Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Twisted Tuesday: Revealing the warped and twisted thoughts in my brain

I have a mix of feelings and thoughts when it comes to faith and politics. My initial, maybe not completely thought out, opinion is that Jesus didn't involve himself in politics or government. In fact it seems he was quite the opposite. He recognized and promoted that his work was greater than the politics of the day. His work wasn't to overthrow the Roman government. His work was to overthrow the sinful state of man. And he succeeded.

I think the growing trend of the church getting involved in politics is unique to the U.S. It isn't something sanctioned from scripture. Rather it is a function of living in a democratic state which has some of its roots in the concept of freedom of worship.

I heard a radio commerical a week back for a candidate in the Missouri gubernatorial race. The candidate identified herself as a church-goer. This irritated me. Labeling one's self as a christian should not be reason to vote for that person. I've seen enough corrupt church-goers in my day.

I do agree the church should be involved in influencing laws and the morals of the country. We in the U.S. have a unique ability to do so. I think of Wilberforce in England who spent his entire life in government for the purpose of God's holiness and justice. This was and is a noble pursuit. Consider the sex trade going on today- What a obligation we have as the body of Christ to speak to world governments for those literally taken captive! 

But it appears there is a temptation to expect government to be the savior, to solve the problems of this sinful world when scripture tells us it is God alone who saves. When we turn our eyes to government leaders  as the answer to issues we lose sight of our purpose - to bring the good news to a lost world. That's the role of the church. It can take many forms but our ultimate goal is to be the good news - that relationship with the Creator, freedom from the bond of sin is available through Christ Jesus. 


1 comment:

Heidi said...

This was one of the things that stood out most to me when I read What's So Amazing About Grace. The idea has been soooo ingrained in us that it is our responsibility to change to government and legislate morals. Yancey points out that one of the largest church-growths *ever* was in China when Christians were absolutely, completely shut out of the government. Christ can change hearts. One person at a time. Successfully moving 'Christian' legislation through will not change hearts. Only if our hearts are changed will our behavior reflect that. I think it is more important that we show Christ (grace) to the people we come in contact with each day than to sign a petition. I think many of us (myself included) sign the petition because it is the *easy* thing. Showing grace each day is much, much more difficult! Thanks for sharing your thoughts today!