Following on from the implosion of the last National Party leader New Zealand has the fresh face of Christopher Luxon to lead the party with an aspiration to lead the country, come the next election

In his opening speech Christopher Luxon promised a fresh start to the beleaguered political party, drawing a line under the past and moving on with a united team.

Luxon spoke of his desire to see New Zealand move forward.

Ahh the sweet sounds of naiveite.

The reality is as Luxon is finding out is that political office comes with a new kind of pressure he may have never faced in a commercial world.

In this new age of politics, he will be closely scrutinized.

So, close he will find out about things he may have forgotten about or indeed, news to him.

He has had a taste of what is to come from the media and public alike.

Much has been said about his wealth, and his seven properties,

His answer has been to say, I cannot help it if I am successful.

Riches aside I am more concerned about the media’s obsession with his Faith.

Many have spoken about Luxon’s claims to be an evangelical Christian.

You would think this as a good thing, right?

A man who holds biblical views and principles, a man who believes in morals and integrity, love for one another are brilliant attributes.

But he was quick to temper the medias onslaught by admitting yes,

He held Christian beliefs but had not been to church for five years.

On TVNZ Q&A his response to the question about why he stopped going to church was because as the CEO of air New Zealand he was often asked for free airline tickets.

Luxon referenced his “Christianity is a private thing,” and “you don’t have to go to church to be a good Christian.”

It is not up to any of us to judge Luxon or his claims to be a follower of God.

But keep in mind the warning Jesus gave to his disciples

Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, he describes such people as false prophets and they are not what they appear as “They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 2 Thessalonians 2:

Today, it is a tough row to hoe admitting your faith to God as the hypocrisy police will be all over you if they find a chink in your armour.

But its one thing admitting you have faith

It is another when it comes to practicing it.

You see Luxon’s response immediately made me think of the apostle Peter after the arrest of Jesus the apostle was asked if he was a follower of Christ.

There, right there in the heat of the brazier Luxon, did what Peter did.

By fudging his answer, he denied Jesus Christ and this my friends were just in the first few days of him becoming the leader of his political party.

You may think it is a tough call, but when you wear the Christian T shirt, it comes with responsibility and commitment which you do not water down for political expediency.

He maybe the man God uses to rid this country of this leftist government, but Luxon will face intense scrutiny not only from the media, or the electorate at large, but also from his creator.

Who knows he may be just the man and I hope God continues to bless him?

but if I had a word of advice for Christopher Luxon and his admission of faith, that would be to heed the words found in Matthew 7 where Jesus says Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

Mike Bain is the Chief Executive for Christian Voice New Zealand who provides commentary on matters in the media from a biblical perspective.

He is a journalist/ broadcaster/blogger based in Te Awamutu

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