Testing this political theology

Is this political theology robust in the real world? In a hostile world? In a comfortable world? We dive into three very different political environments to find out.

In an anti-Christian political environment

First and foremost, the political reality of the Bible and those of Christians in China and other ‘hard’ environments has to be accounted for. Here is a hostile political situation where no Christianity is allowed. In such cases there is no room for moving in political lawmaking through lobbying politicians, so the triumphalist position is dead in the water. There is no hope for a Christian nation in that reality.

However, these Christians can seek God’s Kingdom through acts of sacrificial love to those around them. Such action, prayer, and presence communicates and witnesses to Christ’s sacrificial love on the cross and breaks hard ground. It opens people up to hearing the Gospel. It shows people a better way forward for living, which may not change the law of the nation, but will change the unwritten law of that family and that community.

This “grassroots” change of people’s culture and hearts may end up changing the nation’s political reality like it did for the Roman’s.

But suppose the political reality does not change. It hasn’t for the Chinese Christians. I see no such issue with that because they are hoping not for political change but hoping to honour Jesus—leaving the results up to Him. As long as they see God convicting people, transforming people’s hearts and minds, healing people, driving out demons, teaching a whole new way of thinking, and other manifestations of the Spirit—that is cause for celebration. That shows us that the world to come is truly real, and worth waiting for, and worth continuing to see here on earth, if only dimly.

If we do not see God’s work through the ruling elite, we should remember that is only one small aspect of politics. The rulers ought to be prayed for, surely. But why lose hope in such a situation since we don’t hope in perfection here on earth? Rather, we hope to move people to look to God in all circumstances, and that’s why we don’t lose hope in dark political times.

Francis Chan met with the Chinese underground church and reported they hold to five pillars: everyone evangelises (amen!); everyone prays (yes!); everyone studies the Word (amen); there’s an expectation that they will have supernatural answers to their prayers (so good!); and they embrace suffering for the glory of Christ (huh?). He realised though that “if you embrace suffering for the glory of Christ then you’re unstoppable…that’s what made the early church unstoppable.”Francis Chan, Zoom meeting 24/7/2021, ‘Francis Chan On The House Church Movement’

Many martyrs actually desire to suffer for Christ because this witnesses so strongly to the suffering Christ. They are pointing to Christ, and being Christ to those around them, especially as they, like Stephen and Jesus, cry out “Father, forgive them”. (Though, like anything, you can do this without love, and point only to yourself.) It's one of the greatest acts, sacrificial love, which the world simply does not know except through those who reflect and represent Jesus.

In a post-Christian political environment

But many of us don’t live in such places. We live in a political environment which until recently was largely Christianised. We might long for the ‘glory days’ of pre-1950’s (thinking of Australia) before everything started to go downhill, and when 90% of the nation went to church every week. What does this political theology do for us when we see law after law undo the righteousness of the West, introducing all manner of sinful practice?

As Christians, we still are able to be involved in politics, although there are increasing barriers to being involved in public life even now (unwritten rules to disallow Christians into political groups; debarring from law or medical professions unless you follow along with ungodly laws or practices or beliefs; reverse discrimination where hard work and good character do not count; and so on).

In this reality, most laws that are being passed are grossly repugnant to God and godly people. Should we just give up and move somewhere else? That would be the political judgment of someone who puts their hope in the formation of a Christian nation. It’s a triumphalist position that expects God’s full perfection now. Clearly, these people are in despair and lack hope due to the ever-expanding darkness that almost daily faces us. This is not a robust theology that can carry us through.

However, some of us will need to champion the best laws rooted in Christian principle in the public. Even if it never gets through, it witnesses to the strength of our position in Christ, and the wisdom of Christ’s rule. If we can ground our witness in personal testimony, demonstrating in deeds the effectiveness of this way of life, it will witness to the Way, Truth and Life that is found in Christ. Christ witnessed to the ruling religious elite, many of whom rejected him, but nevertheless gained a large following of those who were oppressed by that religious rule. People are watching, and therefore we should use the public sphere to represent Christ whether we win or lose. Thus, to be in the public sphere at all should bring us hope and joy.

Those of us who can’t be in the public sphere also have a job to do. The real life practice of the Christian faith amongst others is to be a witness to others. As we lovingly serve others, this provides the personal testimonies that can be shouted from the rooftops as evidence of Christ’s wisdom. We ought to be able to rejoice in every single move of the Spirit, whether in a new heart, a new mind, a renewed body, a renewed energy or joy, a new power over sin, a new gift, a new insight, or some other move of the Spirit. These are glimpses of the Kingdom breaking through into this world.

In a Christian political environment

I hear many Christians dismiss the idea of a Christian nation much too readily. They may realise that this tends to weaken the Church because they appear to have “won” the fight and evangelised most people and therefore give in to worldly pleasures and pursuits. Or they may be thinking of how when the Roman government turned to Christ, it produced a church greedy with power, similarly losing its witness. Clearly the church departed from the political theology put towards us. They were no longer a witness towards Christ. The end goal should never be to establish Christ’s kingdom on earth per se—that’s up to God—but rather, through Christian law and culture, point people’s life and practices to Christ.

Quite simply, if Christ is being witnessed to through the laws of the nation and the culture of the people, that should bring extraordinary glory to God and satisfaction to his Church. There is no intrinsic “thou shalt not be part of the government” in God’s economy (way of thinking about the world). If we could not be part of the government, what wisdom and worldview are the laws of the nation going to be made on? Certainly not Christian wisdom and principles. Therefore, not pursuing a godly nation is not loving the people of the nation. Alternatively, pursuing and implementing the best laws (according to a Christian worldview) for the nation will promote the flourishing of the people—which is loving them. And loving God and loving others sums up the entire Bible.

A powerful true example

What to do in what situation can't be prescriptive, since every situation is different, and God is also not into being manipulated. Since these are subjective and situational, the Holy Spirit should be asked.

The following is a true story of how preaching a narrow Gospel didn't work, and how experiencing a quick miraculous healing would not have worked. Instead, witnessing to Jesus' life was the way forward.

Voice of the Martyrs July 2021 tell of an African Muslim Aliyu. Born into a Muslim family, he became a Christian, and his family turned on him, imprisoning him in their home to try and force him to return to Islam. He escaped and connected with VOM to be discipled.

Over the next few years he tried to witness to them, having received evangelistic training from VOM. Predictably, they resisted him, gave him no room to speak, and even gave him death threats. They hated him.

Then, tragedy struck. Their mum became very ill. The family did not have the money for the necessary treatment. Aliyu raised the funds necessary from other Christians and the family accepted his offer to pay for it. The whole church got behind their mum. She recovered. The family was absolutely changed in their estimation of this Christian. They had never seen this love before. They were suddenly open to hearing about his Christian faith.

Now had there been a quick miraculous healing, that love would never have had the opportunity to show itself. It did not need a power encounter. It needed a costly love, to break through that hard ground. The costly love of the cross.

Now there is a time and a place for the power of God in healing, breakthrough, salvation, conviction, leading, raising from the death, exorcism, gifting and so on! Praise God he is powerful today! But there is a time and a place for his ambassadors to love like he loved.

Have you ever wondered why when Jesus came he didn’t just drive all the demons away with his word? Thomas Smail puts it this way: “Jesus did not attack evil by standing outside it in divine immunity and smashing it with the laser beams of supernatural force…he did not defeat it by violent and overwhelming assault upon it.”Tom Smail, “The Cross and the Spirit: Towards a Theology of Renewal” from Charismatic Renewal: The Search for a Theology, eds. Tom Smail, Andrew Walker and Nigel Wright (SPCK, 1993), 61 The demons even know this principle: “have you come here to torment us before the time?” (Matthew 8:29)! So there is a time to use force, and a time to build bridges (such as the bridge to God through the cross).

The wisest man to ever live on this earth, apart from Jesus, continually talked about ‘a time for everything’ (Solomon, in Ecclesiastes). If our ministry makes so much noise about power encounters, healings and exorcisms, that it drowns out love, Paul is brutal: it is nothing (1 Corinthians 13). The answer though is not to do away with these things, but to rebalance around the fact that one day God might want you to exercise powerful gifts—but one day God may want you to sacrificially love. In fact, as one balanced Pentecostal minister told me, you must minister all the gifts of the Spirit out of love. There is no other way, because they must point to Christ lest they result in “depart from me you workers of lawlessness” (Jesus actually said this to a group of Pentecostals (if you can allow this anachronism)! Matthew 7:21-23).

Summary

• This politic helps us in times of political adversity because it reminds us to witness to Jesus, and not put our hope in political triumph.

• This politic helps us in times of political triumph because it reminds us to witness to Jesus, and not our worldly successes.

• This politic helps us when facing individuals' hate, because it opens room to witnessing to other aspects of Jesus when the way forward is blocked such as with preaching.

If the Triumphalists were “Kingdom now” and Defeatists were “Kingdom to come”, Evangelical Charismatics expect glimpses, but not the full reality of the Kingdom, a “Kingdom reflected”. For now, we look through a mirror dimly (1 Corinthians 13:12 ESV); we "see through a glass, darkly" (1 Cor 13:12 KJV). 

Therefore, we can make the following generalisations to help with understanding the differences between three political views.

Next

We've talked a lot about Jesus' life, death and resurrection, and not had too many concrete examples of what that looks like. One unlikely place of incredible clarity on this is Revelation and other discussions of the New Heaven and New Earth.