Maintaining the Priority of our Calling
In an ongoing discussion I am having with a friend who identifies as atheist, he often brings up, whether on topic or not, the subject of politics and Christianity. Each time it involves the most egregious actions of those who identify as Christian. He is unwilling or unable to make a distinction between those he is criticizing and the actual teachings/tenets of Christianity, which always results in his criticizing Christianity itself.
Now, there are certainly those within the Church that have brought this criticism upon themselves and thus, unfairly upon the broader Church. This has been true primarily in the last decade or so, as the word Evangelical has become nearly synonymous with the farthest right-winged politics. And, the fact that this occurs in a society that is all too willing to snatch up any and all examples of behavior that makes Christianity something it is not, the result being the redefining of words to fit the modern narrative rather than what is the long-standing dictionary definition of words. This makes a discussion regarding these things extremely difficult.
So, I thought it appropriate to write a short piece on Christian behavior, as we are taught in Scripture to and apply it to the subject of politics, specifically. This will be a short piece given that Christian teachings, Jesus’ teachings, on the subject are few. In fact, when it comes to the Gospels, where we find what Jesus specifically taught on the subject, there is only one reference. We’ll get to that.
Let’s start with Romans 13:1-7;
“Every person is to be subject 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 servant 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 servant 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 the sake of conscience. For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing. Pay to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; respect to whom respect; honor to whom honor.”
This passage starts out with a very clear command regarding the relationship we are to have with the civil governing authorities. “Every person is to be subject to the governing authorities”. “To be subject to” is the same as saying “obey” the governing authorities. There are no ifs, ands, or buts in this passage, though when we look to the whole of Scripture, we will find some. This is a good example of why the whole of Scripture is important to be considered on all subjects. I will do that later in this piece, that is, deal specifically with the “if, ands, or buts”. However, as a general rule/principle, this passage gives clear instructions that we are to obey, be subject to, the civil laws of the land.
In this Romans passage it only specifies one of those civil rules, that being the paying of taxes. Interestingly, this is the one thing that Jesus speaks of in regards to anything that could be considered political in His day, though specifically, it is not a civil tax, rather a temple tax. I think you will see that the point He makes is easily applicable to civil laws. Matthew 17:24-27
“Now when they came to Capernaum, those who collected the two-drachma tax came to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the two-drachma tax?” He said, “Yes.” And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect customs or poll-tax, from their sons or from strangers?” When Peter said, “From strangers,” Jesus said to him, “Then the sons are exempt. However, so that we do not offend them, go to the sea and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a stater. Take that and give it to them for you and Me.”
The other mention of taxes is in Mark 12 where He is confronted regarding civil taxation. “Is it permissible to pay a poll-tax to Caesar, or not? Are we to pay, or not pay?” Jesus’ response; “Pay to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”
As I read the Matthew passage, as well as the Mark passage, it comes across to me with a sort of “just do it and move on” attitude. He doesn’t say anything about what most, at the time (and now), are thinking regarding the fairness of the required tax. He says nothing about the amount that the Jewish or Jewish authorities require. He simply says, “pay it”. For me the message here that Jesus is giving is, don’t get distracted by those things which are not important to the mission that He (and later the Church) is called to.
As an aside here, while we are on the subject of taxes, I couldn’t help but think of the tax-exempt status that churches have and what would be Jesus’ position on it. Would He say; “Yes, we are exempt…However, so that we don’t offend…”. Just food for thought and maybe another time we can consider that further.
Moving on…
The rest of the passage brings up questions that are answered in other places in Scripture. The reason these are important to consider is because of the simple fact that while “there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God”, those same authorities for the most part, are unaware that they are there to do the bidding of God Himself. Those authorities are made up of fallen/sinful men. It’s not hard to see in the laws that are established, that the civil authorities do not go to God when considering the laws of the land. I think it’s interesting that the fact that these men (who are the civil leaders) aren’t aware that they are subjects of and subject to God, isn’t a “but”. There is no Scriptural clause that excuses us from obeying laws that we don’t like or that we think are infringing on some “right”. The Roman government in Jesus’ day was far more oppressive than the government we are under today yet, He said nothing on this subject.
So, what are we to do when the government requires of us something that is forbidden by God or forbids us to do something that God has said we must do? This is the primary “but” in the Romans passage.
The answer to this is found in Acts 4:18-20 “And when they had summoned them, they commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, make your own judgment; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.” And in Acts 5:29 “But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.”
Make no mistake, disobeying the laws of the civil authorities, whether they are laws that are contrary to what God has commanded or not, brings with it consequences. But better to suffer the consequences that result from disobeying man than the consequences for disobeying God.
We must be very careful in considering the “if, ands, and buts”. The enemy can see our vulnerabilities. And though we have the Holy Spirit to guide us, we must remember that we still fight against the old nature, that nature that still can hear the calling of its master.
Which Kingdom Do We Serve?
Specifically speaking to and as an American citizen, there is a mindset that has come with this citizenship that the enemy has used, quite effectively, to nudge the Christian down a road that does not lead to or advocate for the Kingdom of God.
Those of us who have grown up in this country have been indoctrinated by three particular words and along with those words a particular mindset. These have, incrementally over the last 5 decades or so, gone from honorable ideas, that men died to protect, that allowed the Christian to pursue and worship God, to a tool the enemy has used to distract and bring dishonor to the name of Christ. Those words are; Rights. Freedom. Liberty.
I would challenge you to find anything in the teachings of Christianity/Christ that promotes, that encourages us to fight for/advocate for, spend any time at all pursuing, any of these three things (Rights, Freedom, Liberty), especially in the context of the secular, the political, the societal. These three things, good things in and of themselves, have been used by our enemy, the enemy of God, to lead us down a path of destruction.
Unless you’ve been living under the proverbial rock for the last three election seasons, surely you have heard many speak regarding it being our Christian duty to fight for these things. They say that it is a way of “loving our neighbor” as well as being stewards of the blessings God has given us as a nation. My response to that requires the use of a highly theological term; Hog wash!
So, what do we do to right this ship. First of all, we need to pray that God would give us the strength and wisdom to set aside these decades old indoctrinations that have snuck into our lives, that we now accept as “gospel”. We need to also pray for revival, both in the sense of people being saved, coming to faith, but also in the sense of a “renewing of the mind” kind of revival for those of us who are in the Church, who profess the Name.
Russell Moore references a warning from A.W. Tozer, in his article: “The American Evangelical Church Is in Crisis. There’s Only One Way Out”. “Some evangelicals confuse revival with nostalgia. Rather than truly seeking a change of heart, a genuine move of the Holy Spirit on the individual and society, they long for a bygone age that is mostly mythical.”
I would suggest that the mindset the Christian has to return to, or find for the first time, to live a life honoring to God, in whatever culture/society/country he finds himself, is found in 1 Peter 2:11-12; This is a start.
“Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.”
First of all, this passage, in a manner of speaking, puts us in our place. The Christian’s primary citizenship is in heaven, in the Kingdom to come (Philippians 3:20). On this earth, we are “sojourners, exiles”. In the same way that the Jews, when they were captives of another culture, had to be careful not to take on the Godless practices of that other culture, so we have to be careful to not be guilty of doing the same while we are among the Gentiles of our day.
Secondly, there is a tendency to read “abstain from the passions of the flesh” and narrow the meaning of that phrase to mean sexual sin. This is not the case, though sexual sin is certainly included. More importantly, to the subject at hand, it means anything that draws us away from remembering that we are first and foremost, in thought and deed, citizens of the Kingdom of God, foreigners in this land, should be cast aside.
An example of “abstain from the passions of the flesh” that came to mind while I wrote this was the movie Braveheart. I have to admit that it’s much easier to follow the teachings of William Wallace in Braveheart (“What will you do without freedom!?) than it is to follow the teachings of our faith (“die to self”). There is an instant sort of gratification (which is the “reward” that comes from passions of the flesh of all kinds) to be had in physically destroying an enemy that you can see. Unfortunately, we don’t get the same feelings from loving our enemies and dying to self. But, is instant gratification our goal or is it Christ-likeness? The same gratification comes from not only physically destroying an “enemy”, but also in the intellectual destruction or even simply in putting them down. Jesus did speak to this kind of behavior in Matthew 5:22.
“But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.”
Thirdly, in this passage, we are told to “keep our conduct among the Gentiles honorable”. The title of this piece is “Christianity and Politics”. And, this being an election year, and the primary reason I am writing this, I will put this part of the passage in that context. It behooves us to consider how to apply this when it comes to politics particularly. Is it honorable to set aside our calling (that being promoting the coming of the Kingdom of God) to promote what we think will protect our personal Rights, Freedom, and Liberty? Do we hitch our wagon, so to speak, to godless men or groups or organizations, in order to preserve that which is not part of God’s intentions for us in the here and now?
Another Scripture that tells us about how we are to respond to the civil authorities is Titus 3:1-2.
“Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people.”
Right away I have to say, that sure doesn’t sound like any of the discussions I’ve heard when politics is the subject. “Speak evil of no one, avoid quarreling, be gentle, and show perfect courtesy toward all people.” So, the Christian has not only a different set of priorities when it comes to the political, but also our demeanor. This does not mean we can’t or shouldn’t enter into the discussion. It does mean that if we do, we need to remember who we represent. At all times, on all subjects, we are to represent the One to whom we have given ourselves.
John the Baptizer set the priority with these simple words. “He must increase; I must decrease” John 3:30 Jesus, in His life, continued this attitude in relation to His own Father. “For I did not speak on My own, but the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak.” John 12:49 This was followed by the teaching of the Apostle Paul when He said; “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” Galatians 2:20
“It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me…” It was only a few years ago that I began applying this to my politics. If, in fact, “it is no longer I who live”, what does that look like in all areas of my life. For me it means that I have to check myself at every turn to see if my words promote a particular political party or platform or if it promotes ideas that are consistent with the coming Kingdom of God.
While I’m sure that Jesus spoke directly to His Father and likewise, the Father spoke directly to His Son, I can’t say that I have ever heard the audible voice of God and, quite frankly, I’m a bit skeptical of those who say they do. But what I do have confidence in is that we can all “hear” God speak, directly to us, on both general principles and specific issues, when we read the Bible, His written word.
Regardless of my natural “leanings”, the standard by which I must established my convictions is simple. Whether an issue is a plank in the Republican platform or the Democrat Platform or some other party’s platform, if it is consistent with the teachings and tenets of Christianity, I will support it. If it is contrary to the teachings and tenets of Christianity, I will be against it. Surely there are things we can do to better the society we live in. However, as Christians, we must not lose sight of the priority that is our calling. Jesus made no effort to change or even address the oppressive government that ruled during His time. He knew, as we must keep in mind, there are no political solutions for what really ails man.
More important than our stance on the civil authorities and the laws they have established for our society, is how we comport ourselves. The entirety of the New Testament is a primer in behavior. We are to carry ourselves in a manner that brings glory to God. We are to identify with Christ, first and foremost. Further, we are to keep this in mind when we choose a person or party to support, when we exercise our franchise as citizens of this earthly country.
It’s important that we see that there are no exceptions regarding our behavior, whether we are considering the situation we may be in or the subject we may be discussing. We see in the writings of Paul that he continues to teach what Jesus taught, even to those who are enslaved.
Titus 2:9-10 “Urge bondslaves to be subject to their own masters in everything, to be well-pleasing, not argumentative, not stealing, but showing all good faith so that they will adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in every respect.”
Ephesians 6:5-8 “Slaves, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ; not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart. With goodwill render service, as to the Lord, and not to people, knowing that whatever good thing each one does, he will receive this back from the Lord, whether slave or free.”
Interesting, isn’t it. Paul tells slaves to be “obedient to your masters” “as to Christ”. Not one word or even a vailed suggestion that they should fight to be free. Granted, the culture and society in Paul’s day was different in many ways to ours. Even slavery was not what we have experienced in this country. However, Paul’s focus, as ours should be, is on glorifying God in whatever circumstances we find ourselves, not in the changing of our circumstances.
What is most important, is that we must always keep in mind who we are and Who’s we are. To always remember, in all circumstances, on all subjects, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me…” To figure out how to do this and what it looks like in our daily lives, including our politics, has to be intentional. We will never become Christ-like by feel.
Philippians 2:12 says; “So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” “Work out your salvation”. We must intentionally, deliberately, figure out how to live, moment by moment, in such a way as to accurately represent the faith and the One in whom we have faith, Jesus.
To wrap this piece up, there are two things that I want to make sure I leave with you.
First of all, how do we establish our convictions. Regardless from whence an idea may originate, whether they come from the “left” or the “right”, are they consistent with the teachings and tenets of the Bible. Don’t be seduced by tradition or nostalgia or family or friends. Let the word of God and the example of Jesus establish who you are, in all things, including politics.
Second of all, and I personally think most importantly, how do we behave? How do we carry ourselves as we live among those who are perishing? Are we more concerned that they don’t step on our rights? That they don’t infringe on our freedoms? That they don’t interfere with our liberties? Or do we weep at the thought of our neighbors being lost, and ask God how we can be Jesus to them.
I Peter 3:14-18 says; “And do not fear their intimidation, and do not be in dread, but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, but with gentleness and respect; and keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who disparage your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame. For it is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong.”
To be continued…