Christianity and Politics

11:33 AM

Should Christians be involved in politics? Can they afford not to? Should we move our nation toward its Jewish and Christian roots, or focus on the church and what we as Christians are supposed to do? Are we supposed to sign petitions, take part in rallies, or should we avoid them? These questions have been asked and debated for many years, and it would seem that we are no closer to a definitive answer.

Perhaps it is not because we haven’t searched for the answer long enough but because we are asking the wrong questions. I learned long ago from my parents that in order to get the right answers, you have to find the root of the problem and find the right question.

So what is the root of this debate? What are the questions that we are ultimately hoping to answer? I think that we would all have to agree that the basic question is, is God pleased when he are involved in politics or does he look down on us? Does he want us to be involved with politics?

Before either side pulls out their Bible and starts beating the others over the head with their list of verses that prove their side, let’s look at this from another perspective.

Is God glorfied when we win a political victory? You answered that far too fast. Think about it for a moment. Is God glorified when we win a political victory? To be honest, my answer to this question immediately was no. I didn’t think God really cared because he cares more about the hearts of men than making sure traditional marriage is protected. I think God wants up to be more concerned about loving unwed mothers than making sure that Roe V. Wade is over turned. However, I came to a slightly different conclusion when I thought about it more.

None of us agree completely with everything that is done under the banner of Christian politics; we never will. However, does that mean we should abandon it completely? My conclusion is no, we should not.

I believe that if God calls you to fight for the sanctity of human life, you should, as long as you make sure your actions are always God honoring. If you want to be involved in furthering the goals of one party, go ahead; just never forget that your first priority is to save lost souls.

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1 comments

  1. I am not actively involved in politics beyond voting, but something I read in my Bible the other day really struck me: "Open your mouth for the speechless, in the cause of all who are appointed to die. Open your mouth, judge righteously, and plead the cause of the poor and needy." (Proverbs 31:8-9) If all Christians were to neglect getting involved in politics, we would be neglecting this command. The child about to be aborted needs us to speak for him, the elderly and the disabled need us to protect them from "mercy killings". Our brothers and sisters suffering in other countries need us to step up and make our leaders aware of their needs. Very true, we do need to be focusing on bringing others to Christ (that is the foundation), but it is also important to be aware of and help where we are led in politics - to stand up for biblical principals. If the "salt" of the world fails to speak up...our government will be even more corrupt than it already is. Some are called to be more involved in politics than others (different parts of the body of Christ are called to different acts)...but whatever a person's personal convictions are, it makes me very sad to think that there are Christians who think its not "spiritual" to be involved in politics or that it isn't of much importance in the eyes of God.

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