South Carolina has been the state of political weirdness lately. Most recently we have Alvin Greene. Mr. Greene is an unemployed veteran, who came out of nowhere to win the democratic nomination for the Senate. Many people are suspicious (namely the democrats), because, to be blunt, he doesn't seem like he knows what he's doing. Moreover, some people are worried, and Christians are beginning to engage in the necessary theological reflection.
The is at least one camp of people that are rightly concerned. Because the scriptures tell us that our government officials are God's servants, and they do not bear the sword for nothing, it is important that we take elections seriously. We are right to take seriously our responsibility to elect those candidates who will fulfill their obligations.
But there is a second camp of people who see the tragedy even deeper. Because the scriptures speak of the authorities that be, being 'appointed' by God, perhaps the nomination of Alvin Greene is worse than we thought. Perhaps God is putting Greene in a position of power, because he is the kind of candidate that we deserve. That is, we no longer deserve good leadership, and the appointment of Greene is going to be the beginning of the end.
Both of these positions have biblical truth within them. And hopefully they both lead to concern and prayer that God will be gracious. However, there is also a third perspective that I think has even more merit.
One of my college profs had this remark on his blog... "The problem, of course, is that no one has the capacity to see the relative insignificance of the elections, except the poor. They know that they will be excluded no matter who sits in what chamber to cast votes. One can not have justice without just persons, and one cannot have just persons unless one begins with proper worship of the Triune God."
Indeed, if any good can come from the seeming absurdity of Greene's nomination (and it can!), it is that he is a stark reminder to Christians not to put our faith in the political system! Neither democrat, nor republican, nor any other political party in all creation has the power to be the instrument of the renewal of creation. Such is the task of the church, which is the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is the church which holds the keys of the kingdom. It is the church which will inherit the new heavens and the new earth. It is the church which is a living preview of the New Creation, where truth is told, people are treated fairly, all are loved. Such things can only come about through the gospel of Christ, and 'proper worship of the Triune God.'
Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.
Psalm 20:7
but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.
Psalm 20:7
4 comments:
I think that as Christians we don't really see just how fallen the world is, or to put it another way, just how pervasively our sin has infiltrated...everything. As a result we believe deeply and passionately that a certain political band-aid will do the trick, and if only we can get that particular band-aid dispenser elected we will see an end to the bleeding.
We for sure need to be very thoughtful and concerned for particular issues. But how we march forward as God's people on those particular issues is where we often stumble, I think...
"Neither democrat, nor republican, nor any other political party in all creation has the power to be the instrument of the renewal of creation. Such is the task of the church, which is the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is the church which holds the keys of the kingdom. It is the church which will inherit the new heavens and the new earth. It is the church which is a living preview of the New Creation, where truth is told, people are treated fairly, all are loved. Such things can only come about through the gospel of Christ, and 'proper worship of the Triune God.'"
--True dat. Good words, Rev. Bro. But the Welfare State also helps, don't you think? Perhaps an "all-hands-on-deck" is the best approach to cultural renewal. Ultimate fairness, equality, etc. is ultimately in the domain of the church, yes, but meals-on-wheels helps too.
The only theological issue is where our ultimate hopes are placed. Placing our hope for cultural renewal on food stamps or meals-on-wheels is clearly misguided. But it is also misguided to not be thankful for those things.
Right????????
bro
Bro! Thanks for the comment. And yes, I suppose you are right. We can be thankful that our government still has compassion for the poor built into it.
Although, after working in a bank two blocks from the government projects, it's hard to be too thankful for the welfare checks. There wasn't much resembling cultural renewal going on there, and I often wondered if the free money was helping or hurting.
A special needs child has taught me to see how some of the govt services are really our modern day version of "community"--how we pool resources to take care of those in need around us. Small examples--the public schools are currently better equipped to put together an IEP for a kid than the private schools.
Yet I know that govt funding is not ideal, having also seen the abuses of the system (of course, people abuse church's generosity also).
Very tight knit community is needed--ideally within the church, but within neighborhoods and families too. Huge breakdowns in all areas, I think.
(Recommended: Books by Randy Frazee.)
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