"Carter will destroy the country!"
"Reagan will destroy the world!"
I am hearing the same thing now. I read this on a "Christian" website: "This is the most critical election of our lifetime! What’s at stake? The definition of marriage as one man, one woman. Protection of unborn children, Religious freedom, and so much more!"
Then they tell us (Christians) that we should get out and vote (for their candidate) as though the most important contribution the church can make is to vote the right people into office thus helping make the nation a little more moral. Do they really think that's all this nation needs?
Let me be clear: the church does not exist to make a contribution to society, but to witness to the world's true Lord. The church's political responsibility is to call principalities and powers to repentance, and to model an alternative "politics" (as seen in everyday, ordinary Christian community) in which turning the other cheek, giving up the best seat to others, serving the poor, loving the enemy, and practicing nonviolence are everyday occurrences.
A few thoughts about politics;
- Nations do not rule the world; God rules the world. Thus the seat of power is not the White House, the Kremlin or any such place. He who sits in the heavens laughs.
- The church does not exist to make the nation a little more ethical. Our concern is death, burial, and resurrection -- a message and a way of living that nations find unhelpful to their cause.
- We Christians look to the secular political order to affect lasting change and to "make a difference" in the world precisely to the extent that we despair of the power of the Gospel to make all things new. Christ is "the world's last best hope" with all due respect to Bill Bennett.
- Our first allegiance is to Christ. Number two is not even close. There may not be room for a number two. This may be among the toughest lessons to learn for Christians who live in relatively "prosperous," "peaceful" and "free" nations.
- If you vote, do so as one who follows Jesus -- and not as one who merely follows his or her own interests. Any narcissistic fool can vote his wallet, and most do. At the very least, baptized citizens of the Kingdom that Jesus proclaimed have just a little bit more than that to consider.
2 comments:
I am confused. Our hero N.T. Wright calls on us to start setting this world to rights. Should we not look to government that can have a great impact on social justice to at least act morally?
Hey Lamar,
I am pretty sure that NT Wright says that God will set the world to rights (and, in fact, has already begun that work in Christ). Our role is to witness to what God is doing by word and deed. Our deeds, though they do not accomplish the work by themselves are building blocks (my words, not Wright's) that God will use as He accomplishes his recreation of the world.
Our role vis-a-vis government is somewhat different. You ask a good question there: "Should we not look to government that can have a great impact on social justice to at least act morally?" Of course, we should assume a prophetic stance toward government and make sure it does not violate it's God-given role to, among other things, care for the weak, the poor,the aged, etc. What we must not do is think for a moment that government is where real lasting change comes from. The God whom the church represents is the one who brings lasting change. That's what I said in my post. Governments are inherently self-interested, so we'll always have our work cut out for us there.
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