tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3336172740435891338.post6158011992087520614..comments2023-07-03T04:21:15.876-07:00Comments on Zero Degrees Calvin: 32. With Great Power Comes Great ResponsibilityEleshahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03764991021577652939noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3336172740435891338.post-88033970931865853452016-05-11T14:18:09.759-07:002016-05-11T14:18:09.759-07:00I'm a bit hesitant to say that our modern know...I'm a bit hesitant to say that our modern knowledge (of tyrants such as Hitler, among other things) erases biblical injunctions to obey even bad rulers. Herod was no angel. Neither was Caesar. Yet those are the kinds of rulers Jesus and Paul would have had in mind. Our quite understandable (and not necessarily wrong; I'm not trying to settle this matter) bias toward resisting bad rulers probably has more to do with our social location as Americans than with the "lens of Christ." To determine the latter, you'd have to look at Christian perspectives across time and space, not assuming that the way we read the Bible is unchanging or normative.Eleshahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03764991021577652939noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3336172740435891338.post-34085734933193281032016-05-08T04:12:25.438-07:002016-05-08T04:12:25.438-07:00I know the most important thing for me is to stay ...I know the most important thing for me is to stay consistent in my life. My values and ideals don't change or sway to the person I am talking to, but I try to remain them same regardless if it will be popular or appreciated. I try to maintain a common level with government issues and agendas. I believe that when you speak the truth in love and not hate or arrogance then people will listen and treat you better. When that happens your ability to actually cause something to change or happen will be better taken. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06211027215684722839noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3336172740435891338.post-44735613355708549152016-05-07T05:15:08.542-07:002016-05-07T05:15:08.542-07:00Sharon, I agree with your assessment of trying to ...Sharon, I agree with your assessment of trying to work together regardless of party affiliation. Somehow we have to rise above the personalities of leaders and bosses, to take our next best step...for others. After all, we are electing public servants! As you mention, with that role comes that vital quality of humility. Our Senior Pastor, who is a great servant leader, has this sign on his desk: "I must decrease, so he can increase." Our civil leaders do not seem to have this same mantra. As you mention, they would never get elected if they did.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10102035312463554536noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3336172740435891338.post-24377469271235701412016-05-06T11:10:35.312-07:002016-05-06T11:10:35.312-07:00Thankyou Laurie for your thoughtful post. I especi...Thankyou Laurie for your thoughtful post. I especially liked your quote:<br />“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom. Sharon I would agree that our response (4.20.32) must be more than passive. Calvin is calling for something different. For us in the 21st century this response is not always easy or clear. As the church we must encourage involvement and getting to the place where Christ is recognized above all of the "mess" found in the politics. Recognizing the authority of the office over the person is key. We get wrapped up in personal conflicts. richard watsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05930228931293631608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3336172740435891338.post-60877215730823087882016-05-05T19:58:18.626-07:002016-05-05T19:58:18.626-07:00Laurie, I share your concerns about following unju...Laurie, I share your concerns about following unjust rulers on the order of Hitler or Idi Amin. However, I think that respect for the Democratic President if you are Republican (or vice versa) could use a little of Calvin's medicine. I think we have reached such levels of party animosity that almost nothing can get accomplished. In my employment, I have worked for bosses that I admired and some that I thought unworthy. I have always, however, found a way to work with them in order to care for the residents/patients in the facility. It just makes no sense otherwise. I can't imagine going to work (as a member of Congress, for example) for the sole purpose of destroying another's work.<br /><br />That being said, however, I think even Calvin might not have predicted the current path to election. I went to a seminar last week about leadership. One of the most valuable traits as a leader is humility (very biblical), but the presenter demonstrated that humility will never get you elected. Our system is now set up to weed out the very trait that is necessary. <br /><br />Now that I've finished my rant :), I do think that Calvin's last chapter went a long ways toward combating the vicious rulers that you mention. One must always put obedience to God above obedience to rulers that contradict God (4.20.32). Lane read that as only passive resistance, but I think Calvin was a little stronger than that.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09803460723648987218noreply@blogger.com