Posted on 10/21/2011 10:57:17 AM PDT by Pride_of_the_Bluegrass
Last December, GOP presidential contender Herman Cain penned an interesting article about Jesus Christ that has been resurrected (no pun intended) and is getting some attention in the blogosphere. Published just five days before Christmas, the piece claims that Jesus was “a perfect conservative” and that “he…changed the world for the better.”
In his article, Cain goes on to explain, though, the reasons why he believes that to be true. He writes:
He helped the poor without one government program. He healed the sick without a government health care system. He [fed] the hungry without food stamps. And everywhere He went, it turned into a rally, attracting large crowds, and giving them hope, encouragement and inspiration. For three years He was unemployed, and never collected an unemployment check. Nevertheless, he completed all the work He needed to get done. He didn’t travel by private jet. He walked and sailed, and sometimes traveled on a donkey.
(Excerpt) Read more at theblaze.com ...
And the reason Cain hated Able was that Cain didn’t put forth the work effort that Able did and was jealous of the reward that Able received.
Perfect liberal.
I take the Pharisees’ manner as a caricature of conservatism. They took scripture and tradition more or less seriously, but they had venal faults, and liked to show off for the sake of worldly pride. It’s kind of like the way that the politically naive tend to see the historical Nazis as rightist. Authoritarianism isn’t the same as conservatism.
There wasn’t any real reason for the biblical Cain to behave like this other than stubborn pride. The biblical Cain could well have bartered his fruits and vegetables for some of the biblical Abel’s livestock, and both brothers would have been able to make sacrifices that were copacetic with God.
He didn’t travel by private jet.
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jobs, jobs, jobs.
“Perfectly asinine misuse of the Gospel.”
You got it. I don’t care under what context this was said, it is way out of line, and it misleads people to think Jesus was ‘just another man’ instead of God incarnate.
Similarly W. Bush watered down Scripture when he said his favorite philosopher was Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ a philosopher?
God help these gentlemen.
This I like....
—Church sermons aren’t the place for subtle irony...—
I’m not seeing it as irony.
No, they were not. The were big government, legislation salvation. All you dealing with God had to be through them and approved by them.
They were similar to current liberals not conservatives. They were only legalistic when it suited their purposes. Just like current liberals when they disagree with conservatives, the Pharisees tried to trip Jesus up with scripture in order to discredit him. They didn't follow scripture when it suited them.
A major example is the trial they had to prove Jesus committed blasphemy. It violated a number of scriptural requirements regarding time and place and proper testimony. In short, just like current day liberals they used the courts to accomplish their purpose and ignored established precedent.
The final act of turning Jesus over to the Romans to be executed is an overt violation of scripture because the law of Moses required that the witnesses and the entire town was supposed to carry out the death penalty.
So, in short there is little conservatives would have in common with the Pharisees but the liberals would feel right at home.
Just read this part last night, God told Cain to just “do what is right” and everything would be fine. Sounds like me talking to my rebellious offspring.
Gen 4:6-7
6 Then the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.”
Politics is all over the bible. Paul used the government in his favor. Jesus discusses it. And it’s all over the OT.
Human government is something that is very much discussed and acknowledged in the bible. I actually can enjoy its discussion, in and out of sermons.
It wouldn’t have been all that hard for Cain either. He was a fruit and vegetable farmer, and Abel specialized in livestock. They could have cooperated furnishing Abel with a larger variety of food to personally consume and furnishing Cain a sacrifice of the kind that pleased God (it was a foreshadowing of the Lamb of God which is why fruits and vegetables would not do). It was Cain’s stupid ego and pride that was his downfall.
Well the Bible talks a lot about our political, economic, current events.
Jesus told his followers to take care of the poor. Never told the government to take care of the poor.
Pride - the root of all evil... starting with Satan.
That’s a great point. And remember Pilot knew that the Pharisees delivered Christ up “for envy”.
Plus he was inclusive and even found a use for Democrats.
I DEFINITLEY AGREE
[thought I would answer in all caps like the title of the piece was done so]
What we call liberal and conservative today are terms that don’t appear as such in the scriptures. Today’s conservative ideals are virtually the same as the classical liberal ideals of a couple of centuries ago which rejected blind authoritarianism in favor of reason.
No. The Pharisees were about as close to today’s politically correct ruling class as you can get. They were constantly looking for ways to bend and pervert the law for their own ends.
“He helped the poor without one government program. He healed the sick without a government health care system. He [fed] the hungry without food stamps. “
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