Christians and Government Part 1

June 30, 2013

Port Gardner Church

Chuck Hickman

Christians and Government Part 1

Five wrong views about Christians and Government

Introduction:

1.  Government Should Compel Religion

The first wrong view is that Government should compel people to support or follow one particular religion.

In the early years of the US

Support for freedom of religion in the Colonies increased because of a need to form a united country (there were not that many people so they needed to stick together to govern themselves)  This included, Congregational, Episcopalian, Presbyterian, Quaker, Baptist, Catholic and Jewish.

AND because many of the colonists had fled from religious persecution in their home countries.

Promoting the idea that Bible teachings seem to show that Government SHOULD compel religion is an incorrect view and contrary to the Bible.

Genuine Faith Cannot Be Forced

Examples:  Crusades, Muslims:  Saudi Arabia, Catholic Church,

No one ever talked someone else into the faith.  No one ever forced anyone into the faith.  God is the sole provider and revealer of salvation.  He is the only source and the only one who can effect salvation in any possible way.

God’s Kingdom is not of this World

By compelling one religion we destroy true Christian Faith in two ways

1.  If it compels us to follow a non-Christian religion, then it leads to violent suppression of Christians and aims to drive Christianity out of the nation.

2.  If it compels people to become Christians, it drives out true Cchristianity because the opportunity to choose freely is removed.  The result is that the entire society will be “Christian” in name only.  Then we will be governed by “Christians” that are not really Christians.  A church or government run primarily by non-Christians will quickly become spiritually dead and ineffective.

2.  Government Should Exclude Religion

The opposite view is that we should exclude all religion from government.

According to this view, religion should never be mentioned in governmental functions or on government property and should never play a role in the decision making process.

This is promoted by the ACLU and much of secular society today.  Most of us are VERY familiar with this position because we are opposed to it.

The spiritual basis for the “exclude religion” view.

It’s not hard to Christians to see a deep spiritual basis underlying this view.  By excluding religion we make government and subsequently society, completely secular.  This removes any sense of accountability to God for our actions.  And since government has a huge influence on our lives, it would remove from the nation any sense of accountability to God, especially as all relitious viewpoints are removed from the entire system of public education of children.

The ultimate goal of this viewpoint is not only the destruction of all belief in God, but also the complete moral disintegration of society. 

3.  All Government is Evil

This view says that all government power is deeply infected by evil and demonic forces. 

Therefore, all governmental use of “power over” someone is worldly and not the way of life that Jesus taught.

Luke 4:6 and Gregory Boyd author of Myth of a Christian Nation

 Luke 4:6   and said to him, “To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. 

Jesus is answering questions from a group of Jews

John 8:4444 You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.

Jesus is the ruler of earthly governments.  The Devil is a liar and was tempting Jesus with a lie.

1 Cor 10   The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof.

“:…Satan wants us to believe that all civil government is under his control, but that is not taught anywhere in the Bible.  (Of course, Satan can influence some individuals in government, but he is not in control.)  The only verse in the whold Bible that says Satan has authority over all governments is spoken by the father of lies, and we should not believe it.”

John Piper

God has established both evangelism and the power of government to restrain evil.

We are not to spread the Gospel of Christ by using the power of the sword or the power of the government. 

We spread the Gospel by proclaiming the Word of God. 

Romans 10:17    [17] So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

But God has told us that we should restrain evil by the power of the sword and by the poser of civil government. 

Romans 13:1-6 [1] Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. [2] Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. [3] 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, [4] 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. [5] Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God's wrath but also for the sake of conscience. [6] For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing.

If the power of government (such as a policeman) is not present in an emergency, when harm is being done to another person, then my love for the victim should lead me to use physical force to prevent any further harm from occurring.  If I found a criminal attacking my wife or children, I would use all my strength and all the physical force at my disposal against the offending person.  Not to persuade him to trust in Christ as his Savior, but to immediately stop him from harming my wife and kids.

Nehemiah 4:14   [14] And I looked and arose and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.”

Genesis 14:14-16   [14] When Abram heard that his kinsman had been taken captive, he led forth his trained men, born in his house, 318 of them, and went in pursuit as far as Dan. [15] And he divided his forces against them by night, he and his servants, and defeated them and pursued them to Hobah, north of Damascus. [16] Then he brought back all the possessions, and also brought back his kinsman Lot with his possessions, and the women and the people.

4.  Do Evangelism, Not Politics

Some Christians say “We should just preach the Gospel, and that is the only way Christians can hope to change people’s hearts and change society”.  This claims that the church is ONLY called to “preach the Gospel,” and not to preach about politics or government.

1.  Too narrow an understanding of scripture.

Matthew 28:19-20           [19] 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, [20] teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

The whole gospel includes a complete transformation of society.

Which parts of the Bible should the church NOT preach about?

God put both the church and government on earth to restrain evil.

Won’t political involvement distract us from the main task of preaching the gospel? 

God places in the church a variety of gifts.  1 Cor 12.  And the church has “many members” but is still one body.

The  “do evangelism, not politics” view has a mistaken understanding of what is important to God.  As if only spiritual (non-material, other-worldly) things matter to him and not the actual circumstances of people’s physical live in this world.

5.  Do Politics, Not Evangelism

The fifth view says that the church should try to change the laws and the culture and should NOT emphasize evangelism.

This is a primary emphasis of the social gospel movement and many liberal interpreters of scripture.  This emphasis stresses social works in the way of:  overcoming poverty, slums, crime, racial discrimination, and other social evils.

These are good causes in themselves, but this movement places little emphasis on the need for people to place trust in Christ as Savior or the need to proclaim the entire Bibe as the Word of God and worthy of our belief.  The Social Gospel movement

It’s rare to hear a Christian say “Good government will save us” and you will probably never hear one say “We should trust government and not God”!

But it’s important that if we involve ourselves in politics that we proceed with caution:

If we ever begin to believe that good laws alone will solve our nation’s problems or make us a righteous society, we have made a huge mistake. 

There must be change in the hearts and minds of the people.  Good laws only create rules that can bring about only a minimum level of obedience… just enough to avoid punishment.   Good laws cannot by themselves produce good people.

We who are Christians are deluded if we think that we will change our culture solely through political power.

Long term change will only happen if 1. People’s hearts change so that they seek to do good, not evil.  2.  If people’s minds change so that their moral convictions align more closely with God’s moral standards in the Bible and 3.  If a nation’s laws change so that they more fully encourage good conduct and punish wrong conduct.   John Piper

Conclusion:

God is not Republican or Democrat.  He is not progressive or libertarian.  He does not give His stamp of approval to political parties or even individuals.  He Is God!  He is Just and Holy!  He requires holiness in His followers. 

To think that God is on our side is the most wrong headed way to think.  God is not looking for a side to be on… He’s looking for those that would worship Him in spirit and truth.  We worship Him with our lives.  We are to look to God and desire to be on His side. 

Psalm 24:1-6

                [1] The earth is the LORD's and the fullness thereof,

                                the world and those who dwell therein,

                [2] for he has founded it upon the seas

                                and established it upon the rivers.

                [3] Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD?

                                And who shall stand in his holy place?

                [4] He who has clean hands and a pure heart,

                                who does not lift up his soul to what is false

                                and does not swear deceitfully.

                [5] He will receive blessing from the LORD

                                and righteousness from the God of his salvation.

                [6] Such is the generation of those who seek him,

                                who seek the face of the God of Jacob. Selah

Our lives are not about allegiance to a political party or issue or person.  It is not about changing our world through human efforts no matter how noble those efforts may be.  It is about serving the God of our creation and salvation.  The God who puts rulers and kings in power.  The God that holds the earth and all it’s people in His hand to do with as He wills.

Working to effect political and social change is a good thing.  But no matter how well your government performs its duties, it can never take away the sin of the world.  It can never wipe away the tears of the lost.  It can never save the eternal soul from eternal damnation.  Only God can do that… and that is where real change in this world begins.  His name is Jesus and He is King.