[Subversive Radio Podcast] Star-Spangled Capitalist Christianity

I challenge you to crucify your Nationalism; crucify your Political affiliation; put to death anything that exalts itself against the Lordship of Jesus.

What Would Wilberforce Do?

[Part 14 in the Jesus Untangled Series]

On July 26, 1833, the Abolition of Slavery bill passed in the House of Commons. A messenger rushed to Wilberforce's house and told him that his three decade-long battle to abolish slavery in the British colonies had succeeded. Three days later, William Wilberforce died, his life’s work complete.

As I’ve been writing a series of articles on why Christians in America need to untangle themselves from politics and return to their first love – Jesus – as a means of impacting and transforming the culture, several people have asked me what I think about William Wilberforce and his political struggle (as a Christian) to end slavery in the UK without bloodshed.

Honestly, I’ve pondered this for a while now. At first blush it appears that the work of Christian men like Wilberforce and MLK provide a strong rebuttal to my call for Christians to abandon political aspirations completely.

But after some thought I think I’ve identified a few reasons why the work these men did cannot be compared to our modern situation.

The big difference is this: Wilberforce was focused on advocating for the weak and the oppressed (slaves) who could not speak up or defend themselves against a system of exploitation, greed and corruption, of which he was an unwilling member.

Furthermore, as a Christian, he was greatly troubled by how his faith and scripture was being mangled to justify the treatment of other human beings who were held against their will and used like animals.

In contrast, Christians today are using political power and influence to protect themselves – not an oppressed group of people who have no defense against tyranny and abuse.

What's more, American Christians are seeking to impact their culture through the legislative power of the State rather than by actually loving and living and serving others the way Jesus commanded.

Wilberforce wanted to leverage political power to set others free. American Christians want to use politics to empower themselves. Big difference.

So, to compare the selfless, sacrificial work of William Wilberforce to abolish slavery on behalf of an oppressed people with the selfish, fear-based paranoia of today’s politicized American Christianity is foolish, and practically obscene.

Wilberforce and MLK did more than vote or push for legislation. They, and others like them, marched. They stood up to corporate greed. They endured serious persecution, and sometimes even physical violence, so that others might be set free. They risked their reputations, even their lives and livelihood, to make life better for other people.

They took their eyes off themselves and saw the suffering of others around them. They invested their very lives into improving the lives of others.

If American Christians would be willing to lay their lives on the line and risk personal injury in defense of the most weak, marginalized and exploited people around them, then we might find cause to equate their political wrangling with the valiant efforts of people like MLK or Wilberforce. Until that day, their lust for political power is the farthest thing possible from the historic abolition of slavery and systemic racism on behalf of others.

The sort of political entanglement the Church finds Herself in today is more about advancing the agenda of a specific party, not about helping the weak, the poor, the immigrant, the outcast, the orphan or the widow. Instead, the Church has become more interested in helping to elect a certain breed of politician who cares more about corporate interests and protecting the interests of the rich and powerful.

Finally, if we look closely we will find that the very same enemy that fought the hardest against Wilberforce and his efforts to end slavery is today the greatest ally of the politically-entangled American Christian Church: Money-hungry Corporations.

A modern day Wilberforce would fight with his last breath against the entangled Christian Church.

We should do the same.

-kg

READ THE ENTIRE "JESUS UNTANGLED" SERIES:

Part 1: "Jesus Untangled"
Part 2: "Who Are We?"
Part 3: "Why Do People Think I'm A Liberal?"
Part 4: "Still Embracing Constantine?"
Part 5: How American Evangelicalism Has Been Exploited, by Ross Rohde

Part 6: The Entanglement Agenda

Part 7: "What Would Jesus Say About The American Revolution?" by Chuck McKnight

Part 8: "Ambassadors of Contrast"

Part 9: “AWOL Christian Soldiers”
Part 10: "The Elephant In The Church"

Part 11: "Christian American Horror Story"
Part 12: "Our True Source of Liberty" by Ross Rohde
Part 13: "Welcome To Post Christian America"
Part 14: "What Would Wilberforce Do?"
Part 15: "Crucify Your Politics"

GOD BLESS AMERICA?

God bless America, who spies on your phone calls, email,and text communications.

God Bless America, who executes its own citizens without a trial or even formal criminal charges.

God Bless America, who imprisons journalists who attempt to expose their war crimes.

God Bless America, which has been at war for 214 years out of the last 235.

God Bless America, which hires, or threatens journalists in order to have them write false news stories, and even film fake execution videos that advance their propaganda.

God Bless America which currently imprisons more of its citizens than any other nation on the face of the planet.

God Bless America, where more than 50 percent of the children in your nation are living below the poverty line.

God Bless America, where large corporations have more power over the laws, the policies, the courts, and the politicians than you - a tax paying, registered voter.

“Hey, If you don’t like it here, please move to another country!”

Moving to another country is pointless since every country on this earth is suffering from the same sin and delusion and sets itself up as a rival to the Kingdom of Christ.

However, if I did move to another nation, at least I wouldn't have to suffer the additional insult of being a citizen of a nation that proclaims to the world that it is Christian while at the same time exploiting and impoverishing other nations, stealing their resources, plunging them into poverty, dropping bombs, flying drones over them, and killing thousands of innocents...all in the name of Jesus.

No, rather than to leave this sick, sinful and prideful nation that believes She is "Christian" I must remain here and continue to point to the One and Only Hope for this (or any other) nation - Jesus, the Messiah.

When, and only when, this nation fully turns to Jesus will there ever be any change of heart, or of mind, or of behavior towards one another.

"Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish." - Jesus (Luke 13:3)

We must humble ourselves before God, and humbling ourselves involves repenting from our endless wars around the globe and exploiting the poorest nations of this earth for our own financial gain.

The best way to end the wars we are currently fighting and to bring peace to this earth would be to take the Trillions of dollars we are currently spending on our war machine and using it to bless our enemies, to feed them, to clothe them, and to enrich them.

Proactive love and Preemptive Agape disarms our enemies and transforms them into our friends.

We could do that if we wanted to. We have plenty of money available.

In fact, a truly Christian Nation would do exactly that.

This is what I am contending for. This is what I will continue to pray for.

This is what the advancing of the Kingdom of God looks like.

There is only one Christian nation on this earth. It is the Kingdom of God. It is global. It is eternal. It knows no national boundaries. It recognizes no border or rule of man.

My brothers and sisters - the vast majority of them - are not Americans. Therefore I do not see myself as an American either. I see myself as a child of the King who was, and is, and is to come.

As a Christian, and as a citizen of Christ’s Kingdom, I crucify my Nationalism. I put to death all those things that once defined the person I used to be before Jesus transformed me.

I now resolve to know nothing except Christ and Him crucified. The rest I count as trash and filthy rags.

Let His Kingdom come!

-kg

DUCK DYNASTY OR CHRIST DYNASTY?

Once again, American Christians have confused Patriotism and Nationalism with Christianity.

As Phil Robertson (the star of reality show Duck Dynasty) declares that he is more than prepared to meet ISIS militants on the battlefield, Christians in America scream “Amen!” and salute their flag - sadly oblivious to how far away this actually is from the Gospel that Jesus – the founder of their professed faith – came and died to proclaim.

I think the basic disconnect we have on this issue stems from whether we hold the Ten Commands or the Sermon on the Mount as our basis for living.

For example: Many Christians today opt for the Ten Commandments. However, the Scriptures tell us several times and in many different ways that the Old Covenant is a shadow of the reality to come – (the reality being Christ). 

Moses prophesied about the Messiah saying that God would send one like himself who would be a Prophet and that people should listen to him. [Deut. 18:15]

Both Peter and Stephen remind the NT Jews and Christians of this verse and add that anyone who does not listen to Jesus (the Messiah) “will be cut off from among his people”. [Acts 3:22-23; Acts 7:37-38]

Paul also tells us that “to this day when Moses is read, a veil remains” and that this veil is only taken away by Christ. [2 Cor. 3:14]

Remember the Mount of Transfiguration? Moses (who stands for the Law) and Elijah (who stands for the Prophets) appear with Jesus. Peter mistakenly wanted to honor all three of them at once and God then removed Moses and Elijah (leaving only Jesus) and says, “This is my Son. Listen to Him!”.

Furthermore, Peter tells us even the Prophets themselves didn’t know what they were writing about and that only now (through Christ) do we understand what those OT scriptures mean.

What does all this mean? It means that we, as followers of Jesus, need to interpret the Old Covenant (Ten Commandments, Mosaic Laws, etc.) through the lens of Christ, not the other way around. In other words, we never take the words of Jesus and filter them with the Old Covenant scriptures. No! Jesus is the One we are to listen to. Moses says it. Peter and Stephen say it. God Himself says it: “Listen to Him!”

So, if Jesus says “Do not resist an evil person” and says clearly, over and over again: “Love your enemy”, “Bless those who curse you”, etc. then we have no choice but to obey Him. We cannot turn back to the shadow and the metaphor of the Old Covenant scriptures and try to live our lives apart from the revelation of Christ.

In fact, I believe the entire debate between Christians over the issue of violence is simply centered on this very practice of filtering Jesus through the Old Covenant, rather than placing the Old Covenant in submission to the Supremacy of Christ – and therefore ourselves under His supremacy as well.

To justify violence you have to turn to the Old Covenant scriptures. To justify military involvement you have to appeal to Moses or Joshua. But quite simply a follower of Jesus should do exactly that: Follow Jesus and not attempt to place the teachings of Jesus (which bring life) under the bondage of the Old Covenant (that brought death).

Jesus trumps Moses. The Sermon on the Mount trumps the Law. The New Covenant has replaced the Old Covenant which is “obsolete” and “fading away” [Heb. 8:13]

Chose you this day whom you will serve: A redneck reality TV star, or the Son of God. As for me and my house, we will follow Jesus.

Peace,

Keith

Are You American or Christian?

The Church today is more American than Christian. We are largely unable to divorce our faith from our nationalism. This, to me, is very troubling because it means that we are unable to understand Jesus and His teachings apart from our own cultural context.

Those who follow Jesus know that the solution to society's problems will  never be found in politics. If we hope to change the hearts of men and women by laws and policies then we are both mistaken and misguided.

Jesus commands us to pledge allegiance to the Kingdom of God, not to a flag or a nation. I'm not saying it's a sin to love your country, or to vote, but I am saying that once we blur the lines between what Jesus is all about and our national pride we might have a problem. A big problem.

We are commanded by our Lord to seek first the Kingdom of God and to trust in Him alone – not the laws of our land, or our political parties.

It disturbs me that so many Christians I know are more acquainted with politics than they are with the Word of God or following Jesus in their daily life.

To try and help American Christians understand how this Americanized Christianity can blind us I have often tried to ask followers of Jesus to realize a few basic truths. The first being that the vast majority of our brothers and sisters on the Earth are not living in America.

This means that many of them are following Jesus in nations like Korea, Russia, China, and other countries with radically different political ideologies. So, if someone comes to Christ in China, for example, does that mean that they also – upon receiving Jesus – suddenly become a Capitalist? Of course not. The decision to surrender your life to Jesus and follow His teachings and example does not make you an American. We have to try to conceptualize - and practice - our faith apart from our patriotism.

So, we must realize that someone can be a Christian without pledging allegiance to the flag, or that nation for which it stands.

Even more importantly, we must strive to see Jesus apart from our cultural, political and nationalistic filters. This means our posture towards the poor and the outcast should be informed by our Lord Jesus, not by our political worldview.

Our hope is in the power of the Gospel to change hearts. It is not in the power of politics to legislate morality. If we’re not careful, we will end up succeeding in our quest for power and we will have only created another oppressive Theocracy like the one our founding fathers came here to avoid.

At best, if we succeed in creating the perfect Government we will still have failed to obey Jesus and make disciples of all nations.

The Governments of this planet are of this world, they are not of God. Our allegiance is to Jesus alone. His Kingdom is our only true homeland.

Are you an American, or are you a Christian?

 If you think you can be both, I urge you to carefully reconcile the widely divergent philosophies of Christ and those found in our Constitution.

Americans have the right to be treated equally and to pursue happiness. Christians have only the right to share in the sufferings of Christ, give up their individual identity, and love and serve others as Jesus did.

Americans have the opportunity to vote and chose their leaders. Christians have only One leader, and owe their allegiance to only one, true Holy Nation- the Kingdom of God.

Ask yourself: “Which of Jesus’ teachings were the basis for the American Government?” Was it turning the other cheek? Or loving your neighbor? Or doing good to those who hate you? Or blessing those who curse you? Maybe it was the Sermon on the Mount or the Great Commission? No, it was none of those things. Therefore, America is not a Christian Nation and it was not founded upon the teachings of Jesus.

There is only one Holy Nation on this Earth and it is us.

 “…you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” (Exodus 19:6)

 “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation…” (1 Peter 2:9)

 Who is he talking to? To the Church. We are the Israelites who are now called “a holy priesthood” and“a holy nation”. Not just Jews, but anyone who is in Christ! As it says in Revelation 5:9-10:

“And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.”

Would you give up being an American to follow Jesus?

-kg