Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Foreign.
[00:00:07] It's Rick with the Nomad Pastor Podcast.
[00:00:10] I want to take the time to thank you for listening today, but I also kind of want to give you a heads up right from the beginning that.
[00:00:16] That this episode's going to be a little bit different.
[00:00:21] You know, for a long time, I've been doing this podcast, and I've talked about books of the Bible. I've talked about struggles that we face, you know, disciples and recovery and finding hope in Christ.
[00:00:36] And those are all vital conversations. They're important, and I'm not going to stop having them.
[00:00:42] But I feel like, if I'm being honest with you, for the years that I've done this, I've really avoided hard topics, and I've avoided them out of fear.
[00:00:54] Fear of pushback, fear of the. The listeners. Not growing, fear of losing. Losing listeners. Fear of conflict.
[00:01:02] You know, I thought.
[00:01:04] I guess I thought maybe if I kept things safe, I'd maybe reach more people.
[00:01:09] But I think I've come to realize that that silence, that avoiding those topics is probably just as damaging as saying the wrong thing.
[00:01:21] And in the recent events have convinced me that I need to stop avoiding those hard conversations. And in prayer, you know, God has said, you need to. You need to stop.
[00:01:34] You need to stop avoiding him and you need to start talking about him.
[00:01:39] And, you know, when Charlie Kirk. When Charlie Kirk was assassinated, it. It kind of. Not kind of. It just really shook me.
[00:01:46] I didn't know him personally, but I respected him. I mean, I watched tons of his videos throughout the years and kind of watched his turning point grow. And he stood for courage.
[00:02:03] He wasn't perfect. None of us are, but he wasn't afraid to speak bold about Christ and about truth, and.
[00:02:16] And he didn't care that it came at a cost.
[00:02:21] And then I heard Dr. Frank Turek's words in the days that followed.
[00:02:30] He said something that really went right to my heart. He said, moments like this don't remind us that we don't have the luxury of silence.
[00:02:41] The world is loud. Evil is loud. Lies are loud.
[00:02:46] And if, as Christians, we whisper, who's going to hear the truth?
[00:02:52] And I think that's. I think that's when I realized I can't. I can't keep going around and skipping the hard issues.
[00:03:00] I can't keep pretending that faith and politics don't intersect, because at the end of the day, our faith should shape every single part of our lives, including what we say politically and what we do politically.
[00:03:20] And if I'm unwilling to say that here on this Podcast, then what am I really doing?
[00:03:30] You know, if you've listened to me very long, you already know that. You know, Dr. Frank Turek is, you know, a great inspiration to me. I've never met him. I would love to meet him.
[00:03:43] His voice, his ministry, his, you know, his unapologetic way of standing up for the truth.
[00:03:51] It's been a huge influence in even starting this podcast.
[00:03:57] You know, outside of the Bible, one of my favorite books is one that he co wrote called I Don't have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist.
[00:04:04] It opened my eyes to apologetics in a way that I had never experienced before.
[00:04:11] And frankly, I don't think I even really knew what apologetics was before that book.
[00:04:18] But it gave me a confidence that Christianity isn't just blind faith.
[00:04:24] It's rational, it's defendable, it's historical, and everything made sense to me.
[00:04:40] Look, I'll be the first to admit I'm not good at the whole apologetics thing.
[00:04:45] It doesn't roll off my tongue or as smooth as it does with a lot of the apologetics today. And if we're apologists today, I should say.
[00:04:56] And if you ever listen to Frank Turek's podcast, he has one. It's called Cross Examined. And he has tons of people that come that I personally get a great inspiration from.
[00:05:09] Alyssa Childers is just this amazing apologist that is going through and talking about progressive Christianity and how that impacts our children and the signs of it. And, I mean, I could name so many people.
[00:05:28] I'm not great at it, but I do have a goal, right?
[00:05:36] And if I can just be half as good at defending the faith as any of them, then I'll be doing something worthwhile for the kingdom.
[00:05:49] So when I was watching the memorial for Charlie Kirk and I heard.
[00:05:55] I saw Frank Turk come up and I heard him speak.
[00:05:59] It wasn't just another talk for me.
[00:06:02] It was almost like this virtual mentor that I've had from a distance, reminding me that there is no time for fear.
[00:06:14] This is the time for courage.
[00:06:19] So that's why today I'm stepping out into a conversation that I've always avoided.
[00:06:27] And it's not easy, it's scary.
[00:06:32] But, you know, faith should shape all aspects of our life, and we should anchor it in the word of God.
[00:06:42] Colossians 3:17 says, Whatever you do, in word or deed, do all in the name of Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.
[00:06:55] It says, whatever you do, that means everything.
[00:07:00] That means your work, your family, your relationships, whatever you do for recreation and yes, your politics.
[00:07:13] I mean, think about it.
[00:07:15] Do you stop being a Christian when you go to work?
[00:07:18] I know I don't.
[00:07:21] If you go watch a baseball game or a football game, do you stop being a Christian when you're at the game, if you're sitting in traffic, do you stop being a Christian?
[00:07:33] Or if you're standing in line at a grocery store, maybe sometimes, you know, out driving?
[00:07:40] No, you're a follower of Christ everywhere you go.
[00:07:50] So why, why would we suddenly stop being Christians when we step into a voting booth?
[00:07:57] Why would we stop being Christians when there's some political conversation going on?
[00:08:03] Why do we just walk away?
[00:08:07] See, politics is about people.
[00:08:12] Policies shape families, shape communities.
[00:08:16] Policies impact the poor, the addicted, the marginalized.
[00:08:22] And if you think of those people who cared more about them than Christ.
[00:08:30] And when I think about that, that's why I can't accept the idea that faith doesn't belong in politics.
[00:08:38] Because faith belongs wherever people are.
[00:08:42] And unfortunately, politics is about people.
[00:08:50] And, you know, I know everybody's heard this.
[00:08:53] You know, it's the common phrase, right? Separation of church and state.
[00:08:57] So we're going to tackle that phrase because, I don't know, I can't count how many times somebody has told me, you can't bring religion into politics. There's separation of church and state.
[00:09:13] Well, here's the truth. That actual phrase, separation of church and state, isn't in the Constitution.
[00:09:19] What is in the Constitution is that the First Amendment says Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.
[00:09:31] Well, that means two things.
[00:09:33] First, the government cannot set up a national religion.
[00:09:38] And second, the government cannot stop you from practicing your faith.
[00:09:44] That phrase, the separation of church and state, came much later.
[00:09:49] It was in 1802 from a letter Thomas Jefferson had wrote to the Danbury Baptist. And in that letter, he described the First Amendment as building a wall of separation between church and state.
[00:10:03] But his point wasn't to silence Christians.
[00:10:06] His point was to assure the Baptists, the Dunbary Baptists, that the government would stay out of the church's business.
[00:10:14] And somewhere along the way, our culture twisted it.
[00:10:19] Today, people use it like a weapon, right? Keep your faith private.
[00:10:26] But Matthew 5 tells the exact opposite. I think it's 14 to 16 says, you are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
[00:10:38] Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
[00:10:49] Let your light shine. Light is meant to shine, not Be hidden.
[00:10:56] If I'm, you know, just being transparent and honest.
[00:11:00] There's been times where I've let that phrase shut me down.
[00:11:06] I've pulled back when somebody has said, you know, separation of church, church and state, when I should have spoken up.
[00:11:14] But I can't do it anymore.
[00:11:18] I can't walk away after seeing Charlie Kirk's courage.
[00:11:22] I can't walk away after hearing Frank Turk's challenge.
[00:11:30] If Charlie was willing to live boldly and ultimately die standing in his convictions, how can I do anything less than speak the truth God has given me?
[00:11:44] So if we think of that practically, what does it mean to let faith shape your politics?
[00:11:55] As simply as I can say it, it means everything.
[00:11:58] You measure everything by the word of God, not by a party or platform.
[00:12:06] For everything you ask, does this reflect the heart of Christ?
[00:12:13] You know, Scripture gives us some very good guiding principles, right? Protect the vulnerable. Proverbs 31.
[00:12:20] Pursue justice and mercy. Micah 6, 8. Stand for truth. John 18:37.
[00:12:29] Faithful politics isn't about asking what benefits me the most.
[00:12:34] It's about asking what reflects Christ's heart for others.
[00:12:39] I don't have to like a politician, but I have to ask what reflects Christ's heart for others.
[00:12:51] As Christians, we're going to Disagree on policies 100%, but the one thing we should never disagree on is principles.
[00:13:02] Loving God, loving our neighbor.
[00:13:05] That should be the bedrock of every decision that we make.
[00:13:12] So if we get practical for a minute, how do you defend your faith when politics come up?
[00:13:21] If you're at work, if you're sitting around the dinner table with family, if somebody's talking about it online, on social media, how do you defend your faith?
[00:13:36] The most important thing is to listen.
[00:13:41] I loved how Charlie Kirk would set the mic down when somebody was asking him questions.
[00:13:48] He would listen.
[00:13:50] He wanted to make sure he heard everything they had to say.
[00:13:54] You see, people expect us as Christians to jump straight to arguing.
[00:14:00] And what we really need to be doing is listening.
[00:14:06] And next we have to just don't be defensive.
[00:14:10] Our faith is reasonable. It's life giving.
[00:14:15] We don't have to shout it down.
[00:14:23] Be calm. Speak clear.
[00:14:29] If someone says to you, keep your religion out of politics, just be calm.
[00:14:36] Tell them, I can't separate my faith from who I am.
[00:14:42] My convictions help guide my choices, just like yours guide yours.
[00:14:52] If someone says separation of church and state means that you can't bring your faith into politics, just tell them, it actually protects my freedom to live out my faith without government interference.
[00:15:04] That was the whole point of It. That's what they were saying in the letter to the Dunbury Baptist.
[00:15:14] Look, neither of those responses were aggressive, but they were rooted in truth and they were calm.
[00:15:24] I do want to make sure we don't lose sight of an important thing.
[00:15:29] As important as politics are, it's not the end, it's not the ultimate thing. Right? Philippians 3 says our citizenship's in heaven.
[00:15:39] That means no political party is going to save us.
[00:15:42] No politician can fix the human heart. No government program can erase sin.
[00:15:50] It's all Jesus.
[00:15:53] Jesus is our Lord and Savior.
[00:15:59] So, yeah, while politics matter.
[00:16:01] And yes, we should be engaged, but our ultimate hope isn't in elections. It's in Christ.
[00:16:12] And to me, that means as Christians, we should be the calmest people in the room because our hope is unshakable and our king is on the throne.
[00:16:26] Our faith should shape our politics, not the other way around.
[00:16:34] I've come to realize that we can't afford to whisper when the world is shouting the death of Charlie Kirk. The words of Frank Turek remind me silence is not an option.
[00:16:50] We are called to be salt and light.
[00:16:56] But being bold doesn't mean being harsh or mean.
[00:17:00] It means courage wrapped in grace.
[00:17:07] So you need to ask yourself before you engage politically, am I reflecting Christ's heart?
[00:17:16] Before you vote for a party or a politician or a policy, is it reflecting Christ's heart?
[00:17:31] And if you're listening and you've never surrendered your life to Christ, politics is the least of your worries.
[00:17:40] You need the king before you can worry about the kingdom Jesus died for. You rose again and offers eternal life. So don't wait.
[00:17:52] I know this is different than things I've talked about. And like I said in the beginning, I'm going to still do those things. I'm still going to go through books of the Bible. I'm still going to talk about subjects that are on people's minds or on people's heart. But I'm no longer going to be in fear and shy away from hard conversations.
[00:18:12] I'm going to defend my faith regardless of the outcome, because that's what we're called to do.
[00:18:26] So first, I want to thank you for just listening and kind of going through this conversation with me.
[00:18:34] My prayer is that you walk away encouraged to live your faith boldly. Let your faith shape every aspect of your life.
[00:18:44] Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus, because that's the only hope that any of us have.
[00:18:52] Jesus first, Jesus. Always keep your eyes focused on Christ.
[00:19:03] I just want to say thanks again.
[00:19:05] This is Rick with the Nomad Pastor Podcast.
[00:19:08] Look, subscribe, Listen, Share.
[00:19:11] Thank you for the time that you've spent listening to me throughout these years.
[00:19:16] Just remember to love God and love people.
