Four Motives for Christian Involvement in Politics

(This is Part 3 of a series on Christian involvement in politics. Read Part 1 and Part 2)

In my last post on the issue of Christian involvement in politics, I said that the motive for our involvement should not be as a method of trying to 'reclaim' America for Jesus Christ. And I said I would write another post explaining a more biblical motive for such involvement. That is the goal of this post.

I assume that the purpose of government is to promote and advance the cause of justice for all people, regardless of race, class, religion, or other personal distinctives. I realize that government does not always (perhaps does not often) serve this function, which is a product of the Fall of mankind into sin. Nevertheless, I think that most people would agree that the goal of government should be to promote a just, equitable, peaceful, harmonious society. I believe that this goal ought to be pursued by lovers of Jesus Christ, for at least four reasons. I'll touch on each one only briefly. I realize that they overlap in certain ways, but I also think they are distinct.

1. The display of God's glory. God is a God of justice, and Romans 13 says that governing authorities are God's servants, existing to manifest His justice and goodness by both promoting good and restraining evil, which are also fundamental to God's character. When the government is doing that, a part of God's image in man is shining forth, in what theologians call 'common grace'. He is glorified when, out of desire to honor Him, His people pursue a just society in which the common good is sought and preserved.

2. Love for neighbor. Jesus taught that the second commandment is to love our neighbor as we love ourselves, and in Luke 10 He defines our neighbor as anyone we encounter with a need. While this involves more than politics, it does include the pursuit of a just government. The Good Samaritan story shows us that genuine love cares for both the body and soul of another person. So out of love for our fellow humans, we should desire that our political structures aim at the promotion of justice and peace for all.

3. Shalom. The Hebrew word shalom is translated as peace, but its real meaning is much deeper than that, referring to the full flourishing of human beings and society. I have given a more in depth explanation of shalom here. Specifically this has been helpful to me in correcting my attitude that because 'my citizenship is in heaven,' (Philippians 3:20-21), I do not have a responsibility to pursue the highest good of the earthly society that I happen to be an exile in for now. But In Jeremiah 29, God tells the Jewish exiles in Babylon not to retreat from the unbelieving society, but to seek its shalom. There are many ways to do this, but I believe basic political involvement is one important way that we can seek the shalom of our communities, states and nations.

4. The Kingdom of God. Throughout the Gospels, Jesus emphasized the good news of the Kingdom of God. This good news is not simply that God is collecting for Himself a group of individuals and restoring those individuals to a new relationship with Him. The good news is certainly not less than that, but it is more. It is the good news that in Jesus, the future, cosmic rule and reign of God has broken into the present. God's goal for the future is to completely renew and transform the entire creation, freeing it from its nautural and moral corruption. The images of this glorious future in both the Old and New Testaments picture a New Heavens and New Earth where God's perfect justice reigns, where racial and ethnic harmony flourishes, where weapons of war are turned into instruments of peace. Even modest political advances toward that glorious goal in our own day bear witness to the perfect Kingdom that Jesus will one day consummate.

For instance, the abolition of the slave trade that William Wilberforce helped to bring about made one aspect of his society a little more like God's final Kingdom. It did not bring about the Kingdom, but it serves as a signpost pointing to that glorious future. Likewise, when we labor to promote justice and equality for all, we give people a little taste of the perfect peace and justice that awaits the redeemed in the Kingdom of God.

Each of these four motives are deserving of much more thinking and writing. I have barely scratched the surface in this short reflection, but I hope it has at least given some broad, general principles to motivate Christians to care about the public policies of our nation.

Next week I'll finish this short series with a few posts about the common good, the role of religious beliefs in public policy and the separation of church and state.