Sounds like a no-brainer, right? Everyone who’s considered loyal and reliable should also be labeled as dedicated. And yet, there are all sorts of historical figures who were dedicated, but tragically to something or someone unworthy of that person’s dedication. What if the object of someone’s dedication is someone or something that is false, a fraud? And worse yet, what would we all say if the person so dedicated actually met his/her end having ‘hitched their wagon’, so to speak, to something unworthy? Remember the people in the camp below the mountain where Moses was receiving the Ten Commandments, and what they did in worship and dedication to a golden calf, a false god? Thousands died as a result, for their dedication to something false (Exodus 32:28). (See the picture-graphic here of that worship scene, by the Providence Lithograph Company in 1901.) Exodus 32 28 And the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses. And that day about three thousand men of the people fell….35 Then the Lord sent a plague on the people, because they made the calf, the one that Aaron made.
Perhaps you’ve also watched the popular series called The Chosen, and recall the 4th season episode (#6) that is called Dedication. It is a gripping depiction of Jesus and 14 of his followers (the 12 Apostles and two women) who are spending eight days celebrating the Jewish holiday known as Hannukah (aka The Feast of Dedication or the Festival of Lights). It commemorates the Maccabean revolt and the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem after it had been desecrated by the Syrian king Antiochus IV around 167 BCE (see it described here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanukkah). As part of that time shown in the episode, Jesus delivers some stinging words in a sermon at the temple, which stirs up the religious authorities, to put it mildly. It is the scene from John’s gospel, chapter 10, that culminates in these rabid opponents of Jesus throwing stones at the Messiah and his followers – an attempt to kill him for what they think is His blasphemy. Their fury is answered by Jesus in this way, among other statements: 32 “…I have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you going to stone me?” Jesus was willing to die, and did indeed do so willingly later; his Apostles also were convinced He was the truth, and so were willing to risk their lives to spread the news of this True God. Message?: If you’re going to be at mortal risk, be very certain that what you are doing is based on the truth. That is a dedication that makes someone worthy of the hero label, of someone who becomes a martyr and inspires others. Another fellow on the Sanhedrin, as opposed to many of his fellow authorities, acknowledged this axiom about truth verse falsehood; his name was Gamaliel. His words warned the Sanhedrin not to find themselves in a fight with God (Acts 5:34-39). The truth does not wither, but those who front lies will come to nothing.
So, if I’m involved in politics today, what should I do? It’s a risky game, isn’t it, with so much polarization pervading the space and enough people who think the stakes are pretty high; some of them call it warfare, and are apparently willing to use violent, even murderous methods to achieve their objectives – to silence someone they consider to be heretical. Many of these episodes admittedly are effected by people who are not balanced, even maniacal; still, the point is, if you become well-known in the public’s eye today, particularly in the political space, you should be aware that someone – including demented characters – may have painted a target on you. Sound familiar to the biblical story details above? See the link to an article here about these events in the U.S. political landscape:
Timeline: A look at other major political violence attacks in the US
Are any of these episodes worse than the others? They’re all symptomatic of an awful trend, that democracy’s landscape is straying from decency and evidence-based information. People think their ‘truth’ is better than their opponents’ ‘truth’, and so the heated rhetoric can fire the engines of both sides, including the unbalanced folks on the radical fringes of the spectrum. There is only one truth, though it might be hard to discern through all of the noise. And, if there is some misinformation – proven to be so, beyond a reasonable doubt, the standard that our system of criminal justice uses to assess evidence – then it behooves all of us to call out those falsehoods, and make no bones about it. So, I ask you, tragic as the death of this fellow who formed an organization call Turning Point USA was (see him and this organization described here -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Kirk), how do you feel about his stance re: truth? He did many things to stand for conservative Christian values, apparently. But, what about allying himself with a leader who’s been wearing a hat that says ‘XXXXX Was Right About Everything’? Is that fundamentally Christian, for someone to insist that they are right – no mistakes – about everything? We all know how sin-sick people get well, and it’s not by denying the obvious, what is true for every person on the planet. We all make mistakes. Jesus was the only perfect person to walk on the earth. If I go unexpectedly to eternity, as Mr. Kirk did this past week, I would want to make sure I was standing with the truth. Standing with someone so brazenly power-hungry and disconnected from reality is tragic. I hope Kirk made peace with that fact…I would like to believe that he understood that, for we all need to have the humility to admit that truth, that we all make errors, and to seek the mercy and grace of the only One who deserves my unswerving dedication (like Saul/Paul did once – see Acts 9). Dedication is a Christian ethic, when it is tied to Christ only, the God who is jealous for His identity when others try to claim characteristics that are exclusively God’s (see Exodus 20:5).
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