“The
tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit”. Proverbs 18: 21
“The
tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts
the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set
on fire by hell,” James 3: 6.
The
political atmosphere in our country has been heated up lately and most people
have had to voice their opinions either for or against certain political party
or candidate. This opinion sharing space is generating all manner of discourse
sometimes with improper expressions. This article is to raise alarm over the
rate at which unwholesome words are being used on the person of the two major
presidential candidates.
The
most prominent candidates are the presidential candidates of the two largest
parties; one is the incumbent, while the other is the main opposition.
The
opposition is from northern Nigeria, the incumbent is from southern Nigeria.
The incumbent is of Christianity while the opposition is of the Islamic
religion. What more the candidate of the opposition is considered to be old in
age at 72 years; while the incumbent is considered relatively younger at 57
years.
Added
to these, the administration of the incumbent is considered to have performed
below average especially in fight against corruption and security; while the
opposition candidate, who was once a military head of state over 30 years ago
is considered to, by antecedent be more forceful in fighting corruption and
would be a better option in security, having been a top military personnel and
successfully fought external aggression by a group while in government.
On
these bases and more some arguments have raged between the supporters of both
candidates and parties online and offline, with young people doing their best
to contribute especially online. I find it surprising that certain expressions
are being used to describe these candidates without recourse to their age, and
their positions.
While
we cannot control how politicians choose to attack one another at such time as
this, we have the responsibility to decide joining in the same train or
refraining from doing so. I will consider this in two respects.
My
first concern is for my brothers and sisters in Christ. We define ourselves as
having been made righteous by God’s mercy; we agree with Apostle Peter when he
said: “Once you were not a people, but now
you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have
received mercy” 1 Peter 2: 10 (NIV).
I believe that as people who received God’s mercy, we should be willing to show
mercy to others. Think of it, if God had chosen to condemn us for not keeping
to his ways, would we even be here to discuss how someone else has failed?
Don’t
get me wrong, we can always condemn the wrong things people have done; just as
God condemns sin, yet I don’t think we have the right to condemn people, since
even God did not condemn us.
Another
reason Christian brethren should mind what they say is that by virtue of our
place in Christ, we either build people or destroy them by what we say. No
wonder we are advised in the scripture to ensure that our words are seasoned
with salt; and that they edify those who hear them. So you discover that as a
Christian, if I have someone who is academically weak around me and I choose to
always call the person dumb, the person won’t improve, the person will continue
to perform poorly. Our tongues have the power to bless and curse. If we want
someone to get better we should simply point out the issues and encourage the
person assuring the person that we realize that they have the capacity to do
better.
One
more reason that should concern us is that as Jesus said: “Do
not judge, or you too will be judged. For in
the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you
use, it will be measured to you” Matt. 7:1, 2. Elsewhere
He said: “But
I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the Day of Judgment for
every empty word they have spoken” Matthew 12:36 (NIV). Some
of us are in leadership positions while others will soon be. Imagine being
referred to in some of the adjectives by which these men have been described
recently as a reward for using such words. Then imagine being called to explain
some things about that on the last day during the accountability session.
Finally for my Christian
brethren, Apostle Paul said: “Let everyone be subject to the
governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has
established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.
Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what
God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.
Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of
possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience” Romans 13: 1, 2 & 5
(NIV).We are called to submit to authorities with the
understanding that they are ordained by God. We are called to pray for them. The
incumbent president is still our president till his tenure ends. We have God’s
command to be subject to him. I believe that includes not attacking his person.
Who knows, maybe they would do better if we stick to our roles.
For those who may not
agree with these biblical assertions, I believe that as Africans, we respect
elders. We do not address elders anyhow. To all of us younger generation, both
candidates are elders. We owe them some respect.
I believe that the
greatest impact we would make in this election is to listen to both sides, know
their plans, then rely on the direction of the Holy Spirit (as those led by
Him) on who to vote, then cast our votes in that light. We check their
programmes to understand what they are promising, and then we rely on the Holy
Spirit (who knows them and tomorrow better than we do) to cast our votes right.
We can argue for or
against the emergence of any party or candidate, yet if we do not go out and
vote for them, we would not have done our part right. Be mindful also that
after the elections, we still have our lives to live.
Talks
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