Evangelical Political Activism
Please read this post in its entirety before coming to an opinion. I think many will be offended or upset by my opening paragraph and yet agree with the overall thought conveyed by this post. I look forward to reading your responses.
First, America is not a Christian nation. Yes, individuals came to America fleeing religious persecution, the church was very involved in the early American government, and many of America's laws reflect a Christian worldview. America is “one nation under God” in the same way that Iraq and North Korea are nations under God; because God is sovereign and rules the nations (Psalm 22:28). God establishes all governing authorities, from Hitler to George W. Bush (Romans 13:1). America, however, is not a Christian nation; it is a nation founded by Christians. The only "Christian" nation in the history of the world was Israel, a nation set apart by God for His glory. America is a nation in rebellion against God. The people of America follow Satan (Ephesians 2:2) and are literally enemies of God (Romans 8:7, Colossians 1:21). As Christians, we must realize this; we must realize that America, from the day of its discovery, has been a nation at war with God.
Second, the answer to this problem is not legislation, laws, or posting the Ten Commandments, regardless of how historical it may be. Listen to the words of Christ when addressing this issue to the Pharisees, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness. So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness (Matthew 23:27-28).” Christ was rebuking them because their strict outward obedience was not a reflection of their heart. I Timothy 4:8 addresses the same issue that physical restraint yields only temporary benefits, while true godliness is of eternal value.
How do people find peace with God?
They find peace through the Gospel of Jesus Christ, not through obedience to American law.
If you stop homosexuals from getting married and having sex, is God going to allow them to enter heaven?
No, and Scripture makes this expressly clear. Which begs the question “if this is of no eternal
benefit why do we invest so much time, energy, and money into such vain efforts?”
Do we, as American Evangelicals, care about homosexuals? Do we feel compassion for those who have had an abortion? Read Matthew 12:9-14. Do you look more like the Pharisees or Christ?
If you want to see America change, then you must change Americans. The Ten Commandments are being taken down, prayer is being banned, and “under God” is being taken out of the pledge because American’s are sinners in rebellion against God. The solution is not that we pass laws to enforce state sanctioned piety, but that we share the Gospel; the key to changing people’s actions is changing their hearts. Christ came to seek and save the lost and we should be about that very same business.
First, America is not a Christian nation. Yes, individuals came to America fleeing religious persecution, the church was very involved in the early American government, and many of America's laws reflect a Christian worldview. America is “one nation under God” in the same way that Iraq and North Korea are nations under God; because God is sovereign and rules the nations (Psalm 22:28). God establishes all governing authorities, from Hitler to George W. Bush (Romans 13:1). America, however, is not a Christian nation; it is a nation founded by Christians. The only "Christian" nation in the history of the world was Israel, a nation set apart by God for His glory. America is a nation in rebellion against God. The people of America follow Satan (Ephesians 2:2) and are literally enemies of God (Romans 8:7, Colossians 1:21). As Christians, we must realize this; we must realize that America, from the day of its discovery, has been a nation at war with God.
Second, the answer to this problem is not legislation, laws, or posting the Ten Commandments, regardless of how historical it may be. Listen to the words of Christ when addressing this issue to the Pharisees, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness. So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness (Matthew 23:27-28).” Christ was rebuking them because their strict outward obedience was not a reflection of their heart. I Timothy 4:8 addresses the same issue that physical restraint yields only temporary benefits, while true godliness is of eternal value.
How do people find peace with God?
They find peace through the Gospel of Jesus Christ, not through obedience to American law.
If you stop homosexuals from getting married and having sex, is God going to allow them to enter heaven?
No, and Scripture makes this expressly clear. Which begs the question “if this is of no eternal
benefit why do we invest so much time, energy, and money into such vain efforts?”
Do we, as American Evangelicals, care about homosexuals? Do we feel compassion for those who have had an abortion? Read Matthew 12:9-14. Do you look more like the Pharisees or Christ?
If you want to see America change, then you must change Americans. The Ten Commandments are being taken down, prayer is being banned, and “under God” is being taken out of the pledge because American’s are sinners in rebellion against God. The solution is not that we pass laws to enforce state sanctioned piety, but that we share the Gospel; the key to changing people’s actions is changing their hearts. Christ came to seek and save the lost and we should be about that very same business.
3 Comments:
That's a good post. I've asked myself a lot lately "can we legislate morality?"
Clearly, we can't change anyones heart with laws.
We outlaw murder because it's morally wrong. We want to outlaw homosexuality for the same reasons, right?. It's slightly different in the homo case because we simply don't want the laws and precedents that have been on the books for centuries to be re-interpreted to include homo marriage.
So, where should Christians draw the line with our political activism? The church is called to be the "pillar and support of truth"(1 Tim), and we're called to be salt and light for the earth. I think we should stand up and vote and give voice to God's stated position on matters like homosexuality. But, we shouldn't expect it to save our nation by passing these laws.
I agree with your solution. And, I also think Christians need to actively voice the Scriptures and Biblical worldview in discussions about laws.
The problem, as I see it, is that the world sees moral legislation by Christians, but doesn't see the Gospel being actively lived out by those same Christians. And that is, in part, why they're so cynical towards us.
I completely agree with your assessment of why the world is cynical toward us and we must continue to live in accordance to a Biblical worldview, which subsequently affects the way we vote and the way in which we address issues in the public forum, however it also means that our lives must be Gospel-saturated. What saddens me most in all of this is that “Christians” seem to care more about saving America than they do about saving Americans.
Yeah. It's easier to be legalistic than it is to be truly gospel-saturated. That's why we see polarizing moral legislation pushed from the "right" in politics, and entrenched legalism in our churches. That's my 2 cents, anyway.
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