Who is our "king"?
"Now it was the day of Preparation for the Passover; and it was about noon. He said to the Jews, 'Here is your king!' They cried out, 'Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him!' Pilate asked them, 'Shall I crucify your king?' The chief priests answered, 'We have no king but the emperor." Then he handed him over to them to be crucified."
(John 19:14-16)
A long-standing problem in American Christianity is the whole "separation of church and state" issue. But not for what you're probably thinking. Not because of persecution and government infringement (which is part of the whole reason our forefathers (and mothers!) made sure that was in our US Constitution). Our problem has been mixing up our true allegiances. God should be our "one and only," but too often we Christians give our hearts to "the state."
Granted, you're not supposed to talk about religion or politics in "polite company," and this blog has both. But we're so passionate about our political views we often live and die with our political leaders. And I'm not necessarily talking about the current administration. Pick any US President and people are passionate about why he's the best (or worst) ever!
Our allegiance should be to God and God alone. Support our leaders, yes. Protest when they were from justice and righteousness, of course. But God alone should be our priority. But, alas, we fail here. Yet we're not alone.
Back in the day, when Jesus was facing crucifixion, the religious leaders of Judaism were so angered by Jesus' actions and teachings that they were bound and determined to have him killed. At the holiest of festivals (Passover), the Roman local leader (Pontius Pilate) offered to release Jesus out of grace. The leaders refused. Pilate had Jesus beaten and humiliated and sarcastically called him their "king." "We have no king by the emperor!" they cried. SERIOUSLY?!?! God is your King! But due to political passions, they quickly gave their support to "the state." Wow.
The more things change, the more they stay the same. Lord have mercy.