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In today’s episode, let us take a look at Vivek Ramaswamy and his ideas. Vivek Ramaswamy is running for the Presidency of the United States. He is the first Hindu to run for President. As far as I know, he is the first Hindu to contest for the presidency. The United States Constitution has no religious test for public office. Vivek has every right to run for the President. So, we should honor that. Let us take a look at some of his religious ideas.
God is real: He got that one right. It’s a shame that so many so-called Christians like Donald Trump, Ron Desantis do not mention God in their political speeches. Where is Donald Trump on Sunday morning? You won’t find him in a church. You find him playing golf. A Hindu guy is the only man talking about God so often in both political parties. That is a sign of our times.
But here is a Hindu young man who boldly says, ‘God is real, America, take Him seriously’. Sadly, for millions of people today, God is just a figment of imagination. Even many Christians think of God as an abstract idea far removed from human experience. Vivek got it right. God is real. God is active in the affairs of the world. God knows everyone. Lord Jesus said, ‘Even the very hairs of your head are numbered’ (Matthew 10:26-31). Note those words. Even the very hairs of your head are numbered. That is how intimately God knows every one of us.
Spiritual Void in America: Vivek often talks about the spiritual void in the hearts of millions of young people in America. He says meaninglessness and godlessness are the root of many of our social problems.
Why are so many people addicted to drugs?
Why is the number one cause of death in young adults is fentanyl overdose?
Why are so many people depressed and lonely?
Why is suicide rate skyrocketing among young people?
Why are we having the highest rates of divorce?
Why are we having the highest number of single parent homes?
Why are we having mass shootings?
Why are we seeing so many lootings?
Why are many stores being closed because they can no longer protect themselves from thieves?
Ramaswamy says for lots of people, there is no meaning or purpose in their lives. He is echoing St.Augustine. In 398 AD, St.Augustine of Hippo wrote in his Confessions, “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you”.
Augustine said, our hearts are restless until they rest in God. Our hearts are empty. Inside each of us is a God-shaped hole. We try to fill it with worldly things like relationships, drugs, pornography, sports, achievements etc. But they do not fill us. Jesus said, ‘Anyone who is thirsty may come to me….and rivers of living water will flow from his heart’ (John 7:37-39).
We are thirsty. Our souls are dry. Who can fill us? It is Jesus who gives us living waters. So, Vivek pointing his finger on the spiritual void in America is right on the target.
Going back to Egyptian Slavery:
Vivek brags about his Bible knowledge. He says ‘I know more Bible than many Christian’s. Sadly, he is right. Biblical ignorance is at an all time high. Most Christians don’t know the most basic teachings of Christian faith. Many don’t know the difference between Joan of Arc and Noah’s ark.
Vivek Ramaswamy says we are going back to Egypt. He got that from the Book of Exodus. God liberates the Israelites from Egypt. He gets them out of slavery in Egypt. He makes them cross the Red Sea. He takes care of them in the wilderness. He leads them towards the Promised Land. But, alas, the Israelites often say, ‘It is far better in Egypt. We need a leader who will take us back to Egypt’.
Vivek says, most Americans today are going back to bondage. They are not even aware of God. You see, God is the author of freedom. Take a look at the Liberty Bell located in Philadelphia. It is an iconic symbol of American independence. The founding fathers designed it. They cast a Bible verse on the Liberty Bell. ‘Proclaim liberty throughout the all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof’. That is from the Book of Leviticus chapter 25:10. What is what God told the people of Israel. Proclaim liberty throughout the Land. Without God, we eventually become slaves to human beings.
American founding fathers saw a parallel between the foundation of Israel and the foundation of America. They believed that America should shine like a city on hill just like the ancient Israel. By the way, the metaphor ‘the city on a hill’ comes from Jesus’s teaching from the Gospel of Matthew. “You are the light of the world…a city that has been built upon a mountain” (Matthew 5:14). God is light and only people who follow God can build a city that has been built upon a mountain. Without God, America descends into darkness day by day. It will become like a ghost town, dark, filthy and abandoned.
So, I agree with Vivek on that point. We should follow God towards the promised Land. We should not return to Pharaoh to be subjugated.
Importance of Truth
Next, Vivek Ramaswamy talks about truth. What is truth? Truth is correspondence to reality. Some people say, truth is irrelevant. Some others say, ‘truth is what I like to believe’. Some others say, ‘my ideology is truth for me’. They are all wrong. Truth is correspondence to reality. And no one tells you about reality more than God. God is truth. Jesus said, ‘I am the way, the truth and the life’ (John 14:6); ‘You shall know the truth, and the truth will set you free’ (John 8:32). So, it is the truth that makes us free. Truth gives us freedom. Falsehoods give us bondange. With all the conspiracy theories going around, where are we going? We are going into bondage. So, Vivek is right when he talks about the importance of truth.
Jesus is one Avatar:
Regarding Jesus, he says Jesus is a son of God. Note those words. Jesus is a son of God, not the son of God. Basically he is teaching a false Jesus. That is not what the Bible teaches.
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
The Word was God; the Word was with God and the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. This statement is about the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ. He was God and he made flesh and dwelt among us.
This is the only incarnation of God. God has no other incarnations in human history. Vivek does not believe this. He thinks Jesus was one of the many avatars of God. He clearly believes in a false Jesus.
Jesus also said, I am the way, the truth and the life. No man comes to the Father but by me. John 14:6
Jesus is the only way to God. Every true Christian should believe this. Vivek says he is a Hindu. If he believes that Jesus is one of the many avatars of God, that is fine for him. But as Christians, we should not be fooled by what Vivek says about Jesus. Jesus Christ is Lord of all. There is no other Lord. There is no other Savior.
So, as we listen to Vivek Ramaswamy, we should take his words with a grain of salt. We should have discernment. Some of his statements are true while some others are false.