Just over a hundred years ago the world was mired in the Great War, what would come to be called World War I. Parallel trenches were constructed across Europe. Millions of young men with baryonetted rifles in hand lined the muddy ditches. Fighting was brutal with thousands of lives lost for gains measured in feet, not miles.
Trenches may be a thing of the past when it comes to warfare, but they are alive and well when it comes to political conversations. We line up shoulder-to-shoulder with our brothers-in-arms and fire rounds across no man’s land to the other side. Any hint that those standing in the trench next to you might not be in complete political alignment results in charges of treason.
In trench warfare, when one side makes ground on the other sometimes trenches built by one side because the residence of their opponent. So it is in political trench warfare. Where there is an opportunity, one side may switch and take up the very trench that used to be the position of their adversary. The swapping of trenches ought to make us pause: are our parties crafting their platforms based on coherent moral convictions or political expediency?
The Bible stands over our partisan allegiances and offers correction to the way our world evaluates politics. The question isn’t whether or not my political thinking is out of step with God’s Kingdom ethics, the question is where? We all have blind spots and we need the Bible to offer correction.
We also need to be charitable to one another as we navigate the difficult reality of living as citizens of heaven in America. The issues are complex and the application of biblical truths to our contemporary political situation is more challenging and nuanced than talking heads would have you think.
Because of the difficulty of politics, we include a statement in our Elder Staff Teaching Doctrinal Statement[i] that clarifies our views. Below is our best attempt at bringing the authority of the Bible to bear on understanding our contemporary politics.
Here is our statement about politics at our Elder Staff Teaching Doctrinal Statement at New Life:
We believe Christians are to live peaceful lives in submission to all civil authorities, whom God ordains as His servants for His purposes.[ii] While it is God’s will that all civil authorities honor Him in their service, Christians are to submit to them regardless of their moral or spiritual character.[iii] There is blessing in submitting to God even through unrighteous leaders.[iv]
Jesus is the center of our worldview and He unifies us with other believers beyond ideology. That means we have more in common with political rivals who love Jesus than political allies who do not know God. Politically, we are not partisan nor place ideology above theology. There is no political party that wholly represents our beliefs while there are aspects of most political parties that we agree with. We are pro-life, concerned for the welfare of the outcast and those who lack influence and power. We believe marriage is between one man and one woman, but we believe those who practice differently have equal worth and value as God’s creations and deserve the same basic rights and respect of being humans and fellow citizens. We believe gender is part of God’s design in knitting a person together in their mother’s womb, but we believe those who disagree ought not be discriminated against.
The Church is ultimately all nations, so while we promote good citizenship as patriotism, we recognize the kingdom of God has no earthly flag. We believe the fall has corrupted everything and are therefore skeptical of concentrations of power and loath systemic injustice. We see all governing systems as dysfunctional because of the fall. For this reason, we put no confidence in earthly kings nor endorse particular candidates. However, we passionately believe in the sovereignty of the King of Kings and live at peace knowing He governs all nations and calls us to good citizenship.
Political authorities are not ultimate: they serve under the sovereignty of God. Because we can trust our sovereign God, we honor, pray for, and submit to our leaders. Ultimately, though, our eyes are on the Kingdom of God. We are most passionate about the advancement of his Kingdom and recognize that God’s kingdom is not advanced through earthly kingdoms.
It is for this reason that as faithful citizens, we thoughtfully vote. But we also recognize that praying, serving, loving our neighbor, and creating healthy gospel outposts in the local church are more impactful in the advancement of God’s Kingdom than any vote will be.
Whatever we do, let us echo Paul’s admonition in Ephesians 4:1, “I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”
[i] New Life Bible Fellowship Elder Teaching Doctrinal Statement, https://newlifetucson.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/CURRENT-Teaching-Doctrinal-Statement-10-23.pdf
[ii] Romans 13:1 Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.
1 Peter 2:13 Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme.
[iii] Consider the historical context of the above verses. When Paul wrote Romans in 57 A.D. in the early years of Nero’s reign. When Peter wrote in the early 60’s A.D. Nero had implemented horrendous persecutions of Christians.
[iv] 1 Samuel 24:6 He said to his men, “The LORD forbid that I should do this thing to my lord, the LORD’s anointed, to put out my hand against him, seeing he is the LORD’s anointed.”
You May Also Appreciate:
Would You Join Me in Praying for Our Country?
Photo by British Library on Unsplash