In this episode, Rick Hughes urges listeners to consider the broader spiritual context in global politics. As a royal ambassador of Jesus Christ, every believer is tasked not with political agitation, but with fulfilling a heavenly commission. Through scriptural references and practical wisdom, Rick examines how believers can uphold their faith when trials arise from societal changes, emphasizing the power of prayer, submission, and love for all leaders as instructed in the Bible.
Welcome to the Flatline with your host, Rick Hughes. For the next 30 minutes, you’ll be inspired, motivated, educated, but never manipulated. Now, your host, Rick Hughes.
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Good morning and welcome to the Flatline. I’m your host, Rick Hughes, and for the next few minutes… please consider listening up. Just stick around for a few minutes, 30 minutes of motivation, some inspiration, some education, and always done without any manipulation. No hidden agendas, nothing to sell you, nothing for you to join. Just trying to give you some accurate information, information that may verify and identify God’s plan for your life. And if I can do that, you can orient and adjust to the plan. My job, educate. Your job, evaluate. So please, the Flatline comes every Sunday morning, same time, same place, same station. We do this by faith, believing this is something God has given us an open door to do. We’re not here to manipulate anybody or to try to convince anybody that you’re wrong and I’m right. We’re just here to give you some information. Occasionally, it’s always interesting to run into people who want to convince you how wrong you are, even though you don’t ask them anything. So there’s always a few people floating around out there that want to square you away. And you have to be careful with those sort of people. We’re not that sort of person. We’re not trying to square you away. We’re just trying to offer you some information. And if you don’t agree with the information, turn the radio off and listen to something else. It’s just that simple. Because it’s your free will, your volition, your choice to listen. And I appreciate it if you do listen. And I appreciate it if I’m able to give you some scripture from the Word of God that will encourage you, help you, direct you in your life. Today we want to talk about something that I think is key for our times. It’s called political bitterness. Political bitterness. Can having a flat line, last time we talked about the necessity of having a flat line in your soul. We showed you that from the Bible. In 1 Peter 5, 8, be sober and alert. Your enemy, the devil, goes around like a roaring lion prowling about looking for someone to devour. And so we showed you the reasons why you should have a flat line in your soul, a forward line. line of troops, F-L-O-T. A main line of resistance so you can stop the outside sources of adversity before they ever become the inside source of stress. That’s why we always say adversity is inevitable, stress is optional. So having a flat line in your soul keeps you even from becoming bitter. Bitter and antagonistic towards those who appear to be demanding a different way of life. A politician who doesn’t think like you nor act like you, and one who appears to be total contrary to anything God’s Word says about civility or establishment concepts. It’s very easy to get aggravated at these people, very easy to get angry with these people, especially when you see how unrealistic some of their demands are. You don’t know their intentions, you don’t know their desires, but it’s pretty obvious that They want to take this country in a different direction than what maybe you want it to go. So let me give you some principles to consider and some verses that we want to try to think about and live by in these days of contention in politics. And the first principle, number one, is no believer in the Lord Jesus Christ is charged by God to change the politics of any country. It’s not our job to convince people to be Republicans or to be Libertarians or to be Democrats. It’s not our job. Two, our job is to represent Jesus Christ as citizens of a foreign country. and not to try to change the political system. We don’t belong here, we’re just sojourners, the Bible says, we’re just passing through. Yes, I’m an American, and yes, you’re an American citizen, and we have a citizenship in this country, but we actually have a dual citizenship. We have an earthly citizenship, which is here, and we have a heavenly citizenship, the word heaven, uranus, and that’s in heaven, that’s with God. And so three, as a royal ambassador of Jesus Christ, We are not citizens of this country. We have a heavenly citizenship, but we serve in the devil’s world. We’ve been left here, we are still here, we’re not in heaven, and so there’s a reason why we’re here. There’s something that our master wants us to do as ambassadors we represent him just like any ambassador would represent the president of a foreign to a foreign government we represent jesus christ paul wrote in philippians 3 verses 20 and 21 our citizenship is in heaven and we eagerly await a savior from there the lord jesus christ verse 21 who by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control will transform our lowly bodies so that they may be like his glorious body. That’s a reference to the exit resurrection. You may know it as the rapture of the church. When the Lord Jesus Christ shall appear in the air, 1 Thessalonians 4, and we which are alive and remain together shall be caught up with them in the air, and so shall we be with the Lord. And I know there are people that say, well, the rapture is no such thing as a rapture. That’s all baloney. Don’t write me and try to straighten me out. This is what I believe. This is what I teach. If you want to teach something else, get your own radio show. How’s that? Say, man, you sure are being hostile today. No, I’m being practical today. And so it’s interesting how people always want to point their view out and try to straighten you out. This is what I believe the Bible teaches, that there is a rapture. There is a rapture of the local church. and it will happen who knows when it could be today could be tomorrow but one day you’re going to be walking down the street and you’re going to disappear. You’re going to be caught up together with the Lord in the air, and so shall you evermore be with the Lord. This is a blessed hope that we encourage one another with because we live in times when it looks like we’re in deep trouble, and we are as a nation. But our citizenship is not here, and we’re not to be discouraged because we eagerly await a Savior from there. Where is there? What does that mean? From the presence of God. You know, there are three heavens. There’s the heaven around this world, the skies. There’s the heaven of the universe, and then there’s the heaven, the presence of God. And when the Lord Jesus Christ returns, he will come through the universe back to this earth, and he will proclaim us as his children. He will take us back to be with God. who by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, Jesus Christ controls history. Through him and by him and for him, Colossians says, were all things made. And so Jesus Christ is the creator. And he will transform our lowly bodies so they will be like his glorious body. You’re going to get a resurrection body eventually. It’s an amazing body. I don’t know what it’s going to look like, but everybody, and I know this, there’s no more sickness, no more pain, no more sorrow, the old things will be passed away. But this body that we live in now won’t work in heaven because it has a sin-infused human nature. Because the Bible says, for by one man centered in the world and death by sin and death is passed on all. This is why we have to die. We are sinners. We have received the implication of Adam’s original sin. And when we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and are born again, then our human spirit is made spiritually alive. And when we die, our soul and spirit go to heaven and the body goes to the grave. That’s it. You don’t need this body anymore. You’re going to get a new body, a resurrection body. And that will be phenomenal when that happens. So one, no believer is charged by God to change the politics of a country. Two, our job is to represent Jesus Christ as citizens. of a foreign country, not to change the political system. Three, as a royal ambassador of Jesus Christ, we are not citizens of this country. We have a heavenly citizenship, but we are stationed or we serve in the devil’s world. And four, we are certainly to pray for our leaders as the following verses indicate. 1 Timothy 2, verses 1 through 6. Now, whether you like our current president or not is not even the issue. I don’t know who the president is, who he could be. It could be President Obama. It could be President Trump. It could be President Bush. It could be President Carter. It could be any president. But this is what we’re told in the Bible about our presidents, our leaders. In 1 Timothy 2, 1 through 6, I exhort, therefore, that first of all, supplications, prayers, intercession, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings, and for all that are in authority. So what God is asking you to do, if you’re a Christian and you’re a Democrat, and you hate the current president, Donald Trump, first of all, you’re sinning because hatred is a sin. It’s a mental attitude sin. And if you’re a Republican and you hate the past president, Mr. Obama, you’re sinning. You’re not allowed to hate. We’re supposed to love our enemies or love those that we don’t consider self-agreeable with. So this says that we have to make supplication, prayer, intercession, giving of thanks. Listen, Jesus Christ controls history. Make this prayer for kings and for all then authority that we may lead. Why? Why? Why? Why should I pray for these people? So we may lead, verse 2, 1 Timothy 2, to a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. That’s all we want. We just want people to leave us alone. We just want to live a quiet and peaceful life and not hear the batter of partisan arguing every day. It all boils down to who wants the power, who’s in power. We want power, you all want power. We’ll do this, you’ll do that. Everybody’s trying to get the power. And it’s unbelievable what people will do to get the power, what they will say, what they will do. And so we pray for our leaders. And the person that’s in power right now in this country is the current president. And he, the Bible mandates, we pray for this man. I was encouraged to see the University of Alabama when they visited the White House and they prayed for the president. I thought that was an awesome thing. And then Paul goes on to say, this is good and it’s acceptable in the sight of God our Savior. What’s good and acceptable? That supplications, prayers, intercessions, giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all that are in authority so we can live a quiet and peaceful life. It’s good, it’s acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who would have all men to be saved. That’s all men, A-L-L, all men. God is not willing that any should perish to be saved and come unto the knowledge of the truth. Knowledge of the truth. In order to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, you have to have some information, and in order to get the information, it’s knowledge. Someone has to give it to you, or you pick up the Bible and you read it for yourself, but it’s knowledge. If you’re ever going to be able to effectively talk about Jesus Christ, you must have some knowledge. You must know what undiminished deity and true humanity is. It helps if you understand why you take communion and what is the issue with the bread and the cup and what do they represent. It helps if you understand the resurrection. It helps if you understand these things. That requires you learn the word of God and that requires a great pastor to teach it to you. And so who will have all men to be saved and come unto the knowledge of the truth. In John 17, this is what the Lord Jesus Christ said, I have given them your word, that’s the disciples, and I’ve challenged them to give the word. And then he prayed for the disciples and prayed for all that would believe in him through the word of the disciples. That’s the Bible. And so the Lord Jesus Christ was praying for us in John 17. And there is one God, verse 5, 1 Timothy 2, 5. There’s one God, one mediator between God and man, and this is Jesus Christ. And so there you have it. Verse 6, who gave himself a ransom for all to be testified in due time. So the Lord Jesus Christ bore our sin on the cross. He paid for our sin. He paid for my sin. He paid for your sin. He paid for any ex-president’s sin. He prayed for anyone that’s incarcerated, their sins as well. He paid for the sins of the world. Every sin of the world was dumped out on him on the cross and judged in him. And that’s why the Bible says, he that knew no sin was made sin so that we may be made the righteousness of God through him. When God looked at you, you were lost. When God looked at you, you were no good. And yet he loved you and he sent his son to die for you. How do I know God loved you? As the Bible says, God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son so that whoever would believe in him would not perish but have everlasting life. but love your enemy you can’t do that you say maybe god could do that but i can’t love those people over there because they’re wicked and they’re evil well they may be wicked and they may be evil but we are still mandated to love them however most people don’t understand what that love is because they get it confused with a personal love it’s not a personal love personal love is a great virtue the bible says in first john 5 3 we obey god because we love god that’s personal virtue personal love for god but the love that we’re mandated to have is an impersonal love it’s a love based on who we are not based on who what they are so it’s possible for me to love the biggest jerk in town Not because he’s a wonderful, loving person and there’s something in him that I can respond to, but because I am the kind of man that God wants me to be, the kind of man that Christ was who gave his life as a sacrifice for people that hated him. He loved them. He even said, Father, forgive them. They do not understand what they’re doing. Who does God place in authority over you? Well, in Romans 13, one through five, the Bible says, let everyone be subject to the governing authorities for there is no authority except that which God has established. So here’s the first principle. Anyone in authority over you, God put them there. That’s right, God put them there. And you said, well, that’s the biggest jerk in town. Do you know what he believes? God put him there. The Bible says this. Here it is. There is no authority except that which God has established. If God allowed it to happen, remember, Jesus Christ controls history. The Supreme Court of Heaven is open 24 hours a day. Nobody gets away with anything. God is well aware of what’s going on. And sometimes God allows a nation to go on their divine discipline because we reject the concepts of divine institutions. And sometimes he may even allow people to be put over you that hate you. in order to discipline you, in order to bring you back to where you need to be. And so the authorities, Romans 13, one through five, the authorities that exist have been established by God. I’m quoting now the Bible. Consequently, whoever rebels against the authorities, rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. God does not authorize a revolution or a rebellion. he authorizes you to love your enemy he authorizes you to replicate the life of Jesus Christ he authorizes you to give the gospel not to bring a revolution for rulers verse 3 hold no terror for those who do right but for those who do wrong yeah you bet that’s my words there so do you want to be free from the fear of one in authority the Bible asked and do what’s right and you will be commended For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid. For rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. Verse five, therefore it’s necessary to submit to the authorities not only because of possible punishment, but also as a matter of conscience. By the way, Rome was in charge when he wrote this. And Rome wasn’t exactly giving Christians a front row seat and praising them. They were burning them at the stake, throwing them in the lion’s den, watching them be executed. You understand what I’m saying? You must be in submitting to government authority. You’re not allowed to run your mouth and run them down and curse them and slander them and try to convince everybody that we’d be better off with a different president or we’d be better off with a different government. That’s not the job of the believer in Jesus Christ. God can divine, intervene in history. God can intervene in history. Listen to Proverbs 21 verse one. The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord. As the rivers of water, he turns it wheresoever he wishes. So God is perfectly capable of turning any government and authority’s mind in a different direction. Let me quote what my pastor taught me a long time ago. I’m quoting from his notes that I took. Mature believers, and I hope that’s you, a mature believer. Mature believers have an invisible impact in history. That’s invisible. Most people won’t even know you’re out there. Mature believers have blessing by association to those in their periphery. Those who come around you, my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. If you’re around a mature believer, you’re going to be having blessing by association. Three, often history is the story of how weak control the strong, especially in politics. Because weak, insecure, thoughtless, arrogant people often control the policy or the procedures and people in social life, people in culture, business, marriage, government, as well as local churches. That’s true. So through arrogance, self-centeredness, Preoccupation with self, the weakened society control and manipulate the strong often. This is why irrational self righteous crusaders often dominate in politics and in government administration. And this is how a power mad irresponsible press can dominate and destroy great leaders or potentially great leaders. So there are two choices here. There is power politics, or there’s the pivot. Two approaches to problem solving, the pivot or power politics. Power politics is the human and satanic solution to the problems of life. Problems in America, oh, we need a new leader, we need a new government, we need a new way of thinking, we need to have this, we need to be that, we need this, we need that, and they want to change, change, change. Listen, if you took everybody in the United States and moved them to Mars, you would still have the same problems because the problem is the sin nature. There are sin nature. It doesn’t make any difference who you elect, who you put in office. Everybody has a sin nature. And in spite of where they are, they’re still going to be the same way. So power politics is the human solution, the satanic solution. Just let me run the show, and I’ll take care of you. I’ll give you free this and free that, and I’ll make sure you never have to worry about anything again. Oh, that sounds so good. Let’s vote for that one. But then the pivot is the other side of the coin. Pivot politics, that’s you if you’re a mature believer, includes people that know Christ as Savior who advance in the plan of God through the perception and the application of the word of God and reach spiritual maturity. Those people become part of the dam that holds back divine discipline on an arrogant nation. The pivot. Without a pivot, the United States of America is done for. We would be under divine discipline and we’d be destroyed without a pivot. So, with renovated thinking, We are able to function with the mindset of Christ or to acquire divine viewpoint. We have to change the way we think. Divine viewpoint has to be learned. It’s not inherited. This is 2 Timothy 2.15, 2 Peter 3.18, Matthew 11, 28, and 30 all talk about study, grow, and learn. Study, grow, and learn. You can’t know the mind of Christ unless you grow, unless you learn it. Somebody has to teach it to you. So why do you need the thinking of Christ in your soul? Well, because Jesus said in Matthew 10, 22, you’re going to be hated by all of these for my namesake. In Matthew 10, 28, don’t be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. In Matthew 10, 34, I didn’t come to bring peace but a sword. the very fact that you’re a believer in Jesus Christ, and the very fact that you believe the Bible is true, the very fact that you’re not into the diversity and all of this stuff, you’re not trying to make everything that used to be evil good, this is going to cause you to be hated, called wicked and evil names, because you believe what the Bible says. The evil of power politics is amazing because those who seek to control will say anything and do anything to gain control. And they will often use unsuspecting young people who believe the public lie. I call it drink the Kool-Aid. If you tell it often enough, loud enough, and long enough, it’s going to be believed. And that’s the power of the press. Repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat the lie. This is the devil’s world, and he certainly does not want you or anyone like you messing up his world system called evil in the Bible. We can now see what used to be good is turned to evil by diversity thinking and inclusion, and what used to be evil has been transformed into good as an alternative lifestyle. It’s still evil, but our mission is to stay out of politics, to stay out of condemnation and criticism, and to lift up the Lord Jesus Christ, and he will draw men to himself. We are the light of the world. Light attracts. You know, you can be a bug zapper for the Lord Jesus Christ. Light attracts. And you can attract the bugs who need the truth. So Ephesians, let me tell you how this goes. We are told to equip ourselves for the battle that we’re going to face. According to Ephesians 6, 11 through 18, we do it by building a flat line in our soul. That’s how we do it. All right? And so we do it by acquiring a spiritual life and submitting to God’s reign, the way God trains us, okay? Ephesians 4.17, so I tell you this and insist on it. In the Lord, that’s the prepositional phrase. This is not Paul’s opinion. This is from the Lord. In the Lord that you do not live like Gentiles live in the futility of their thinking. They don’t have the mind of Christ. You do. Their minds are empty. They are darkened in their understanding, Ephesians 4, 17 through 32, and separated from the life of God because they are ignorant and their hearts are hard. They’ve lost all sensitivity. They’ve given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they’re full of greed. However, Paul writes, this is not the way of life you learned. When you heard about Jesus Christ, you were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Christ Jesus. and you were taught with regards to your former way of life, to put it off. Put off your old self, which is corrupted with deceitful desires, and live a new life in the attitude of your mind, and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Therefore, put off falsehood. Speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we’re all members of one body. There you go. That’s part of the secret. How do we get this? We learn how to do it by getting the mind of Christ, learning Bible doctrine, learning the Word of God. Without learning the Word of God, you’ll have no frame of reference. Without learning the Word of God, you’ll have no choices in life. That’s why Proverbs says wisdom and understanding and knowledge and discernment are critical for you. Critical for you if you’re going to survive in the devil’s world. I hope you’re listening. I hope you’re paying attention. I mean, there’s only so much I can say in 30 minutes. Be sure if you have a question, feel free to write to me. Don’t write trying to straighten me out. It’ll just go in the garbage. But if you have a question and I’ve given you something to think about, then be sure to write. Ask if you want. Until next week, this is your host, Rick Hughes, saying thank you for listening to The Flatline.
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Thank you for listening to The Floodline with your host, Rick Hughes. If you’d like to contact Rick, please write to him at P.O. Box 100, Cropwell, Alabama, 35054, or online at www.rickhughesministries.org.
