by Patrick Sawyer, Missional Living Pastor
In the movie Pirates of the Caribbean at World's End[1], there is a scene where the pirates are all on a boat and fighting with each other. one lady says, "This is madness," and then Jack Sparrow states, "This is politics." This is what we probably think of when we think of politics.
When it comes to politics and the Gospel, historically, this has been a very divided argument. Some Christians believe we should be involved in government and political issues, and some think we should not have anything to do with the public arena and politics. When it comes to politics, how should Christians be involved?
What is the definition of politics?
· Patrick Schreiner in Political Gospel defines it as "the activities associated with the organizations and governance of people. It has to do with rulership and who has the right to order our lives. it is what happens in the public domain." [2]
· Jonathan Leeman states in Political Church, "the institutional activity of governance over an entire population backed up by the power of coercion, which in varying degrees will be regarded as legitimate." [3]
Is Christianity political?
I would say yes! Politics deals with how we are to live together in a society, which leads to human flourishing. It answers the question: How do we live together? How do we treat our enemies? What is authority? What is love? What is justice? What does it mean to be human? Why do I say Christianity is political? Think about the Old Testament. When God brought Israel out of Egypt and into the promised land, what did he teach them to do? God taught them how to live amongst each other - to live in community. He taught them how to love God, obey him, love each other, and treat their enemies.
· Deuteronomy 6:5 says, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
· Leviticus 19 states you shall love our neighbor as yourself
Think about the Church in the New Testament. God saved us, set us apart from the world, and brought us together to learn how to live together in community. He taught us how to love God, obey him, and love each other. He taught us how to treat our enemies and our purpose as humans.
· In Matthew 22:37-40 "Jesus replied, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets".
The Gospel is a political message.
The Gospel means "good news," which has a political meaning. The term referred to a ruler's birth. When the Roman Emperor Augustus was born, a calendar inscription spoke of this as "good news" for the world. It was used about a political victory – 1 Samuel 31:8-9 "The next day, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. So they cut off his head and stripped off his armor and sent messengers throughout the land of the Philistines to carry out the good news to the house of their idols and to the people."
Jesus' ministry was political.
Jesus announced a new kingdom, people, society, and political order.
· Mark 1:15: "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel."
· Luke 4:16-21 "And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, 'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.' He rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. And he began to say to them, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."
Jesus' teachings were political.
· Mark 12:13-17 "And they sent to him some of the Pharisees and some of the Herodians, to trap him in his talk. And they came and said to him, "Teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone's opinion. For you are not swayed by appearances but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?" But, knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, "Why put me to the test? Bring me a denarius, and let me look at it." And they brought one. And he said to them, "Whose likeness and inscription is this?" They said to him, "Caesar's." Jesus said to them, "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." And they marveled at him.""
Jesus' trial and death were Political
· Matthew 27:28: "They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him.
· Matthew 27:29: "They put a crown of thorns on his head.
· Matthew 27:29: "They mocked him, saying Hail, King of the Jews.
· Matthew 27:30: "They spit on him and took the reed and struck him on the head.
· Matthew 27:37: "They hung up a sign that said This is Jesus, the king of the Jews."
· Matthew 27:42: "The crowd mocked him saying he is the king of the Jews; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him."
Jesus' Return Will Be Political
· In Revelation 5, John sees a vision of a slain lamb, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, who comes and is worthy and takes the scroll from the right hand of the seated one. As Jesus takes the scroll, He is in authority. He is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Jesus takes the scroll and opens up the scrolls of God's judgment on the world, ushering in the return of King Jesus.
The Church is Political
During Jesus' ministry, he called out 12 men to be a part of a new kingdom and a new life. Through these men, Jesus would establish the Church. Jonathan Leeman stated, "Jesus called out these twelve men to be the new heads of a new nation." In Acts 2, Peter preaches at Pentecost, and 3,000 come to believe, and in verses 42-47, we see a picture of a biblical community. We see the called-out Church. The Greek word for Church (ekklesia) means an institutional entity. An ekklesis is a political term. An assembly would meet regularly and decide on law, official positions, and policy.
Worship is a political act. When we come together for worship, we acknowledge God as Lord and King, surrendering to his Lordship and submitting to him. We are acknowledging we have one King and one Lord. The ordinances are political. Baptism -is a symbol of our new allegiance to a new king. Paul tells us we are baptized into Jesus' death and resurrection. Jesus resurrection initiated a new society, his victory, a new kingdom and a new political community. Lord's Supper – in the book Subversive meals, the Roman meals were political, showing honor and allegiance to the emperor.[4] When we celebrate the Lord's Supper, we are honoring and celebrating the one true King.
The Church is the agency of kingdom authority on earth. In Matthew 16, Jesus told the disciples that he would build His Church, and then he says that he would give them the keys to the kingdom of heaven, and whatever they bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever they loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. A key is often a symbol of authority. We also see this in Matthew 18. The Church has the authority to ensure the right people belong to the Church according to the right confessions. Matthew 16 is the right confession of entry into the kingdom of God, and Matthew 18 is the right way to stay in the kingdom of God.
The Church's Mission is Political
Matthew 28:18-20 "And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
Christ under His authority sends out His representatives to all other kingdoms without their approval because he does not need it. King Jesus sends out His people to tell other kings and kingdoms of the true king, and the true kingdom is here. And if they repent and believe, he will restore them into a new kingdom and a new society where they will live as upright citizens.
How are Christians to live in this current world and culture?
Augustine stated in the City of God[5] that even though we are citizens of heaven, we must still live in the city of man. But how are we to do this biblically?
Christians are to respect our earthly governing authorities
Romans 13:1-7 "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. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. 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, 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 and avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God's wrath but also for the sake of conscience. For because of this you also pay taxes for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them; taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed".
1 Peter 2:13-17, "Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor".
Christians are to pray for our authorities
1 Timothy 2:1-2 "First of all, then, I urge that supplication, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgiving be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way."
Christians are to seek peace, serve, and change society
Jeremiah 29:4-7 "Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare".
Jake Meador, in his book In Search of the Common Good Christian Fidelity in a Fractured Society, says, "What evangelicals most need in the political arena today is not to elect certain candidates or support certain legislative causes. There is a place for that, to be sure. But the most important thing we can do is be properly Christian in the totality of our lives, starting with the way we shape our homes and Carrying that into our individual vocations, whatever those may be".[6]
Christians should be Christ's ambassadors
2 Corinthians 5:20: "We are ambassadors for Christ. Christians are not to shy away from the public arena and politics, but as Christians go out into our communities, workplaces, and government, we are to go out as Christ's ambassadors and representatives. We are to stand up for human life. We are to stand up for the traditional marriage and family. We are to stand up against hate and racism. We are to stand against sexual immorality.
Lesslie Newbigin states, "When the church affirms the gospel as public truth, it is challenging the whole society to wake up out of the nightmare of subjectivism and relativism, to escape from the captivity of the self-turned in upon itself, and to accept the calling which is addressed to every human being to seek, acknowledge, and proclaim the truth." [7]
Charles Colson, in How Shall We Live, states, "We must show the world that Christianity is more than a private belief, more than a personal salvation. We must show that it is a comprehensive life system that answers all of humanity's age-old questions. Where did I come from? Why am I here? Where am I going? Does life have any meaning and purpose?" [8]
Conclusion
Hebrews 11:10 "For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, who's designer and builder is God." As Christians, this is not our ultimate home. This is our temporary home, but until we go to be at our real home, we must live in this temporary home. As we live in this temporary home, we must live out the Gospel in our lives and seek the welfare of the city, and we must also proclaim the truth to the world of the true king and the true kingdom that is here now and is coming.
[1] Pirates of The Caribbean at World End (2007).
[2] Patrick Schreiner, Political Gospel: Public Witness in a Politically Crazy World (Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2022), 5.
[3] Jonathan Leeman, Political Church: The Local Assembly as Embassy of Christ's Rule (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2016), 62.
[4] Alan Street, Subversive Meals: An Analysis of the Lord's Supper under Roman Domination during the First Century (Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications, 2013).
[5] Augustine, The City of God
[6] Jake Meador, In Search of the Common Good Christian Fidelity in a Fractured World (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2019), 106.
[7] Lesslie Newbigin Truth to Tell: The Gospel as Public Truth (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Publishing, 1991).
[8] Charles Colson, How Now Shall We Live? (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House, 1999).