Nick Poole

We live at a time where there seems to be battles happening around the world and within our nation for power. There are arguments, debates and even wars being fought over the power to occupy a territory, influence a population or have control over decisions. This battle is not a new battle, but similar battles have been fought by human beings since the inception of the world.

The challenge with the fight for power is how followers of Jesus engage in this practice that seems to be everywhere. And over the course of the last 2,000 years history shows us that Christians or the Church have gone through differing cycles in its relationship with power, influence and control.

This draw to power, influence or control has often plagued the church throughout its history, but it’s a natural human temptation. We human beings love to have control and when we lose it we fight to gain it back. It only makes sense that Christians and the broader Faith Community of the Church would respond in a similar way. Here’s the problem. The way of Jesus, the life Jesus modeled and the teachings he shared run in complete contradiction to that approach to engaging the world around us.

Rather than vying for political influence, rather than trying to control the narrative about him or doing his best to gain societal power, Jesus would say crazy things like: “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:13). Rather than fight for power, instead of jockeying for a better reputation Jesus seemed to constantly make decisions and act in ways that did the opposite. He hung out with the wrong crowds. He never catered to one group over another. He refused to pander to any segment of society for the sake of his message.

How far we have come in 2,000 years. As I write this in 2024 we see Christians sacrificing their moral compass, laying down biblical truths and even adopting behaviors that are as opposite from Jesus as you could get, all with the hope of gaining or regaining power, influence and control.

But this Jesus we say we follow calls us to something greater than power or control. He calls us to sacrifice. It sounds like such a dirty word in today’s society, but it’s such a life-giving word. Sacrifice.

Sacrifice isn’t about compromise. It’s not about watering anything down or relinquishing victory. It’s about recognizing this is not our home. We are citizens of a Kingdom that has no physical boundaries. We follow a master that isn’t elected and has no term limits. This Jesus who we claim is our Savior, he never promised us prestige, notoriety or power. In fact, after a long dissertation on all the pain and difficulty his disciples were going to face, he makes this blunt statement in John 16:33: “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

In other words, following Jesus isn’t about getting everything you want or having all the power, influence and control you could ever dream of. It’s about laying all that down and finding your peace not in an outcome or in the approval of others, but a peace that only Jesus can provide. And only he can provide it because we recognize that the powers in our world will all fade, but God is still ultimately in control.

So if you are tempted to engage in the fight, the battle and the temptation to achieve power, remember that the Kingdom we are part of has a different currency. Sacrifice is the currency of the Kingdom where we reside. Don’t give into the temptation. Our goal has never been to win or gain anything but simply more of Jesus in our lives and our world. Sacrifice > Power