8/12/2019 1994 Issue 2 - Rush: A Biblical Perspective on Rush
Limbaugh - Counsel of Chalcedon
1/3
Rush Limbaugh was
born in
Cape Girardeau, Missouri. He was
initially enamored with radio in his
elementary school days,
and in
the
1960's
Umbaugh
became a "top-40"
deejay. He later became a radio talk
show host at
KFBK in
Sacramento,
California. It was
in
1988 that his
show went national;
it
is now heard
in over 500 markets nationwide.
Limbaugh also publishes the
monthly The
Limbaugh
Letter
(with
over
275,000
subscribers) and he
has authored a # 1 New York Times
bestseller: The
Way Things
Ought To
Be (New York: Simon &: Schuster,
1992, 1993), which has already sold
2.5 million copies.
Mr. Limbaugh's fame and
popularity is growing. Former
President Ronald Reagan once told
Limbaugh: "You've become the
number
one voice for conservatism
in our
country." Pat Buchanan says
that "more
than
any other broad
caster today, he [Limbaugh) has
brought converts
back
to values that
really matter." Oliver
North
tells
us
that "Rush
has
captured the sense of
average Americans - that much
of
what we see going on around us is
just
plain crazy."
And
William].
Bennet writes: "Every-one knows
Rush Limbaugh is a national
phenomenon. But he is more than
that; he is a national resource."
How should the Christian
respond
to
Limbaugh? First,
he
is a
brash individual. To cite Time
magazine, he is "outrageous and
impudent." But he is more. He is an
egotist - a
proud,
arrogant man. A
few exampies from his bestseller
follow: "who needs the media when
they've got me?" (270); "this book is
dedicated to my parents, whose love
and devotion
mad
e me the terrific
guy
I
am" (dedication page);
r
am
probably the most polite talk show
host
in
Americal today" (63);
and
r
am now preparing the manusclipt for
my
next eagerly anticipated bestseller,
See I Told You So
(315).
Mr.
Limbaugh
has
even given
us
a "lexicon of Rushian
phrases
for
readers who, for some
inexplicable reason, don't listen
to
my
program" (299). Shades of
Muhammad
Ali's I
am the greatest
?
At first glance one might think
that these are merely words said
in
jest, I.e., maybe
he
jUst does
it
for
the laughs. A cursory reading
of
the
book, however, will reveal tha t this
is the real Limbaugh. He really
believes what he says about himself.
What does God think of
such
arrogance.
The book of
Proverbs
tells us that "Everyone who is proud
in hean
is
an abomination
to
the
Lord" (16:5), and "The Lord will
destroy the
house of the proud
(15:25). Should this
not
be a strong
warning against associating with
such a figure? "Do
not be
deceived:
Bad company
corrupts
good morals"
(1 Corinthians 15:33).
Second, Limbaugh
bumper
stickers are
now
available. They
read: "Rush is right." This is not
merely the opinion of others;
Limbaugh agrees. The title of his
bestseller clearly shows this: The
Way
Things Ought
To Be The error
here is that
he
believes that
he
is
right simply because he says it. One
example is found
in
the
Advisory"
section of his book where we read:
By
the time
you
have purchased
this tome ..most critics will have
undoubtedly savaged it. In many
cases, their reviews will have been
written before the
book
was
published. How
do I know
this?
Because
I
do" (xiii). Another
example has to do with the issue of
women
in
combat. Says Limbaugh:
I just don't
believe
that we
have to
subject
women
t
the horrors and
rigors
of
war" (202). Then there is
the matter of when life begins -
he
writes:
I
believe life begins at
conception. It can
begin
nowhere
else" (56). Limbaugh
has
spoken; so
let
it be
written; so
let it be
done.
The foundation of all of his belief
seems to
be
himself.
And
whereas
those who agree with him are called
"Dittoheads" (they "ditto" what he
says), those
who
disagree are
referred to as "nutsos"
or
"whackos."
A
man
like Limbaugh, says
Solomon,
''has no delight in
understanding, but
in
expressing his
own heart
(Proverbs
18
:2). It is,
however, especially concerning
when the Daily
Nebraskan
refers
t
J ___________ I
his bestseller
as
"the Bible
of modern
/Jr
Crampton
Is astor of
Covenant Presbyterian Church
In
Forest
MS.
conservatism."
Marcb, 1994
l'
THE COUNSEL of
Cbalcedon t
27
8/12/2019 1994 Issue 2 - Rush: A Biblical Perspective on Rush
Limbaugh - Counsel of Chalcedon
3/3
Then again, looking toward the
future,
in
the "Aftelword" of his
book Umbaugh declares: We are
winning. When confronted with the
mournful conclusion that "America
is never going to be
as
great as it
once was," Umbaugh answers,
"Nonsense ..the liberal extremists are
probably on their last legs .
.1 am
convinced that the most impOltant
thing conservatives have to do to
win is just keep saying no to the
left. ..
So
don't give
up
. Be confident.
This cOUntry
has not run
out of
opponunity .. This is a never-ending
battle, and if you want to follow the
chronicling of their demise and learn
about the people who are helping
make America great again, can
think of no better way than for you
to tune in
to my
radiO
and TV
shows" (306-310).
In other words, Umbaugh has
declared that the liberalism that has
dominated the thinking of this
country for so long is going to lose.
How do
we
know it?, because
Umbaugh, "the Dr.
of
Democracy"
(312), has decreed it. What is the
solution? Conservatism And where
can it be best learned about? The
Rush Limbaugh show And there
are thousands of people hanging on
his evelY word.
In
Deuteronomy 13: 1-3
we
are
warned about any prophet who
"gives you a sign or
a wonder, and
the sign or the wonder comes to
pass, of which he spoke to you,
saying, 'Let us go
aJter
other gods
which you have not known,
and
let us
serve
them.' Says the
Lord,
'You shall
not
listen
to
the
words
oj
that
prophet..jor the Lord
your God
is
testing you
to know
whether
you
love
the Lord
your
God with all
your heart
and
with
all your
soul.
Now
if
Limbaugh is at least
somewhat of a self-proclaimed
prophet, which appears to be the
case, and
his prophetic victory
comes true, how many people will
go after the other gods, such as
Umbaugh and his conservative
coterie,
and
"serve them?" This is the
stuff that cults (or dictators) are
made out
of.
Either way, Rush
Umbaugh is potentially a dangerous
man. (Some of his fans are already
pushing to endorse him for
President. Others are telling their
children that they too need to follow
Rush, because "Rush is right.")
Fifth, there are many people in
this country who fall into the
categOlY of
America worshippers,"
those who believe that America must
be restored to its "pristine purity" (a
purity which it never enjoyed) at aU
costs. All too many equate being
American (or being conservative)
with being a Christian. Some
churches even
go
so
far
as to place
an American flag in the sanctuary.
Even some
of
our founding fore
fathers
fell
into the error of believing
America to be the New Israel.
Although Mr. Umbaugh does not
go
this far,
he
comes precariously
close(205-214). Even while
pointing out the current problems
in
this country, he believes that the
USA is "the greatest nation in the
history of the world" (3). God, of
course, is not of this belief. God
chose Israel to be His covenant
nation:
For you
[Israel) are a holy
people to the Lord your God;
th
eLord
your God
has chosen you to be
a
people
Jor Himself, a special treasure above all
the peoples 011 the Jace oj the
earth
(Deuteronomy 7:6). Israel is the only
nation in the histOlY of the world
that God entered into covenant with,
and there will never be another-
the USA included. America is not
and never has been "one nation
under God." That status was
reserved for Israel.
In Matthew 2l:43 ]esus declared
that the kingdom would be removed
from the theocratic nation
of
Israel
and given to the church (compare 1
Peter 2:9). With the destruction of
the Temple
in
A.D. 70,Jesus' words
were fulfilled; the theocratic nation
was abolished. There is no longer
any chosen nat ion - the USA
included.
Lamentably, Limbaugh is among
those who vinual ly deify Ronald
Reagan. He, like others, longs for a
return to the marvelous 80's when
Reagan was king,
and
(practically)
all was right with the USA (68-74,
287-90). He holds Reagan in the
highest esteem. Writes Limbaugh, he
is My hero" (304). Further,
Umbaugh tells
us
"how
imponant
I
deem Ronald Reagan to have been in
shaping the future course of this
nation, and indeed the world. He is
a man to whom we Americans owe a
debt that we will never be able to
repay" (288). Funhermore, he says:
"I've long thought that America is a
great country ..because people have
been free to do things
on
their own.
Still, you need someone to inspire,
and to make people feel good about
themselves
to
really get the country
moving in the right direction.
Ronald Reagan
did
that. There's
no
one like him around right now"
(291). This is strong language, at
least bordering
on
apotheosis.
Conclusion
Rush Limbaugh is a staunch
conservative.
What
he says is
frequently right.
For
that we can be
thankful. But he is never right for
the right reason: Because the Word
of God says so. He is
just
another
conservative, who as Solomon tells
us: '71as 110 delight il1 understanding,
but in expressing his own
heart
(Proverbs 18:2). Great care must be
exercised
in
reading or listening to
Limbaugh's pontifications. Jesus said
it this way: Take
heed
what you
hear.
With the
same
measure you use, it will
be measured
to you (Mark 4:24).Q
March, 1994
THE COUNSEL of Chalce 1on f
29
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