Before Jesus entered the scene with his unique, prophetic ministry heralding the arrival of the kingdom God, the bulk of Jewish kingdom expectation focused on the assumed overthrow of the Roman government and its oppressive occupation of Israel. The hoped-for king of Israel was expected to stride in on a white horse, sword in hand, and conquer the Romans and reestablish a physical, political nation. Instead, they got a carpenter/teacher on a donkey with palm branches. He might have claimed to bring a sword, not peace (Mt. 10:34), and he might have said the kingdom was coming forcefully (Mt. 11:12), but he sure had a funny way of going about it, what with all that "bless your enemies," "turn the other cheek" type stuff.
2,000 years later, Jesus' followers in the Western world still don't seem to get the radical notion of "the kingdom of God." Or at least, one may surmise as much from the bumpersticker sloganeering passing for political discourse these days.
There appears to be two primary ways Christians go about thinking politically these days, and I think both ways are fundamentally false.
The most dominant form of political expression among Western Christians -- American Christians, in particular -- is full-on culture war. From Dobson and Co. to the Christian Coalition, an outsider could easily make the mistake that evangelicalism trusts the American government -- with the right people in power, of course (the "right people" meaning "conservative Republicans," usually) -- to somehow return our nation to its Christian roots.
Setting aside the historically dubious claim that America was ever a quote-unquote "Christian" nation, this tack is wrongheaded for two very biblical reasons: 1. We are to trust God, not men, for the spread of the gospel, and the spread of the gospel is commandeered by the Spirit through the revival of hearts, not through governmental constraints. 2. Our enemy is not really a flesh and blood person on the other side of the political aisle, but the one who prowls about like a lion, seeking whom he may devour.
And on that note, what both of these mistakes boil down to is this: They assume the kingdom of God is an artifice by which God's Law may be maintained. The reality is that the kingdom of God is a dynamic reality -- God's sovereign reign -- that is in effect now. It already exists. Jesus ushered it in and someday, when he returns, will complete it. The best response to this good news is not lopping off ears, but living as if it is true and real by loving and blessing and healing.
This error is made by both conservatives and liberals, by both Republicans and Democrats, and by all points in between. Anyone who believes "Being a Christian means supporting _________," whether that blank is filled by "the repeal of Roe vs. Wade" or "universal health care" or "just wars against terrorist states" or "environmentally aware initiatives," is already in danger of politicizing the spiritual quality of the kingdom and making an enemy of his brother in Christ. Whatever one's political stripes, going "culture warrior" on behalf of the faith is to make the errors of the Zealots of Jesus' day. It is the Church, the body of Christ, that is God's blueprint for the proclamation and embodiment of the kingdom; it is not the government. The gates of hell will roll right on over the United States of America (and every other country). They will not, however, prevail against the Church (Mt. 16:18).
None of this is license for disengagement, however. While it is true that the kingdom does not come by politics or government, this doesn't mean that a Christian cannot or should not meaningfully engage in political discourse or the political process. The gospel is for all of life -- as Tim Keller says, "The gospel is not the ABC's of salvation, it is the A to Z" -- and therefore there is no interest or vocation that cannot be engaged in redemptively and missionally.
There is nothing wrong with a Christian either voting or campaigning, so long as he thinks of those vocations, like all vocations, as subject to the glory of God. John MacArthur speaks boldly to this point. When asked if he was concerned about who might be next elected to the U.S. presidency, MacArthur replied:
I'm not concerned about that for 5 seconds. It has
nothing to do with the kingdom of God - absolutely nothing to do with
it. The Lord will build his Church; I'm concerned about his Church. I'm
concerned about the name of Christ, the gospel, the glory of God, the
purity of the Church, the clarity of the teaching of the word of God.
Jesus said it as clearly as it could be said when he said to Pilate,
‘My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my
servants would fight.' His kingdom has nothing to do with this world.
You could argue that the Roman power was oppressive, and even deadly,
as indicated in Luke 13 when Pilate's men went in and sliced up the
Jews who were worshiping in the Temple. You can make the case that
Jesus should have done something to obliterate slavery, or overturn
Roman oppression, and free the people of Israel. It has nothing to do
with that - ‘My kingdom has nothing to do with that. My kingdom is not
of this world.'
Obviously, as a human being, I would like to see someone who is
moral; I'd like to see someone who is a Christian have an opportunity
to influence things from a viewpoint of Christianity. But this has
nothing whatsoever to do with the advance of the kingdom of God. I am
much more concerned about the kingdom that is not of this world than
the kingdom that is America.
The truth is that believing in the gospel has very real ramifications on how we think about human life, which should affect how we think about issues like abortion and stem cell research and cloning. And it has very real ramifications on how we think about creation, which should affect how we think about issues like global warming, energy resources, and pollution. Above all, the gospel informs us that all men are sinners, so that should lend us a healthy cynicism about trusting the political machinations of men. But it tells us that Jesus is making all things new, so it should lend us a healthy optimism about the contagious power of God's children living kingdom-of-heaven lives in lands occupied by the kingdoms of the world.
Whatever our political stripe or expectation, we would do well to remember a few vital truths: a) The Church living out the gospel is the way the kingdom spreads. b) The Spirit changing hearts is always preferable to the law changing behavior. c) Only King Jesus is worthy of total trust.
Jared Wilson is the pastor and co-founder of Element, a missional Christian community in
Nashville, Tennessee, and an award-winning writer whose articles, essays, and
short stories have appeared in numerous publications.
Jared's first book, The Unvarnished Jesus, releases Fall 2009 from Kregel.
A graduate of Middle Tennessee State University, he lives outside
Nashville with his wife and two daughters.
Encounter Jared's passion for the ongoing reformation of the evangelical church
almost daily at www.gospeldrivenchurch.com.
» left by Rich Shipe from Virginia (118 days 21 hours ago.)
Great article, Jared. Enjoyed your writing again. One point of question though with your final three points of truth: I'm not sure I fully understand the second point...
b) The Spirit changing hearts is always preferable to the law changing behavior.
Thinking in terms of government and lawmaking as a vocation, are you saying that the Christian lawmaker should not outlaw certain behaviors but should rather work toward changing hearts? I guess where I'm confused with the second statement is how it works in practice. Sure, changed hearts are better but the government is the government and its role is different than the church. Is your meaning that it really is a matter of what the church corporately pursues in society rather than individuals that are vocationally in politics (not to mention each citizen who has a vocational type responsibility in voting).
As someone who is now a pastor but was formerly in politics as a vocation I've thought a lot about these questions. I agree with your main point and believe that the answer to the question of what do we do as Christians in that sphere of our life is to simply love your neighbor.
The responsibilities of Christians in regards to government in the USA are more complicated than the days when Paul wrote Romans 13. We aren't just subjects with no say but are also in a self-representative democratic republic. We wear both the hat of the subject and the king. How does the Christian submit to governing authorities, exercise his authority as a voter, and further God's kingdom as a member of His body? Not an easy question to answer and everyone's got an opinion. Welcome to America! Thanks again.
You asked: are you saying that the Christian lawmaker should not outlaw certain behaviors but should rather work toward changing hearts?
No, not at all! I'm all for our legal system and the enforcement of its laws. I'm not an anarchist. :-) In fact, I never get one of the main arguments people levy against those pushing for abortion laws: "You can't legislate morality." That's bogus. Of course we can. And we do. We have laws against murder and robbery and all sorts of things we naturally and generally think immoral.
No, what I mean by that point is this: Although we can and should have laws that outlaw certain behaviors, Christians should realize that laws do not change hearts. While we trust the legal system to govern behavior, we should be working as the Church to proclaim the gospel and trust the Spirit to actually change the hearts of lawbreakers. And when you get into a gospel mindframe, we're all Law-breakers.
How does the Christian submit to governing authorities, exercise his
authority as a voter, and further God's kingdom as a member of His body?
I think how a Christian can do this differs, and I wouldn't suggest things that are off limits. Certainly I think a Christian can vote or not vote, campaign for a candidate or not care who's elected, or run for office or consider politics a waste of time. I just think that, whatever role or vocation one undertakes in regard to politics, attribution should be made that it is "not by horses, nor by chariots, but by the name of the Lord" (Ps. 20:7).
Very well said. Sometimes Christians spend too much time fighting against a cause instead being for the cause of Christ. It's about being sensitive to the Spirit and having balance in all things. This world will not function as designed until Jesus steps foot on this earth for the second time. Great job. Keep sharing. Lord Bless you, Teresa
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