Media Matters - Part 4

No matter what you thought of Rush Limbaugh he made a major impact on societal thinking. Specifically, as it relates to politics; especially for those who are on the conservative side of the aisle. Growing up in west-central Minnesota there was a very even mix of Republicans and Democrats. Republicans and Democrats would worship with each other in the same sanctuary, singing praises to the same God. In the late 70s and early 80s, both parties had a significant number of supporters who were pro-life, pro-family, pro-Second Amendment, pro-Biblical marriage. The dividing issues of those days were more centered around who supported unions, farmers, military, teachers, business owners, and who would promise more funding for specific local projects. When Rush Limbaugh came on the scene in the late 80s his views were welcomed by those, especially with conservative-leaning beliefs. He was a very polarizing figure, but not because his talking points were so outlandish, rather because he made individuals own up to what they really believed and why they voted for a specific party. One of the great aspects of living in the United States is the depth of freedom we have, such as; uninterrupted travel from state to state, ownership of property, self-reliance through the employment of our own choosing, gun ownership, ability to freely move about, marriage by self-choice, unlimited expression of non-threatening thought, and the right to assemble to worship God. Rush Limbaugh began to remind people of many of these virtues and values that are ours uniquely as citizens of the United States. Often he would say that these were freedoms given to us not by our constitution but rather by Almighty God. The constitution only reaffirms what we know is part of our basic rights as human beings created in the image of God. Rush Limbaugh was like all of us, a sinner, a flawed human being who spent three hours a day sharing virtues and values he felt were important for his listenership to consider. Most Americans will tell you they believe in a higher power, more specifically they will use the name God, as it relates to them personally. God would be the name of the deity they identify with as divine. God is a very generic word in the world we live in now. The Scriptures tell us that demons believe in God and tremble at His name. Rush would say his talent was on loan from God. There is great truth in that statement, yet the dividing line for all of us is not believing in God but our devotion and dependency to the God of the Bible, who sent His Son to a cruel cross to pay for our sins. There are a lot of Americans who believe in God, who have no trouble talking about God, even attending a church that speaks about God, or listening to a talk show host who acknowledged God regularly. You can be a Republican or a Democrat and believe in God but what really matters is where are you with Jesus? We are one day closer to the return of Christ and what should matter more than anything is not which side of the political aisle you vote. The media has done a great job of polarizing us by our political leanings rather than our biblical beliefs. Wednesday night we spoke about the greater levels of deception that are coming into our world as we inch closer to the return of Christ. The Antichrist is a real person, and one of his greatest resources will be the deceptive social media and all forms of communication that currently exist in our world. Hopefully whatever talk show hosts you listen to espouse values that line up with the Word of God. In the end, it’s not about whether you agree with Rush, but what do you believe about Jesus.