Gatetree and Politics

I was recently asked how involved pastors and churches ought to be in the political process. My best answer goes something like this:

I am grateful to be an American. I’m a card-carrying, red-blooded citizen of the United States and proud of it. But first and foremost, I’m a citizen of heaven, and let me tell you what that means.

It means—no matter how great or sincere the efforts, we can’t protect or expand the Kingdom of Christ by our political system. We are involved in a spiritual battle against ungodly ideologies aimed directly at God and His people and the only effective weapon we have is His Word.

It means—God has not called us to wage a cultural war that would seek to transform our country into a Christian nation. Instead, He has called the church to bring sinful people to salvation through Jesus Christ. If we do not evangelize the lost and make disciples of new converts, nothing else we do for people—no matter how beneficial it seems—has any eternal consequence.

When the church takes a stance that emphasizes political activism and social moralizing, it always diverts energy and resources away from evangelization. Invariably, believers find themselves feeling hostile, not only to unsaved government leaders with whom they disagree, but also antagonistic toward the unsaved residents of that culture—neighbors and fellow citizens they ought to love, pray for, and share the gospel with.

Focusing on earthly methods to promote change, and resorting to external efforts of lobbying and intimidation to achieve some sort of “Christian morality” in society is not our calling—and has no eternal value. Only the gospel rescues sinners from sin, death, and hell.