeches:

• President Trump: text / video

• President Macron: text / video (quotes taken from the latter)

Notes

1 In this schema, the major evil is not sin, but the freedom which has allowed inequalities to flourish and resources to be abused. The only solution, therefore, is the submission of freedom to the ‘greater’ goals of equality and unity. The biggest potential threats to this are sovereign nation-states or movements of people that might use their independence to deviate from this agenda.

2 Nowhere do these worldviews clash more voraciously than on Israel, although I have not included this example here. Israel will always be at the crux of the global battle for truth and freedom, because she stands for the inevitable fulfilment of God’s covenant purposes and the soon return of Messiah.

Has the glory departed from the Church of England?

A great tragedy has befallen the Church of England, whose Synod (parliament) has just completed a session in the ancient city of York. It could well be argued that, as a result of decisions made there, the lights have gone out and the glory has departed.

Having already conveyed mixed messages on sexual ethics and failed to rule out ‘marriage’ for same-sex couples, the body has now voted to provide special services designed to mark a person’s gender transition. And the Archbishop of York has effectively rejected the authority of the Bible.

When a motion called for politicians to “prioritise the common good of all people”, synod member Andrea Williams proposed an amendment inserting the words “as revealed in the Bible and taught by the church”.

She spoke of the need for the Bible to inform our understanding of the common good and proposed a further amendment calling for the protection of life, the promotion of marriage and family and the maintenance of Christian freedoms.

Bishop John Sentamu. See Photo Credits.But both amendments were rejected, with Archbishop of York John Sentamu replying: "If you’re going to serve the whole community, please don’t limit our language…The Word became flesh and sadly we are now making it Word, Word and Word again. Resist the amendments."¹

Conforming to the World

In an interview with Premier Radio, Andrea said it was “unkind – not gracious – to leave people in their sin,” adding that the Church had merely reflected the world and its standards by ingratiating herself to man’s demands, which of course flies in the face of St Paul’s teaching against being conformed to the world’s pattern of thinking (Rom 12:2).

She said she was “so upset at the lack of witness to the truth, beauty and glory of the gospel,” which was a message of healing, hope and transformation, adding that “Jesus welcomes us just as we are, but doesn’t leave us where we are.”

She said it was possible that the Church of England’s mission to the nation had been irreparably damaged, and that it was “absolutely shocking” that the Archbishops had failed to give a lead on the subject.²

Andrea Williams' amendment recognising the authority of the Bible was rejected.

Indeed, we are urged by Jude, Jesus’ half-brother, “to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people” (Jude 3). As Sam Gordon puts it in his new book, Cuckoos in the Nest (Christian Year Publications), “It is the written Word of God that he is focusing on. It is the truth of God, penned by men of God, under the control and illumination of the Spirit of God, for all the people of God.”

He goes on: “This truth has not been thought up by a handful of people sitting in a committee room…it has come from God. It is the good news that the holy God has revealed and made known to man…It has come from heaven.”

The Glory Has Departed

Andrea had earlier reminded the Synod of how, 64 years ago, the Queen had assented to a Coronation Oath acknowledging the Bible as “the most valuable thing that this world affords”. Clearly, its value has significantly diminished among today’s bishops.

However, most of the world’s 70 million Anglicans neither live, nor worship, in England – and the Synod’s latest suicide pact is unlikely to bring the whole house down because most of our African brothers, for whom many British missionaries gave their lives, will have no truck with it. And despite the diabolical vote, neither will a significant minority of C of E clergymen.

It is possible that the Church of England’s mission to the nation has been irreparably damaged.

One of them, a vicar known to me, told of a harrowing experience which conveyed to him that the lights had gone out in the Church of England, and the glory of the Lord had departed.

“At the very time the transgender vote was being passed, I was leading communion and in the middle of the consecration prayer when an altar candle went out. And it was in a glass container, so it was not blown out by a breeze.

“At the next service at another of my churches, when I was talking about the state of the nation, I noticed that none of the altar candles had been lit, which was highly unusual as the person in charge is so vigilant – and worse still, I saw petals and leaves from a large display of flowers suddenly fall to the floor!³ I was so overwhelmed that I cried and, at that moment, the Lord said to me, ‘Ichabod – the glory of the Lord has departed!’

“In 1 Samuel 4.21, the boy Ichabod was so-called because he was born after the capture of the Ark of God by the Philistines. In the same way, it would seem, God’s presence has left an institution whose leaders have denied his glory and his unchanging word.”

A Profound History…But What Future?

Jesus warned the early Christians at Ephesus that he would remove their lamp-stand if they did not recover their first love for him (Rev 2:5), and conveyed dire warnings of intense suffering to those in the church at Thyatira who tolerated teaching which leads to sexual immorality (Rev 2:20).

Far from being merely the result of Henry VIII’s pique at the Pope’s refusal to grant him a divorce, the C of E was largely a product of the Protestant Reformation – as can be attested by its thoroughly biblical ‘39 Articles’. As such, she has served this country – and indeed the world at large – with great distinction.

Christianity across the globe has been profoundly shaped by figures such as John Wesley, William Wilberforce, Bishop J C Ryle and John Stott, and the Church’s sons and daughters have taken the Gospel to the ends of the earth.

Historically, the C of E has served the world with great distinction – but a light has undoubtedly been snuffed out.

I owe a great debt to my own Anglican background, which was steeped in a biblical liturgy that proved a strong foundation when I finally put my personal trust in Christ. At All Souls, Langham Place, in London’s West End I was thoroughly grounded in the scriptures and even now I am proud to be associated with the Church’s Ministry among Jewish people, an Anglican society dedicated to the spiritual re-birth of Israel.

But a light has undoubtedly been snuffed out, and maybe God is calling those who refuse to bow the knee to Baal to “come out from among them”? As St Paul asks in this context, “What fellowship can light have with darkness?” (2 Cor 6:14-17).

References

1 Christian Concern, 7 July 2017.

2 Premier Christian Radio, 10 July 2017.

3 “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” (Isa 40:8)

A round-up of key resources for concerned Christians.

Christian Institute: General Election Resources

• Briefing on where the main parties stand on issues important to Christians.
  
• Questions to ask MPs.
  
• View your MP’s voting record.

Christian Concern: The Power of the Cross

• Campaign tools including church resources, social media resources, plus plenty of information on Christian freedoms in the UK and how to engage with the election in your area.
  
• View your constituency profile – including voting records for past and present candidates, as well as prospective candidate profiles.

CARE: engaGE2017

• Information on key election issues important to Christians.
  
• Resources for individuals and churches, designed to equip Christians to get involved in the election.

CUFI (Christian United for Israel): A Pledge for Israel

• Contact your prospective MPs and ask them if they are willing to pledge their support for Israel.
  
• See also CUFI’s coverage of Labour’s manifesto commitment to recognising a state of Palestine.
  

Voice for Justice UK

• VfJUK is not party-political but has launched a petition calling on Labour to drop their manifesto commitment to extending abortion ‘rights’ into Northern Ireland. Click here for more information.
  

If you know of any other useful resources, do post them below!