Less than two weeks until election day. I posted a
comment on the importance of political involvement, but only briefly touched the issues.
Origin of government
The institution of human government was created by God after the flood. Until then, God had not authorized humans to punish crimes. In
Genesis 9:5-6, God commanded man to enforce capital punishment for murder.
Purpose of government
In
Romans 13:3-4 and 1 Peter 2:14, government is defined as God’s servant to punish evil and praise good. This purpose is most obvious in the
justice system, whether criminal or civil, where
judges are responsible for just judgment. It also extends to
national defense against evil foreign enemies.
Providing for the poor
Alms and generosity to the
poor,
orphans,
widows, and
strangers are the responsibility of individuals and the church. Forced giving through taxation is not generosity. Children are responsible to
care for elderly parents, not government through Social Security and Medicare.
“It’s the economy, stupid.”
The irony is that God frequently uses mammon to reward those who choose to serve Him instead of mammon. He links national security and the economy to morality. Israel turned to Baal and Asherah, the Canaanite fertility god and goddess, for agricultural/ economic prosperity. God used foreign enemies, agricultural/
economic disaster (e.g.
drought, locusts), pestilence, debt, and exile to punish national sin- e.g.
Leviticus 18:24-28,
Deuteronomy 28:15-68, Judges, 1-2 Kings, 2 Chronicles, the Prophets. Proverbs links immorality to poverty-
Proverbs 5:3-4, 10; 6:24-26.
Even if God doesn’t materially reward morality, it is better to be poor and righteous than rich and crooked-
Proverbs 28:6. Righteousness also exalts a nation-
Proverbs 14:34.
Other Issues
Abortion is shedding of
innocent blood, which God hates. The Israelites sacrificed their children to the idols of Canaan for the hope of economic prosperity. Today, Americans sacrifice their unborn children primarily to the idols of economic prosperity (“can’t afford it”) and convenience (“don’t want it”).
Before medicine proved that life starts at fertilization, the Bible assumed it. Psalm 139:14-16 and Jeremiah 1:5 are commonly used to prove that life begins before birth, but formation of the body and foreknowledge don’t necessarily prove life. Adam’s body was lifeless until God breathed on him- Genesis 2:7. Luke 1:15, 41, and 44 are better, where John the Baptist was filled with the Holy Spirit from the womb and lept for joy in the womb, but some might argue that he was a special case. I like Job 10:18-19 and Jeremiah 20:17, which mention death in the womb. Death must be preceded by life, because lifeless things cannot die.
Needless to say, the pro-choice position is indefensible from a Biblical perspective. Abortion is murder, which government was created to punish.
Homosexual rights, from a Biblical perspective, makes less sense than adulterer rights. Sodomy was not only a
capital crime under Mosaic Law, but is one of the abominations in
Leviticus 18 that causes a land to vomit out its inhabitants. God judged Sodom before the Mosaic Law, and gave people over to sodomy as judgment in
Romans 1:26-27. “Coming out of the closet” is associated with a nation’s ruin-
Isaiah 3:8-9. Tolerance of immorality is not good, because it affects others-
1 Corinthians 5:6.
Same-sex marriage has no place in a Biblical worldview. God created marriage, has clearly defined it as between a man and a woman
from the beginning, and reaffirmed this definition in the words of
Jesus and of
Paul. Man has no authority to redefine marriage.
The environment is for man is to exercise
dominion over and
stewardship of.
Character
A leader’s character need not necessarily be perfect. God still used Moses and David, though both were murderers. However, there were consequences for their character flaws, even if they were spared capital punishment.
“Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.” -Proverbs 14:34
Comments (1)
This is fantastic. I need to write down some of this!