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If the blind aren’t leading the blind, why do they keep ending up in the same place?

After that, Pharisees and religion scholars came to Jesus all the way from Jerusalem, criticizing, “Why do your disciples play fast and loose with the rules?” But Jesus put it right back on them. “Why do you use your rules to play fast and loose with God’s commands? …. You cancel God’s command by your rules. Frauds! Isaiah’s prophecy of you hit the bull’s-eye:

These people make a big show of saying the right thing, but their heart isn’t in it.
They act like they’re worshiping me, but they don’t mean it.
They just use me as a cover for teaching whatever suits their fancy.”

He then called the crowd together and said, “Listen, and take this to heart. It’s not what you swallow that pollutes your life, but what you vomit up.” Later his disciples came and told him, “Did you know how upset the Pharisees were when they heard what you said?” Jesus shrugged it off. “Every tree that wasn’t planted by my Father in heaven will be pulled up by its roots. Forget them. They are blind men leading blind men. When a blind man leads a blind man, they both end up in the ditch.” Matthew 15:1-3, 7-14 (MSG)

Whether you watch Fox, ABC, CBS, NBC or other cable news, it doesn’t take long to figure out the blind are leading the blind in the world of politics. How else can they keep going in circles ending up in the same place?

This is not to say that all in politics are blinded by the light of the capital and the White House once they settle in the land of Oz. But what we do see in DC is those who do have sight soon begin following the blind. And all too often they end up in the same roadside ditch.

Why do we see so little done, but hear so much rhetoric about reforming taxes, helping the helpless, and reducing our debt? Because their hearts aren’t really in it. They play fast and loose with words and ignore the basic commands. How difficult is the concept of a balanced budget? The reality is once everyone begins protecting one’s own turf, a balanced budget becomes inconceivable. Those who’ve long ago lost their vision lead the once bright-eyed into the hazy, smoke-filled tent where the party devises its cover for what suits its fancy.

What Jesus is saying in this passage is familiar to us today. We see people making rules to govern behavior, but the real issue is what is inside a man or woman. Politicians focused on appearances and making things look and sound good for their own purposes are no different from the Pharisees. Jesus says it’s what’s on the inside that determines who you are and your value to the kingdom. That’s why 50% of evangelicals say that a candidate’s faith is an important factor in voting, compared to 14% among the general voting population (Barna Poll, March 2012). We all know that I can say whatever I want, but my internal motives determine my actions. Politicians are just like you and me. So, don’t look at what they say as much as look at what they do.

Our task is to discern the heart of the candidate. When candidates promote caring for the poor and needy, the easiest way to see their hearts is to see what they do. Every presidential candidate must report income and the percentage given to charity. Look at the track record to see if it consistently matches rhetoric. If I am a giving person, my tax returns will consistently year-after-year show sacrificial giving. With grace, that % is growing as I learn to live with more margin to give and help others rather than myself. That’s the same for you. It’s the same for everyone, including candidates. In this country   there are no poor presidential candidates, so each has relatively long periods of above average earnings before ever running for this office.

None of us wants the country to end up in a roadside ditch. Whether politically leaning left or right, we all want our country to prosper so that we are in a position to help ourselves and others. The two-fold paradox is this:

  1. We help ourselves by helping others.
  2. The way we help others is to enable them to help themselves.

If we want to avoid the same political ditch each election cycle, we must make the effort to discern the hearts of the candidates who understand this paradox. Without the second half of this paradox, those “helped” are not able to in turn help others. They are still dependent on the “helpers.”

If we want to keep dragging ourselves around in the same circular ditch, we’ll keep following the blind. If we want to help Americans help themselves so they can help others, we’ll vote for candidates whose hearts are really in it. And we won’t get this just from their speeches, we’ll see it by what they do. Like any other predictive model, the best indication of future behavior is past behavior. Those who focus on rules and controls to govern people will continue in the same way. Those who focus on the heart and inner drive of Americans to succeed will indeed help themselves and help others.