President Obama yesterday, while talking about a 'jobs' bill that he was trying to push through congress made the claim that "God wants to see us help ourselves by putting people back to work". Carney, the White House press secretary followed up by stating "I believe that the phrase from the Bible is 'the Lord helps those who help themselves,'".
Clearly politicians. Clearly not theologians.
I can understand that desperate times call for desperate measures, and Mr. Obama is doing whatever he can to try to influence the members of congress to push through a bill that could possibly affect the unemployment rate, but more importantly affect his re-election campaign. It is no wonder that he has invoked the name of the most high as a top level endorser of his plan for America.
There is a problem with this tactic, and Mr. Carney's statement about the good book. God never said that he helps those who help themselves. Its a good idea, and it sounds really biblical and all, but its just not in there.
Here is a verse in the Bible that speaks about work that I would like to share with you this morning.
Proverbs 14:23 All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty.
I think that is a more important statement about work and one that is actually in the Bible versus making something up. I love this verse. Not in regards to the Jobs bill, but in regards to our own lives. I think it is a great idea to be people that work hard. Now, there is a point of working too hard, but we still were designed to get some work done. It was never intended for us to sit around.
There is a huge difference between talking and doing.
This verse specifically is not talking about a Congressional jobs bill, but I think that the essence of the verse may have been better for the President and Mr. Carney to quote. Perhaps they should have said something to the affect of "God doesn't want us talking about work, He wants us to get to work". I think that would have been better.
Application for today? Are you a talker or a doer? Do you merely talk about what you are going to do, or do you do it? Don't be a person that talks a big talk and then doesn't put any action behind it. I believe that God does want us to work. That he does bless the work of our hands, and that we should be more than just talkers. We should be workers.
Search your heart. Shut your mouth. Get to work.
Be blessed
pastor matt
You can read the article here- http://news.yahoo.com/obama-presses-republicans-bridge-scheme-151914720.html
"Mixing politics and religion is like mixing manure and ice cream. It doesn't do much for the manure but it sure ruins the ice cream! Will Rogers
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