Save the State or the Church?

Romans 13:1-3 "Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same."

Romans 13:4 "For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. "

Romans 12:1-2 "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God."

Dear Jesus,

Throughout my life, I have identified the United States of America as a Christian nation.  When election season has come, I have prayerfully and conscientiously voted for whomever I perceived as the best candidate.  Candidly, my choice has often been the lesser of two evils.

As an American, I believed that I had access to government.  I have been able to exert influence, not only through the ballot box, but also through relationships and connections with people possessing political and governmental authority.

Today, the State seems to have turned explicitly against me.  The State has turned against historical Christian values that have birthed my nation.  The State is opposed to Your Body--the Church. My world is post-Christian.

What's new?  First-century Christians knew the reality of a State that opposed them as a religious minority.  The Early Church faced opposition and persecution for its faith.  But it was status quo. It was business as normal.

I find myself tempted to exert my political will and influence to change things. Other Christians seem convinced that the only way to fight our current spiritual battle is with carnal weapons. But your Word tells me that "the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds" (II Corinthians 10:4).

Your Church wants to chide the State.  Your Church wants to fix our world through national government.  Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, "The starting-point of St. Paul's thinking is always the Church... He feels obliged to warn the Christians to refrain from any unjust or evil conduct themselves, but does not utter a single word of reproach to the State." (In The Cost of Discipleship, 1959, p. 262).  Your Church is trying to use carnal weapons.

Your Church seems obsessed with turning government into a weapon to advance holiness, while excusing itself for its sin.  Bonhoeffer observed the Biblical standard: "On no account must evil occur within the Church.  Once again, St. Paul is talking to the Christians, not to the State... St. Paul certainly does not speak to the Christians in this way because the governments of this world are so good, but because the Church must obey the will of God, whether the State be bad or good.  He has no intention to instruct the Christian community about the task and responsibility of government.  His entire concern is with the responsibility of the Christian community towards the State" (Ibid, pp. 262-263).

Oh God, I repent of our sinful strategies to advance holiness.  Your Church has condemned the sin of the State, while secreting her own perversion. Your Church has criticized and judged political leaders and establishments as sinful and self-serving, while all the while preaching "failure theology" from her pulpits, and boastfully practicing daily sin in the pew. Your Church has tried to advance holiness through legislation and protests, while excusing herself for living in habitual sin.  The gig is up.  Carnal strategies don't make governments or sinning Christians holy.

St. Paul wrote: "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good" (Romans 12:21). "It is immaterial whether the power be good or bad, what matters is that the Christian should overcome evil by good" (Ibid., p. 263).  Forgive us for being overcome by evil. Forgive us for trying to overcome evil with evil.  Forgive us for valuing and implementing carnal strategies to accomplish spiritual goals.  Our strategies have failed.

Help me to return to Biblical strategies for influence.  "Overcome evil with good." "Do what is good."   "And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God."

In the Name of Jesus, whom the State rejected, and continues to reject,
Amen.