The political parties decided that the church must be
involved in the selection of the next commissioners of the
IEBC. Both Cord and Jubilee argued that given the un-ethical
nature of the current commission, the only way to
“guarantee” ethical behavior in the
next commission is to have the church play a part in
selecting the next bunch. The churches have selected their
panel and are waiting for the chaotic political parties to
select their panel.
Though this move demonstrates good vibes towards the
clergy in the midst of the Kayaris and Ngangas, one must
look at the long – term consequence of this ‘hunter’s’
trap. It is to this end that we must ask ourselves the
question. Does the church have a role
in the political sphere? In the early Roman period, the
emperor was under the umbrella of the papacy. The pope
ordained the emperor. The result of this was equal to the
relationship, which existed in the Old Testament where there
were political prophets. These
were distinguished from the Prophets of the Lord.
In Romans 13, Paul argued that God ordains the government of
men. Not that God appoints dictators and tyrants, rather,
that he is the arbiter at the judgment seat. All authority
functions at His disposal for the purposes of service to
creation, which belongs
to Him. In other words, all actions under the earth by any
and all authorities are subject to Divine judgment. Kings
and presidents will stand before Him and give an account of
all life under their umbrella.
The church on the other hand stands absolute within the
divine mandate of Going into the entire world and making men
disciples of God’s son Jesus Christ. This mandate stands
separate and distinct from that of Kings and Presidents. The
church focuses on the
entry into the Kingdom of God. The government focus on life
in the Kingdom of men, and the Kingdom of the earth. While
it is important for the church to teach the Disciples of
Christ principles of applying faith in their daily life, it
is not their mandate
to select those who hold authority within the Kingdom of
man!
In selecting pastors, evangelists, deacons, elders,
prophets, teachers and workers within the Kingdom of God,
the clergy selects from those who belong to Christ through
the new birth: These belong to the flock of God and are
guided by the Spirit of God who
indwells the believer. Therefore, those appointed to work
within the congregation of Christ can almost guarantee
reliability, consistency, and historical adherence to the
call of Christ. And when appointed to these positions, they
serve Christ through serving
His people. Therefore, they answer to Christ.
The IEBC is founded on a constitution of men. This manual is
not based on a spiritual foundation or working to fulfill a
spiritual objective. Those who the constitution serves
include fallen men who live in sin and in a fallen world of
sin.
Though the believer is also a citizen, the core of the
manual is non-spiritual. It also caters for those who live
in the Kingdom of darkness whose father is Lucifer! The
panel will not just qualify the commissioners on the
foundation of biblical ethic, but
on the natural ethic. That means there will not be a
harmony of ethical standard for those who are selected.
One cannot use the litmus test of ‘born again’ to
qualify an IEBC commissioner. Therefore, those who will be
selected with the help of the church will be men for the
Kingdom of man, the kingdom of darkness, and the kingdom of
the earth. And even though among
these might be a believer, the panel will not go out to
serve the purpose within a spiritual mandate. Therefore,
when the commission supervises the next elections and there
is doubt in the results, the church will have put itself on
a tree to be hanged for
playing a part in an un-ethical and problematic
election!
The church should stand aside and let those who live for the
world and its mandate conduct their affairs. It should play
its part in prayer and supplication on behalf of the State
and the Citizenry. This is the call of the church on
earth!
Teddy Njoroge Kamau (PhD)
HTBluff Associates, an EMG Consortium.
CEO- BBN Television (Kenya)
Diaspora Messenger Senior Writer
