The Alex McFarland Show-29-Alvin Robinson

The spiritual condition of America, politics, culture, and current events analyzed through the lens of Scripture. Welcome to the Alex McFarland Show.

A very famous scholar named Abraham Kuyper wrote about the intersection of God's Word and culture and moral boundaries and human government. Hi, Alex McFarland here. Welcome to this edition of the program. So glad you're listening. We've got a great show today and a very special guest who is running for North Carolina Senate.

His name is Alvin Robinson, and I want you to hear this man. But first, I want to sort of set the foundation because we're facing midterm elections. And right now, I think perhaps more so than at any other time in my lifetime, people are seriously concerned about the future of the country, seriously concerned about the state of our government and the future of the country, and even voices of people that we have known that were on the left-hand side, like Bill Maher of the show Politically Incorrect.

I mean, 10, 15 years ago, Bill Maher was just intractably liberal, and even today, somebody like Bill Maher is saying things that sound conservative even. Abraham Kuyper, regarding the role of the church in government and culture, Abraham Kuyper said, quote, there is not a square inch in the whole domain of human existence over which the creator, Jesus Christ, who is sovereign overall, does not cry mine. Any way you look, any direction, God has spoken about morality, culture, government, what's right and wrong, what's ethical, what's moral, the nature of marriage, families, child rearing, all of the things that are up for grabs right now. And the reason I open up with the Abraham Kuyper quote is because that what Alvin Robinson is doing and others that I know who have run and are running, there are many pastors and pious-sounding spiritual leaders, although whether or not they really know the Lord, I don't know.

But sometimes pastors will say that Christians have no right to speak about politics and Christians have no business getting into government. And yet, I'm holding in my hand as I cue up our guest in just a moment, but I've got a book by a late atheist who actually was somewhat of a friend of mine. His name was Christopher Hitchens. He was a very famous writer, wrote for Harpers. I'm sorry that Hitchens was an atheist, but he did understand the nature of our government and culture. Hitchens wrote a book about Thomas Jefferson, and he calls Jefferson the author of America. And in the very beginnings of this book, Christopher Hitchens, who himself was not a believer, although we did share the gospel with him many times, I interviewed him, we debated, we had a friendship.

But sadly, he was an atheist. However, Hitchens knew this, that there was the Protestant Reformation in 1517, and the gospel spread throughout Europe, and then there was the Bible in the hands of the common man. And then there was the realization that God had set up the boundaries for society and government. And Hitchens writes about Jefferson, Franklin, John Adams, Alexander Hamilton, Benjamin Rush, and how they, he says in his book on Jefferson, built their nation on the revelation of God. Now, this is not some right wing preacher saying, this was a great historian, scholar, yet atheist, Christopher Hitchens, who realized that it was the church that gave us the American Revolution. The pastors were preaching about the abuses of Britain. And it led ultimately Thomas Jefferson to say that, now listen to these words that Jefferson wrote in the Declaration, appealing to God for the rectitude of our intentions. Now what Jefferson meant was, and he heard it from the pulpits of New England and the colonies, that the abuses of Britain were so egregious that if they didn't step in and do something, they were complicit and therefore guilty.

In other words, the moral state mandated that principled people get involved. And here we are in 2022. And I want you to meet a person that I sincerely believe is a principled person, a well thought person who has entered the political fray, because I know he loves the Lord, I know he's a believer, but I sincerely also believe that he loves this nation. And his name is Alvin Robinson. He's running for North Carolina Senate, and he is a write in candidate. You know, Mr. Robinson, we've been blessed over the years, we've had different candidates on it. I've interviewed Mike Huckabee and Mike Pence, and it's Sarah Palin in years past, Michelle Bachman. You're not the first political figure that has come to the microphone, but I do welcome you and I'm especially enthused because you're from my home state of North Carolina. But candidate for North Carolina Senate, Alvin Robinson, welcome to our program. Thank you for having me.

Thank you very much. Yes. Give us a little background. Now where do you live, Mr. Robinson, where are you from? And then I want to get into what prompted you to run for office, but give us your backstory if you would.

Sure. Well, as you said, I am also a native of North Carolina, born and raised in Greensboro, currently live in the McLeanville area, again, being here all 41 years of my life. Prior to running for office, I had worked as a full time firefighter with the city of Greensboro and a part time deputy with Guilford County Sheriff's Office, a total of almost 19 years of public safety experience. And then I'm married to my wife and we have four children ranging from 21 years old down to 12 years old.

We also run a little small farm and I help pastor Triad Bible Fellowship in the east side of Greensboro. Well, my goodness, Alvin, that's a varied palette of career experiences. I've got to ask you this, and first of all, may God bless you for being a public servant as a firefighter, as a deputy, and now in politics.

Here's a question, Alvin. What's the most dangerous search and rescue, firefighting, law enforcement, or politics? Those are all three pretty dangerous realms, my brother.

Yes, sir. Well, you know, of course, one of them is, two of them, the fire service and law enforcement are probably equally dangerous, just at different times and different circumstances. You know, thank the Lord, he always protected me there. But that's usually physical danger, physical harm, whereas the politics, based on what little experience I have so far, I believe it's going to be the type of danger that comes to our emotion and our spiritual attack as well. And so, but again, I know that the Lord, his protection is over all those who are his, you know, he's the one, if some people have said that I have courage, if I have courage, it's because the Lord gives his people courage. And so, but yeah, the level of danger, I'm sure it's, it ranks pretty high up there going into politics, but you know, we're willing to go if the Lord goes before us.

Amen. Folks, I realized that there are listeners all across the nation. And I realize, you know, a large district in the state of North Carolina, that doesn't apply to all of our listeners.

But two things, then we've got a brief break. If you are in this part of North Carolina, I want you to check out Alvin Robinson's webpage in his platform and consider, and we'll talk about when we come back, how you vote for a right in candidate. But the larger story here is the role of politics and the church and the future of our country, because it really is a nation of we the people. And if we love the Lord, we love the Constitution, we love our freedoms, if we just sit back passively, then your future, your future will be in the hands and the will of somebody else. But we have this wonderful gift that has been entrusted to us, a free America, where we have recourse, we can cast a vote, we can pray, we can influence others.

We really, as Lincoln said at Gettysburg, we have a government by the people and for the people, and it's terrible stewardship to sit by passively and let that slip away from us. Stay tuned, we're going to be back right after this. Fox News and CNN call Alex McFarland a religion and culture expert. Stay tuned for more of his teaching and commentary after this.

Meals will be served from 5 to 6 30, services will be at 7. He's been called trusted, truthful, and timely. Welcome back to the Alex McFarland Show.

In the Word of God, 1 Corinthians 6, 19 and 20 says that we are not our own, we are stewards, we're bought with a price. Hi, Alex McFarland here, welcome back to the program. We're talking with Alvin Robinson, he's a candidate for North Carolina Senate. And Alvin, when I think about those words of Scripture that we're stewards, and I think the stewardship of the country is just one of the most monumental issues of life. And I want to commend you regardless of the outcome of the election, Alvin, I want to commend you for being obedient.

You are doing your duty, you're trying to be a voice for truth, and you're being a steward of your part of our state and for that I applaud you. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. For God be the glory.

Yes. So Alvin, you're doing your duty, regardless of the outcome of the election, which we're praying for you, but you've said I'm going to get involved. What was the moment that prompted you to say, I'm going to run, I'll be a candidate, I'll get involved.

Tell us about that. Yeah, so I actually was fired from both the fire department and sheriff's office back in December of last year, 2021, coming up on a year here. And the reason I was fired from both agencies was because I stood up for my sincerely held religious conviction that my body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. So that means that I can't just do anything to my body I want to do, nor should I allow someone outside of my body to do what they want to do. And both agencies came out with COVID-19 testing policies that basically said that you had to present proof of vaccination or be tested every week or lose your job, and that there would be no religious exemption, likely be no religious exemption or medical exemption. Well, I did have a religious exemption, and again, that is that my body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. I can't just do what I want to.

I had conviction with concerns to the safety of both the testing and the vaccine and what it could do to my body, ultimately. And so standing up for my religious convictions, at the end of the day, I was actually, instead of the city or the county or the sheriff's office, I should say, instead of them accommodating me, they stiff on me, and both agencies fired me. And so that was telling that right now our government thinks that our government is God. As my wife puts it, tyranny came to our door, and it was telling of, again, where the government is.

And we all talk about the tyrannical ways of the government, how government has gotten too big and the government exercises more power than what it really should have. And so just not wanting to sit down and just talk about it and sob over it all through prayer and the counsel of others, I began to pursue public office, because I recognize that unless godly people, unless Christians are in government, there's not going to be a recognition of the liberty that we all have, the God-given liberty that we have, where government is supposed to come in and protect our rights and our freedoms to live under that God-given liberty. And so, again, that's what happened to me. So initially, I had ran for county commissioner here in Guilford County back in the May primary, lost that, did gain 30% of the conservative vote without any real advertisement at all. And I lost that, but a few days later through, again, prayer of, Lord, you know, what direction would you have me to take, thinking about, you know, employment and things like that, what to do. There's an organization called North Carolina Grassroots Government, and the leaders there, they were also thinking about me, and we began to really see what some of the things happening in our state legislator, even people who are said to be conservative, who are senators and representatives right now, House reps right now, they have not really done the things in recent years that will protect our rights. And so, again, long story short, you know, looking at all of that and praying and, you know, the counsel of people I know who are followers of Christ, the decision was made to pursue this particular seat, State Senate District 26, as a write-in candidate. And as Christians, we really need to be involved beyond our vote. We need to actually be there.

Only godly people are going to be able to influence policy that is consistent with godly principles. Sure. And you know what, by the way, let me just say parenthetically regarding the vaccine. Mr. Robinson, as you know, traveling and speaking, I've been in front of a lot of people. I'm very blessed to have a lot of people in my life that care about Angie and me.

I had medical doctors across America who care about me personally, who said, Alex, do not take the vaccine. Now, there's no way I would use their name, and they were speaking off record. And see, that's our prerogative. That is our right. So I'm sorry. I want to say I'm sorry that you were at the brunt of the draconian, Machiavellian overreach of our government, and you lost two careers. But I applaud your courage for standing up for what you believe. Now, we've got to take a break.

We've got another segment. And I want to talk about your positions and your platforms, because I think they're near and dear to the heart of any constitutionalist. But let me ask you this, Alvin, how does a person vote for a write-in candidate, whether it be you or anybody that's not there on the ballot? How does a write-in situation work?

Sure. So if the write-in candidate has been given the approval by the State Board of Elections, then you'll see in whatever section of the ballot where the particular office is, such as in my case, North Carolina, it will literally say North Carolina State Senate District 26, you'll have if there is a Republican candidate running for it, you'll see his or her name. If there's a Democrat candidate running for it, you'll see his or her name, and then you'll see a line that says write-in. You literally have to spell out correctly the person's name, in my case, Alvin Robinson.

I tell people Alvin liked the chipmunk, Robinson liked Lieutenant Governor Robinson here in North Carolina. And I mean, it's that simple. And so there's a little bubble beside the write-in line, of course, you have to color that in, darken it with your pen, write in the person's name and the state, then when they go to, once you've cast a ballot, they don't count it at the same time that, well, let me back up, they actually do count it, but they actually have to go back and physically look at the name or the spelling of the name and run a tally that way also, just to confirm that the correct name was spelled, and that whatever name is there, that it is a name that was approved to be a write-in, because that was a process of gaining petitions and things that I had to go through in order to be counted. So that's, it's pretty simple.

It is a little different than what most of us have ever done, but it's not hard. It's pretty self-explanatory. Well, listen, we've got a brief break. This is the Alex McFarlane show, Alex McFarlane here with Senate candidate Alvin Robinson. Stay tuned.

We're back after this brief break. Fox News and CNN call Alex McFarlane a religion and culture expert. Stay tuned for more of his teaching and commentary after this. Over the last several decades, it's been my joy to travel the world talking with children, teens, adults, people of all ages about the questions they have related to God, the Bible, Christianity, and how to know Jesus personally.

Hi, Alex McFarlane. I want to make you aware of my book, The 21 Toughest Questions Your Kids Will Ask About Christianity. You know, we interviewed hundreds of children and parents and families to find out the questions that children and people of all ages are longing to find answers for. In the book, we've got practical, biblical, real life answers that they have about how to be a Christian in this modern world.

My book, The 21 Toughest Questions Your Kids Will Ask, you can find it wherever you buy books or at resources.afa.net. He's been called trusted, truthful, and timely. Welcome back to The Alex McFarlane Show. Welcome back to the program, Alex McFarlane here. You know, by the way, folks, our Viral Truth youth clubs, and I want to encourage you and any teens in your life, visit viraltruth.com, V-I-R-A-L-T-R-U-T-H, viraltruth.com. You know, we're teaching kids about God and country and some of the best outreach is peer to peer ministry, and we're chartering clubs around the country. And so we're talking to kids about how they can influence their friends, yes, for the gospel of Jesus Christ, but we're teaching middle school and high schoolers how to speak from a biblical perspective on things like morals and homosexuality, transgenderism, abortion, marriage, family, career, and also about America. We're telling kids the truth about America.

Now you can learn more at the website viraltruth.com. You can learn more about our ministries at my own website, which is alexmcfarland.com. But as we wrap up this show before I resume my conversation with Alvin Robinson, let me say, folks, we need your financial support. And by God's grace, we're creating a movement across this nation of young people by the hundreds then by the thousands, and we're praying for the millions that love God and country.

Personally, they will follow Jesus as a citizen that will defend our freedoms. You can help us impact and empower the lives of young people. And you can donate online at my website, which is alexmcfarland.com, or you may give by writing to PO Box 485, Pleasant Garden, North Carolina, just like it sounds, Pleasant Garden.

My family's been here more than 200 years and it is pleasant and there are a lot of reasons, but PO Box 485, Pleasant Garden, North Carolina, 27313. Thank you for your prayers and support. But Alvin Robinson, candidate for North Carolina Senate, what is your website? How many people find you online?

Yeah. So my website is right in Alvin Robinson, the number four NC Senate 26.com, right in Alvin Robinson for NC Senate 26.com. That's my website. And on Facebook, I have a Facebook page that again is right in Alvin Robinson.

But at the website, you can find ways to contact me via email or telephone number. Well, well, let's talk about some issues with the time that remains abortion, Roe versus Wade was overturned. And it's interesting to me how so many on the left are crying out that a right has been taken away, which they're really, even constitutionalists on the left would agree there never really was a constitutional right to take another human's life. And it's interesting to me regarding abortion, 9-11, and I was at ground zero about 24 hours after 9-11 happened. But the monuments, both at the World Trade Center and Flight 93, Pennsylvania, the Pentagon, among those lost during the terrorist attacks of 9-11 were several pregnant women. And the monuments also acknowledge not only the expectant mother that died, but the unborn.

Clearly, the unborn is a person. And so all persons have rights, the most primary being the right to life. So Alvin, I mean, one of the things that I know you and I are passionately in agreement on is the constitutional rights from God, life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness. They're all at risk, aren't they? I mean, all of our rights, and part of it is because of Christians and principled people not really getting in the fray as you have, but our rights hang in the balance, don't they?

No, that's absolutely correct. I think about, we say we use the terms constitutional rights, but again, they are constitutional. They're there in the Constitution because our founders, the founders of our nation first acknowledged God and that he, again, is the source of these rights because he gives us certain liberties and rights to live under that liberty. And so John Adams, the second president of the United States said that this Constitution is for moral and religious people.

And he basically went on to say that it's unfit for any other. And so yes, it goes back to the people. We the people, if we the people are righteous and moral, then we can elect from amongst us moral and righteous people. A lot of times we look at government and we're waiting on government to do it right or to get it right. Well, again, if those in government are not moral and righteous people, then we shouldn't expect for their governance to be consistent with justice and morality and righteousness.

And so yes, absolutely, Christians need to be involved so that that true sense of morality, justice, liberty, all those things can be upheld, but it will only be upheld if people who know God are in office. What office exactly are you running for? And can people throughout North Carolina, if they so choose, can they vote for you anywhere in the state of North Carolina? Okay, so good question. Actually it's North Carolina State Senate District 26, which is made up of all of Rockingham County, all of Northern Guilford and all of Eastern Guilford.

So you have in Rockingham, of course, you have Reedsville and Wentworth and Eden, Ruffin, those places, and then down Madison, May of Dan in Rockingham, and then down into Northern Guilford, everything from Stokesdale, moving over to Oak Ridge, Summerfield, Brown Summit, coming down east into McLeanville, Gibsonville, which sit all the way down to like Jillian and Climax and parts of Libertyville, Guilford County side of Liberty. So that's the area and yes, people have to write me in, I'm a writing candidate. So you'll literally have to write in Alvin Robinson on that writing line in the section that says North Carolina State Senate District 26, where I am opposing Phil Berger, who is the current president of our state Senate here in North Carolina.

Sure. Well, brother, we were praying for you and we look forward to a great report and let's cultivate the conversation further. We're just about out of time today, Alvin Robinson running for North Carolina Senate. But I want to give a quote, folks, as we have to wrap up, Mike Huckabee, and if you've not voted, there is time. Vote and you can vote for the candidates of your choice.

You can vote for Alvin Robinson on that write in ballot, but do pray, do vote. Mike Huckabee, who we know well, we've interviewed many times and he was governor of Arkansas and a pastor. He said this, quote, our country is in trouble because so many people who go to church on Sunday won't go anywhere but church when it comes to standing up for righteousness. And we have God's truth in the church, but it needs to be also in the public square.

We have America because there was a time more than 240 years ago when pastors and Christians and as Benjamin Franklin said, a pious folk from New England, they built this nation and we cannot, we must not let it die. When we could be involved, we can make a difference. So please pray, be informed, influence others, vote.

And maybe like Alvin Robinson, you'll feel led to run for office yourself. Thanks for listening. God bless you and may God bless America and may the Lord truly make us a free and righteous people. Alex McFarland Ministries are made possible through the prayers and financial support of partners like you. For over 20 years, this ministry has been bringing individuals into a personal relationship with Christ and has been equipping people to stand strong for truth. Learn more and donate securely online at alexmcfarland.com. You may also reach us at Alex McFarland, P.O. Box 10231, Greensboro, North Carolina 27404. Or by calling 1-877-YES-GOD and the number 1.

That's 1-877-Y-E-S-G-O-D-1. Thanks for joining us. We'll see you again on the next edition of the Alex McFarland Show. Christian author and speaker Alex McFarland is an advocate for Christian apologetics. Teaching in more than 2,200 churches around the world, schools, and college campuses, Alex is driven by a desire to help people grow in relationship with God. He arms his audiences with the tools they need to defend their faith while also empowering the unchurched to find out the truth for themselves. In the midst of a culture obsessed with relativism, Alex is a sound voice who speaks timeless truths of Christianity in a timely way. With 18 published books to his name, it's no surprise that CNN, Fox, The Wall Street Journal, and other media outlets have described Alex as a religion and culture expert. To learn more about Alex and to book him as a speaker at your next event, visit alexmcfarland.com. Or you can contact us directly by emailing booking at alexmcfarland.com. What are you doing next summer?

Hey, how about this? I want to invite you to join me in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, August 6th through 11, 2023 for the Faith and Family Retreat. It's going to be awesome. We'll talk about foundational things. What does it mean to be a disciple?

How can you defend your faith? Family time, concerts, renewal of wedding vows. It's going to be great. Then fun, a trip to Dollywood, who wouldn't like that? And then faith in action, there'll be a mission outreach, talking to people about Christ. So again, August 6th through 11, 2023, Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, go to faithandfamilyretreat.com. I hope to see you there.