The Political Dimension of the Gospel
by Gao Hang
The Bible intentionally uses—and subverts—political terms like "army," "kingdom," and "justice." It is vital that we understand the church as a new world order that supersedes and challenges all worldly politics, so that we ourselves do not become agents of worldly causes rather than God's people.
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The modern form of the state is unprecedented in history. In fact, it “imitates” the Christian church to a considerable degree in many respects. For example, it has a “founding myth” (often times an Exodus-like narrative of liberation); it has a classic document regarded as a sacred text (this may be a revolutionary manifesto or a constitution); it has founding fathers who play the role of prophet or king (taking the form of monuments, statues, or even “immortal” embalmed bodies); it has a mechanism that “produces” truth (scholars playing the role of priest); it requires the allegiance of its members (through a pledge of allegiance); it recognizes “enemies” and engages in an intense struggle against them; it conducts special festivals and ceremonies in which the masses participate, and so on.
If we agree with my comments above, that the political nature of the gospel is exhibited in a kind of “gathering” and “scattering” where Christ is at the center (he is the standard and impetus), and this is specifically manifested in the form of the church, then the kind of “gathering” and “scattering” that the modern state engages in has something else at the center (a very different standard and impetus), and this is specifically manifested in the form of the nation-state. In a modern state, community may be formed on the basis of national identity or political ideology with various hidden motives driving them. This, in turn, results in a modern definition of “politics,” which also determines the distinction between politics and faith. The impetus that drives all of this may be described in terms of the pursuit of benefits or glory, or perhaps it is due to fear, or economic need, or a herd instinct. The discussion of such factors, and the large amount of research and literature produced as a result, has created a realm of politics that seemingly has no relation to religion.
If we agree with what the Bible says, that the Devil is good at imitating God, then we must consider a danger that the church of Christ faces in the modern world, namely that the church may unknowingly accept the various definitions and methods of politics imposed on us by the modern state. Since these definitions and methods appear to have many similarities with those promoted by Christianity, the church may readily accept them, which may lead to even more problems. For example, modern countries are based on identifying absolute enemies, and the standard by which they identify an enemy is certainly not the gospel of Jesus Christ. But when confronted with this idea of “differentiating oneself from the enemy,” churches find that the mentality of “fighting against the enemy” and “dividing people into groups” seem to have many similarities with the teachings of scripture, and therefore the church accepts them without reflecting on the standards and impetus behind them.
The greatest danger is that the church may deviate from the gospel of Christ and regard other things (maybe even the “fruits” of the gospel) as the standard and impetus for “gathering” and “scattering” people. A “feeling of love,” social justice, the political agenda of a political party, material prosperity, proper education, etc. may all be included in this list. Corresponding to this, the church in the modern world has increasingly lost its ability to identify and deal with true heresy in a clear and formal way. This may result, therefore, in the following predicament. On the one hand, an endless stream of heresies may emerge without being effectively dealt with. On the other hand, orthodox Christians may often treat each other as enemies the same way they do heretics. The church in the modern world, then, becomes incapable of reflecting that original political dimension of the gospel that seems strange to the world. At most, the church will step into the political realm of the world and act in accordance with the political and cultural definitions that the world is familiar with (even though it may appear “passionate” or “fruitful”).
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Gao Hang is a lay elder of a baptist church in China who has studied Western political thought.
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Category: Ministry Leader
Date created: 2020
Scripture: Eph. 2:11-19; Matt. 12:22-32
Key terms: church & state, gospel theology, ecclesiology, persecution
Related Resource: The Political Dimension of the Gospel Study Guide
