Pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer said:
“Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.”
Yet many well meaning Christians think we cannot get involved in politics, let alone plot to assassinate a tyrant such as Hitler. Whether or not to join the military is a tough question for them, too. They will argue that the early Christians didn’t plot to kill Nero, Jesus didn’t overthrow Rome, and the Old Testament is done away with, everything is now only spiritual.
But are such views biblical?
Christians are called to do good and doesn’t doing good go beyond prayer? Or does James say in vain, “If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?” (JAMES 2:15-16)
Ah, in all other areas of life Christ followers are to be practical in their help toward others but not when it comes to politics? Especially when lives are at stake? Nothing could be further from the truth. The moral laws are still in effect: “Thou shalt not murder” is just as relevant today as it was thousands of years ago.
Here’s some Old Testament verses on matters of defending the helpless and bringing justice:
LEVITICUS 19:6
“Do not stand idly by when your neighbor’s life is threatened. I am the LORD.”
PSALMS 82:3
“Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.”
PROVERBS 31:8-9
“Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute. Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy.”
ISAIAH 1:17
“Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause.”
“Ah, but that’s Old Testament” you may say, “now everything is spiritual!”. Since when? No, caring for and loving our neighbor still falls under Christ’s command, “As I have loved you, so you must love one another”. (John 13:34)
God Never Calls Us to Be Passive in the Face of Evil!
I am reminded of the sad story of a church in Germany during WWII. They sang louder during their worship service every time a train full of Jews came by. That way, these Christians didn’t have to hear the cries of those who were deported to a death camp. [1]
Do you think what this church did was pleasing to God? Did He enjoy their hymns? Certainly not! AMOS 5:23-24 shows us how God felt about His people singing songs without following after justice: “Take away from Me the noise of your songs, For I will not hear the melody of your stringed instruments. 24 But let justice run down like water, And righteousness like a mighty stream.”
Did God suddenly change His mind in the New Testament? Apparently not:
MALACHI 3:6
“For I am the LORD, I do not change”.
HEBREWS 13:8
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”
JAMES 1:17
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.”
Paul pleaded his case as a Roman citizen, leading him all the way to Rome, where he was going to appear before the Supreme Court of his day. He didn’t just quietly “move on and forgive”. How about that! When Jesus called us to be salt and light, He didn’t say we have to let our light shine on all affairs of life, except in government and politics.
The enemy wants nothing more than Christians to be quiet and passive.
Pacifism allows evil to thrive and God will hold us responsible not only for what we have done, but also for what we didn’t do.
JAMES 4:17
“Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin”.
Sources:
1. Erwin W. Lutzer, When a Nation Forgets God [Moody Press, 2010], p. 22.
