Christians And Political Responsibility

A few years ago a pastor acquaintance sincerely asked me, “Do you not think that Christians, and pastors in particular, should avoid becoming involved in political issues? Would it not be better if they spent their time with spiritual concerns and winning souls? After all, we know that we are in the last days and things will wax worse and worse. We cannot do anything to change matters.” This was a rather pointed question: especially since my friend knew that I had a rather long history of what some might term political militancy and activism. My first response was that I believed the Bible to teach the imminent return of Christ. Paul and the apostles and people in the early churches and in churches in every age since had the same belief. But this did not deter them from opposing evil and promoting good in every area of life; as they turned the world upside down by their witnessing for Christ.

My next thought, although I did not express it bluntly, was, “Why not live the life of Christ, be an active and effective witness as well as a responsible and active Christian citizen in the community and nation in which one lives?” This might have been an especially apt response since I was aware that the same pastor held that door to door soul winning was a futile endeavor in Australia and therefore did not practice it. At the time, I was spending at least forty hours a week constructing a new church building, preparing and preaching three messages a week, knocking on a number of doors each week and sharing Christ, as well as being involved with other Christians in a successful effort to stop the establishment of the first “sex shop” on the Gold Coast. An effort that succeeded for a considerable time.

What did Jesus really mean when He said that we should render unto Caesar that which belongs to Caesar? What did Paul and Peter mean when they asserted we should recognize the role of government and be submissive to the laws of the land? It would be difficult to read such verses in their context and cultural setting without conceding that Christians do have the responsibility to support and pray for good government and even work toward that end.

But what about Christians and contemporary politics as practiced in the real democratic nations of our world today? Do we have a responsibility to work within the framework of democratic processes to achieve and support good government?

But this raises an interesting and vital question, “Should Christians be involved in politics?” This is an often asked and emotive question, obviously designed to illicit a strong response. Do we as Christians have the right and even the duty to be involved in such mundane and worldly matters? The world and many sincere Christians seem to feel we do not. But this is the wrong question. The real question should be phrased something like this, “Can a Christian refuse to become involved in the battle for good government and the establishment of righteousness in the land?” We do not know when the Lord may come back. It could be in the generation of our grandchildren or their children’s children. Do we not have the responsibility to work as Christian citizens to bequeath them a heritage of the freedom of speech and religion that we enjoy today? That they might live peaceably among all men and freely proclaim the gospel of Christ to their generation?

Has God called us to merely gather in holy huddles and sit around introspectively, as navel inspectors, venturing forth only to occasionally proclaim the gospel? Surely Christ had more than this in mind when He said we are called to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Are we not our neighbors keepers in more than the mere mundane matter of providing a helping hand when needed? Is it not more important to try to protect our culture from the moral pollution and decay that is so rampant and destructive? Rather than being overly concerned about the real or imagined physical pollution of our day?

We only need to make a cursory survey of the Bible to discover those such as Daniel, Joseph and Esther. They served God with their whole hearts and beings, never compromising their faith or changing their convictions. But where did they serve Him? In the corridors of power and the cabinet rooms of the most powerful pagan governments of their day. Through them God blessed His people and the nations in which they dwelt. Perhaps we will never have the privilege or opportunity to serve in the corridors of power in our day, but we do have a voice and a vote that should count for God and country. 

“If the foundations be destroyed, what shall the righteous do?” Psalm 11:3

“Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.” Prov. 14:34

“Godless men should not rule, nor be snares of the people.” Job 34:30

“When the righteous become great, the people rejoice, when wicked men rule,

people groan.” Prov. 29:2

Love Is The Principle Thing

You can read the full sermon on this topic by using the Sermon Selection tab on the Home page of this site.

Mark 12:29-34

What is the strongest power in the universe? Is it nuclear fission or fusion? It is said that if man could fully unlock the power of controlled nuclear fusion, the power of the sun, he would have unlimited power to probe the uttermost recesses of the galaxy in which we live. Couple this with a viable superconductor and a second industrial and technological revolution of unimaginable dimensions would be possible. A cup of water could then provide the basic energy source to power a great city for a considerable period of time. We can only speculate on the ultimate impact of such power.

Yet there already exists greater motive power than this. Paul spoke of it when he spoke of the power of the gospel; which is based upon the love of God. What is really the greatest power in the universe? The power of love. In this time of terrorist threats, economic turmoil, political upheaval and social breakdown, what is the most powerful force that could be brought to bear to right the wrongs that exist in this world? An old song says it all. "What the world needs now is love." Not the mushy sentimental sort written about in the romantic ballads of bygone days. Nor the erotic, sensual, sexually exploitative sort of so-called love that permeates so much of today's world of entertainment. An emotion that could more accurately be defined and characterized as lust rather than love. But what the world needs now is the love that has it source in God. What the New Testament terms agape love. A Godlike love.

Are You Right, Mate?

This casual cliche, with all its common connotations, is as characteristically Australian as meat pies and Holden cars. And the expected response is often altogether too predictable, no matter how critical the real situation might be. Because sometimes things are just not right at all. We all too often have real hurt and pain. But we pass as ships in the night,  without meaningful contact or communication. We seem determined to fly as a facade the flag of self-sufficiency. And so we plot our course. posing as confident captains of our own ships and masters of our own fate, until our bravado and false pride finds us floundering on the rocks and reefs of some personal calamity.
The terrible trouble of such personal isolation seems to be the price we pay for the privilege of living in cur hurry and worry world. And this is bad enough. But the greatest tragedy of all lies in the common response today to the question, "Are you right mate? Right with God?"
The Creator of our universe and the coming Judge of all mankind insists that we come to grips with this all Important question in the here and now or we will surely suffer eternal shipwreck in the there and then. It will not suffice to ignore, delay or make excuse. Well may one tell a concerned Christian to, "Mind his own religion," but such a response to the King of this universe is not only daft, but dangerous.
God has given us one prime responsibility during our brief existence here on earth. The prophet Amos placed it plainly and pointedly when he said, "Prepare to meet your God..." (Amos 4:12) Since our time is in His hand and this is the day that He has made, we only have the time Cod chooses in His grace to give us in which to find His answer to this vital question.
But how does one make sure of a right relationship with God? First, we must face the fact of our position. The Bible teaches that God is Holy and that man is not. Al! men are sinners. (Romans 3:23) And the ultimate end of our sinful conduct will be eternal  separation from God, unless some effective intervention occurs. (Romans 6:23)
Next, we must realize that all our efforts to bridge the chasm separating us from our Creator are vain and futile. Our natural tendency is to trust our own abilities, righteousness and the work of our own hands. So some are christened, confirmed, baptized or join a church;  all the while unwilling to admit their obvious dismal failure in living uprightly and keeping the golden rule. From the outset all such efforts are doomed because God says there is none righteous, no not one and that all our pretended righteousness are as filthy rags when compared to the holiness and righteousness of His Son, Jesus Christ (Isaiah 64:6, Romans 3:10) After all if we could, through our own energy and effort, make ourselves right with God, why did Jesus die on a cruel cross to pay our sin debt? Peter said Christ suffered once for our sins, the perfect one for the imperfect one, so He could bring us to God.
Just how then can one be right with God? If we can only stand in the Holy presence of a Holy God if we are without sin, how can we acquire such perfect righteousness? Paul had the answer and the Holy Spirit of God Inspired him to share it with us In the Bible. He said, "God has made Jesus to be sin for us, He who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." (II Cor. 5:21) "Therefore being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ"  ( Romans 5:1)  Then he said, "If you believe  your heart in the Lord Jesus Christ you shall be saved...for whosoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." (Romans 10:9 &13))
Are you sure you are right with God? You can be.  How?  Simply repent of your sin, place your absolute faith and trust in Jesus Christ as your sin sacrifice, call upon His Name, ask Him into your heart to be your personal Saviour and receive His gift of everlasting life.

Counterfeit Charlatans or Changed Christians?

What is a real Christian? I mean the real McCoy? The genuine article? What we Aussies would refer to as fair dinkum and dinky di; without sham, shabby pretense or hypocrisy? The sort you could stake your reputation or life upon? The kind who may still be found standing for Christ when all around are falling? I'm sure we've all heard the old stories and clichés that deal with the dilemma of the identification and determination of a real Christian. Such as the little boy who, after hearing a message outlining the qualities of a real Christian, asked his father if he had ever really seen a Christian. The world around is still asking that question of us every day. Much of the world is still waiting to see one. Oh, we have plenty of the counterfeit kind; even though they may be a bit difficult to detect right away. You can submit a counterfeit coin to a bite, bounce or other test, and ultimately determine its true character. You can analyze the color, patterns and paper quality of a counterfeit note and identify most fakes immediately. When I was a practicing analytical chemist we used scientific methodology to correctly identify any substance or compound coming into our laboratory. We could break it down chemically into its molecular parts and determine its true nature.

Our Savior left us the information and methodology for accurately analyzing Christian character as well. He said, "Every tree is known by its fruit.." He also said, "A good (or saved) man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth that which is good." This is the acid test. Even the world knows that characteristics such as love, joy, peace, patience, honesty and integrity are identifying fruits of the Spirit. We can be sure they are watching the growth and production of those who claim to be Christian trees. We are surrounded on all sides by spiritual fruit inspectors and should always be mindful that our Savior said, "By this (love) shall all men know that you are my disciples."

There is a story of the little boy who was watching his pastor driving nails on a church building project. The pastor said, "Son, are you hoping to learn to drive a nail properly so you can be a carpenter when you grow up?" "No," the small lad replied, "I'm waiting to see what a preacher says when he smashes his finger!" The world is also awaiting our reaction in the crucible of crisis. Our confirmation in word and deed of the validity of our faith. They are watching to see if our profession matches our possession.