The Dichotomy
I was recently presented with a dichotomy and I was not immediately sure how to respond. It involved concerns for the problems within this country – the moral depravity etc. — and a view held by the same person that God’s law has been done away.
A further dichotomy is presented to us as White Christian Nationalism (WCN). WCN belief is that the U.S. was founded as a Christian nation; it should be today, as well as into the future. They believe that the Federal government should declare the U.S. as a Christian nation. Our laws should be based on Christian values. They state that being a Christian is important if you want to be a real American.
Here the water becomes quite murky.
What is Christianity? A quote from the Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th edition: “Its moulds of thought are those of Greek philosophy, and into these were run the Jewish teachings. We have thus a peculiar combination – the religious doctrines of the Bible, as culminating in the person of Jesus, run through the forms of an alien philosophy.” That is an astounding observation! There is no single, authoritative definition of what Christianity is. This is particularly true of the “Christianity” this nation was founded on. It was the Protestant variety rather than the Roman or Greek variety. Although elements of each are present.
The dichotomy is that on one hand, some people want law and order in society, but on the other hand they don’t want law. Particularly the God kind of law.
The problems we identify in our society (and it doesn’t matter which society you want to identify), all have a common cause. That is the rejection of God and the basis of an orderly and peaceful way of life – His law. To rail against the ills of our liberal society and simultaneously hold to the rejection of God’s law is pointless.
Both the ex-church member and the WCN are highly politically motivated. God, as a source of moral authority, is not in the picture.
How do we respond to this dichotomy? The answer is not difficult, because God provides it for us. Identify the root cause of the problems. “There is no truth or mercy or knowledge of God in the land … My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I will also forget your children … Because they have ceased obeying the Lord” (Hosea 4:1-10).
The cause of our nation’s problems is a rejection of God.
Israel is held accountable because they entered a covenant with God to be living examples of Him. They ceased from obeying the Lord.
We, as members of the body of Christ, have been called to pick up the mantle dropped by Israel. We have been called to “proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9).
Our light will be dim if we forget the basic causes of our national problems. Ours is not a political response, but a converted, separated response. God’s way does not produce a dichotomy. It is solidly God’s law all the way.
As we live, and see daily, the results of rejecting knowledge, we must keep a single focus on the reasons why this is the case. And let this motivate us to stand spiritually more firmly in the gap.
Brian Orchard
