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How the 2024 Presidential Election Could Reset the Church
- Shane Idleman Pastor, Westside Christian Fellowship
- Updated Aug 07, 2024
There has been a lot of talk lately about the Great Reset (e.g. resetting the economic and the geopolitical aspects of the world with one group overseeing it). Those of us who are concerned about freedom, religious expression, morality, and a plethora of other topics are not fans of a Great Reset. Leading up to January 20th, let’s look below at two possible scenarios regarding the presidency and how they could affect the church. I’m still very hopeful because my hope is in God.
In either case—Harris or Trump, I believe that something monumental will occur: The church will reset. She needs to; she must. It’s painfully obvious that most churches do not model themselves after the church that Christ commissioned. Often, God must break us down in order to build us up.
A Harris Presidency
A Harris win will no doubt usher in a great “reset” that leads to greater financial collapse. We are seeing signs of this already.
Like in the Old Testament, a Harris presidency may mean that God used foreign enemies to judge America (open borders). In the church, we will divide even more as the true church is forced to go underground, just like what has happened to the church in China. Although it may take time, it’s inevitable.
Churches with rainbow flags and positive messages will stay open and may even be sanctioned by the government. Those that compromise God’s Word will become irrelevant social clubs. Lives will not be radically changed in these types of churches because the false prophet is not God’s prophet.
Under Harris, social media will censor the truth—churches that talk about sin, the inerrancy of the Word, Christ as the only way, repentance, and so on will be marginalized and silenced. The government will clamp down on what it deems “hate speech” and will attempt to silence pastors who don’t conform. All of this, however, can be the fuel that sparks a powerful revival . . . a powerful reset: That God may grant us a little reviving in our bondage (Ezra 9:8).
A Trump Presidency
A Trump presidency would mean that God is giving us another season of grace and mercy in order to expose the unfruitful works of darkness. A Trump administration will confront social media giants and other corruption, but it will not come without a heavy price—there will be massive civil unrest and a huge attack from the media and the Left, designed to foster confusion and chaos. This is what many call the “new civil war,” where we are reminded that freedom is never free.
A Trump presidency will also bring division to the church. Christians will be forced to make a decision—will they stay silent about civil unrest and thus back it? Will they have more in common with ANTIFA than with God’s agenda? Will they apologize for being white, or will they articulate the biblical view of unity under which we can all unite?
Will Christians continue to support ungodly organizations that divide us, or will they denounce them? Will “woke” Christians finally realize that they also need to wake up? All of this, however, can also be the fuel that sparks a powerful revival: “Wilt thou not revive us again that thy people may rejoice in thee?” (Psalm 85:6 KJV).
Why Does the Church Need a Great Reset?
In the same way that Jesus warned the lukewarm church in Laodicea, He warns us today: “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot . . . So then, because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.” He concludes, “Do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked” (Revelation 3:15-17).
I believe that the church today in America resembles the Laodicean church more than at any other time in our history. Sadly, conviction is replaced with complacency, and God's glory is often replaced with gimmicks and marketing ploys. Just look at the top sermons viewed on social media today. The preachers are motivational speakers, not voices “crying in the wilderness.” They encourage the Laodicean lifestyle of being lukewarm instead of lovingly challenging it.
In most cases, these pastors only talk about having your best life now, positive emotions, and taking control of your mind. Granted, we need to be encouraged, but if that’s all we talk about, the church will inevitably drift in the lukewarm direction. And this is where the American church finds itself today. Because the lukewarm church disdains the heat of conviction, they will label bold churches as “legalistic, rigid, and arrogant.”
Like many Christians today, the Laodiceans thought that they were in the center of God’s will. The Laodicean church was large, wealthy, and involved in the community. They looked at numbers, but Jesus looked at the heart and said that they were “wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.” His strong words were meant to convict and challenge, not coddle and comfort. Again, be encouraged: God often breaks us down in order to build us up. One thing is certain: on January 20th, we will know what God’s will is, and it will separate the wheat from the chaff. This will be a great reset for the church in 2021.
How to Stay the Course
Going forward, our overall spiritual condition will be measured by our prayer life. E.M. Bounds believed that without prayer, “The church becomes a graveyard, not an embattled army.” Prayer must be our priority. I’m not talking about a quick prayer before a meal or a brief closing prayer at the end of a church service. I’m talking about prayer services. I’m talking about focusing as much time on praying as preaching. Jesus often retreated to isolated places for extended times of prayer. How, then, are we to lead the church, our nation, and our families in these dire times if we do not cultivate a strong prayer life? We can't!
In times of national crisis, we also see the power of prayer and fasting throughout the Bible. Joel 1:14 powerfully declares, “Consecrate a fast, call a sacred assembly . . . and cry out to the Lord.” God’s people had departed from Him. The call was to return through fasting, prayer, and brokenness. It’s time to seek God’s mercy and humble ourselves before Him. We must stop confusing God’s patience with His approval and seek Him like never before. He is our only Hope!
*The opinions in this commentary do not necessarily reflect those of Crosswalk Headlines.
Photo Courtesy: ©Getty Images/Brandon Bell/Anna Moneymaker/Staff
Published Date: August 7, 2024
The views expressed in this commentary do not necessarily reflect those of CrosswalkHeadlines.
Shane Idleman is the founder and lead pastor of Westside Christian Fellowship in Southern California and the WCF Radio Network. More can be found at ShaneIdleman.com. Free downloads of his eBooks can be found at www.WCFAV.org. Visit him on Facebook and Twitter. Subscribe to his new podcast, Idleman Unplugged. You can also follow Pastor Shane on the free speech platform Parler.
