Ramifications of the New Pope

All our arguing, bickering, and fighting means nothing in the light of eternity.

So there is a new Pope, and he’s from the United States. I’m not sure that his origins are super important, but he’s American. And apparently the first one. I saw one person remark that in the vast span of time that there have been popes (about 2,000 years), this is the first American Pope. Wow. Considering that America has only existed for 250 of those years, it’s not quite as special as we might want to think. Whatever!

I know almost nothing about the pope or Catholicism. In fact, I needed spell-check for that. I do know a few simple facts:

• God is still God, no matter who the pope is.

• I worship Him through the price paid by His Son, Jesus.

• I know the Bible says to call no man father. I also know it’s referencing the position that our Heavenly Father holds.

• I don’t know this pope’s position on the many issues facing the world today—and whatever they are, he has no bearing on my salvation.

• I know that you cannot replace the work that Jesus did with a person. Even if that person is as devout and holy as Mary was.

• I know many Catholics will be in Heaven. And I know many Protestants will not.

Because the bottom line is that Jesus died for all people. And God has said He desires that no one be lost. Even though I know nothing about the Catholic religion, I hope the new pope is devout, committed to the goodness of what Jesus has done, and believes and decrees the godly things we learn from the Word of God.

Will the world change now?

Simple answer? No. It won’t get better. It won’t get worse. You see, the biggest flaw with having a pope is that we begin to put a lot of store into one man.

I saw a post yesterday from a well-known (now deceased) person’s social media. I don’t know anything about the people who run it, as the name they use belongs to a man dead long before the internet. But they made the statement that the new pope was as horrible and ungodly as the last. Then, of course, the comments condemned the statement—mostly from devout Catholic individuals.

One comment stood out to me. It was an image of a bunch of “Protestant” Christian preachers who had done awful things while serving as such. It’s so easy to respond to people with another “Yeah, but…” I don’t say that because it’s wrong to point out Christians who fell. I say it because they’re not wrong.

You see, it doesn’t matter who the pope is. It doesn’t matter who the local pastor is. It doesn’t matter what the latest preacher did to fail the people or God. The only thing that really matters is if we know God.

All of our arguing, bickering, and fighting means nothing in the light of eternity. And that should be every Christian and Catholic’s greatest intent. The Gospel—the Good News—is far more important than the latest leader of some religion. Far more important than the latest church leader’s moral failure. Far above all the good or bad news the world has to post and plant in our minds.

I’ve often thought about becoming a reporter of the news. Not on TV or radio, but just writing about it in a blog or news company website. Even thought about starting a site with that in mind. But it’s not like there aren’t hundreds… thousands already doing that. My love is to study and know God better. And while I do read a number of news blogs and commentaries, the knowledge of God and the Gospel, again, far outweighs all of it.

So don’t let the new pope or any leadership change cause you worry. The world all equally needs Jesus. It’s bigger than any one person. But it’s also all about every single person.

Keep your focus on the Son…