Christian Citizenship

Part 1

Dr. Reagan: Greetings in the name of Jesus, our Blessed Hope, and welcome to Christ in Prophecy. My co-host, Nathan Jones and I are going to focus this program on an interview with Colonel Tim Moore about Christian citizenship and the upcoming national election. Now, for those of you who might not be familiar with Tim, he is the ministries associate evangelist, and my designated successor, and he is a retired Colonel from the US Air Force, and he recently completed serving for 13 years in the House of Representatives of the Kentucky State Legislature. So, he is uniquely qualified to speak about Christian citizenship from a biblical perspective. Nathan, how about you posing the first question?

Nathan Jones: Alright. Well, Tim, as Christians what would be the most important consideration when we are trying to choose whom to vote for? Should it be a particular topic, or should it be by party lines, or should it be by race, or gender issues?

Dr. Reagan: Or even family tradition?

Tim Moore: Or even family tradition, yes.

Nathan Jones: Yeah, generations we’ve voted this. I mean how as Christians should we be voting?

Tim Moore: Well, clearly, Dave set it up in the very introduction to this episode, we should be quote, “voting according to Christian or biblical principles.” And so, we can go back in time to even one of our former episodes where Rafael Cruz, Ted Cruz’s father was here, and he shared a tremendously important and insightful verse from Exodus. When Moses was trying to deliberate between all the different controversies, perhaps even amongst his people, his father-in-law, Jethro said, “You would be wise to pick men who could help assist you in that role.” And he said in Exodus 18:21, he said, “You shall select out of all the people able men who fear God, men of truth, those who hate dishonest gain.” And so, that is a great guideline for the kind of folks we would like to have representing us, men and women, who fear God, first and foremost, who love truth, and who hate dishonest gain. And so, in any given election, inevitably it comes down typically to one candidate against another, there are two primary choices, and so it is a matter of applying biblical principles, not party, not race, not any of those other considerations including family heritage, but determining which one stands for, and will uphold and honor Christian principles more than the other.

Nathan Jones: Fantastic. So, we shouldn’t be one issue people voters. We shouldn’t be based on race or ethnicity, or how much money that we could get. It should be based on the Bible.

Tim Moore: It should be based on biblical principles. And I found, and I think I’ve shared this with you before having served in the legislature, I can tell you where a particular legislature, or even an candidate would come down based on a few bellwether issues that you would say represented their personal platform. For me, the first and foremost was life. Did a person defend innocent unborn life, or did they relegate the unborn to the trash heap of our society, supporting abortion on demand? And that issue would indicate to me where they would stand on a whole host of other issues. And it still does to this day.

Dr. Reagan: Well, that is a good litmus test. Now, at the beginning of this program I mentioned that we are facing a stark contrast.

Tim Moore: Yes.

Dr. Reagan: In this particular election, probably more so then since the Civil War. Now, elaborate on that. What is the stark contrast?

Tim Moore: Well, the stark contrast is not just in terms of the individuals, and we can touch on that, but I think it’s deeper than that. I think it goes to the platforms and the vision that the two primary parties have for America and for our future. And so, you can go to the internet, those watching us today, can go online and look at the party platforms. I will tell you that the Republican Party simply readopted their platform from 2016, they decided not to reform it, because really there’s been not much change in their position. In that platform God is mentioned 15 times and they go through a whole litany of practical ways in which they are going to honor biblical values. For instance, in the Preamble the Republican platform says every time we sing “God Bless America” we are asking for help from God Almighty.

Nathan Jones: Wow.

Tim Moore: They go on to talk about defending marriage against an activist judiciary. And rejecting some of the trends in our society as they uphold one marriage between man and woman, a marriage between one man and one woman. They talk about all the various amendments in our Bill of Rights, the first ten, the First one being religious liberty, and how they determine they are going to uphold religious liberty so people can worship the Lord God as their conscience dictates. They talk about the Fifth Amendment as being key to supporting innocent life, and so that is a particularly important party platform for the Republican Party.

Dr. Reagan: In other words, they are a pro-life party.

Tim Moore: A pro-life party, yes, sir, most definitely pro-life. And then if you look at the Democratic Platform, admittedly it mentions God one time, and that was very controversial if you remember.

Nathan Jones: Yeah, didn’t they try to vote it out, the platform right?

Tim Moore: They tried to remove God from their party platform all together, but the Democratic Party includes God’s name one time. And then they go on to talk about how they want to repair the soul of this nation by emphasizing an embrace of abortion; they want to refund Planned Parenthood and endorse federal funding for abortion at an unlimited rate. They want to reject the Hyde Amendment, which has stopped the funding of abortions with federal taxpayer dollars, but they want to codify the right to an abortion at any age. They want to double down on the sexual revolution when it comes to LGBTQ issues and rejecting traditional marriage. And again, talking about healing the soul of American they emphasize the belief, the vision that our country is built on structural racism, misogamy, and again discrimination against LGBTQ people, and they are going to fix all of that as part of healing the soul. So, there is a very divergent vision for America between the two parties, and that is obviously reflected by the candidates.

Dr. Reagan: And let me tell you something that divergence is even more radical when you consider the agreement that Biden signed with Bernie Sanders, a 110-page agreement to get his support. And he just simply gave in to the Progressives.

Tim Moore: Well, most of this platform, and most of the policy initiatives that have come out since the primary was determined was written by a group of people that was stacked with Bernie Sanders supporters. So, they were avidly pro-Socialist.

Dr. Reagan: And in that unity agreement God is not mentioned one time.

Tim Moore: No, sir.

Dr. Reagan: Israel is only mentioned once, and it is a very vague thing about, if we are elected we will invite Israel to participate in technological development of clean air things. That’s all they said about it.

Tim Moore: Yes. No, Israel is rejected out of course. And we have seen the parties diverge even in their support for Israel in recent years.

Nathan Jones: Maybe you can give me some history, then Tim, because I’ve noticed that over the years the Republicans and the Democrats, love God for the most part, loved the nation, but in the last 8-10 years it seems like the two parties are spreading farther, and farther apart in the way they view America. To the point now their visions for the future of America are vastly different, and if not compatible.

Tim Moore: Well, you are exactly right, Nathan. I would say there was a time when there was a blending of perspective between the two parties. They had certain policy disagreements, but by in large they were God fearing and honoring of Judeo-Christian values. There were many conservative Democrats back in the day, there were some liberal Republicans, so there was an overlap. That overlap has almost completely evaporated, and there is a great chasm, a great divide even between the two parties. And it is indicated just by the determination to include God, to honor God in one party’s platform, and an effort to exclude Him for the other parties platform. And I think that really goes to the heart of why people who are populating these two parties are gravitating so far apart. One is doubling down on secularism, humanism, and an antagonism toward Judeo-Christian values; the other is upholding those things, not perfectly, but at least saying we will stand on these principles which have guided us.

Dr. Reagan: Well, you are absolutely right, it is the erosion of the Judeo-Christian platform that this nation was established upon.

Tim Moore: Yes.

Dr. Reagan: Our Constitution was established upon it. Our Constitution assumes that there will always be a Judeo-Christian foundation, because otherwise the Constitution won’t work.

Tim Moore: Yes.

Dr. Reagan: And yet, we have abandoned that, it started in the 60’s with the sexual revolution, it has continued since that time. It has become increasingly progressive over the years, using that term progressive, and I don’t like that term.

Tim Moore: No.

Dr. Reagan: It implies something positive, but it very negative.

Nathan Jones: Yeah, it is the complete opposite it is regressive.

Tim Moore: Yeah, progressive means socialistic, and that is their ideology.

Dr. Reagan: Yes, so, you’re saying more of a commitment to socialism, more of a commitment to secularism, pagan concepts, its just a tremendous divide that has occurred in this country. I don’t think this country has been this divided since the Civil War.

Tim Moore: I don’t either. And as matter of fact political scientist can tract these things and they say we are more divided then at any time since the Civil War. And right now, we may be approaching that level.

Dr. Reagan: Then it was the north against the south, now it is the two coasts against the inner part of America.

Tim Moore: It is the two coasts geographically, but it is also a divide with the principles that are reflected in individual hearts and lives.

Dr. Reagan: Oh, yeah, sure.

Tim Moore: You know George Washington was so insightful, he said, “Our system of government will not work for people who is not moral and upstanding. Not because of the laws that we impose upon them, but because the laws that are written upon their hearts, based on their foundation of religion, and morality that comes from the author of life Himself.” And so, they respected those Christian values.

Dr. Reagan: Well, I really appreciate you pointing out these stark differences because I really believe that most people in America today are making their decisions about voting by who comes across best on television, who is the best looking. You know Abraham Lincoln would never have won a presidential election today.

Tim Moore: No.

Dr. Reagan: George Washington certainly wouldn’t have. You’ve got to be glib, you got to be articulate and all that sort of thing. And people need to be looking at the issues; these issues are going to determine the whole future of our nation.

Nathan Jones: And the vision too, because each party has a totally different vision for the future. Right? Maybe you could give us a little summary. What do the Democrats see America becoming? And what do the Republicans see American becoming?

Dr. Reagan: Well, as you see the Democrats in their platform, again, this is not about party, we are trying to peel back the party label.

Nathan Jones: Right, absolutely.

Tim Moore: But the Democratic Party believes that America is built upon a falsehood which is systematic racism, systemic racism as they would say, misogamy which means a hatred of women, and a rejection of all the sexual revolution ideals which have come about of late. And they want to embrace those things and throw out all that our foundations are based upon.

Nathan Jones: Seemingly even the First Amendment. They seem to have no respect for freedom of speech, or freedom of religion anymore.

Tim Moore: Well, and so the conservatives by definition want to conserve that which is good. Not to say everything we have ever done or been is right, but conserve that which is good and has brought us forward to today.

Dr. Reagan: And don’t forget the one amendment that hasn’t been mentioned that the Democrats hate with a passion, the Second Amendment.

Tim Moore: Yes.

Nathan Jones: Because if you take the weaponry away from the people they can’t defend themselves, and you have complete control over them.

Dr. Reagan: Totalitarians always want to take away two things, all guns and all Bibles.

Part 2

Nathan Jones: Welcome back to Christ in Prophecy and our discussion of Christian citizenship in the upcoming election. We are interviewing this ministries associate evangelist who spent 13 years in the Kentucky State Legislature, and we are asking him how Christians should evaluate political parties, and candidates from a biblical perspective.

Dr. Reagan: Tim, I want to bring up a very sensitive topic. And folks, what I have in mind is that many Christians are saying, “I like Trump’s policies, but I don’t like him. He’s not a model of Christian living. He has a playboy past. He’s loose with the truth. He’s exceedingly prideful. And he’s often mean-spirited with vicious attacks on individuals who criticize him.” Non-Christians are more to the point they just simply say, “Christians are hypocritical to support a person like Trump.” How in the world do you respond to these kinds of statements?

Tim Moore: Well, I can’t disagree with some of the criticisms, any more than my wife I would say that I sometimes say things that she wouldn’t endorse or support.

Dr. Reagan: She would actually say that Tim?

Tim Moore: Yes, she would. But on balance she knows where my heart is, and she knows the things that I stand for and do. And so, all of us fall short of the perfection that some would suggest a candidate should possess, especially for a president. But I like what Tucker Carlson had to say recently, he said, “If you are wondering why so many Christians have been willing to support this president despite his personal life this is why: It is because whatever his flaws, he’s made it clear that he is not the enemy of Christians.” And I think that is exactly right.

Dr. Reagan: Well, he certainly has done that.

Tim Moore: Well, Christians have found over time that they have been promised many things by candidates at every level, and then they fall short of delivering. But Mr. Trump promised that he would support Israel, he has done so. He promised he would support unborn life; he’s certainly done that. Arguably the most pro-life president we have ever seen with his court appointments and other nominations. And so, he has stood for the things that matter most. And yes, there are many flaws in his character, as there are with all of us. And I’m not excusing any of those, I can point them out as readily as anybody else. But when it comes to the policies that he supports, and the actions he has taken, they have reflected those Judeo-Christian principles.

Dr. Reagan: Well, I certainly believe that he has a lot of character flaws. But the thing that has impressed me the most about him is that he kept all of his promises. And that has just blown me away. My whole life I’ve studied politics, and I’ve been fed up with politicians who promise one thing, get into office, and do something else, or forget about what they promised. This was a man who promised to build a wall, promised to do something about illegal immigration, promised to support the efforts against abortion, he promised to appoint conservative justices to the court, it just goes on and on and on. I can’t think of a single promise that he made that he has not kept.

Tim Moore: No, there are many.

Dr. Reagan: Most unusual politician I’ve ever run across.

Tim Moore: Well, in that regard for sure. You were about to say?

Nathan Jones: Well, I just to piggyback on what you said, it seems like some of the greatest presidents in history had the most personality. I mean look at Teddy Roosevelt he was shot, and he kept giving his speech. You have Ronald Reagan and his tremendous acting career; they are bigger than life so their mistakes that they’ve made in life seem bigger than life as well.

Tim Moore: Well, and I think there is more even that to Trump in terms of the Lord has used him in his imperfections. And let’s dare say he’s used all of us, even in this role as evangelist for this ministry in spite of our imperfections. That does not excuse our imperfections, but only Christ is perfect. And yet, the Lord uses all of us as imperfect vessels to accomplish His will. We can go back to a prophetic voice from scripture and look at Isaiah chapter 45 where he touts the fact that there would be this ruler called Cyrus. And this was a prophecy even before Cyrus was the king over Babylon. He said, “The Lord is going to raise up Cyrus, who will not be a believer.” As a matter of fact, the Lord said, “You will not even know me, but I’m going to raise you up to accomplish My will to bless specifically Israel in that day and age.” And to this day the Lord raises up and turns the jaws of kings, and rulers where He will, to accomplish His will in this world. And I think that’s true in our nation, and in other nations. Does that excuse the character flaws? No. But again when we are voting, we are having to vote for a position of policies that are going to impact our nation going forward, and impact the world, including Israel.

Nathan Jones: Well Tim, what about the other side of the coin? There are people who say, “Well I just can’t vote for President Trump because he’s this, and he’s rude, and he’s all that.” But then you have other people who are the complete opposite and they are like, “You can’t criticize him. You can’t say anything bad about him.”

Dr. Reagan: You say one critical word they go bizarre.

Nathan Jones: I think once on our blog we said something negative about President Trump, and someone said, “If Trump losses the election I am totally holding Lamb & Lion Ministries responsible for it.” I mean they—

Dr. Reagan: As if we had that much influence.

Nathan Jones: Right. And they elevate him almost as savior. Should we be looking at him like that as well?

Nathan Jones: No. No, our Savior is Jesus Christ. And He is the only person who is flawless, and blameless and who never sinned. Everyone else falls short of the glory of God. Donald Trump, me, you, all of us fall short. I think it comes down in any election, as it always does, to a contrast and a comparison between two individuals. So, this year there is Donald Trump and Joe Biden. And with Mr. Trump you can say that many of his statements are cringe worthy. I’ll use that phrase. Cringe worthy. But his deeds and the things that He does are praiseworthy, and Dave you’ve already mentioned several of those things. Joe Biden, many of the things he says are confused or confusing, quite frankly. I don’t know where he stands on issues, until I look at the platform he is now endorsing. And yet, the things that he has done over time have undermined Judea-Christian values. I’ll give you one example. The two things that are most important in our current era are life, and lately the propagation of a sexual revolution.

Dr. Reagan: Yes.

Tim Moore: That being embracing of LGBTQ identity, gender identity. And if you look back into Joe Biden’s past when he became chairman of the Judiciary Committee of the United States Senate, the president at the time Ronald Reagan was going to nominate Robert Bork, a well-known.

Dr. Reagan: Supremely qualified.

Tim Moore: Very qualified. Well known conservative. And Joe Biden himself said, “Well, we are going to have to endorse him. We’re going to have to go ahead and affirm him because he is very qualified.” Previous to that Antonin Scalia, another highly qualified conservative judge was past forward by the Senate 98-nothing. But then Joe Biden decided to play politics. And he did something to Robert Bork that had never occurred, he undermined him at every moment.

Dr. Reagan: Character assassination.

Tim Moore: Exactly. They created a new verb in our lexicon, they said they borked him, meaning they took his name and turned it into a derogatory term, assassinating his character.

Nathan Jones: And we saw that with Brett Kavanaugh.

Tim Moore: We certainly did. And so, for the first time a justice was rejected to the Supreme Court based on that character assassination. And the person who replaced him instead was a namby-pamby justice named Anthony Kennedy and he over time not only endorsed, and carried forward the Roe vs. Wade abortion policy, but he wrote the Obergefell Doctrine, and decision that embraced homosexual marriage, and it has unleased a torrent of sexual revolution policies on this nation. So, Joe Biden has specific culpability or responsibility for some of those horrors that have now descended up our country.

Dr. Reagan: In 1980 Ronald Reagan was elected, and Frances Schaeffer who was alive at that time said, “This is a window of grace that God has given this nation, because this nation is on a downward spiral.” And it was a window of grace. But as soon as Reagan left office we picked up where we left off, going in that downward spiral of secularism, humanism, paganism, and it’s accelerated. We have another window of grace this last four years, perhaps we’ll get four more years.

Tim Moore: Perhaps.

Dr. Reagan: But is America going on a downward spiral?

Tim Moore: We clearly are. And we’ve documented that many times on this program and through our writings. And scripture tells us that every nation is going to go on a downward spiral over the course of time as the Lord’s return—

Dr. Reagan: Particularly in the end times.

Tim Moore: Particularly in the end times. So, we know that that’s going to happen. And yet, we are called to be salt and light in whatever era we live.

Dr. Reagan: Absolutely.

Tim Moore: And the Lord holds us responsible. Just like he held Ezekiel responsible. He said, “This is what is going to happen. They are not going to listen to you, but your responsibility is to declare truth, whether they listen or not, lest I hold you responsible.”

Dr. Reagan: If Christians don’t speak out for righteousness, nobody is going to speak out for righteousness.

Tim Moore: Exactly right. So, we know what the end result will be. But our responsibility is to be salt and light, to declare truth, and to promote Judeo-Christian values and principles in this country and in whatever community we live because that is what the Lord calls us to do.

Dr. Reagan: Well, I hope that people will take your advice and look at the issues that are involved, not just the personalities, and who is the glibbest or whose the best on TV, or who makes all the points in a debate or whatever, but the important thing are the issues.

Tim Moore: The issues.

Dr. Reagan: And people need to realize that.

Tim Moore: You know I thought about Joshua as an example. Joshua was commanded by the Lord to act in a certain manner as Israel was conquering the land. And some of things that Joshua did, by our determination today, were very harsh, but he was obeying what God called him to do. I know that Donald Trump is considered to be harsh in some of his presentation, I don’t defend that. But I think he is enacting policies that we as Christians have to support, and would want for our nation and for the world.

Nathan Jones: Because our citizenship isn’t in America, or whatever country, it is in Heaven, right?

Tim Moore: Always.

Nathan Jones: Boy, that’s a good one. I like that.

Part 3

Nathan Jones: Well, Tim do you have any final words for our viewers?

Tim Moore: Yes, Nathan, I do, and thank you for asking.

Folks, this election has been touted as one of the most important in our nation’s history. I would suggest that the elections of 1860 and 1864 were equally vital because they set us on a course toward Civil War, and eventually restoration of the Union.

Like those elections this one will determine which of two diametrically opposite paths our nation will follow in the future. The ideals and platforms presented by the two major parties offer dramatically different vision. Neither gets everything right from a Christian perspective, but one will inevitably undermine the Judeo-Christian values that have made us a shining city on a hill among the nations of the world. That party would lead us down the self-destructive path of socialism, humanism, and secularism.

Christians can get caught up in the narrative being pushed by the media, or buy into the propaganda that swirls around each campaign. They can fixate on the personal faults of individual candidates which can lead to hopelessness and despair, or they can ignore the short comings of their favorite candidate allowing that person to be held as a little “s” savior for our country. Thoughtful and responsible followers of Jesus Christ should do neither.

Indeed, we should evaluate the policies and record of each candidate and base our decision on which one conforms to the Word of God. Which candidate, and for that matter which party defends innocent life in the womb? Which one honors God’s definition of marriage? And His sovereign right as our Creator to make us a man or a woman? Which one respects our God given right to religious liberty, and our responsibility to worship the Almighty as our testimony of faith in Him? And which one has supported Israel in word and in deed?

Some will argue that character matters above all else. I will agree to a point, but I would submit that compared to the spotless character of Jesus Christ all of us fall short. So, I go back to my assertion that we must evaluate the policies and platforms of each candidate and discern which one will respect godly principles, as deposed to which one will accelerate our decline into a godless society? I pray that each of you will prayerfully seek discernment from God, and will place your commitment to Him above all else as you vote this November.

Dr. Reagan: Well, thank you very much, Tim. I appreciate you sharing your viewpoint from both a biblical and a political perspective. God has given you a unique view there.

Well, folks, that’s our program for today. I hope its been a blessing to you. And I hope too, the Lord willing, that you will be back with us again next week. Until then this is Dave Reagan speaking for Lamb & Lion Ministries saying, “Look up, be watchful, for our redemption is drawing near.”

End of Program