Why I'm thankful for Obama

Today, I'm pretty happy. I have some optimism about the next four years. I know that regardless of who is in Office, Jesus is on the throne. But even beyond that, I have some specific reasons to give thanks for Barack Obama.

Below, I posted some thoughts from Justin Taylor (who was no Obama supporter- not by a long shot) on why we should pray for and even give thanks for President-Elect Obama. 

In the comments, some have questioned that, 

"And Bob, with regard to giving thanks for our leader, I have trouble applying that universally. Wouldn't it be more faithful to the verse to give thanks for government (over anarchy)? Saying that we should be thankful to God for *whoever* gets into power over us really ... doesn't seem like what the verse is saying. Dictators, oppressors, etc. Please clarify."

So let me expand on this a bit. 

We are to pray for Barack Obama (1 Tim. 2:1-2).

1 Tim 2:1-2 says this: I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.
  

This was most likely written during the reign of Nero. The same Nero who had his mother and brother killed. He was also a persecuter of Christians, going so far as to use Christians as human torches in his garden. Surely Paul couldn't have meant that we should pray for someone like him (other than perhaps imprecatory prayers)? 

But it seems like he does- in the midst of persecution, with a totally depraved madman in office, he specifically enjoins us to give requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving for all those in authority. 

Further, God told the exiles living in wicked Babylon "Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper." 

I'm praying Barack Obama will be successful. I'm praying that his ideas, plans and policies will work- even the ones I disagree with on philosophical basis. Why? Because if they don't, people will suffer. More economic hardship ensues. I want the man to do well, and to lead our country in good directions. 

So yes- pray for Barack Obama. But even more specifically...

We are to thank God for Barack Obama (1 Tim. 2:1-2)

Paul doesn't give us an exception clause with certain leaders- e.g. "...thanksgiving be made for everyone- for kings and all those in authority, but only the righteous ones." No. No loopholes in the phrase "all those in authority" (including, for the next few months, George Bush. I'm looking at you hard-core ObamaSupporters!) We are to give thanks to God for President-Elect Obama - yes, for the general reasons the commenter above mentioned- that having a president is better than anarchy or a dictator, etc. 

But even beyond that, I really feel like there are some specific reasons to be thankful for President-Elect Obama. 

1. I'm thankful we will have a man who has demonstrated thoughtfulness, intelligence and character in an office that really needs all those things. Yes- both campaigns threw their fair share of accusations and political spin/twisting of their opponents words. But I was consistently impressed at how Obama strove to keep it at a policy level even when the other side made it intensely personal and how he took so many opportunities to honor John McCain's service and bravery. Though he made the politically expedient decision to go back on a promise to accept public campaign financing (and its limits), I'm willing to believe that at the core- this man is honorable, a man of character and integrity- a man who will do his best to keep his promises in office- and for that, I'm thankful. 

2. I'm thankful we have a man in office who has publicly stated he'd support a ban on late-term abortions. Abortion is the scandal of last 40 years, on par with the scandal of slavery in terms of sheer human life lost.  It is every bit as much a cancer on the soul of our country as was segregation and institutionalized racism. I pray for its end and am thankful to see a politician in office who's willing to help us take a significant step in that direction. 

3. I'm thankful to see a person of color ascend to the highest office in the land, ending with finality the charge that America as a nation and her people are racist. Yes- there may still be racists among us, and instances of racism will persist- but we have clearly reached a tipping point where they are marginalized at best, and America as a whole has moved so far beyond the racism of its past that we can say with conviction that we as a people really do believe that all people are created equal, and we act on it.  

Now, for the rest...

We are to respect Barack Obama (Rom. 13:7).

We are to honor Barack Obama (Rom. 13:7; 1 Pet. 2:17)

This applies both forward and backwards. Those who would denigrate the man who will take the office should understand that it's wrong no matter what Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity say about him. Disagreement? Satire? Yes.  Even critique and speaking truth-to-power (more on this in a minute) are fine. But disrespect? Disdain? No. And you know what- that applies to how we speak about George Bush as well. Critique his policies. Disagree with him. AND be creative enough to find reasons to give thanks for him. I know you can do it. 

(And yes- under extreme circumstances -please, please- no one invoke Godwin's Law- we may need to work to remove a despot from office. I've got no beef with Bonhoeffer. But this ain't that.)

All this to say- I'm thankful Barack Obama is in office. I have some significant disagreements with him- but, even beyond the general respect, prayers and thanksgiving it's my duty to offer to him and on his behalf, I think there are legitimate reasons to be thankful for him, even if you didn't vote for him and don't dig every thing he's planning.

 

Listen, conservatives: The sky is not falling. It's not a sign of the end times. Jesus is still bringing all of this someplace very good. And if He could even use someone like Nebuchadnezzar... couldn't He use someone like Barack Obama.. and wouldn't it behoove us to pray that way? 

Now- for all the Obama Fans out there. 

Remember- we Christians are a people in exile. To confess "Jesus is Lord!" explicitly is to confess "And Obama isn't!" implicitly. Or "and the Government isn't." You voted for the man. Good! Now have the courage to speak Truth to Power (because that's what he is now) and remind him often and loudly of his promises, particularly his promise to support a ban on the late-term killing of the unborn. Pray he continues to display the same kind of humility and respect for those across the aisle he showed last night. Remember- George Bush was elected on a platform of working across the aisle, diplomatic humility, an end to America as nation builder and world cop and a conservatism that was first of all compassionate. What happened??? His supporters, friends and allies forgot how to speak truth to power. Of course his political opponents shouted it loud and long, but he had little reason to listen to them. The right in this country and all those who voted for and supported GWBush are to blame for the failure of his presidency (and I'll go ahead and go out on a limb and say that's what History will say of these last 8 years). Those who had his ear were clearly not speaking truth to power.

And if Obama turns into just another politician? Just another "say one thing to get elected, do another thing in office" typical politico? How tragic would that be! Pray it doesn't happen. But if he does, and we don't have the guts to call him on it, and in four years are voting for him purely because he's not the Republican candidate? We'll have just repeated the sins of our evangelical fathers and mothers and become the mirror image of those who tied themselves to one party/side of the spectrum in allowing the left to take our votes for granted. 

Enough of that... there will be time enough to think about and talk about those things. Today, I think is a day to celebrate. Today, I give thanks... and I really do have hope. And Hope. (that's for you, Mr Goff. :)

Comments

[Brian]

I have hope too. Thanks for the nod.

[Andrew]

I appreciate your comments. I feel you engage in some spin (like the fact that somehow Obama's criticisms of McCain were more "high road" than McCain's criticisms of Obama), and when you say "he broke the one promise, but surely he will keep the rest" you lose me...

Nevertheless I hope and pray that you are correct, that Obama WILL honor that campaign pledge to end late term abortions (even though nothing in his voting record suggests anything remotely similar), that he will uphold national security, and that he will make lasting fixes to the economy. It is our duty as Christians to pray for the man whom God has appointed--as I am sure we were all doing for the man God appointed during the last eight years.

[Benjamin Sternke]

Brilliantly stated. Thank you.

[Dan Brown]

You leave me no choice but to be pedantic. I maintain that "universals" in the Bible are not always universal (cf. "money is (the) root of all evils") and that {supplications, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings} for {people, kings, those in high positions} is not equivalent to the Cartesian product {supplications for people, supplications for kings, ..., thanksgivings for those in high positions}. In any case, the interpretation of this verse as a command to give thanks that Nero is Caesar or George Bush is President strikes me as extremely questionable. You know that a lot of foolish beliefs have been built on interpreting statements like that one as universal commands from God (cf. "women, biblical role of"); don't fall into that trap yourself.

[Bob]

I leave you no choice? How powerful I have become! :)

I'm not falling into any traps... And it doesn't say "money is the root of all evil." :)

It's not a command to give thanks that Nero is Caesar. It's a command to "give thanks in all circumstances" (1 Thess 5:18)

Can I find reasons to thank God for Nero even as I pray for an end to his persecutions and even his rule? Sure. (Especially if I knew someone like Diocletian was possible)

Can I and should I give thanks for Obama specifically?
Absolutely.

[Dan Brown]

More powerful than God, in fact! ;) So then where does that leave you when Diocletian comes around? Giving thanks in all circumstances is not at all the same thing as giving thanks for all circumstances; that's the main point I'm trying to make.

[Dan Brown]

And yes, I forgot "the love of"; I didn't mean to perpetuate that common misconception. Anyway, the point stands.

[Bob]

Where does that leave you? Thanking God that he's not Hit... whoops! Almost hit Godwin's Law! :)
Dan- how about this. I'll grant that there are few, universal absolutes in the sense you are talking about. I think the principle here is to look in all circumstances and in all rulers for the things we can be thankful about. Yes- there may be circumstances/rulers in which those things are hard to find... maybe impossible even.
But those are the exceptions, not the rule. And if our bias is towards thankfulness, even for rulers we didn't vote for, I'd say Obama could be a lot worse, and is certainly NOT the exception to this general rule.

[Bob]

By the way- for what it's worth (I wasn't going to reveal this, but...) I didn't vote for Obama. The above article is me practicing what I'm talking about in the above comment.

[Dan Brown]

Okay, Bob, I am mollified. :) By the way, nothing I said was directed at Obama in particular; to the extent that I had any American politician in mind, it was the current President.

[Dan Brown]

And may Brian and Starla have mercy on your soul. :)

[Jessi]

Excellent, excellent post. Exactly what needed to be said today. Thanks.

[ianmcn]

Superb. As a Brit, I can't tell you how refreshing it is to read something like that written by an American Christian!

[Justin]

I object to the whole notion that Christians need to be feverishly looking for guidance b/c Obama won the election.

Grow up everyone. He's not the anti-Christ.

That said, I think every Christian needs to have a well thought out understanding about what it means to function in a Democracy in this fallen world.

Let's stop pretending that a nation can be a religion. Our country was never "Christian"...being a Christian means having a PERSONAL relationship with God. A nation, by definition, cannot do that.

Also...you know...there is the fact that Obama is a born again Christian. Somehow people miss that...

[starla]

WTF? You didn't vote for Obama? You read the Fox News reports where she didn't even know about NAFTA. At least tell me that you didn't vote for Sizemore initiatives? Please?
(in case you think I'm just one of those crazy liberals - my vote was 1/2 R and 1/2 D.

[Jen W]

Ok I have a few comments for what it's worth.

First off, you are so so so wrong about Obama and abortion. Please look at his record. He is the most pro-abortion candidate imaginable. Ignore the political rhetoric.

Secondly, you joke about Godwin's law and I will admit, hehe, it was reallly hard not to invoke it but I refrained. :) But since YOU brought it up: your post implies that in that situation we should in fact, thank God for Hitler had we lived in Nazi Germany. In biblical examples over and over again God sent prophets to speak out against kings. The people were not called to thank God for Ahab and Jezebel. Jesus himself called the authorities, to their faces, a brood of vipers. He constantly pointed out their failings. He taught his disciples to obey them, but even in his own example he still gleaned on the Sabbath.

So I really take issue with the idea that it is specifically a person/personality we are to give thanks for. I will give thanks for what God is doing, whether it be through, or despite, our rulers, and I will give thanks to God on their behalf for what God blesses them with, but in the genuineness of heart I cannot give thanks for evil, and lacking my greek NT I don't see a need for the linguistics to support only that one meaning of it.

At any rate the goal of the thanksgiving is to be able to live a quiet life, the implication being "don't piss people off."

@ Starla - half the country disagrees with you, and not because they're stupid.

[Jen W]

Ok, I have to backtrack, sorry.

So it's obvious now that I read the comments section first, then the original post. I missed the "no beef with Boenhoffer" comment so I retract most of that first paragraph.

[Jen W]

Duh my brain is so fried. "first three paragraphs."

Thank you, I'm a moron tonight. Really need to get an account so I can go back and edit instead of spamming your poor blog.

[Bob]

Starla- next time when my ballot comes, I'll go ahead and sign it and drop it off at your place! :D
(I kid, I kid...)

Jen- it's cool- Of course Paul is talking about giving thanks for specific individuals- otherwise he would have said "give thanks you have some kind of government." Instead, he made it specific- for kings and all those in authority. And of course, there are extreme exceptions- but that's what they are- exceptions, not the rule. And as of this point, I see no reason not to give thanks for Barack Obama, pray he keeps his word, and bring pressure to bear when/if he doesn't. I really don't know what else is feasible right now, except hand-wringing and teeth gnashing, neither of which feel too productive either for the country as a whole or myself personally.

[starla]

I feel like we failed.

[dominique]

Well, this is a colorful comment field! :)

Bob- I really appreciated the part of your post where you talk about our responsibility to hold our elected leaders to their promises. I think that this needs to be said more often, up and above the criticism of whomever the leader is.

Thank you for pointing this out.

Although I am disappointed with how the last 8 years have turned out, I don't think it was all GB's fault. He and his team needed this kind of Truth to power accountability. Leadership can be a very dangerous thing - in any context - when leaders are not held accountable by those whom they serve.

[Bob]

Starla- as long as you wouldn't prefer a dictator whose policies are exactly what you would like to see as opposed to a democracy that produces mixed results, we haven't failed.

[Dan Brown]

Right on, Bob! I'll add that a similar principle applies to policies (e.g. mandatory versus voluntary community service) as well as to people.

[Starla]

Oh, I'm talking about little things like preemptive wars, habeas corpus, torture, warrantless wiretapping, checks and balances of power...you were so close. Tell you what, you hand me your ballot and I'll hand you my theology. Um, nevermind.

Dan - absolutely love how worked up you are getting over this community service requirement...I'm actually less frustrated by that then the requirement that every high school student take the SAT for graduation.

[Dan Brown]

Is there really such a requirement? Certainly that isn't nationwide. In fact, I'm not aware of any federal requirement of any kind for high school graduation — and I hope there never will be any.