A phrase I use a lot is “We need to move from the pathetic to the prophetic.” 

We’ve relied too heavily on a political vote and equated government and power with the Kingdom of God far too long. In conservative Christian circles we’ve made Jesus a white Republican that hates a lot of things.

I remember a missionary coming to my church and from the start in our conversation he talked about how God isn’t “tolerant.” God is actually angry… all the time. It was embarrassing.

When I speak of moving to the “prophetic” I’m not trying to raise the specter of a wild haired, crazy talking prophet that may get into our heads as the main image.

What I mean by “prophetic” voice is the life of Daniel. It is the life of Jeremiah. There is a tremor in the voice. There is a care that weeps over what is being said. There is a life being lived that is just like nothing else. It blows away all categories. It is a life that angers fundamentalists because it looks like you’ve “compromised” or “sold out.” It is a life that leaves non-Christians perplexed. They have a look in their eye that says, “Wait! You’re a Christian and I’m supposed to not like Christians.”

We need the prophetic voice restored in the life of the American church. It is a voice that will take up the cause of the voiceless. It is a voice that will bless instead of curse. It is a voice that will look to the margins… the margins defined by the kingdom of God and not our political affiliations… and bring them “home.”

Let us give up the pursuit of the pathetic, where we think a vote is going to solve all our problems. Let us take up the prophetic and live in a way that sets the captive free… no matter who resides in Washington, DC.