One of the biggest, most controversial questions faced in the American church in the last 50 years has been his; should Christians be political? Culturally, it seems the overwhelming gut feeling is “No”.
Maybe this stems from our idea that Jesus is a puppy dog preacher who just wanted to spread “love bro”. Maybe this comes from reading Jesus’s teaching about praying for our enemies. Maybe…maybe American evangelicals don’t want to “force conversion” by laws, as that would be too much like the Pharisees.
All of these reasons (and more) however are utter nonsense, and more accurately, are not Christian principles at all. All Christians are called to be political, whether full time or part time. We must put our civil government into subjection to the King of Kings; Jesus Christ himself. Basically, Jesus demands political power.
Today we’ll cover
* Pietism and Liberal Subversion
* How Gospel Exclusivity = Apathy
* The Real Great Commission
* Biblical Examples of Political Activity
The Disease of Pietism
The underlying disease that has poisoned the church in the political arena is none other than pietism. But what is pietism? Michael Clary said it well in his post.
“Pietism” is a gnostic tendency to overemphasize spiritual realities at the expense of material realities. It relies on a fortune cookie, bumper-sticker, and ultimately fear-based approach to Scripture.”
So basically, Christians will focus so much on the spiritual truths from scripture, that they end up making it the only truth to live by.
For example: Ultimately, the most important thing I can focus on for my children is their salvation. Praying for their repentance is one of my most important jobs. But is it my only job?
If my toddler fell on the sidewalk and started bleeding, am I obligated to help her? Of course, I’m her father, I have responsibilities here on earth.
But now we have a dilemma…how far do these earthly realities go?
If I DO have a responsibility to my toddler, I also have a responsibility to my wife, my friends, my state, and even my nation.
No Christian, even pietists, lives like a pietist. We all act on earthly things in our day-to-day, many of them of which have an underlying principle found in God’s word.
If you’re a pietist, you’re living inconsistently. You do things everyday on earth that are important, even if they’re not ultimately important. If I help my toddler recover from her fall on the sidewalk, that is not an example of me forgoing the gospel in order to help her material need. That is me acting out the gospel, and following Jesus commands.
And even worse…if you decide to be a CONSISTENT pietist, and try to live your life like this, then unfortunately, you become like James Menendez.
Here’s James submitting that letting his wife get raped is building up treasures in heaven (original post here)
And here’s James admitting that he would not prevent or restrict blasphemy in his own household, and that he currently doesn’t confront his son on vulgar language (original post here)
So with the church full of people like James, what happens at the national level when this disease continues for too long?
Michael Clary says it well
“Thus, pietism and leftism often leads to the same results. The left pushes a radical agenda. The pietists do nothing to stop it. Then they lament the sad state we are in while crying, “how long, Oh Lord!”
How Gospel Exclusivity = Apathy
Preaching the gospel has in itself become an apathetic excuse to do nothing else and focus on nothing else in the American Church. When you bring up a political issue, or anything tangible to accomplish by the church, you usually here “just preach the gospel” or “but ULTIMATELY, we need a revival.”
I don’t preach the gospel to my circuit breakers when they go out. When my child trips and falls badly, I don’t preach the gospel to them (although I of course do at other times during the day), I help them up.
Sometimes I think evangelicals get so obsessed with the specific action of verbally preaching the gospel in word only, they forget the actual, tangible actions that come along with God’s kingdom.
If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
James 2:15–17
Is verbally preaching the gospel a good work? Of course. But it is not the only good work. We all obviously do many different good works, and are biblically commanded to.
Some examples of good works we’re commanded
* Caring for the poor and needy - James 1:27 says, "Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world." This command emphasizes practical acts of mercy and care for the vulnerable in society, reflecting God's heart for the disadvantaged.
* Loving your neighbor as yourself - Leviticus 19:18, quoted by Jesus in Matthew 22:39, commands us to "love your neighbor as yourself." This love is not just a vague feeling but is demonstrated through concrete actions, such as showing integrity, caring for the less privileged, and even blessing those who mistreat us (Leviticus 19:–18) 5.
* Providing for the household of faith - Galatians 6:10 commands, "So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith." Christians are called to prioritize meeting the needs of fellow believers, whether through financial support, encouragement, or practical help 4.
* Defending the rights of the oppressed - Proverbs 31:8–9 says, "Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute. Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy." This is a call to advocate for justice and protect the vulnerable in society, reflecting God's concern for righteousness and equity 3.
* Practicing hospitality - Romans 12:13 exhorts believers to "contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality." Welcoming others into our homes and lives, especially those in need, is a tangible way to demonstrate Christ’s love and build community within the body of Christ
* Providing for your own family - 1 Timothy 5:8 mentions that “if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.” Even pagans provide for their families, so for a Christian to neglect this would make him worse than a pagan.
The True Great Commission
What about the great commission! That’s our ultimate task, we shouldn’t legislate morality (even though that’s literally what laws are). Just follow Jesus and tell people about him!
Here’s an example of what I’m talking about
Let’s dive into this objection. The text of the Great Commission is as follows:
Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matt. 28:16-20, ESV)
The Great Commission includes the work of evangelism and discipleship. This discipleship entails teaching the evangelized to obey all that Christ has commanded. What has Jesus commanded?
To keep things simple, why don’t we just start with the 2 greatest. I mean, if all the Law and the Prophets hang on these, surely they’d be a part of the commands that Jesus is referring to.
But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matt. 22:34-40, ESV)
Throughout the Gospels, we see that our obligation to love our neighbor was one of the main emphases of Christ’s teaching ministry (Matt. 7:12, Luke 10:25-37, John 15:12-14,Matt. 25:31-46). So, if we’re supposed to love our neighbor, what does that mean practically?
Let’s take the topic of abortion (aka legal baby murder in America).
If you love your neighbor as yourself, will you stand idly by while he is legally dismembered, even though he has committed no crime, and wronged no one?
Of course not, that is unjust, and directly against God’s standard of justice. But who is supposed to uphold justice? Me and you? Are we vigilantes patrolling the streets? Well no, of course not. The civil magistrate is tasked with upholding public justice.
For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer.
Romans 13:3–4
Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.
1 Peter 2:13–14
Well, as Christians, if we can’t let our neighbors get killed unjustly, since that would be against the 2nd greatest command…what options do I have?
* Lobby & influence current politicians to present righteous decrees
* Become a politician to present righteous decrees
In fact, as Christians we can use pagan rulers to pass righteous decrees! If I myself get saved, and then lobby a pagan politician to pass a law the ban child sacrifice in my state, guess what? That’s spreading God’s kingdom! We don’t have to wait around for our politicians to become Christians. Is that amazing?
To say that the ONLY method we can use to make change in our laws is just preaching the gospel to our politicians is simply pietistic nonsense.
If we hold that we can do this for abortion, we need to be consistent that we would hold this for anything unjust that the government is doing. And if we hold to that, Christians have a duty to be political.
Biblical Examples of Reasoning with Government Officials
Lastly, there are several biblical examples of individuals lobbying kings or government officials to make godly decrees or rebuking them for their actions. These examples demonstrate that God's people have historically engaged with rulers to promote justice and righteousness, even in pagan or secular contexts.
* Daniel and Nebuchadnezzar: Daniel admonished King Nebuchadnezzar to "break off your sins by practicing righteousness, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the oppressed" (Daniel 4:27). This was a direct call for the king to align his rule with God's standards of justice and mercy. Daniel's boldness in addressing the king shows that God's people are called to speak truth to power, even when it involves rebuking a ruler
* Nathan and King David: The prophet Nathan rebuked King David after his sin with Bathsheba and the murder of Uriah. Nathan confronted David with a parable and then declared, "You are the man!" (2 Samuel 12:7). This example highlights the role of God's servants in holding rulers accountable to God's moral law, even when the ruler is part of God's covenant people.
* Ezra and Artaxerxes: Ezra praised God for putting it into the heart of King Artaxerxes to decree that the law of God should be taught and upheld in the region beyond the river, with punishments for those who disobeyed it (Ezra 7:25-26). This demonstrates a case where a pagan king was influenced to promote God's law, showing that godly lobbying can extend even to non-Israelite rulers.
* John the Baptist and Herod: John the Baptist rebuked Herod Antipas for his unlawful marriage to Herodias, saying, "It is not lawful for you to have her" (Matthew 14:4). This act of rebuke cost John his life, but it underscores the prophetic responsibility to confront rulers with God's moral standards.
Conclusion
Should Christians be political? Yes. It’s time to kill pietism.
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