New Wine Fellowship Bible Study

People the world over stopped their daily routine to observe America on Tuesday as we inagurated our 44th President.  Much has been said of the historic nature of the event and rightly so.  Regardless of whether you voted for Mr. Obama, agree or disagree with his political ideology, or believe his election is good or bad for the country, one thing that cannot be denied is that it represents a proud moment in our history.  I was proud to see our democracy in action through the peaceful and orderly transfer or power - the outcome of free and fair elections.  We need only to look to the examples of China, North Korea, Somalia, Iran, Syria, Libya, Zimbabwe, Sudan and the other among the 70 countries ruled by dictatorships to appreciate the amazing freedoms we enjoy.  I was proud to see the crowds of Americans who made their way to Washington to take in the moment.  I was proud to see that a minority could ascend to our highest politcal office despite the weight of history that once considered a person of hs race less than a human, much less a citizen due the rights, freedoms and protections under our Constitution.  I was proud that someone amoung the staff at the Library of Congress had the foresight to grasp the historical significance of the moment and offer to loan the Lincoln Bible to the President-elect for the ceremony.  The same Bible that Lincoln - the man who through courage, conviction and a will guided by principle preserved our nation’s unity and authored the bill that would emancipate black Americans- placed his hand upon to take the oath of office in 1861.  Lincoln was administered the oath of office by then Chief Justice Roger Taney.  Taney had written the Supreme Court’s opinion in the Dred Scott case just four years earlier.  Dred Scott represents one of the lowest points in our history as it upheld the legality of slavery and was instrumental in stoking the passions that would lead to the Civil War.  Taney and Lincoln were on opposites ends of the moral and political spectrum regarding slavery.  Little did Taney know that he was swearing in the man that would orchestrate an end to Dred Scott and shine a harsh light the court’s decision.  What great symbolism that Barack Obama would place his hand in the same place 148 years later as the ultimate expression of all that Lincoln had hoped and ultimately died for.  I was proud to see that there is still a place for prayer in our civil ceremonies.  I was proud of Rick Warren for boldly invoking the name of Yeshua and the scripture passage “Hear, O Israel the Lod God is your God” during his invocation.   Already a controversial choice for the duty, he could have played it safe but he stayed true to his convictions.  I was proud to hear the President quote scripture in his eloquent speech when he said it was time for us as a nation to “put away childish things”.  He was quoting from 1 Corinthians 13 - the love chapter.  Out of a chapter devoted to teaching us about love, Obama quoted the section of the passage that deals with tough love.  I think that is exactly what we need as a nation.  We have too long allowed greed and immorality to shape our public policy.  We have too long made bad personal choices and then blamed the government for not saving us from ourselves.  Our elected officials have too long acted shamefully when they choose partisanship over citizenship.  It is time we stop acting like children, make tough decisions and grow up out of love for our country.  I was proud of many things I observed yesterday and I am prayerful that God will continue to preserve our nation.