What does the Presidential Election, Mike Huckabee, and 1 Samuel have in common? Answer, a very similar scenario.
Just in case you are not acquainted with the book of 1 Samuel in the Old Testament, Samuel is a prophet of God to the nation of Israel. God has just told Samuel in 1 Samuel chapter 16 verse 1 that Samuel has mourned over Saul the former King of Israel long enough and its time for Samuel to arise, fill his flask with oil and go anoint one of Jesse’s sons whom God has appointed to be the next King of Israel. King Saul had disobeyed God’s word and instructions to him through Samuel regarding the destruction of the Amalekite nation, therefore God told Samuel that He would reject him as King of Israel. Now when Samuel went to Jesse’s house to anoint the next king of Israel, the scripture says that he took one look at Eliab and thought “Surely this is the Lord’s anointed!” But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height for I have rejected him.” then the Lord said to him that “People judge by outward appearance but the Lord looks at a person’s thoughts and intentions.” After seven sons had passed before Samuel and Samuel had told Jesse that the Lord had not chosen any one of them, Samuel asked “Are these all the sons you have?” Jesse replied “There is still the youngest, but he is out in the fields watching the sheep.” Samuel asked to send for him at once which they did and as soon as David appeared before Samuel, the Lord said, “This is the one, anoint him.”
As I consider this story from the Old Testament, I see a striking parallels of this story to the way people are choosing which candidates to support in the Presidential primary election on both sides, Republican and Democrat. On the Republican side, party elites, nearly all of the conservative pundits and even some Christian evangelicals emulated Samuel’s first impression with Eliab in their choice of Mitt Romney as their candidate to anoint. They took one look at Romney’s appearance, financial net worth, pedigree and his great sales job on his positions and thought “surely this is my anointed” because even some evangelicals didn’t think about the spiritual implications of putting a Mormon in the White House. It was Romney this and Romney that. The flask of anointing oil was poured for Romney all over the alternative media. Romney accepted and by the time Clear Channel Communications was acquired by his Bain Capital firm, everyone was slipping and sliding on anointing oil for this guy! I had never seen anything like it in alternative media before but alas the flask of anointing oil ran out of ability to convince enough of the conservative rank and file in the party to fall in line so that Romney could prove he was the conservative candidate. Some candidates like McCain, and Giuliani were anointed by lesser crowds in the beginning, but the true conservative that should have been obvious to anoint by the party wasn’t, I personally believe because he was like David, out watching the sheep, garnering his grass roots support base which didn’t appear initially to amount to anything. You know, typically sheep herding was down there with the poorer class which sort of fits the description of Huckabee and bucolically speaking why would have anyone expected Samuel to anoint a shepherd to be the next king of Israel? I think you get the picture, poor class, Arkansas, against the tall, good looking, affluent, business tycoon!
You see, first of all the split that happened when some Christian evangelicals who backed Romney and Giuliani backed out of the race and endorsed McCain is what brought about McCain’s campaign resurrection because it was clear that 2/3 of the party didn’t want to anoint him. But now we have the party establishment slowly moving behind him as the “inevitable” candidate because nobody ever asks committed Christian evangelicals. And besides, where is God in all of this? Enough of our forefathers evidently thought God’s intervention in the affairs of men were important to them that you find references to it throughout their writings and especially in the Declaration of Independence. But since we are so busy as a nation and culture pushing God out of our lives, except of course when disaster strikes, very few ask about where He is in all of this.
Well, He’s where He has always been as is “the same yesterday, today, and forever.” He does have plans for America, especially as the prophetic end times draw closer to the complete unification of Europe and the world under one man called the Anti-Christ, who is alive in the world today. In view of biblical prophecy, I believe that God is extremely interested in who becomes the 44th President of the United States and has already anointed someone, the “shepherd” from Arkansas! And why not? Everything fits the biblical pattern here. This is a person who has been a spiritual shepherd for about 10 years and has forged his communication skills and the ability to interface with just about every kind of personality, but that wasn’t the end of it. He took a struggling church pastorate and turned that church into the first successfully large integrated church in a rural, Southern community that never before accepted such a thing. That is some achievement in the church world! Being one of the very few Republicans in a Democrat-controlled state to be elected Lt Governor is an enormous achievement, in political terms not unlike the accounts of David slaying the lion and the bear, when one considers the strength of the Clinton political machine in Arkansas. Then this man becomes the first Republican governor in a long time due to the present Governor being indicted in the Whitewater scandal, remember that? His accomplishments while in office are amazing considering a Democrat-controlled legislature and the fact that he was reelected twice! Taking a state with bad infrastructure and 250 million dollars in debt to an 850 million dollar surplus by the time he leaves office IS SOMETHING TO BOAST ABOUT! Who really has the big executive accomplishments and experience here? Not only that but he pushes through pro-life legislation, particularly the Arkansas Unborn Child Amendment in a Democratically controlled legislature. Can McCain say that? Could Romney say that? Romney no sooner became Governor of Massachusetts and started making plans to run for the Presidency which has people in his state pretty upset!
If you click the Huckabee FAQ page tab at the top of my blog you will find a list which lists a combination of this man’s accomplishments as well as policy positions. Jesus said that you shall know a good tree by its fruit; that a good tree cannot bear bad fruit and vice versa. This is not only the fruit of a man’s accomplishments but the reflection of a man’s thoughts, character and integrity, that translates into policy and deeds. These are the heart issues that God expresses in scripture that are a priority with Him over and above image, marketing, pedigree, and wealth.
You say what about Obama, he’s a Christian believer. Well lets talk about that for a minute. I believe that God has anointed that man for a different purpose which is already becoming manifest. God might be using him to politically dismantle the Clinton machine for good and its apparent that it is happening before our eyes! We will see what happens with the super delegates battle.
But as for Huckabee, he still has some huge battles to fight. He still has a Goliath to slay politically in John McCain’s campaign resurgence, the goal of which is to deprive McCain of his needed delegates in order to force the nomination decision to be made on the convention floor. That is huge! But not so huge if God is in it!
I believe that it is time for every Christian, particularly those who are in primary states that haven’t voted yet, to consider what God is doing and who He has anointed and not what man has anointed from mere appearance. Christian evangelicals need to come home to Mike Huckabee and support what God is doing in this man’s campaign. If you follow the facts of where this man’s campaign started at 0% with virtually no endorsements and financial contributions, you have to stand back in amazement and say that God is in this man’s campaign and although many can’t see where it is leading, those with faith and spiritual discernment can.
