Christians and Politics
"When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn."- Proverbs 29:2
“The Church must take right ground in regards to politics . . . God will bless or curse the nation according to the [political] course Christians take.” -Charles Finney
From the moment the first settlers came to America, and dedicated the land to "the glory of God, and the Propagation of
the Christian Faith," the Christian church has played a central role in shaping the governmental structure of our nation. In this big election year, I feel it would be timely to look at what God’s
Word says about civil government, and how Christians are to relate to secular authority. The Bible says more about this issue than you may realize.
Sadly, Christians who are involved in the political process are often derided as being some sort of fringe group, the "radical Christian right." However, our critics
often overlook the fact that Christians have been on the cutting edge of some of the greatest reforms in history, including the development of many hospitals, charities, and the founding of some of
our greatest colleges and universities. From the abolition of slavery, to the civil rights reforms of the 1960s, Christians have been on the front lines of making the world a better place for
all.
Much is said about the "separation of Church and State." Our forefathers mentioned the concept because of the bad experience they had w/ the Church of England being told what to do from the higher
ups at a national level. But they never dreamed some would twist it to say the church had to stay out of the state, just the other way around.
There are a number of Scriptural principles that should be examined. While it is true that the Bible teaches that spiritual government (Church) and political government (State) are two separate institutions, they are to function in ways that are complimentary to each other. For example: In ancient Israel, Moses was the political leader (Exodus 18:15-16), while his brother Aaron served in the Priesthood as the spiritual leader (Exodus 28-29) A similar relationship is seen between King Josiah and Hilkiah the Priest (2 Kings 22.) Another example would be Nehemiah the Governor (Nehemiah 7:1-7,) and Ezra the Scribe (Nehemiah 8:1-8.) David was king, but when he sinned, the spiritual leader, Nathan, the prophet. “Thou art the man.”
Above all, the highest law is God’s Law, and He expects all human governments to be subject to it (Psalm 2:10-12; Isaiah
8:20.)
Psalm 2:10-12
10 Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth.
11 Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put
their trust in him.
Isaiah 8:20
20 To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.
Please understand, we are not "preaching politics" when we talk about our relationship as Christians to the political process. Ultimately, genuine change comes
through changed hearts, which only occurs as people respond to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. However, we do still live in a fallen, sinful world, and as we will see, God has ordained the system of
civil government to protect the innocent, and to maintain proper order. The Christian life carries a prophetic voice that calls us to shine light into dark places. Jesus’ call for His people to be
salt and light to a dying world covers every aspect of life (Matthew 5:13-14,) including how we vote and relate to our
government. Christians are to be peaceful, law abiding citizens, (Romans 13:1-7; 1 Peter 2:13-15.) We are to pray for and
honor our government leaders (1 Timothy 2:1-3,) faithfully pay our taxes (Matthew 22:21,) and to work for the highest
good of all people (Proverbs 3:27; Galatians 6:10.) This includes working to promote Godly principles in politics and government (Proverbs 29:2.)
In Rom. 13 we see that civil government is ordained by God to punish evil, and preserve the peace in a society. It even goes as far as to call government servants ministers of God! (Obviously, they
don’t always live up to it, but that is God’s ideal nonetheless.) In light of this, the Bible calls us to obey all civil laws, unless these laws are in direct violation to the laws and commandments
of God (see Acts 4:19.)
There are a number of people in the Bible that God specifically called to work for change in the political and governmental arena. This includes men and women such as Joseph (Genesis 41:39-41),
Deborah (Judges 5:1-7), Gideon (Judges 6:11-14), Samuel (1 Samuel 3:1-19), David (1 Samuel 16:1-13), Nehemiah (Nehemiah
1:1-11), and Daniel (Daniel 1:4-6; 18-21). In our day, there are a number of avenues through which we can work for change in civil authority. One important avenue we should avail ourselves of is
Election Day, and I feel it necessary at this time, considering the year we have had, the state and nation we live in, and the leaders we have, to say the following: it's time to vote the bums
out!
The God given privilege of voting is something we should never take for granted. Keep in mind that following Jesus transcends blind
loyalty to political parties, and to a degree, there is room among Christians for some honest difference of opinion in regard to politics. Nevertheless, there are some Biblical principles that God
requires us all to follow when it comes to the stands we take.
These Biblically mandated issues include:
Speaking out for innocent life (Proverbs 31:8.) This includes unborn children (Psalm 139:13-16; Isaiah 44:2, 24; 49:1-5; Jeremiah 1:5)
Part of the stimulus, several million, went to a turtle tunnel under a highway in FL so turtles could cross w/out being run over. Why does it seem the
liberals care about life as long as it is not human?
Confronting sin and moral decay (Proverbs 14:34; Isaiah 5:20; Jonah 1:2)
Proverbs 14:34
34 Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.
Isaiah 5:20
20 Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for
bitter!
Jonah 1:2
2 Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.
Defending the poor and oppressed (Psalm 10:2; Isaiah 10:1-2; Amos 2:6-7)
Working toward the peace and blessing of Israel (Genesis 12:3; 27:29; Psalm 122:6)
Genesis 12:3
3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
Genesis 27:29
29 Let people serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother's sons bow down to thee: cursed be
every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee.
[Who are Israel's mother's sons? How about ones like Ishmael [Muslims], Esau [Moabites], and others who strayed from the Godly line. This verse is specific about the fact that we are to
protect Israel in regards to their Muslim enemies.]
Psalm 122:6
6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee.
Secondly, contrary to popular belief, character DOES count when choosing our leaders. Obviously, they need to be competent. Exodus 18:21-22 gives us a good model
to follow. These passages show us that civil leaders are to be "...able men who fear God...men of truth, hating covetousness (greed)". If our country had always followed these common sense guidelines
when casting our votes, we would be a much stronger nation today.
The Bible describes leadership as being a sacred trust, and placing a person in such a position is a very serious thing. For example, in 1 Timothy 5:22, Paul instructs the young Pastor Timothy to "Lay hands suddenly on no man (to ordain him into the ministry,) neither be partaker of
other men’s sins" In other words, if we hastily put a person into leadership who is not worthy of it, we risk bearing the guilt of that person’s sin.
What does this have to do with voting? As we mentioned earlier, the Bible also describes government leaders as being ministers of God. In this case, we "ordain" our leaders by our votes, support, and
influence. If we support politicians who support ungodly causes, or promote immoral behavior, God holds us responsible for that. And what if we don’t vote at all?
2 John 1:11
11 For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.
Finally, we can never fall into the trap of substituting political involvement for the Gospel. We must recognize that politics can never be an instrument of salvation.
While we can and should work for positive change, this is, at best, a Band-Aid solution. At their root, a nation’s problems are always spiritual in nature. When it comes to eternal issues, simply
"moralizing" our culture is not enough. Winning people to our political causes is not enough. Without a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, they will still be totally lost.
"Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance." (Psalms 33:12)
[with helps from James Boyd]