(2016) It’s election time. Debates. Ads. Op Ed pieces. Sermons?
A recent article claims that Obama’s presidency is the result of the church not doing its job in telling members how to vote. I have a very different view.
God is responsible for establishing and removing leaders:
Dan 2:21 He changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding;
Rom 13:1-2 Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.
This article espouses a view different from many popularly held misunderstanding about the Kingdom of God. Scripture frequently speaks of the Kingdom of God in reference to Christ Himself, not to a political kingdom past, present, or future (for instance see: Matt 3:2; 4:7; 10:7; 12:28; Mark 1:15; 4:11; 12:34; Luke 9:2-6; 11:20; 16:16; 17:20-21). Christ reigns now, not just in some future Kingdom (even if we don’t see all the effects of that reign yet):
I Pet 3:22 who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.
Heb 1:8 But of the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom.
Heb 2:7-9 You made him for a little while lower than the angels; you have crowned him with glory and honor,putting everything in subjection under his feet.”Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
The mission of the church is not to establish His Kingdom. It is to invite the world into His Kingdom. The message from the pulpit should be His gospel, not earthly politics. Paul preached Christ and Him crucified (I Cor 2:2). Has God changed or is this still the message that should ring forth from pulpits?
Render unto Caesar what is Caesar and God what is His. The worship service should be focused on God, not Caesar (nor Obama and Romney). It is His church after all.
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I appreciate this article, Mr. Barker. The two-kingdoms doctrine needs to be recovered.
While I would agree with you about the potential value in viewing the two-kingdoms, I don’t think that this doctrine is core to what I wrote. The main question that I was intending to address was the mission of the church. The second issue was trusting the sovereignty of God. Two other things that could also use a recovery. Thanks for reading and for the reply.
Fair enough. I assumed it was implicit when you mentioned Christ’s present reign in His Kingdom as distinct from any “political kingdom past, present, or future.”
+Pax Christi