As iron sharpens iron,
one person sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)
“What happens when they get there is difficult to predict, but it could be ugly. The country’s immigration dilemma will almost surely rise to new levels of political passion and rancor.” - American Conservative
“ ‘This is a good first step. Now let’s fix this system,’ said Moore, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC). ‘We can have security while still showing compassion to those fleeing violence.’” BPress
“Last week, Attorney General Jeff Sessions sought to defend the Trump administration’s immigration policies, especially with regard to separating families.
“Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission President Russell Moore is among a coalition of evangelicals urging government leaders not to deport individuals brought to the United States illegally when they were children.” BPress
From DBTS blog. Used with permission.
Donald Trump’s stay on admitting certain immigrants has brought out a raft of evangelical critics, especially those who see everything as an immediate gospel issue. Arguing from the facts that (1) God says nice things about foreigners in the Bible (e.g., Lev 19:33–34) and that (2) we have to be nice to foreigners or we’ll never have an audience with them to share the gospel, these express astonishment that a Christian could ever support an immigration ban of any sort. How, we might ask, can the gospel be forwarded if we anger or injure those to whom we are sent with the gospel?
It’s a redirection of the selfsame arguments that pacifists have been using for centuries to oppose war—and just as misguided. The following are a few thoughts in response:
Discussion