Throwing a Tea Party

Did you attend your Tea Party? How did you feel about it? I went. Legislative eyes are always busy counting numbers (votes) so showing up affects outcomes and attitudes. I don’t like the way America is heading on several levels and I would like to see the direction altered. But political involvement always brings questions to my developing Christian mind.

Does God set up every government?

Daniel 2:21 (Amplified Bible)

²¹He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and sets up kings. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding!^(A)

Perhaps this means that God only sets up some kings not all kings.

Are elected presidents the same as kings in God’s eyes?

Romans 13:1-7 (Amplified Bible)

Romans 13

¹LET EVERY person be loyally subject to the governing (civil) authorities. For there is no authority except from God [by His permission, His sanction], and those that exist do so by God's appointment.^(A)

²Therefore he who resists and sets himself up against the authorities resists what God has appointed and arranged [in divine order]. And those who resist will bring down judgment upon themselves [receiving the penalty due them].

³For civil authorities are not a terror to [people of] good conduct, but to [those of] bad behavior. Would you have no dread of him who is in authority? Then do what is right and you will receive his approval and commendation.

⁴For he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, [you should dread him and] be afraid, for he does not bear and wear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant to execute His wrath (punishment, vengeance) on the wrongdoer.

⁵Therefore one must be subject, not only to avoid God's wrath and escape punishment, but also as a matter of principle and for the sake of conscience.

⁶For this same reason you pay taxes, for [the civil authorities] are official servants under God, devoting themselves to attending to this very service.

⁷Render to all men their dues. [Pay] taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, and honor to whom honor is due.

Are we talking government in general? Every government? Only good government?

A serious Bible student can go around and around on this subject. In another place Paul instructed us to obey government so that we can lead peaceful lives. But what if the government forbids that which God commands. We have Biblical examples of government commanding the gospel not be preached or false gods worshiped. God’s view on these things are clear, government or not, we obey God. This may mean being thrown into a seven times hotter furnace.

In a democracy we presumably have “a say” in how things are run. This is both good and bad in some people’s opinion. How much effort and emphasis should be placed on temporal structures? Some say we can do both, walk and chew gum at the same time. Some say that efforts to shape government detract from a Christian’s commitment to God and efforts in God’s direction. This may presuppose preaching the gospel and accepting the gospel is God’s primary concern currently. Does God even care what form of government we have?

Democracy and capitalism is preferred because it allows for greater prosperity and personal freedoms to personally carry out the plan of God. Socialism is bad because it shifts the burden of personal responsibility to the state, concentrates corrupt power centers and stifles economic growth thus robbing recourses needed to carry out the plan of God. Is this the argument in some inadequate nutshell? Certainly the situation is more complicated. But America’s founding fathers understood the corrupting influence of power and attempted to legislate against it, decentralizing government as much as possible. Socialism naturally centralizes power. These are all good arguments in my opinion.

But in another sense I see following Jesus Christ as primarily an individual journey, a pilgrim’s progress. God is responsible for shaping nations. We are responsible for recognizing what God is doing and following it (plus tending the garden). One thing God is doing is changing individual lives. He is revealing Himself to individuals by His Holy Spirit. Some hear Him and respond (if you are Arminian), some were created to hear Him and can’t avoid responding (if you are Calvinistic). But either way God is in the business currently of calling individuals out of the masses and He is assembling a people to call His own. We understand that our individual relationship to God is a high priority with God, therefore we assist others with their relationship with God. He told us to make disciples, right? We fit into what God is doing currently.

What else is God doing that we can and should fit into? The world is filled with books and voices persuading us on this issue and that issue, planting god flags on every issue imaginable. We can’t possibly spread ourselves thinly enough to individually commit to every issue even if all those issues were important to God. So we are back to what do we personally know God is doing. We know two already, our own relationship to God and helping others with their relationship. Beyond that I couldn’t speak for you.

We often ask God “whose side are you on.” This is the question Joshua asked the Captain, Prince, Commander of the Lord’s host in Joshua 5:13. This Captain commanded Joshua to remove his shoes, declared the ground holy and accepted worship. Who do you think he was? His answer was “neither.” He was not on either side. God is on His side. He is creator of all. He makes all the rules and those rules are perfect. There is only one relevant question, “are we on God’s side.” Now with that right question various answers on how we are on God's side will be appropriate depending on where God has seen fit to place you today. For Joshua at that moment the right thing was to picket the place and watch God bring down the city walls. Now walk in and take over. There must be a lesson in there somewhere.

And you thought this was going to be easy?