Who Can Save Us? 7-12-09
In a commencement address at Wesleyan University in 2008, then-Senator Obama gave this admonition to the audience: “our individual salvation depends on collective salvation”. His remarks were in the context of his belief that the American dream is attained by the individual being subsumed into the collective group. This quote immediately strikes at my belief in the American Dream and in is direct contradiction to the Founding Documents; but it did make me think, “where do we look for salvation?”
My first thought is that the American ideal is one of personal freedom and accountability – Self-Reliance! But is that what it should be? No doubt we should all be responsible for our actions and reap the rewards or losses of what we do. However, when all seems against us, do we look within ourselves for the answers? If so, we are missing out on the source of our strength. Look at David’s conversation with King Saul about whether or not David could go to face Goliath:
Saul replied, “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth.” But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” Saul said to David, “Go, and the LORD be with you.” (1 Samuel 17:33-37 NIV)
Clearly David did not rely on himself, but looked for strength from God. But there are others who might say that community is who can save our nation from its sinking into moral depravity. They say that in order to raise children properly, “it takes a village”. But this is not what Joshua believed:
“Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” (Joshua 24:14-15 NIV)
Joshua told the community that they had to make a choice between the World and God. But he also make it plain that he was going to follow God regardless of what his community chose to do. He was willing to be ostracized by those around him rather than let the “village” decide what was right and wrong. But maybe the village is simply too small; there are many who believe that the government will save us. Our President certainly thinks that government is the answer. But Daniel and his friends did not think this way, and they chose wisely when they sought God’s salvation over the government’s:
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” (Daniel 3:16-18 NIV)
Therefore these three examples show the fallacy that was exemplified in Barrack Obama’s statement: our individual salvation is not linked with some collective salvation, but rather it is linked with our relationship with God! David chose to trust in God rather than his arm, so God strengthened his arm. Joshua chose not to trust in the community but rather to take a stand on God’s side, so God preserved him within the community. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego chose to reject the King’s evil command and instead hold to God, and so God preserved them in the fire.
These examples should remain on our minds and within our hearts constantly. It is only God who is our refuge, and it is only God who is our defender! Reject the collective mindset and embrace instead the Christian one!
-Charles Peterson