#38 - Letters to the Church – ONE

Politics Is NOT A Dirty (Unholy) Word
[I write this and future “Letters” simply in the hopes of encouraging the body of Christ. It is meant as merely the observations of someone who at this point has been a Christian for 35 years.. This first one is rather long but I hope you’ll take the time to read it through. I look forward to your feedback]

Since I started this blog site, until now, I have not shared what initially motivated me 22 years ago to be concerned about issues of public policy. In the fall of 1987, I was attending a special 3 month retreat on Christian worldview. One day, we were shown the video “Silent Scream” in which a former abortionist showed, through a sonogram image, what it was for him to abort a child. As I watched the scalpel enter the womb and see the baby wiggle to try to get away from the obvious danger it faced, I remember getting out of my seat and moving to the back of the room. I was stunned. It was the first time I was shown the absolute horror that is an abortion. After I caught my breath, I asked myself, “Why have I never been told about this before during the 14 years I had been a Christian up to that point.?” I believe it was the Holy Spirit who in that moment made me realize that not only had I never heard the word “abortion” ever mentioned in the churches I had attended, but in the evangelistic ministry that I had been a part of for 12 years up till then, on those very rare occasions when the subject was broached in conversation, the unsaid inference was always, “Well, that’s what Catholics get concerned about. WE are evangelicals who are concerned about the most important thing, seeing people come to Christ.” While I could not disagree that helping as many as possible to hear the gospel message was very important, I also realized for the first time that the killing of unborn babies was not just a “Catholic” issue but an issue for every American who valued the sanctity of human life, especially for evangelical Christians.

As I look back over the many years I’ve been a Christian and the many churches I have visited or been a member, I am struck not just by the rarity it has been to hear abortion presented from the pulpit let alone be a part of the ministry of a church, but also by the rarity it is just to hear of any subject of note and contention in our society mentioned during a worship service. It is as though when a person steps into the doors of a church, he is to only think “spiritual” and to leave the issues of the “world” outside. Today, many are leaving EVANGELICAL churches (the Southern Baptists were said on Monday that 2/3 of their youth are leaving when they become adults!) and I believe it’s in part because they are not being taught how the Scriptures speaks to what is happening in the world they live in outside the church building. For instance, when they hear nothing on any regular basis about abortion because the leaders assume that having told them “it’s wrong” once is enough, they are not prepared for the often convincing pro-abortion rhetoric they will hear if not before college for certain while they are in college. Furthermore, much of the present economic crisis is rooted in Americans spending beyond their means, something that Scripture clearly teaches against. The very popular concept in our society today that those who make a lot of money are just greedy is often rooted in the class warfare notion being promoted by liberal lawmakers who seek to exploit the sinful man’s envy of his/her neighbor – a definite breaking of the tenth commandment (Ex. 20:17).

By the church not addressing these and other issues head on, I am convinced that believers mistakenly get the idea that they should not be concerned about what goes on “in the world.” Just the other day, a long time believer said that he is too busy to read anything about public policy issues. I believe that too many Christians have that very wrong idea that “politics” is not a subject we who are Spiritual need to be concerned about. I think this mindset is reflected in how for many years now less than 30 percent of evangelicals are said to vote in major elections. Besides shunning a basic civic responsibility that we have as “salt” in our society to stand up for biblical values and against the tide of decadence that our country continues to be swept up in, we surrender our country to those who are slowly but surely leading our country down a road of destruction – socially as well as economically. I believe that as citizens of a country blessed by God more than any other, we have stewardship responsibilities before God as Christians that one day we will each be held accountable.

In seeking to draw “seekers,” I believe too many churches are afraid of speaking on subjects that may be controversial.(Did you know that Billy Graham himself never spoke on abortion for that reason, though he did speak up about nuclear disarmament? Go figure.) But, my friend, all truth is God’s truth, and we deceive those very “seekers” we say we are interested in by fashioning a gospel they can find acceptable. How can we forget that the gospel is probably the most controversial subject in our society that increasingly belittles people of faith? Even some who are members of our churches may not feel comfortable hearing the Scripture speak truth about certain subjects. Do we refrain from boldly speaking Biblical truth on whatever the issue might be simply to maintain their fellowship? Not if we are to be faithful to Scripture and to God who calls us to declare all truth. (I actually once got a pastor excited about doing discipleship (!) in his church but when he announced his intentions the following Sunday, he got so many people upset (!) that the week after he rescinded his intentions!)

The main reason I started this blog is to present views on the key issues in our country that I believe are more in line with a Biblical Christian worldview on the issues of our day and which stand in contrast to what we are likely to hear from the major media sources. That is why I often post articles by Chuck Colson because his writings have consistently presented such a worldview. I have not felt versed enough in Scripture to try to present Biblical teaching on some of these subjects, as I believe any pastor should be able to do. (Posting #4 – “An Economic Manifesto” – is a summary of a message given by the late Dr. D. James Kennedy, a great pastor who regularly preached on the issues of the day and in fact, through his church, had a very effective ministry addressing the key issues of the day.) I hope, however, in upcoming “Letters” to make attempts at presenting such teaching on my own. I feel the need to provide a place where believers can come and find insights on the critical issues of the day that can equip them to discuss those issues with others.

And yet, as I try to assist believers (and non-believers) in this way, I long to hear the Scriptural view on the issues of the day clearly presented from our pulpits. I think our Church leaders have a responsibility to equip believers to adequately and confidently engage our culture on whatever the issue from a Christian worldview. I believe it is time the Church stop being hesitant to speak out with clarity on the Biblical perspective on issues that are critical to our nation continuing to be “under God” and for our continuing to live as a free people. “Politics” is defined in the dictionary as “the science of government.” As government dictates more and more the way we live our lives as its policies will always reflect certain values, we desperately need to be be calling for Biblical values to define and guide our nation as it has effectively done in the past. I am, of course, not talking about the Church endorsing certain politicians or a political party. I simply but firmly believe that far from being excluded from our discussions as Christians, matters of public policy (ie, politics or government) need to be a subject regularly addressed Biblically and forthrightly rather than excluded or treated with indifference as some kind of "unholy" subject. I believe indifference from our pulpits feeds indifference in the pews and that that will only cause us to fail to be wise stewards as citizens of our country.