“Hallelujah. My soul, praise the Lord “Hallelujah! My soul, praise the Lord. I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing to my God as long as I live. Do not trust in nobles, in a son of man, who cannot save. When his breath leaves him, he returns to the ground; on that day his plans die. Happy is the one whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them.

He remains faithful forever, executing justice for the exploited and giving food to the hungry. The Lord frees prisoners. The Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord raises up those who are oppressed. The Lord loves the righteous. The Lord protects resident aliens and helps the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates the ways of the wicked. The Lord reigns forever; Zion, your God reigns for all generations. Hallelujah!” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭146:1-10‬ ‭CSB‬‬

Big Idea of the Message: Don’t look to the leader of your country for salvation; salvation only comes from God.

Every ruler/leader/political party will ultimately fail us Do not trust in nobles, in a son of man, who cannot save. (vs. 3)

Your allegiance to God is bigger than your political party affiliation.

There is no politician or political party more powerful than God. When his breath leaves him, he returns to the ground; on that day his plans die. (vs. 5)

We must see things through the lens of “God is on the throne” not through the lens of a “certain person or a political party on the throne.”

In a politically stressful time, we must lean and trust in God our hope and Creator. Happy is the one whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them. He remains faithful forever, (vs. 5-6)

In a politically stressful time, God’s justice must be executed by the church.

executing justice for the exploited and giving food to the hungry executing justice for the exploited and giving food to the hungry. The Lord frees prisoners. The Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord raises up those who are oppressed. The Lord loves the righteous. The Lord protects resident aliens and helps the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates the ways of the wicked. (7-9)

How do we do this? By: • Protecting the oppressed (7a) • Feeding the hungry (7b) • Bringing righteousness to the justice system (7c) • Bringing both physical and spiritual healing to others (8a) • Exalting those with character, not just those with wealth or power (8b) • Providing help to those outside of our country (9a) • Providing financial help to widows and orphans (9b) • Exposing and Halting wickedness (9c)

If we're taking political stances and framing them into left wing or right wing, then we're missing the whole point. The point is to promote God’s justice. We can’t settle with being churches that are content with having church services every week, we must be churches that provide services (ministry) to broken people on a daily basis.

“Mankind, he has told each of you what is good and what it is the Lord requires of you: to act justly, to love faithfulness, and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah‬ ‭6:8‬ ‭CSB