They also recognized them as men who had been with Jesus. Acts 4:13

            The airwaves are filled with political ads and vitriol, while yard signs touting various candidates litter the local countryside.  Pundits are trying to predict the impact of the economy, healthcare reform, tea party candidates, and the like upon the impending elections.  I've been pestered, typically around the dinner hour, with political surveys trying to assess the status of each candidate's chances.  It's campaign season.

            As always, religion makes its way into the debate.  The influence of various Christian groups with the issues they espouse and the candidates they support gets a good deal of media play.  There is regular, caustic discussion about the appropriate role of religion, especially conservative, Christian religion, in the political and public realm.  It's a matter that those of us who identify ourselves as evangelical Christians must carefully consider.

            George Barna's most recent research on the attitude of young Americans toward the church and Christians in general has identified specific reasons for their rapidly increasing negativity.  One of those reasons is that young people see the church as too political.  Especially those at the evangelical end of the Christian spectrum are known more for their alignment with a certain political ideology than their biblical theology.  This perception has become a serious barrier for many youth in potentially considering the viability of the Christian faith.

            There is clearly a growing generation gap that needs to be bridged by those of us who embrace the faith of Jesus and the Church he established.  But political influence and activism is widening the chasm.  We may win a few elections and give a false sense of gaining spiritual ground, but in reality we may be losing the war and a generation with it.

            The need of the day is for followers of Jesus to be known by their likeness to him.  The early disciples, operating in an explosive religious-political environment, were known for their identification with the Savior.  They made people uncomfortable, but it was not because of their political agenda.  It was their unwavering commitment to Christ and the bold declaration of his resurrection hope that made them toxic to some.  What marked them more than anything else was the undeniable evidence of their association with Jesus.

            The same needs to be said of present-day Christ-followers.  May our lives so obviously reflect the character of Jesus that others know us, above all else, by our association with him-not some political stance or alignment.

            An entire generation desperately needs us to cast our vote for the Jesus agenda.