In recent years, matters like George Floyd have brought the discussion of racism to the forefront of American discourse. One point that I did not miss was a charge against the American Church: that it had a history of passivity during segregation in the Civil Rights era, and was still taking a passive role today. What good is the Church if it sits idly by while evil tramples the innocent?
But in the past few weeks, I've seen prominent figures the American church argue that Christians should take a step back from politics. God is neither Republican, nor Democrat, nor American... and we shouldn't let ugly things like nationalism infect the church. Our job isn't to wage a culture war, we're just supposed to be loving! Let's set aside our political differences, judge not, and just spread God's love!
This has exposed an awkward tension, that is best explained in this tweet:
How can the church be involved in important social matters, and at the same time, take a step back from politics? What about the “separation of Church and State”? Should we all be isolated monks that pass out flowers and keep to ourselves, or should we be waging a culture war for social justice? And how do we avoid accidentally backing Hitler, like the German Church?
The question of Christian political involvement must be answered! I originally started writing this before the news broke out about the potential for Roe v. Wade to be overturned. I wish I had published it before—because truly, this is the most wonderful thing about scripture: if you hold it dear, you will always be ahead of the curve of what happens in society. But sadly, I couldn't finish it in time. (Perhaps God wanted to keep me from getting prideful, haha.)
In any case, I wanted to capture my thoughts down on paper. In this article, I want to examine what scripture says about Church involvement in politics, and respond to some contemporary talking points.
There is also magnificent historical precedent for the Church’s involvement in the abolition of slavery in Britain—and horrific precedent for the German Church’s involvement in the Third Reich. (Oh look, slavery and Nazis! Everyone’s favorite talking points!) But this article got too lengthy, so make sure you subscribe so you don’t miss the exciting conclusion!
What does Scripture Say?
First and foremost, a scriptural perspective. I earnestly believe that this conversation can’t be had without first laying out a foundation on God’s word. My aim here is not to preach to people and write a sermon—rather, I want to look at several passages of scripture that speak generally, and broadly.
A trio of verses come to mind that should be well known, even among the secular world. The first is "Render unto Caesar..." (in Matthew 22). The second is "You are the light of the world" (Matthew 5), and finally that we are "in the world", but not "of it" (John 17). Funnily enough, all three of these sayings belong to Jesus. (Not that Jesus words are somehow more authoritative than the rest of scripture—but still!)
1. In The World, but Not of It (John 17)
This verse stands alone as the definitive answer to the question.
As Jesus was walking to the garden to be betrayed and crucified, he prayed for the disciples he was about to leave behind. Specifically, he mentions that Christians are no longer "of the world". Perhaps that means that we can adopt a Star Trekian “Prime Directive”, that we are only to observe developing alien civilizations, and not interfere?
I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. […] My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.—John 17:11,15-18
Clearly, this rules out the idea that Christians can live a life of isolation and seclusion! Just as Jesus was sent into the world with a purpose, Christians are sent as well. I could finish the article here, but I want to show the context of the rest of scripture that reinforces this point!
2. The Light of the World (Matthew 5)
In the Sermon on the Mount (found in Matthew 5), Jesus highlights one of the purposes of leaving sending Christians into the world: We are the light of the world to be put on a lamp stand for visibility's sake, and the salt of the earth. Though Jesus does not explicitly detail what he means by Christians being salt, he asks what good is the salt if it isn’t salty? (Come on, you had ONE job!)
The orthodox understanding is that salt was a preservative that prevented food from spoiling and going rotten. So not only are Christians to remain in the world (even though they are not of it), Christians are supposed to have a VISIBLE presence in the world! And not only should Christians have a visible presence in the world, but the presence of Christians should have a PRESERVING effect!
3. Render unto Caesar (Matthew 22)
The final verse puts a bow on top of this entire conversation. The Pharisees, usually looking to lead Jesus into a trap, ask him if we should pay taxes. Why would God order us to pay taxes to a corrupt and godless government? Doesn't that make us enablers of whatever evils they do? Distilling their question, what the Pharisees are really trying to ask is: "Who's really in charge here? God, or Rome? The church, or the state?"
Jesus masterfully rips the rug out from under their feet, and disrupts the foundation of their question by asking for a coin. "Whose face is on this? Caesar's? It must belong to him, then. Render to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's." Jesus is drawing a comparison between man, and money. Both have value, both bear the image of their creator, and both have a tax that is due. Man has value, because he bears God's image (Genesis 1:27). Man should return a portion of that value to God by worship.
Clearly, Jesus sets spiritual matters apart from the worldly matters. Although the spiritual matter supersedes the worldly matter—it does not exempt us from the worldly matters! After all, who but God permitted Rome to come to power? What Jesus shows here is that the worldly matters and spiritual matters are not separate things in conflict... but that worldly matters are an extension of spiritual matters!
The Church vs the State
In Romans 13, Paul explains that Christians are subject to authority. First to God, and then to the governments he has established over us. But obedience has it's limits. In Daniel 3, we see three young men facing the death penalty for refusing to worship Nebuchadnezzar. In Acts 5, we see the apostles on trial for spreading the gospel, in violation of the order to cease their public ministry. When God and government come into conflict, who should we obey? Peter makes it clear: "We should obey God, rather than man!"
So in conclusion, what can we say about Christians involvement in the world?
Christians are subject first to God, and then to worldly authorities
Worldly authorities are also subject to God!
Christians are supposed to have a visible presence in the world
Christians are supposed to have a preserving effect on the world
Christians who fail to have a visible and preserving effect on the world are useless!
Should the church be involved in politics? This is a loaded question, which needs to be driven to a much finer point. But for now, what I will definitively say, is that scripture makes it clear that Christians are to be involved in earthly affairs—and matters of government are within the realm earthly affairs.
While this answers the question IF Christians should be involved in political affairs, it does not answer the question HOW Christians should be involved. Before I submit to you the stories of John Newton and the German Church, I want to rebut a common model that I see proposed today.
What does Contemporary Culture Say?
Christianity has had a rather tumultuous relationship with the secular world, that can be best explained as two dysfunctional room mates living together. One likes the temperature at 68, the other likes it at 70. One sleeps late, the other rises early. One is meticulous about cleaning the kitchen, the other leaves it a mess.
In the early 2000's, the best way I could describe the relationship with the secular world is "Don't judge! What's right for you might not be what's right for me. Let's respect our differences." The room mates sharing the country paint a tape line down the center of the room. "You stay on your side, and I'll stay on mine. We’ll keep the church and state separate."
But the political pendulum continued to swing to farther and farther extremes. A decade later, the issues of LGBT rights pushed the "Coexist" bumper sticker to a breaking point. The Christian side refused to design them a cake for their LGBT wedding—and the wound has never healed. Things only got worse in 2016, with the election of Trump, and the secular side felt like they were under the cross hairs.
The death of George Floyd broke the country. The tape line became a battleground, with riots and skirmishes playing out between opposing political ideologies in a power struggle, culminating in the destruction of several cities, dozens of deaths, and the January 6th riot at the capitol.
And yet, the secular world has developed a sudden interest in Christianity. "We've been reading about your Jesus, and think he's quite the stand up guy! He was all about giving money to the poor, and standing up for the oppressed. Gosh, if you’d told us that we wouldn’t have had such issues!”
But the longer this conversation goes, the more apparent it becomes the secular world has a radically different view of Jesus. If you follow the rabbit hole, you get this infographic:
If I could distill what the secular world is saying by this image, it would be this:
Jesus was not white, he was brown skinned! Jesus was not patriotic, he was a homeless immigrant activist that criticized the religious people's hypocrisy! Christians have abandoned the real Jesus for a twisted version that serves their political needs.
There's so much wrong with this image, I don't know where to start. Both sides are a terrible distortion. Some points are flat out lies. Is Jesus not a king? Perhaps the reason the secular world wants to see Jesus as a servant rather than a king, is because then he is no threat to them, and in fact, can be commanded to do their bidding.
Before we address this image, it's important to understand that this is not a spontaneous and new understanding of Jesus driven by current events. Much of this is infographic is historically rooted in the idea of Liberation Theology, a Latin American movement from the 1970's founded by Fr. Gustavo Gutiérrez.
In short, Gutiérrez believed that Christianity was losing it's cultural relevancy. The members of the church were only so interested in matters of sin, heaven, and hell. Gutiérrez wanted to "bring the gospel to people within the context of their own history"—and created a "theology of the people, by the people, for the people".1
Gutiérrez accomplished this by reinterpreting the gospel in terms of the oppressed and the oppressors. Latin America was largely impoverished, and a gospel that addressed physical needs was far easier to grasp than a gospel that addressed existential spiritual ones.
By positioning the Kingdom at the center of his theology and interpreting Scripture in terms of liberation of the poor, Gutiérrez fulfills the last two of his criteria. First, theology is now based on the values of the poor. Corruption, greed, opulence: such things are shunned in favor of love toward fellow man. Second, because the message of the Kingdom is a political one, theology is also used to attack the powers that oppress and impoverish. [...]
Individual and isolated acts of charity are not enough. More is required because oppressors are more than individuals. Governments, companies, plantations, even the church, among other large groups, are among those that oppress. In this way, then, is the gospel a revolutionary answer to the problem of injustice.
[Super, p. 32-33]
Do not miss the irony. The secular world claims that Christians disregard scripture, and have perverted the message of the gospel to serve their political desires… but the secular world’s understanding of Jesus comes from a movement that disregarded scripture, and perverted the message of the gospel to serve political revolution! This is what psychologists call projection!
Responding to Liberation Theology
For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)
The foundational issue here is that Gutiérrez had no regard for scripture. He didn’t believe God’s word was living and active—he thought it had died, and lost it’s relevancy. Gutiérrez believed he could give the gospel life, that he could restore it’s relevancy by re-imagining it as a tool for political power. He twisted the gospel so that it wasn't about liberating humanity from the bondage of sin, but from the bondage of oppression—with the specific and explicit intention of political warfare.
Let us start with a high view of scripture, and let God’s word respond to the claims that Liberation Theology makes.
John 6 is a sharp rebuttal of this entire movement. While teaching a crowd of people, Jesus miraculously feeds them by multiplying loaves of bread and fish. But the crowd quickly begins to form ideas of starting a revolution, and want to make Jesus their earthly king. Knowing their thoughts, Jesus flees from them.
The next day, the crowds pursue him and ask for lunch—to which Jesus famously replies that they should eat his body, and drink his blood. This deeply puzzles and offends the crowd, who mistakenly think he’s talking about cannibalism.
But Jesus masterfully uses Israel’s history to illustrate the issue. Centuries ago, God cared for Israel in the desert during their flight form Egypt by (literally) making bread rain down from the sky. But that only satisfied Israel's physical hunger, and they all eventually died. There was a far greater spiritual hunger, which Jesus (the bread from heaven) has come to satisfy! Jesus met some of their earthly needs—yes! But far more importantly, he offered to meet ALL their spiritual needs. Sadly, the crowd was only concerned about their hunger, and left.
The absolute worst thing you can do if you’re trying to build a large following is to be divisive and offend people! What was this going to do to his reputation, when word gets out that he told everyone to drink his blood!? Why didn’t Jesus just feed them again, and give them a little more time to think through what he was trying to say?
The answer is that Jesus knew what the crowds wanted. They had no interest in the spiritual problems Jesus wanted to address, they merely wanted a powerful person to be the figurehead of their revolution. But Christ is not a tame lion that does circus tricks for the amusement of a crowd. Jesus has his own agenda, and uses us for his purposes. Not the other way around.
With all that said, allow me to address some of the bullet points in the infographic. I have already addressed the topic of Jesus' skin color, so I won't repeat myself here. But needless to say, the only thing that matters about Jesus skin is the nail prints in his hands. The color is irrelevant.
Does Jesus preach mercy for sinners, or judgement for sinners? The answer is—yes! We see this in Jesus extending mercy to the woman caught in adultery in John 8. But simultaneously, Jesus does not affirm adultery, and instructs her to leave her life of sin! That's right! Jesus did not affirm "sex workers", and said their lifestyle was sinful! Isn't that judgemental? John 3:17 says, "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." The whole point of the gospel is that Jesus wants to liberate us from the bondage of sin!
Is Jesus a king, or a servant? The answer is—yes! In Matthew 20, Jesus says: "the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve". But at the trial for Jesus' crucifixion, Pilate charges Jesus with insurrection, and asks if he is a king. Jesus answers that he is a king—but not a king of this world. Why is he here then? "I have been born and have come into the world for this reason—to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice." (John 18:37)
This also answers the question, did Jesus "subvert the empire"? No! In fact, he told his followers to pay taxes to them, and fled a group of people who tried to start a revolution to make him king (in the aforementioned John 6). Eventually, every knee will bow, and every tongue confess… but that time is not now.
Hopefully I've painted a faithful enough picture of Jesus that you are able to see where the lies are in the rest of the bullet points. Christians must neither hold to "colonizer Jesus", nor to "historical Jesus", but to Biblical Jesus!
So the church should be involved in politics?
Looking at scripture, it’s evident that Christians are the salt and light, and that they are supposed to be involved in worldly affairs. Politics is a worldly affair, so therefore Christians can (and should) be involved in it!
But how?
There lies the trick. And I don’t have specific answers for you today. But in my next article, I do have some positive (and negative) examples of the Church getting involved in politics—and perhaps that can serve as a model (and a warning) for Christians today.
But before I share that model, I need to firmly reject what I see as the predominant model for Christian involvement in politics: that Christians should only strive to meet the world’s physical needs, and that the spiritual problems should be tucked away to not be political or offensive.
I’m led to believe that many American Christians are adopting Gutiérrez's beliefs without even knowing it. Liberation Theology pits the common "working man" against the evils and corruption of institutional power, and seeks to fight oppression and injustice—something that even secular Americans want to align with. But Gutiérrez’s model has two problems.
The first is, who gets to decide what is a political matter, and what is a spiritual matter? Should Christians let the secular world instruct them? Because the secular world is more than happy to say that as Christ forgave sins, we should forgive… student loans! But all that abortion stuff is political, don’t push your religious beliefs on me, judge not!
Notice the inversion of the political and the spiritual here! What the government does with student loans is EXPLICITLY a political matter, but it is being treated as if it were a spiritual matter! Abortion, which is both a spiritual matter AND political matter, is being treated as mere politics. If the secular world is concerned is that Christians will abuse scripture to gain political power, maaaybe the secular world should stop abusing scripture to gain political power.
The second is that if being “loving” means being “unoffensive”, then the gospel must be censored. There is no way to take a message that says “you are dead in your sins!” and make it unoffensive. (Especially when the sins deal with things like sex and sexuality!)
For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.—1 Cor 1:18
For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life. […]—2 Cor 2:15-16
Now hear me on this: There is no need to add offense to an already offensive scent! But to cover the scent of the gospel with worldly perfumes is to hide your light and lose your saltiness. There can be no excuses that we are merely trying to be “loving”. There is nothing loving about providing morphine to a dying world when we have life saving medicine in the cabinet.
If you do that, then what good are you?
Thank you for reading my article! Stay tuned for the conclusion: I want to show you how Christian involvement in politics led to the abolition of slavery in England, and show the failures that lead to the German Church backing Hitler.
In the mean time, if you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it with your friends!
On Earth as it is in Heaven, J Super (2009) (PDF)
This is a master’s thesis that was influential in helping understand Liberation Theology from both a historical and theological perspective.