The lenses, filters and presets through which we see the world

“My dad is amazing! I love you and I’m proud of you!” – Sarah Huckabee Sanders

Last week the Governor of Arkansas took to her X (formerly Twitter) account to inform her father, Mike Huckabee, (and her 2.3 million followers) of her pride and affection for him. My own daughters (bless their hearts) have taken to social media in the past on Fathers’ Day to share their own accolades. But don’t confuse the Governor’s tweet with your typical Fathers’ Day message from daughter to dad, as it appeared on June 17, two days after that paternal holiday. Indeed, it had nothing to do with Fathers’ Day, and everything to do with a consequential text message that her dad had recently sent off to President Trump.

Later that same day we heard from Franklin Graham, a leader in the evangelical movement and strong MAGA supporter of President Trump. In fact, it was Rev. Graham who had been chosen to deliver the invocation at Trump’s January 20 inauguration ceremony. As part of that invocation he chose this scripture from the book of Daniel: “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, for wisdom and might are His. And He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding” – Daniel 2:20-21. Remember this scripture as we move on now to share Ambassador Huckabee’s text to the President:

Mr President, God spared you in Butler, PA to be the most consequential President in a century—maybe ever. The decisions on your shoulders I would not want to be made by anyone else. You have many voices speaking to you Sir, but there is only ONE voice that matters. HIS voice. I am your appointed servant in this land and am available for you but I do not try to get in your presence often because I trust your instincts.

No President in my lifetime has been in a position like yours. Not since Truman in 1945. [Note: He is referring to the decision to drop nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.] I don’t reach out to persuade you. Only to encourage you. I believe you will hear from heaven and that voice is far more important than mine or ANYONE else’s. You sent me to Israel to be your eyes, ears and voice and to make sure our flag flies above our embassy. My job is to be the last one to leave.

I will not abandon this post. Our flag will NOT come down! You did not seek this moment. This moment sought YOU! It is my honor to serve you!

If this reads to your eyes anything like an Old Testament prophet of God addressing a divinely appointed (anointed) King of Israel, then you are beginning to see the world as a growing segment of Americans who identify as followers/disciples of Christ see it through the lens, filter or mind preset of Christian Nationalism and/or Christian dispensationalism. As an avid photographer, I know how the use of different lenses, filters and post processing presets can influence a person’s view/understanding of the scene before them.

Both Mike Huckabee’s daughter and my daughters love their fathers for the Christian men they see them to be. But what they see is to a great extent perceived through the same lenses, filters and presets that their fathers peer through as they interpret the world around them. One of the great problems we face as a nation right now is the reality that our camera bag and editing software contains so many different lenses, filters and applications to apply to the world around us. The camera body that we all use may have the same CHRISTIAN brand stamped on it, but the different lenses, filters and presets that we choose (wittingly or unwittingly) to use will produce a vastly different image of the world that we believe to be real.

We are living in a critical time in American and world history where our different pictures/understandings of what it means to be authentic/faithful Christians, patriotic Americans and responsible world citizens are creating a less stable planet and more dangerous world both at home and abroad. The recent post by the President which, contrary to his campaign promises that he would end wars and bring about world peace during a second term, announcing the bombing of targets in Iran by American forces is the most recent example of which I speak. 

This from the man whose “instincts” are unquestionably trusted by his evangelical Ambassador to Israel so long as he listens to the voice of God alone. This from the man who is believed by Rev. Graham and a whole lot of others to have been raised up by God to be the modern epitome of an Old Testament King ruling over God’s chosen people and carrying out God’s will on earth, as it is in heaven. This is the picture that we in America get and that nations around the world see when avowed Christians choose to view the world through lenses, filters and applications that distort and color both Christian doctrine and democratic principles.

A June 22 Footnotes article by Professor Jemar Tisby sheds light on the lens and filter used by adherents of Christian Dispensationalism to see and interpret the world around them. In the following paragraphs I’ll offer a snippet of what he reveals, and hope it draws you to go online to read the entire post. It is crucial that as Christians seeking to live out an authentic faith, or as anyone seeking to promote democracy to further the common good, we understand the range of beliefs that shape the decisions and actions of those who view and shape the world through contrary lenses, filters and apps.

Dispensationalism and the End Times

The recent bombing ordered by Trump—justified as preemptive defense against Iran’s nuclear ambitions—can be traced back to evangelical dispensationalist theology, which holds that Israel’s geopolitical security and dominance are essential precursors to the second coming of Christ. Trump’s action underscores how these theological beliefs are not abstract; they have direct, dangerous, and deadly consequences…

Dispensationalism divides history into distinct “dispensations” or periods through which God interacts with humanity differently… These beliefs have also found purchase in charismatic and Pentecostal circles.

Dispensationalism and U.S.-Israel Foreign Policy

Dispensationalists view the modern state of Israel, established in 1948, as fulfilling biblical prophecy and marking the beginning of the “end times.” Thus, Israel’s geopolitical success and security are seen as necessary preconditions for Christ’s return…

This leads to an uncritical endorsement of Israel’s government, even when the actions it takes result in significant humanitarian crises, such as the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza or aggressive military actions like recent strikes on Iran… Many evangelicals view the Israel of the Old Testament and the modern political state of Israel as synonymous.

They are not.

Conflating the biblical Israel—a historical religious community with whom God made specific covenants—with the modern state of Israel is a profound theological error.

[To read the entire article, click HERE.]

Our choice of theological/scriptural/ideological lenses, filters and apps used with our CHRISTIAN camera body will determine how we interpret scripture and the working of the Spirit, and thus see and shape the world around us for better or for worse.

“When dispensational theology directly informs foreign policy without critical reflection or moral accountability, it creates not only geopolitical dangers but theological distortions. Such an approach neither glorifies God nor serves humanity. It diminishes the ethical witness of the church and endangers global peace.” – Jemar Tisby