Thinking Biblically About Politics – by Ronald J. Sider

The amazing story of William Wilberforce raises a pressing question for Christians today. Wilberforce was a faithful evangelical Christian who worked for over thirty years as an active politician. The result? His successful battle against the slave trade and slavery changed not just the British Empire but the entire planet.

But Wilberforce was not just a politician. He was a devout evangelical Christian. He was passionately committed to evangelism both at home in England and around the world. Wilberforce and his key circle of partners in the Clapham Sect used to pray several hours a day for God's guidance in all their work.

In our time, we face huge problems at least as tough and destructive as the evils Wilberforce battled. Abortion snuffs out the life of millions each year. Starvation and diseases we know how to prevent annually kill more than ten million children. Wholesome, biblical family life is severely threatened today. Our best scientists tell us that environmental pollution all around the world poses a dangerous threat to ourselves and even more to our children and grandchildren.

So how can we think and act biblically about politics in a way that would enable Christians today to change history the way William Wilberforce did? Three questions are crucial:

1. Why politics?

2. What should we avoid?

3. How can we do it right?

Why politics? Why should faithful biblical Christians even bother about politics? After all, does it not take up all our available energy and time just being good parents and spouses, active church members, and faithful witnesses effectively sharing the Gospel with our neighbors?

There are at least two big reasons why biblical Christians must be active politically: 1) Jesus is Lord; and 2) if we love our neighbor, politics is simply too important to neglect it.

At the very center of Christian faith is the claim that Jesus is now Lord–Lord of the entire universe. The New Testament explicitly teaches that he is now “ruler of the kings of the earth” (Rev. 1:5). “All authority in heaven and on earth” has been given to the Risen Jesus (Matt. 28:18). Christians who know that must submit every corner of their lives to this wonderful Lord.

Since we live in democratic societies where we have the freedom to vote, our vote–or even our failure to vote–shapes what happens in the important area of politics. One way Christians must live out our belief that Christ is Lord, even of political life, is to think and pray for wisdom to act politically in ways that best reflect Christ our Lord.

Second, Christians must engage in politics because we love our neighbors. And politics affects every one of our neighbors in big ways. Good political decisions improve the lives of hundreds of millions of our neighbors. Bad political decisions harm, even destroy, tens of millions of the neighbors Jesus calls us to love.

It is a simple historical fact that political decisions have a huge impact–for good or bad–on the lives of billions of people. Think of the devastation and death the world might have avoided if German Christians had not elected Hitler to public office. Think of the freedom, goodness and joy that followed for tens of millions from the fact that Wilberforce labored for over thirty years and eventually persuaded his colleagues in the British Parliament to outlaw first the slave trade and then slavery itself throughout the British Empire.

It is through politics that country after country has come to enjoy democracy. It is through politics that nation after nation has stopped jailing and killing “heretics” and embraced religious freedom. It is through politics that Marxist-Leninist totalitarianism first conquered and devastated and then waned and disappeared in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. It is through politics that we develop laws that either restrict or permit abortion, allow or forbid “gay marriage,” protect or destroy the environment. Politics is simply too important to ignore if we love our neighbors.

But it is not enough to know that Christ is Lord of politics and that we ought to love our neighbor through political engagement. Just because you are a Christian does not mean you get your politics right. History has many tragic examples of devout Christians making terrible political mistakes: launching vicious crusades, slaughtering heretics, killing Jews. The sad, frightening list is long and tragic.

So what should we avoid and how do we do it right?

We must avoid four things:

1) we must not get so involved in politics that we neglect other crucial things;

2) we must not make politics and government more important than they are;

3) we dare not allow political disagreements to undermine the unity of the church;

4) we dare not be unfair to those who disagree with us.

Each of these four things to avoid is crucial.

First, political engagement must not become so all-important that we neglect other essential things like evangelism. Wilberforce's calling was politics, but he still found lots of time for evangelism. Christians dare not become so preoccupied with politics that it makes us neglect evangelism, worship, and Christian fellowship.

Second, politics is not the only way we change the world, and the state is not the only institution in society. Christians know that freedom is possible only if the state is limited. Christians know that other institutions in society–the family, church, a vast range of voluntary institutions and businesses–are all important. They should be largely independent of the state. Making sure all these different institutions thrive and function well is just as important for creating a good society as working for good political decisions.

Third, since Christians are both finite and not fully sanctified, political differences among good Christians are inevitable. But we dare not let these political disagreements destroy our oneness in Christ. “For the Health of the Nation,” the National Association of Evangelicals' new official framework for political engagement, rightly insists that “we must be clear that biblical faith is vastly larger and richer than every limited, inevitably imperfect political agenda and that commitment to the Lordship of Christ and his one body far transcends all political commitments.” 1 Among other things, that means that the task of the local congregation is not to endorse specific legislation or candidates. Rather, the local church should help all its members develop a biblical framework for political engagement.

Fourth, we dare not be unfair to or demonize our political opponents. Honest political differences are inevitable and sometimes even helpful. But we must always treat each other with honesty and respect. Congregations should help their members learn how to discuss political differences in a way that encourages open, truthful, respectful dialogue.

So how do we do it right? The NAE statement, “For the Health of the Nation,” points out two especially important things:

1) Faithful Christian political thought and action require both biblical principles and also careful study of society.

2) Faithful Christian politics must have a “biblically balanced agenda.”

The first point underlines two things: first, we must start with biblical principles; and second, the Bible itself is not enough.

Every political decision of every person (whether religious or secular) flows finally from some normative vision about the nature of creation, persons, and history and the definition of things like justice and family. Unless one starts with a biblical understanding of these things, one's politics will be decisively shaped by secular ideas of left or right.

The biblical story provides an essential framework for Christian political engagement. The entire created order is good and precious because it comes from the hand of a loving God. Created in the image of God, every person is precious. Persons are called to a servant-like stewardship of the rest of the Creator's handiwork. Tragically, humanity rebelled against God and the result is selfish persons, twisted social relationships and institutions and even a groaning, dis-ordered creation. Unwilling to forsake fallen humanity, however, the Creator began a long historical process of salvation to restore a right relationship among God, persons, and the creation around them. At the center of that redeeming grace is Jesus Christ, Nazarene Carpenter and Eternal Word, who models perfect humanity, atones for our sins, and rises from the dead to break the power of evil. History is moving toward the Risen Lord's return when all things will be restored to wholeness. This biblical story provides a foundation for thinking about the nature, dignity, and destiny of persons, the status of the non-human world, the importance of history, and the ultimate meaning of all things.

Biblical revelation also provides us with additional key principles that are crucial to faithful Christian political work:

1. The Special Dignity and Sanctity of Every Human Being . Every person–and only human beings–are made in the image of God, called to stewardship of the non-human creation, made to find fulfillment only when rightly related to God, neighbor, the earth, and self, summoned to respond in freedom to God's invitation of salvation, and invited to live forever in the presence of God.

2. Freedom of Belief . Throughout biblical history, God gives persons enormous freedom to respond in obedience or rebellion, unbelief or faith to God. Jesus' parable of the wheat and tares shows that God chooses to allow this freedom to persons until the final judgment. Therefore, religious freedom is an essential element of a good society.

3. The Family . Strong, stable families (persons related by blood, marriage, or adoption) are essential for a good society. Keeping marriage vows, accepting God's design that sexual intercourse be reserved for a man and a woman united in life-long marriage covenant, and valuing singles in the extended family are all important aspects of strengthening the family.

4. Justice . The two key Hebrew words for justice ( mishphat and sedaqah ) are used both

to call for just courts and just economic arrangements.

Fair courts require honest witnesses and impartial justice which is not biased toward rich or poor (Lev. 19:15; Deut. 10:17-19; Exod. 23:1-6).

Fair economic arrangements require–as the Old Testament treatment of the land (the basic capital in an agricultural society) shows–an arrangement where all families and persons have access to the productive resources needed to earn a decent living and be dignified participating members of society (Num. 26:52-54; Ezek. 47:14; Lev. 25). In addition, those who are unable to work and provide for themselves must be cared for by their family and the larger community.

5. A Special Concern for the Poor . Hundreds of biblical texts declare God's special

concern for the poor and demand that God's people imitate God's concern (Psa. 140:12; Prov. 19:17; Matt. 25:31ff). One crucial measure of how God judges societies and policies is by what they do to the poorest, weakest and most marginalized.

Biblical principles about things like the sanctity of human life, freedom, the family, justice and the poor are essential for Christian political work. But they are not enough. There is not a single biblical text about the wisdom of nuclear power plants, global trade or raising (or lowering) the minimum wage. In addition to biblical principles, we also need careful, detailed study of economics, history and sociology.

In the words of “For the Health of the Nation,” “Christians engaged in public policy . . . must do detailed social, economic, historical, jurisprudential and political analysis if we are to understand our society and wisely apply our normative vision [i.e., our biblical principles] to political questions.”

There is a second, equally crucial key to getting our politics right. We must have a “biblically balanced agenda.” Again, the NAE document puts the point clearly: “The Bible makes it clear that God cares a great deal about the well-being of marriage, the family, the sanctity of human life, justice for the poor, care for creation, peace, freedom and racial justice. While individual persons and organizations are at times called by God to concentrate on one or two issues, faithful evangelical civic engagement must champion a biblically balanced agenda.”

It is simply unbiblical for Christians to focus all or most of their political activity on just one or two issues. If the Bible says God cares about the family and the poor, the sanctity of human life and creation care, peace and freedom and racial justice, then faithful Christian political engagement must be concerned with all these issues.

That is why the last major section of the widely acclaimed NAE document has seven sections:

•  a vigorous call [grounded in Jesus' parable of the wheat and tares (Matt. 13:24-30)] to promote and protect religious freedom;

•  a strong affirmation of the centrality of the family for a decent society;

•  a ringing summons to protect the sanctity of human life, opposing abortion and euthanasia;

•  a long, strong demand that God's people seek justice for all and combat poverty, recognizing that “God measures societies by how they treat the people at the bottom;”

•  a clear call to protect human rights and promote racial justice;

•  a vigorous summons to seek peace, restrain violence, and promote nonviolent conflict resolution as much as possible;

•  a strong summons to protect God's creation.

A biblically balanced political agenda will be pro-life and pro-poor, pro-family and pro-racial justice, pro-freedom and pro-peace and pro-creation care.

William Wilberforce did not create Utopia or usher in the perfection of Christ's kingdom by his persistent, wise political work. Sin, selfishness and evil continued–as they always will until Christ returns. But Wilberforce did free millions of slaves. His political work greatly improved our world. Faithful, biblically balanced political work by dedicated Christians can do the same today. We can make real progress in respecting and protecting the sanctity of human life. We can dramatically reduce poverty and empower hundreds of millions of poor neighbors to enjoy a better life. We can reduce divorce and renew wholesome family life. We can nurture religious freedom for persecuted believers around the world, and create more free, democratic societies. We can reverse environmental degradation and pass on a less polluted planet to our grandchildren. All these are possible if Christians today learn how to think and act biblically in their politics.

Even if Christians in the next couple decades managed to do all these things wisely, biblically, and effectively, evil would still be widespread in this world. But our actions would improve the lives of hundreds of millions of our neighbors, both near and far. More important, our work would bring honor to Christ who even now is King of kings and Lord of lords.

by Ronald J. Sider

1 For this and subsequent quotations see “For the Health of the Nation: An Evangelical Call to Civic Responsibility” in Ronald J. Sider and Diane Knippers, eds., Toward an Evangelical Public Policy (Baker, 2005), 363-375).