The Kingdom Perspective

Transcript:

Hello! This is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective!

The biblical and Christian understanding of the limited nature of human authority has been nowhere better and succinctly stated than by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. In April of 1963, he had been imprisoned for protesting his opposition to the overreach of government in their laws mandating the segregation of races in the Jim Crow South. In his famous “Letter from Birmingham Jail” he was responding to mainline White clergy who had criticized his tactics in fighting these “unjust laws”.

King responded with gracious but pointed truth, deeply rooted in the biblical Christian tradition. Listen:

“One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws. I would agree with St. Augustine that ‘an unjust law is no law at all.’”

Dr. King goes on to raise the question:

“Now, what is the difference between the two? How does one determine whether a law is just or unjust? A just law is a man-made code that squares with the moral law or the law of God. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law. To put it in the terms of St. Thomas Aquinas: An unjust law is a human law that is not rooted in eternal law and natural law.” (King, Martin Luther Jr. “Letter from a Birmingham jail.” In Why We Can’t Wait, 1963.)

A human law and the application of that human law are only valid to the degree that they square with the law of God. All human authority is established by God (Romans 13) and therefore is accountable to His Word.

Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.

“When they had brought them, they stood them before the Council. The high priest questioned them, saying, ‘We gave you strict orders not to continue teaching in this name, and yet, you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.’ But Peter and the apostles answered, ‘We must obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you had put to death by hanging Him on a cross. He is the one whom God exalted to His right hand as a Prince and a Savior, to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses of these things; and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey Him.’”

~ Acts 5:27-32 (NASB95)

Transcript:

Hello! This is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective!

Human government is to be essentially limited, for it is a delegated authority from a higher power. As the Apostle Paul put it in Romans “there is no authority except from God” (Romans 13:1). God made it! So, it is legitimate only to the degree that it is functioning according to God’s designated purpose.

But that begs the question: for what purpose are these human authorities established? What must these delegated authorities do to maintain their legitimacy?

Well, the Apostle Peter tells us:
Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. (1 Peter 2:13-14 NASB95)

Did you catch that? The essential and necessary work of human government is: 1) to squelch evil and 2) to support the good in human society. Again, it exists “for the punishment of evildoers, and the praise of those who do right”. Authorities and administrations function properly when they nurture an atmosphere in which a healthy society can flourish. To the degree that any human authority loses sight of this, to that degree it has lost its legitimacy.

Therefore, it is critical for Christians (and others of good will) to engage in the public square, in a manner that would promote both good order and good ends. We as individual citizens, families, and churches must not only hold our rulers to account for these purposes, but also strive to live for them ourselves.

Are you?

Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.

“Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men. Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God. Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king.”
~ 1 Peter 2:13-17 (NASB95)

Transcript:

Hello! This is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective!

In Romans 13 the early church leader the Apostle Paul, issued a radical statement to the Christians in Rome. He said:

Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves. For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise from the same; for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil. Therefore it is necessary to be in subjection, not only because of wrath, but also for conscience’ sake. For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing. Render to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor.

Now, this has been misused over the years by some in authority to demand that those under them blindly and unreservedly obey. But this is not at all what Paul says. Paul doesn’t command the Roman authorities to force their authority upon the people. This is not addressed to the Roman authorities at all! In other words, God doesn’t say to Caesar: “I’ve given you unlimited authority, so do as you please.” No! Quite the opposite.

He is saying that all human authority is a form of delegated authority. It doesn’t lie in the person or the office, but ultimately in God, the author of all things (N.B. the connection of “author” to “authority”).

This was a radical idea in the history of the world. No human being has any legitimate authority except to the extent given as a stewardship from the throne of heaven.

Now, certainly, this means that Roman Christians (and we) therefore should be respectful of those in authority. Rulers are ministers/servants of God (Romans 13:4), as Paul will go on to say; and we should expect to be accountable to them. But just as important, it tells us that no earthly authority is ultimate. All authority is itself accountable to the Divine Authority of heaven. Human government is designed by God to be essentially and necessarily limited, for it is a delegated authority of a higher power.

And that’s something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.

“Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves. For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise from the same; for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil. Therefore it is necessary to be in subjection, not only because of wrath, but also for conscience’ sake. For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing. Render to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor.”
~ Romans 13:1-7 (NASB95)

Transcript:

Hello, this is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective.

In times of great political division, our thinking tends to become what some sociologists have dubbed “apocalyptic”. We begin to believe that what takes place at this moment—in the next election, during the next session of Congress or the next ruling from the Supreme Court—is going to determine the fate of our lives, indeed, the fate of all history. One side says: “If this guy wins the White House or this party wins the Congress, we are all doomed.” And the other side says: “If that guy wins the White House or that party wins the Congress, we are all doomed.”

Such thinking is not only false and extreme, it is also revealing. It reveals where our real hope is. (Interestingly, the word “apocalyptic” quite literarily means to “unveil” or “reveal”.)

Christians, however, need not think like this—not because there are not issues at stake in any given election or that what happens in Washington is of no significance. Rather, Christians have an anchor that goes beyond the chaos of the present moment. Our hope ultimately does not come from the White House in Washington but from our Father’s house in heaven. Our hope is not in human powers, but in the power of God.

As the Psalmist put it:
Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. (Psalm 20:7)

Such confidence allows us to enter the public square, not desperately seeking salvation, but rather seeking to serve. We are free to bring the hope of the true Savior to a world bent on finding it in political saviors that are only destined to disappoint.

Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.

“Now I know that the Lord saves His anointed;
He will answer him from His holy heaven
With the saving strength of His right hand.
Some boast in chariots and some in horses,
But we will boast in the name of the Lord, our God.
They have bowed down and fallen,
But we have risen and stood upright.
Save, O Lord;
May the King answer us in the day we call.”
~ Psalm 20:6-9 (NASB)

Transcript:

Hello, this is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to the Kingdom Perspective.

In the midst of the Nazi crisis, English Prime Minister Winston Churchill declared, “A pessimist sees calamity in every opportunity, but an optimist sees an opportunity in every calamity.”

Though Churchill was the leader of a country that overtly proclaimed itself “Christian”, Churchill himself was not much of a churchman. One time he quipped: “I could hardly be called a pillar of the Church. I am more in the nature of a [flying] buttress, for I support it from the outside” (Roy Jenkins, Churchill: A Biography (London: Plume, 2002), 49 n.)

Although he was not personally a Christian, nonetheless, it seems that his tenacious and optimistic spirit owes itself in no small part to the Christian context in which he was raised. The Christian religion at its heart is a religion of optimism. It believes that the best is yet to come. It believes that our labors in this life will be rewarded, and that evil will not ultimately triumph.

This gives us buoyancy in our troubles and the gumption to overcome them.

Again, listen to Churchill: “Success is not final, failure is not fatal; it is the courage to continue that counts.”

As Apostle Paul puts it:
So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison (2 Corinthians 4:16-17 ESV)

My friends, this is good news when we face the troubles and trials of our days.

Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.

“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”
~ 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (ESV)

Transcript:

Hello, this is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective.

Representative John Lewis was a legend in his time and one of the most important civil rights leaders of ours. As a young man, he led the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, the group responsible for organizing the numerous student-led sit-ins against racial segregation. At just 23 years-of-age he joined Martin Luther King on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial as one of the youngest organizers and speakers at the 1963 Civil Rights March. Later in 1965 he helped lead the march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama. Sadly, this event became known as Bloody Sunday, because John Lewis and his followers were attacked and brutally beaten. Lewis himself suffered a cracked skull.

You do not need to agree with every aspect of John Lewis’s politics to appreciate his towering presence over the past 60 years.

What strikes me most about John Lewis is his optimistic courage and gentle patience, even with those that hated him. Lewis refused to be sucked in by hate; rather he sought to overcome hate with truth and love.

He famously said: “You never ever hate. You must never ever become bitter or hostile. You must be hopeful. You must be optimistic. Never, never give up.”

Now, what would give one such courage and patience? I think that answer is simple. Lewis, like his mentor Dr. King was a Baptist minister. He grew up in a Christian home. From his earliest days his imagination was animated with the optimism of the gospel of Jesus Christ, even preaching that gospel to the chickens on his family farm when he was just five.

Here’s the point: Those whose imaginations have been captivated by a God who loved us when we hated Him, died for us when we were His enemies and yet rose victorious over our sin and guilt, have a resilience that this world cannot easily shake. It does not conform to this world; it overcomes it.

Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.

“Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”
~ 1 Corinthians 15:58 (ESV)

Transcript:

Hello, this is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to the Kingdom Perspective.

As Americans we love our freedom. However, ill-defined freedom can lead us to a very insidious form of slavery. What do I mean? As Americans, we tend to define freedom as the ability to do whatever we want without external interference. However, this makes no sense, for it pits God’s law against my liberty. God, as our Creator, knows what’s best for us; he knows my design. Thus, true freedom is not necessarily defined by the ability to fulfill my desires. Rather, it is defined by the ability to fulfill my design. Birds are free when they fly. Fish are free when they swim. Humans are free when they love God and His law. Anything less than God’s law is not liberty; it is slavery.

Listen to the great First century Jewish philosopher Philo describe true freedom:
“…just as with cities, those which lie under an oligarchy or tyranny suffer enslavement, because they have cruel or severe masters, who keep them in subjection under their sway, while those which have laws to care for and protect them are free, so, too, with men. Those in whom anger or desire or any other passion, or again any insidious vice holds sway, are entirely enslaved, while all those whose life is regulated by law are free.” (Philo in “Every Good Man is Free” 45-46)

You see the point. Law is not necessarily contrary to liberty. Rather, God’s law is the very ground of liberty.

It is true that you are enslaved to the degree that your actions are bound by the dictates of a tyrannical government. However, it is likewise true that you are enslaved to the degree that you are bound by the dictatorial desires of your own heart.

Free people have the liberty to obey God’s law. They are not bound by tyrants—whether external or internal.

Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.

“What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.”

~ Romans 6:15-17 (ESV)

Transcript:

Hello, this is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to the Kingdom Perspective.

Science is God’s gift to humanity. It is a particular form of knowledge that is intuitive to us as those made in the image of God. That’s why, historically, modern science blossomed in a context suffused with a Christian imagination—a context where it was acknowledged that we live in an orderly universe created by an orderly God, that empowered rational creatures, beings made in God’s image, to explore and care for that world.

This is why the true scientist is always curious. Science is always a learner. The Bible commands us to ponder and be curious about God and all that He has made.

Science is never content with the facts at hand. It wants to know more. Moreover, it doesn’t accept facts as conclusions. Rather, it wants to see all the data, all the angles. It asks questions of any conclusion, trying to see if there’s another way to see it.

Thus, the history of science is one of revolution—the overturning of former conclusions in the face of newer ones that take into account more data points, thus, giving us a bigger picture. So, for example, we speak of the Copernican Revolution, overturning the longstanding ancient Greco-Roman understanding of the solar system (the Ptolemaic model).

Thus, a posture of science that is too dogmatic, too entrenched in the given assumptions of any “scientific establishment”, is not the posture of true science. It ceases to be a learner; it ceases to be curious.

And so, science is skeptical not only of the skepticism of the “science deniers”, but also it is reasonably skeptical of the received scientific wisdom itself.

Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.

Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said:

“Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?
Dress for action like a man;
I will question you, and you make it known to me.
Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?
Tell me, if you have understanding.
Who determined its measurements—surely you know!
Or who stretched the line upon it?
On what were its bases sunk,
or who laid its cornerstone,
when the morning stars sang together
and all the sons of God shouted for joy?”

~ Job 38:1-7 (ESV)

Transcript:

Hello, this is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to the Kingdom Perspective.

Classical Christianity provides the basic framework for scientific investigation. On the one hand it acknowledges that there is such a thing as truth. We live in an orderly universe created by intelligent God, and so can know certain things about our world. But on the other hand, it tells us that we are limited observers, always discovering new data. Therefore, it calls us to be humble in our interpretations and open to the wisdom of God and others.

But this is precisely where we go wrong. St. Paul in his Letter to the Romans (Romans 1:18-25) describes the problem as two-fold. First, we do not acknowledge that this is God’s world; we fail to honor the Creator. And second, we then set up ourselves as the objective judge of all truth, thus failing to see ourselves and the world accurately. Our understanding becomes darkened. Professing to be wise, we become fools (Romans 1:22). To say it another way, we fail to acknowledge the two most obvious truths: 1) there is a God who knows all things, and 2) we are not Him.

This insidious side of our humanity is the essence of sin. We are not necessarily objective truth seekers, but instead often use “truth” for self-serving ends.

The gospel, however, checks us in our sin by reminding us that one day all our supposed “truth claims” will be examined by the One who is the Truth. Therefore, all that we do, even our scientific pursuits, are ultimately done before the face of the One who alone is objective. He sees it all. Thus, His perspective will have the final say.

This both elevates our scientific endeavors, while humbling us. However, cut off from this truth, science itself can become a tool for more nefarious purposes.

Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.

“For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable.”

~ Hebrews 4:12-13 (NLT)

Transcript:

Hello, this is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome the Kingdom Perspective.

Science, by its very nature, is reasonably skeptical. It always considers any claim to knowledge with a “can-you-prove-it” attitude. It doesn’t just accept what we know or what a supposed expert says; it wants to verify how we know what we know. It is driven by a posture of skepticism.

But it is a reasonable skepticism. It doesn’t refuse to believe without absolute proof—what is that anyways—but carefully weighs the evidence and settles on the most reasonable conclusion.

To say it another way, this means that good science always seeks understanding. It is for this reason that it works best in a context of relational reasonability—a context where it is able to persuade and is willing to be persuaded. Science operates best in the free exchange of ideas—a framework not of power plays but persuasion. And so, true science doesn’t use “science” as a buzzword to shut down the conversation but rather to open it to reasonable dialogue about the best interpretation of all the data.

Classical Christianity gives us this framework. On the one hand it acknowledges that there is such a thing as truth. We live in an orderly universe created by an orderly God, therefore we can know—through observation and interpretation—certain things about our world. But on the other hand, it tells us that we are limited observers, always discovering new data. Therefore, we are humble in our interpretations and open to the observations of others.

Classical Christianity gives us those foundational building blocks—the proper worldview—for scientific pursuit.

Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.

“The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom,
and whatever you get, get insight.
Prize her highly, and she will exalt you;
she will honor you if you embrace her.
She will place on your head a graceful garland;
she will bestow on you a beautiful crown.”

~ Proverbs 4:7-9 (ESV)