We run our website the way we wished the whole internet worked: we provide high quality original content with no ads. We are funded solely by your direct support. Please consider supporting this project.

Jesus and Democracy
Question: I’ve heard that the reason Jesus didn’t speak up on political issues was because he didn’t have the benefit of living in a democracy. Since we do, don’t we have a duty both to God and our country to be involved in politics?
Answer: If the reason Jesus didn’t speak up on political issues was because he didn’t live in a democracy, how do we explain the fact his contemporaries were constantly speaking up and arguing about politics? The fact of the matter is that, while ancient Jews obviously couldn’t vote by casting a ballot, they had plenty of other ways of “voting” if they were interested in trying to alter the political landscape. Some refused to pay taxes. Others sabotaged various Roman endeavors. And still others took up the sword and assassinated Roman solders. These were the very political issues ancient Jews debated so intensely. Yet, neither Jesus nor his disciples (once they got clear on how Jesus’ vision of the Kingdom of God differed from the kingdom of the world, e.g., Mk 8:27-38; 9:30-37; 10:32-45) showed any interest discussing these options.
On top of this, Jesus had plenty of other ways of affecting politics if this is what he was interested in doing. As he told his disciples, he could have called “twelve legions of angels” to defend himself and defeat his opponents if that is what he was concerned with (Mt 26:53). In fact, at one point in his ministry he had all the authority of the kingdoms of the world offered to him on a silver platter. He could have instantly given the entire world the best version of worldly government imaginable. Yet Jesus rejected this offer as a temptation of the devil (Lk 4:5-7), for the Kingdom Jesus came to usher into this world is not a new and improved – or even “the best imaginable” – version of worldly government.
Clearly, Jesus’ lack of interest in worldly government was not merely due to the unfortunate form of government he happened to be under. Rather, his anti-political stance reflects the radically unique way of Jesus, and, therefore, the radically unique way we who follow him are called to live.
Photo credit: garrettc via Visual Hunt / CC BY-NC
Category: General
Tags: Jesus, Kingdom Living, Politics
Topics: Ethical, Cultural and Political Issues
Related Reading

You Have What We Call a Theological Problem
Peter Enns posted a blog entitled: Dear Christian: If the Thought of Either Romney or Obama Getting Elected Makes You Fearful, Angry, or Depressed, You Have What we Call a Theological Problem. He makes some pretty good points. What do your emotions around this election tell you about where your hope lies? From the blog: There…

The Bible Is Insufficient
Patrick Feller via Compfight Kurt Johnson wrote a piece a few days ago on the proper place of Scripture in the life of a believer. He reflects on the fact that we have elevated the Bible to a place that God really never intended. We are a people centered on a person, not a book.…

Zombies
What would Halloween be without a post about zombies? Image by rachel a. k. Sourced via Flickr.

Contemplating Food Choices
As many of you know, Shelley and I have been vegetarians for the last eight years or so. This is a personal conviction, not a doctrine, but there are compelling reasons for adopting this lifestyle. The main conviction that led me to quit eating meat was that I felt I should never kill anything out of convenience…

Cross-like Love and Non-Violence
Cosmo Spacely via Compfight Though it seems to have been forgotten by many today, the cross wasn’t simply something God did for us. According to the NT, it was also an example God calls us to follow. Hence, after John defined love by pointing us to Jesus’ death on the cross on our behalf, he…

Why do some of Jesus’ parables depict God in violent ways?
Greg deals with the question of what it means that some of Jesus’ parables seem to depict God in violent terms. In addition to getting an answer to this question you’ll be treated to a window into Greg’s graceful way of moving through the world. Really classy. Enjoy!