Oh, 'brother'

Again, this is what happens when churches function like wholly owned subsidiaries of the major political parties (this problem is not confined to one side of the political aisle, either):

Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley apologized Wednesday for his remarks about only Christians being his brothers and sisters.
Bentley said he didn't mean to insult anyone when he told a church crowd on Monday that those who have not accepted Jesus as their savior are not his brothers and sisters, shocking some critics who questioned whether he can be fair to non-Christians.

No governor needs to be behind a pulpit on the day of their inauguration. This is just the latest embarrasment to come as a result of the church being consumed by politics instead of passion for Christ. Church and State are separate, if overlapping, spheres of sovereignty ordained by God. Neither functions well as a surrogate or partisan for the other.

This sums it up well:

If non-Christians are a little tightly wound about Christ’s exclusive claims as endangering the public order, maybe it’s not entirely their fault.
It’s ridiculous to assert that Gov. Bentley’s comments violate the First Amendment; to disallow such comments would be a violation, in fact. However, strictly from a Christian point of view, such unauthorized use of Christ’s embassy for the affairs of civil society ought to be challenged. I doubt that faithful sermons, songs, and prayers in churches this Sunday will undergo similar scrutiny, even though they would be just as offensive to many of our neighbors. But a governor preaching on inauguration day in his secular office makes it even harder for us to convince our neighbors that the gospel triumphs through Word and Spirit rather than through the sword of state.

Our leaders would do well to remember God's rejection of Saul began when the king dared take on a function that belonged to the priests or prophets. Only in Christ are these various offices united; Man is presumptuous to mix them so.