Bo Wagner | The battle over borders

Among the greatest ironies 2023 provided us all was the rapid change of views from sanctuary cities and their vocal proponents. When President Trump began pushing for a wall along the U.S./Mexico border, the pushback was harsh, with the predictable cries of racism and xenophobia filling the air. Congress made sure that the funds for that wall were never fully allocated, lawsuits were filed by environmental groups, and blue states, counties, and cities rushed to declare themselves as sanctuaries for illegal immigrants. “No Human Being Is Illegal” bumper stickers showed up everywhere.

And this was not a problem at all for any of those blue areas because the masses of people pouring across the southern border were pouring into a red area, namely Texas. And then, the most game-changing thing happened; the governor of that red state started busing and flying all of those illegal immigrants to blue cities and states.

Here is how NBC described the results.

“New York says it’s at a breaking point. Chicago is running out of time and space before a harsh winter sets in. Washington, D.C. says its housing is at capacity. Other cities, like Denver, have declared states of emergency.

“Democrats are raising the alarm on immigration, with the leaders of sanctuary cities and blue states thousands of miles from the southern border now warning their situation is dire. Democrats are calling on the White House for more funding and to seize control over the interior operations to ensure migrants are sent to areas that have the capacity to take them in.

“It has all added up to a shift in the immigration debate, where Democrats are calling out the president of their own party to do more to contain what they call a crisis.

“New York City Mayor Eric Adams has warned that the migrant crisis could ‘destroy New York City.’ Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration is warring with fellow Democrats — both in the city council and at the state level — over where to house migrants over the winter. And on phone calls and even while on Air Force One with the president, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, a Biden ally, has repeatedly implored him to take action on border issues, according to the governor’s office, particularly with federal funding, because he says his state is overwhelmed and running out of resources.

“It’s indeed creating a wedge. Not only have there been flare-ups between local Democratic leaders calling on Biden to do more, but the competition over resources is an explosive issue in Chicago, where Black and brown communities have been at odds over the location of migrant camps.

“ ‘There is no doubt that the busing strategy is having an impact,’ Wittman said. ‘All of a sudden, there does seem to be some actual bipartisan support for securing the border, which, before this busing strategy the governor implemented, I don’t think anyone saw coming. Who would have thought Eric Adams would be calling on the Biden administration to do something about the border?’ ” (https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/texas-gov-greg-abbott-divided-democrats-immigration-migrant-busing-rcna128815)

So, let’s briefly address all of this from Scripture. First of all, hypocrisy is a very ugly thing, repeatedly condemned in the Bible. And states thousands of miles away demanding unchecked illegal entry into the country and then protesting when the problem lands on their own doorstep for a change is the absolute definition of hypocrisy.

Second, God created both nations and the bounds of their habitation, Acts 17:26. And yet, protesters in 2018 were in the streets shouting, “No border, no wall, no USA at all!” And we would do well to believe them when they state their intentions so plainly and vocally.

Third, God is an organized God who expects an organized world. He divided the promised land into twelve distinct parcels for the twelve tribes. He commanded in Deuteronomy 17:15 that they always and only have one of their countrymen rule over them, never a stranger. And even in the new Jerusalem in eternity, there will be a wall, nations, and kings, Revelation 21:17-24.

Fourth, Proverbs 13:22 says, “A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children’s children.” Our grandparents left all of us a good inheritance, namely a nation that was the envy of the world, America. If we do not do the same for our children and grandchildren, they will rightly curse our memories.

Fifth, Proverbs 22:3 says, “A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished.” Allowing millions of people to stream across the border, knowing nothing about any of them, puts us in the simple clause of this verse, not the prudent one. Are there many people who want to come here for the best of reasons and are willing to assimilate into our culture? Undoubtedly. Are there also many people who want to come here for the worst of reasons and/or have no intentions of ever assimilating? Also undoubtedly. And not a single one of those latter should ever be allowed in.

Many will no doubt whip out their counterfeit compassion card at this point. And my response will be, compassion that shows no compassion for the legal citizens of a land is no compassion at all; it is merely self-destruction masquerading as compassion.