Political party loyalty is an amazingly personal matter, and it is so ingrained in people that most will vote for their party’s candidate regardless of who the person is. There have actually been occasions when voters knowingly voted for a dead man because of their unwavering allegiance to their party. Some would never consider leaving their party because it has been the party of their family going back for generations. Some would never even listen to the other side because they have made significant personal and financial contributions to their own party. For many, their political party is all they have ever known—they “grew up” in that party—and so they are committed to it regardless of any information that is presented to them, any knowledge that they acquire, or any obvious truths that come to light.
This article is NOT about politics. It is NOT about your political party. It is NOT about your devotion to your political party or how you vote. The first paragraph is to set the foundation and illustrate a point for the rest of this article.
Loyalty to one’s religious group or church is an amazingly personal matter, and it is so ingrained in people that many would never even consider leaving their group. There have actually been religious leaders who have been proven to be fakes, frauds and even felons, but there were some followers who remained constant, no matter what. Some would never consider leaving their religious group because it has been their family’s church going back for generations. Some would never even listen to opposing points of view because they have made significant personal and financial contributions to their own church. For many, their religious group is all they have ever known—they “grew up” in that church—and so they are committed to it regardless of any information that is presented to them, any knowledge that they acquire, or any obvious truths that come to light.
Would you take a moment and ask yourself, “Does that describe me?” Have you ever examined your belief system? Have you ever scrutinized the origin, foundation and doctrines of your religious group? Have you ever put “what you’ve always been taught” and “what you’ve always believed” under the microscope of God’s Word? Have you ever put it all to the “test,” to “see whether they are from God” (1 John 4:1)?
I know, I know. There are two topics that you never discuss in polite company—politics and religion. And I’ve hit them both in this article. But, there’s a big difference. One of these topics has NO bearing on the eternal destiny of my soul and one of these topics has ALL bearing on the eternal destiny of my soul. I’d better make sure I’m in the right place!