Why the Church Can’t Stay Out of Politics
Note: the following was written by Pastor Tim in conjunction with the “Christians in a Contentious Climate” sermon series preached around the midterm elections in 2018.
Why the Church Can’t Stay Out of Politics
Statistics are confirming what we all sense to be true: our nation is becoming more polarized, with both liberals and conservatives feeling increasing hatred for those with opposing viewpoints. In such a cultural moment, it is an incredible opportunity for the church of Jesus Christ to be a peculiar entity, one in which people with divergent views are nonetheless deeply united in love for one another. However, we have an enemy who wants nothing more than to use the events of the day to divide us.
Many of you have shared with us how difficult it is to maintain your Christian witness while engaging in conversations about controversial current events and politically charged issues. We believe the church is not only permitted but is required to help her members think through these complicated issues in a biblically-rooted, appropriately nuanced manner. For that reason, we will be spending the three Sundays preceding the upcoming election preaching through a series called “Christians in a Contentious Climate.”
While many have expressed excitement about being equipped through a series like this one, some of you undoubtedly responded to this news with a groan. “I go to church to get away from politics!” you say. “I don’t want my church to be political.” While it may seem like wisdom for a church to avoid political issues, we in leadership at North Sub don’t actually believe that avoidance is a faithful (or even possible) course of action. Below, find five reasons why.
1) If Jesus is Lord, He is Lord of every aspect of our lives, including of our political engagement.
Centuries ago, Dutch theologian Abraham Kuyper noted, “There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry: ‘Mine!’” That is what we mean when we call Him “Lord” – He is the Master of our entire existence; He calls the shots. If Christ is truly Lord of our lives, then He is Lord of our money, our sexuality, and even our politics. Our politics must not be treated as a separate sphere sequestered from our faith.
2) The Bible has things to say about good government and about our participation in it.
To be sure, the Bible doesn’t specify much about the minutiae of many specific issues of our day (tax structures, zoning ordinances, etc.). However, the scriptures do speak clearly on some government-related issues, and the Word even teaches that secular governments are obligated before God to fulfill certain duties. Furthermore, the Bible’s teachings on issues like justice, mercy, and rule of law also should shape our Christian political consciences – even if individual Christians read the scriptures and practically apply those broad principles in different ways. To use a specific example, while sincere Christians might disagree on immigration policy, the basis of our disagreement ought to be our differences of opinion on what biblical teachings like justice, mercy, and rule of law look like in practice… not about whether governments should be just, merciful, or enforce rule of law.
3) If we don’t help people navigate these issues, someone else will.
Speaking as someone called to be an undershepherd of a flock for whom Christ died, I am burdened that if the godly shepherds of the people offer no guidance on political engagement, the only guidance most of our people will receive will come from social media or cable news. We must not abdicate our responsibility to equip the people of God to live out the Christian life in this world; we certainly must not surrender it into the hands of voices that aren’t governed by the lordship of Christ.
4) For a church to stay out of politics is itself a political statement.
Consider the church in 1860 Alabama that never preached on slavery because “that’s a political issue, and we aren’t political.” Or consider the church in 1939 Germany that never preached about the Nazi party because “that’s a political issue, and we aren’t political.” It should be clear that those churches were not remaining apolitical by their silence; in fact, their silence was a very loud political statement about where they stood. We see, then, that it’s not just good for the church to be political; it’s actually unavoidable.
5) There is a difference between being political and being partisan.
By acknowledging that we’re about to get “political,” we aren’t saying that we’re about to get “partisan.” Never will North Sub endorse a political candidate. Never will North Sub offer voter guides (which always seem to end up being partisan, even if they claim otherwise). We aren’t going to “take sides” regarding this upcoming election; in fact, we are going to call people to remember the radical political statement of the early church living in the time of Caesar: “Jesus is Lord.”
In short, it’s neither desirable nor possible for a church to be apolitical.
For that reason, we are carefully and prayerfully stepping into these delicate issues in hopes that as a church family, we can affirm our unity and spur one another on to living all of life under the Lordship of One Lord and King.
If you want to explore other resources in conjunction with this series:
- Listen to the three-week 2016 North Sub Life Course “Gospel-Shaped Political Dialogue”
- Read Onward by Russell Moore. This is a practically theological book about navigating life in our political moment, written by one of the top evangelical ethicists of our time.
- Read How the Nations Rage by Jonathan Leeman. Leeman is an elder at a Southern Baptist church in Washington, DC, that has been leading the way for twenty years for evangelicals seeking to faithfully navigate these issues.
- Read The Righteous Mind by Jonathan Haidt. While he’s not writing as an evangelical, and this isn’t a theological work, it contains important insights about shifts in how people now make decisions about what is good and right and true.