Us and Them: Honour, Tribal Identity and the USA Election of Donald Trump

It seems that since the USA Presidential election the world is in a state of fear and turmoil.  

What is feared?

The following appeared in the Aussie news recently…..

After Donald Trump's recent victory in the United States' election, and Brexit in the United Kingdom, attention is now turning to the possibility of other unexpected results just over the horizon.

In Europe, Marine Le Pen's far-right National Front is riding high in the polls and could surprise everyone in the presidential election being held next April in France.

During a visit to Greece last Tuesday, US President Barack Obama had a warning for the world.

"We are going to have to guard against a rise in a crude sort of nationalism or ethnic identity or tribalism that is built around an 'us' and a 'them'," Mr Obama said.

from Australian ABC News website

Some people are worried that 'globalisation' is threatened, and that anything that threatens globalisation is to be opposed - in the belief that globalisation and elimination of tribalisation is the answer to the world's problems and the only possibility of peace.

From the time of the fall we have been tempted to seek our honour and identity through earthly human relationships.  Though we know we are individuals, we seek collective relationships. Globalisation has included a push for people to see themselves in terms of their wider global relationships and identity rather than their small group identity.  

In our sinful world of individuals apart from God, we are busy trying to find our own dignity, our own honour and worth, within the context of our human existence.  We may say we are 'individualists' but we really do also seek an 'identity' that goes beyond ourselves.

Here in Africa, tribal identity is crucial.  One's personal identity is never separate from one's tribal identity.  Life is not about only the individual, but the relationships of the group. And it's this that creates a problem when a person becomes a Christian.  There is reticence to leave that which forms and provides one's tribal identity.  One's vision is focused on the horizontal of life - those others in front of our eyes and what they want.  Earthly identity through earthly acceptance, approval and significance means everything.

But is the West any different?

The West may look at Africa and say it needs to let go of its tribalism and people should stand as individuals.  But as much as the West has tried to push individualism on the one hand, it has been promoting globalism on the other.  It has still had an underlying desire to be part of something greater. Apart from political globalisation, technology and social media have increased our connections with the wider world and reduced social interaction with the people closest to us. But the West's efforts at 'equality' and an 'open market' and 'global' identity are not really sustainable, because the 'one-ness' we seek, can never be attained on an earthly level by earthly means and earthly wisdom.

The world seeks what only God can give - barrier free community.  

Only God can give barrier free community, because it was God who created barriers to community in the first place - with the confusion of languages at the Tower of Babel. They came about as a result of sin and can only be removed through repentance and a new identity in Christ.

Some world leaders seem fearful that their efforts at globalisation may crumble. But any failure of what the world thought was 'working' is just a reminder that the 'success' of any identity beyond our family/ethnic identity can only be gained in Christ.  

The answer to the Tower of Babel, is the Baby who laid in the Manger and hung on a Tree.

It's in Christ that we are 'one' with no barrier between ethnicity, employment status, or sex. 'Racism', 'sexism' and 'class-ism' is abolished as we are 'born again' into a new family on God's terms rather than human terms. 

Such unity can only be achieved as we all come under one higher authority - God our Creator and our Saviour.  

The end of the world when the BEAST is revealed will be the ultimate attempt at a pseudo-authority in order to achieve that unity we all crave.   

The world wants each 'ethnicity' to see itself equal to every other ethnicity, but it wants it via seeking a one-ness without the One who instigated ethnicity and its divisiveness in the first place at Babel, and offered the elimination of ethnicity through unity in Christ, at Pentecost.  

One day the world will realise that each 'ethnicity' (and/or nation) wants to see itself as important, and thus earthly identity will always be tribal. Each will ultimately want to protect its own interests. We are made to cling desperately to our identity.  When we have no identity in Christ to cling to, we will cling to our earthly identity - the one that comes from a sense of nationalism, tribalism and ethnicity.  

That same day, the world will realise that the 'only' way to unity is to all come under the same authority of one person.  The ultimate in blasphemy will be when the Anti-Christ is raised up.  He is the Anti-Christ, not just because he will propose himself as the great Rescuer from maybe global calamities, but also from global fragmentation.  He will be honoured with the power and authority only due to Christ, as he sets himself up as the one to unify the world and bring peace to 'tribalism'……as a false substitute to Christ who is the only One under whom we can be ONE.  

Only in Christ can identity and status gained from nationalism, racism, tribalism and sexism be superceded.  Only in Christ can we be 'born again' to a new identity, a new status, a new 'tribe/family', become citizens of a new 'global' nation and kingdom.  Only Christ deserves the honour of the unifier, the authority and the Prince of Peace.  In Him, as Christians, we have a new identity - one that doesn't fear Brexits, Trumps, or what tomorrow's politics hold.

Let's bring to the world the truth in Christ, of a new identity, a higher authority, a greater peace than anything the world has or will offer!