Pastor Tim Bushong of Syracuse Baptist Church addresses an assemblage of believers, prompting them to integrate their faith into their societal and political interactions, at the 2021 “Jesus and Politics” conference held at the church. Photo provided by Tim Bushong.

By Ray Balogh
InkFreeNews

SYRACUSE — Syracuse Baptist Church, 10013 N. Syracuse-Webster Road, will host its third annual “Jesus and Politics” conference from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22.

The event is free and lunch will be provided. The public is invited.

The conference theme is “A Battle Worth Fighting,” and will feature presentations by Indiana State Representative Curt Nisly; Jon Harris, who runs the podcast, “Conversations That Matter”; Joseph Spurgeon, pastor of Sovereign King Church in Jeffersonville; and Pastor Tim Bushong of Syracuse Baptist Church.

Bushong explained the purpose and importance of the conference, citing “some absolutely astonishing things in both the world and in the United States” in “the year of our Lord 2022”:

• Ukraine invaded by Russia.

• China’s continuing moves to take Taiwan for their own.

• Formerly verdant and beautiful cities in America reduced to “no-go” zones and Wild West-style crime.

• The exposure of elementary school students to perverse sexual ideas.

• Libraries hosting ‘story times’ with the insane.

• On the positive side of the ledger, the overturning of 1973’s Roe v. Wade decision, which sent abortion laws back to the individual states.

Bushong said, “While we can easily be alarmed by what happens in the news, the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ is not to be characterized by anxiety and fear — rather, the church must see herself as the ‘prow’ on the ship of society.

“Too often we tend to think of the church’s mission in rear-guard terms, protecting and preserving that which is good as we evangelize, and that is in itself, as far as it goes, a good thing.

“But that is such a limited and truncated view of what Christ instructed his followers to do in the advancement of his rule—his kingdom—on earth. Sadly, the church has received much of her catechism not from the Bible, but from the age in which we live.

“Politics is ‘downstream’ from culture, and culture is downstream from religion. In this year’s ‘Jesus and Politics’ conference, we’ll be focusing primarily on building: Taking the long view, reforming the church, looking forward to generational fidelity and building strong local communities around shared beliefs and commitments that spring from a healthy, Christ-as-King approach to all of life.

“There is no neutrality — no ‘naked public square’ — since Jesus rules all of it already. At stake is your family, your church, your local community, and yes, your country — and all of these are worth fighting for.”

Bushong said one aim of the conference is for attendees to “learn how to better integrate their faith in the public arena of society and culture.”

For more information, visit syracusebaptistchurch.com.