Biblical Alignment Check-Up

What would the world look like if we Christians found out what God thought about different issues and then we aligned ourselves to His views?

Please hear me all the way out before grabbing your tar and feather kits for implying that your views aren't godly.

So often in my life and the lives of other Christians, we read the Bible for ammunition, to defend our views. We find a verse, or just part of a verse sometimes, that supports "our" view, so we slap a label of "Christian" on our opinion and declare that anyone who thinks differently is ungodly.

Yet, maybe we are going about this the wrong way. Maybe we shouldn't be reading the Bible to gain heavenly support for our arguments, but rather, maybe we should be reading the Bible to find out God's view on a matter and then align our view with His.

If we examine our beliefs, our opinions, our political views, and our national priorities by holding them up to the light of Scripture, we might be surprised to find that God hasn't been on our side in the matter after all, but rather God is waiting for us to join Him on His side.

Occasionally, when I want a big picture view of the Bible, I will do a 90-day blitz through the Bible. It requires reading about 15 chapters a day, but it has the benefit of being able to cover Genesis to Revelations in 3 months. I like to do this kind of blitz when I want to find out God's view on a matter.

It takes more time, but as we read through the whole Bible, we can note in a journal all the references the Bible makes on a certain subject. We can note when God issues a command for or against the subject matter. We can read when history records the subject matter as happening and study what happens when it occurs. We can find advice on the subject as well. Then when we are through our 3 month study, we can have a clearer picture of God's view on the subject matter. It should be a clearer picture than just a few out-of-context verses that support what we already think.

If we turn to the whole Bible for our guidance on how we should live, and then we put it into practice, it will change how we relate to the world and each other.

Instead of asking what we should believe to fit in our political party, shouldn't we be asking what does God believe about our issues in politics?

Need a place to start?
-What is God's view of widows and orphans?
-What's God's view of the poor?
-What's God's view of strangers, aliens, or foreigners?
-What's God's view on violence?

          What does He command Israel and Christians to do concerning these people?
          Am I doing this?
          What else should I be doing to obey God and love my neighbor?