RSS FeedWhat Difference Will A New President or Prime Minister Make?
Written by Peter Youngren on October 7th 2008The last few weeks have brought to light the limited abilities and powers of politicians; no government seems to have fully anticipated the financial turmoil. For years the markets have been given a free hand, resulting in common sense being thrown out the window in the name of greed. Politicians passed laws that enabled and at times drove lenders to give money to people, who really had no business to get into debt. Banks took the cues and drove up the debts to unimaginable proportions.
Where does greed come in? Well, it all had to do with showing an ever increasing profit on paper, driving stock prices and managers’ bonuses ever higher. Finally the system broke. Unlike the familiar sign in the knick-knack shop, “You Break It – You Own It”, our current motto is: They Break It - We (the tax payers) Own It. It has already happened in the U.S., Europe is next and Canada may not be far behind.
So will a new president make a difference? What about a new Prime Minister in Canada?
One of the lessons from the recent crisis is that when push comes to shove it is the unelected leaders who make the difference. In the financial crisis it is the Chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke and the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, Henry Paulson. The trillion dollar bailout (700 billion plus the previous bailouts last month) that effects, not only the US economy, but the whole world is their brainchild. Meanwhile President Bush, Congress and the presidential nominees were virtual by-standers as the bailout was introduced. It appeared the politicians were as much at a loss to what was coming next as the rest of us. Whatever the recommendations from the financial experts (the ones who got us into this mess) left the lawmakers with little to add. After all, this was a crisis. Immediate action was needed. Politicians pretended to have the answer, but they were basically left waiting for Paulson and Bernanke to call for the next move.
All this leads me to another thought. How much power does a President or prime minister really yield? For a number of elections now we evangelicals have been told that if we just voted for the right party our votes would have an influence on the moral issues of the day, most notably the reduction in abortions and gay “marriages”.
I was a great admirer of pro-life President Ronald Reagan. But sad to say, neither Reagan nor the current pro-life occupant of the White House, have had any measurable influence on these issues. Arguably there hasn’t been one less abortion, regardless of who occupies the White House. Currently we hear the same posturing, talk of the critical need to appoint Supreme Court Justices to overturn Roe v. Wade in the United States. In Canada similar thoughts are expressed, though the Canadian family values agenda is less in the news. The Canadian prime minister, Stephen Harper, is pro-life, but will that make any difference? How much power do politician really have? When it comes to issues of war, the power is obvious as we have seen in the United States and in Canada. But on the moral and social issues the influence of elected politicians is rather small.
The Scripture declares, some trust in horses and chariots but we trust in the name of the Lord. We could paraphrase, some trust in politicians and economists but we trust in the Jesus as our source, provider and guide for morality. Yes, a new president and a new prime minister will make some difference, but don’t look to politicians for moral and social guidance. Arguably the church´s best days were under Roman authority in the 1st century. No help from politicians back then, just believers “turning the world upside down” by preaching “Jesus Christ and Him crucified”.
Love to hear your thoughts whether you agree or disagree. Keep blogging.
Beena
~ Oakville
All that the media has to offer is fear & doom & gloom but for us beleivers we have a different economy, we are coheirs with Christ, we have access to all the riches & glory that heaven has to offer for we are declared to be citizens of Heaven in HIM Halleluyah!!
The Lord has not given us a spirit of fear, so when I hear beleivers talking about such & such with the economy, it upsets me , we are not of this world, we are in HIM, in the bubble of his protection. Apostle paul prays in ephesians , let the eyes of our understanding be opened to the HOPE of his calling, to see what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints- halleluyah!! we have everything in JESUS & him crucified
NO economic debacle will affect us, the world moves according to the prince of the air but not us, the HOLY SPIRIT will reveal what has been freely given to us in CHRIST JESUS. It was JESUS working miracles within simple folk, helpless, hopeless & sick which threatened the Roman empire, If each one of us one by one KNOW our indentity in HIM & unleash the power of HIS resurrection in us- world would look to JESUS instead of politicians & Governments AMEN!
Tatiana
~ TORONTO ONTARIO
Here is a response to my brother Brendon witton comment above
It is our legalistic mind set that tells us the the politicians of the this world have high influence on moral issue our world.
May be they have a little effect on the moral issue of the society, they might help you to modify your outward appearance, perform well to impress others, However they have not ability to cause a lasting & eternal effect on human heart. Yes,they might modify people’s behavior like any other legalistic performance oriented religion but, they CAN NOT transform the hearts of human beings.
I do not think politicians have that much of an effect on society’s moral issue. The gospel does!! The gospel of the grace of God tranisforms the hearts of man & women. the Gospel is the source of genuine morality. Right beliving produces right living.
Blessings Pastor Peter 
Amen to the post and I wholeheartedly agree with it.
The effective and the ONLY antidote to the problems facing any nation is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Or just ask Apostle Paul. He did not hold rallies in Ephesus, he did not consult with the political establishment; he simply released the antidote and real change followed.
grace
Why does everyone get so worked up about who they are voting for?
I mean, come one people! Haven’t you guys already learned that politicians lie to get the gig? Who would want to be the president of the US? Only an ego maniac! It’s all about status! There’s how many other people in the office that actually do the job of running the US? It’s a collaborative effort. I know it’s easier to hate Bush. The man can’t give a good speach. Do you guys truly believe McCain or Obama’s going to be any different? They just want your votes. Yes, even Obama who cares about the poor man in the inner city neighborhoods.
Wendy
We are the LAST DAYS CHURCH-the greatest church EVER on the earth!!! When the system goes down, WE will be rise up. The government has taken over everything and it’s now on extreme overload, but we THE GLORIOUS CHURCH will be there to pick up the pieces because our KING OF ALL KINGS is behind our wall, looking forth in our windows, showing himself through the lattice. He speaks to us saying; RISE UP, MY LOVE, MY FAIR ONE, AND COME AWAY; Song of Solomon 2:9,10. Oh how beautiful on the mountains are the feet of them who bring GOOD NEWS!!!
Brendan Witton
Hey Pastor Peter -
I agree in principle with what you are saying - our faith definitely needs to be in the LORD and His work in our culture. I also agree that arguably the churches best days were in the 1st Century. We have fallen into the trap of putting to much emphasis on our ‘political leaders’.
I think though, that there is a healthy middle ground. Take the US Elections for example. While Senator McCain (who has pledged to run a pro-life administration) may not make a lot of positive impact, Senator Obama has pledged to a number of pro-abortion groups to give further power/influence to their movement and to neutralize a number of the gains that the pro-life movement has made. His presidency would be very damaging in that area.
You comment that politicians influence on moral and social issues is very small - I would ‘argue’ that their influence is actually quite high, particularly when they are advancing values that are not compatible with scripture. While our faith should not be in our political leaders to establish morality and righteousness, they still are part of the puzzle and we should do our best/pray to see that leaders who stand for Godly values elected.
I enjoy the BLOG and your perspectives, be blessed.