Hung parliament

The British people have spoken. We have a hung parliament, as no one party wins enough votes to gain a majority in government. We continue to wait and watch as political deals and manoeuvrings take place to determine our future government. All this in a time of economic meltdown when decisive leadership is required.

I believe one reason this has occurred is because there is now no clear difference between the 3 main political parties. They all seem to have converged onto middle ground. The conservatives felt they had to move to the left to remove their ‘nasty party’ tag. They felt they had to offer the electorate something more palatable in order to gain power. That strategy has backfired spectacularly.

I believe the same thing is happening within the church. In order to increase numbers in the church, the gospel is watered down to something more palatable – ‘come to Jesus Christ and fulfil your potential in life’, rather than the orthodox Christian faith which slays the sinner, states that our good works are as filthy rags, and instead we need to come to God as spiritual beggars to be clothed in the righteousness of Christ by faith.

Yet the leaders of the church cannot alone be blamed for changing the message. Jeremiah faced the same problem with Israel: “A horrible and shocking thing has happened in the land: The prophets prophesy lies, the priests rule by their own authority, and my people love it this way.” (Jer 5:30-31). And Paul prophesies the same thing will happen to the church: “For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear” (2 Tim 4:3). I believe God is giving us over to what we want – the British people an impotent government because firm convictions and principled politics are no longer acceptable, and the church an impotent gospel message unable to bring salvation due to the pursuit of entertaining sermons and psychobabble.

May God have mercy on this land.