Updated 5/14/2024
– Updated 5/14/2024
Professing Christians are being deceived by political propaganda and visions of dominion theology. How shall we reason with one another regarding how to be in the world but not of the world?
Political action by followers of Jesus is neither required by the New Testament nor prohibited by the New Testament. Political involvement by Christians in their respective countries is a disputable matter. It’s allowed by God’s word as long as it does not lead to violating any calling, priority, or commandment of scripture.
Every generation of believers must wrestle with how to live out the priorities of the Bible among the empires of this world system.
Questions to consider:
- What does the New Testament say that our priorities should be in these last days?
- What wisdom does the Old Testament teach us about justice in a society?
- How is appealing to authority different from pursuing political power?
- What examples are there in the Old and New Testements of believers appealing to authority?
Political involvement is permissible for followers of Jesus as long as it does not turn into idolatry.
If Christian Nationalism means being a good citizen because you love your neighbor, then that’s good. If it means worshipping your nation or your nation’s heritage then that is idolatry and it is a setup for anti-christ.
Political involvement is permissible for followers of Jesus as long as it is motivated by love instead of despising others.
The Bible does not call the Church to legislate morality.
The Bible does not prohibit followers of Jesus from taking part in the legislative process.
The priority of the New Testament is that people would be born again.
Morality apart from Jesus creates whitewashed tombs filled with dead men’s bones.
Left wing Evangelicals allow themselves to be manipulated by the Democrats. Right wing Evangelicals allow themselves to be manipulated by the Republicans.
Both sides are brain washed by the “talking points” of Talk Radio. You can hear them repeated verbatim by leaders trying to manipulate others.
The message of the Gospel is perverted. True discipleship suffers because people are deceived by their leaders into thinking that one side is the good guys and the other side is the bad guys… when Satan is working both sides.
Consider the following quotes from one of the recent conventions: “The stars are aligned… ” and “We are all God’s children.”
God created the world, the mountains and the trees and the stars, and called it good.
See Genesis 1However, the world system, political, economic, and religious, is under the sway of the wicked one… for a time.
See 1 John 5:19
Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
Revelation 22:20
Out of Context: 2 Chronicles 7:14
What does Romans 13 require?
Subjection to Authority – Romans 13
Democrats are Communists and Republicans are Fascists!
I’m just joking.
Well… half joking…
Politicians
Must Appear to be Religious so that they can manipulate the Religious…
They have all read Machiavelli…
How often in our day are professing Christians being manipulated and deceived by demagoguery? A “demagogue” is, “a popular leader who stirs up the people by appealing to their emotions and prejudices. The chief aim of most demagogues is to get power and money for themselves alone.” 12
When someone observes a conflict in society, the tendency is to try to figure out which side is the good guys and which side is the bad guys and then jump on board the bandwagon of the “good guys”.
But if a powerful ruler thinks like Machiavelli, what is the most powerful means by which to control the outcome of any conflict in society? Control both sides! If Machiavelli is smart enough to think of such deceptions then certainly Satan and his demons are even smarter. And certainly they have inspired worldly leaders in this regard for centuries. Consider how Joshua was also caught up in such worldly, fleshly thinking:
“And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant? And the captain of the LORD’s host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so.” Joshua 5:13-6:1
Our Lord Jesus calls us out of these worldly entanglements and deceptions. We stand on Holy ground, set apart unto Him, to be used for his purposes. We are called out of the world’s philosophies and battles in order to represent Jesus to the world, to be an Ambassador from our sovereign Lord to this foreign land, to speak the Truth in Love.
We should submit to worldly authority according to Romans 13 and Acts 5:28, 29 without worshipping those in authority and without allowing ourselves, by the grace of God, to be deceived and manipulated by those in authority.
Slaughtering a Pig
Christians & Political Action
To the Editor of the Bremerton Sun: (October 1996)
Evangelical Christianity’s most prominent feature in Kitsap County these days is its political activism. And yet there is not a single exhortation in the New Testament for followers of Jesus to be politically active.
The most prominent feature of the New Testament is the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
When a person hears the term “Christianity” he or she should not have cause to think of right-wing political action or left-wing social activism. My hope is that they would have cause to think of the Good News of Jesus Christ.