UK Political Leader Resigns Due to Personal Faith

Tim Farron, a British politician who was the Leader of the Liberal Democrats, has stepped down from his role because of the struggle he was experiencing between politics and his personal faith.

Here are some recent quotes from Farron:

“The consequences of the focus on my faith is that I have found myself torn between living as a faithful Christian and serving as a political leader.”

 

“To be a political leader – especially of a progressive, liberal party in 2017 – and to live as a committed Christian, to hold faithfully to the Bible’s teaching, has felt impossible for me.”

So, why is this piece of news important? It’s important because it reminds us of the power of faith.

The Power of Faith

When you can feel your faith grinding against things of this world (in Farron’s case, politics), you can be assured that your faith has substance. Now, just because you feel tension between your faith and the world doesn’t mean your faith is correct, but it’s at least making an affect on your mind and heart. Farron could have been like a thousand other politicians who have said “I have faith in Christ,” yet have spoken and acted completely out of joint from that statement. But he didn’t.

The point is this: Farron’s faith had changed his heart and mind so much that he was unable to function properly in his political role – leading to his resignation.

Real, genuine faith will change you.

Why does faith change you? An excellent definition of faith comes from Hebrews 11:1 where it says, “faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” If your faith is in Christ, then the “things hoped for” and the “things not seen” include the promises of God, of which some have been fulfilled and some haven’t. So, faith is the assurance and conviction of those promises.

For Farron, if his evangelical Christianity was at all genuine, that would mean he would have an assurance of Christ’s return, a conviction of the supernatural realm, and a belief that God will judge everyone (just to name a few). I don’t know about you, but having that kind of faith while in politics would be quite difficult. I can understand the fact that he was “torn.”

What Now?

The questions we need to ask ourselves are, Am I experiencing tension? Is my faith in Christ grinding against any of my worldly practices/beliefs? Do I ever feel torn between my faith and [fill in the blank]?

That tension is evidence of a faith that’s real. A faith that changes you. A faith that makes its way into every corner of your mind and heart, affecting all you do.

Ask yourself those questions, and see where change needs to take place.