For God and Country

The year 2020 continues to be a watershed year, full of sudden change, sickness, and divisive political conflict. I have become a news junkie, obsessively following the viral, economic, and political state in this country. Now that the election is “over,” I may need to detox for all of 2021!

My cousin has said “politics are always downstream from the culture.” As part of the church, we can make a large difference in the culture by bringing the values of Jesus into our families and local churches and communities. We have a real possibility of doing some good where it matters. If the church does not focus on the culture but gets subsumed in politics, that influence decreases.

My Dad told me recently, “It is a shame that the parties and individuals fight against each other, each thinking they are the best one to be in charge, rather than working together.” If they all pulled in the same direction, maybe there could be some progress. Wouldn’t it be nice if conservative Anabaptists worked together instead of fighting each other so much of the time? Think how much more could be accomplished if we were not consumed with disagreements about tiny preferences or lost in control delusions.

How do the values of God’s kingdom compete with the values of our country?

1. Civic action is attempting change and reform from the outside in. Lasting change must always come from the inside out, through God’s grace and strength. Without discounting the value of civic change or improvement in opportunity and circumstance, focusing on outward change makes us less effective in heart change.

If we try to impose our views on other people, we are trying to force change from the outside in. I am a very slow learner in this area. I have spent years in an argumentative, combative state. If someone told me we should get out and vote, I felt compelled to disagree with them and defend my position of not voting. It has taken many years in similar encounters for me to realize how futile and counterproductive this actually is. I thought I was trying to defend truth, but I was hindering the work of truth.

When someone tries to change the way I think, I immediately defend myself. This human tendency is universal. The result is that I become more convinced in my thinking, and the other person does the same. We Christians can be very culpable of trying to force change from the outside in through quite an array of control mechanisms. True conviction and heart change happen when I see something in someone that strikes a spark in me and causes me to ask and observe. At that point I am open to wanting to know what is going on. Now, when faced with the patriot who urges me to vote, rather than disagree, I eventually redirect the conversation to living the values of Jesus.

Conservative Anabaptists are theoretically nonresistant. Does this imply that we are uninvolved in an active stand against evil and a push for better society? Is there any way for us to get involved and do something? In one of my Bibles, the section in Romans 12 from verse 9 to the end is titled “Behave Like a Christian.” The import is to love, have compassion, bless instead of curse, breathe empathy, and overcome evil with good.

When faced with the George Floyd death, we should feel compassion for him and everyone else involved, including Derek Chauvin. We need not condone their actions, but if we condemn one or the other out of hand, we have lost the ability to see clearly.

There is always more to the story. Instead of picking sides between the left and the right, we do well to see the weaknesses and strengths in both and provide a strong center in the middle of all the chaos. If the politics of a country are always downstream from culture, we can be much more effective closer to the source. We must be known for a lot more than not voting.

2. Of necessity, all earthly governments are run by force. In a fallen world there is no other way to enforce the law. Jesus is very clear that His people are not to govern by force and should not respond to evil with violence, but overcome evil with good. We have an uneasy relationship with worldly authority in the sense that we need them and value what they are doing but are unable to participate in their work. To most people this looks like a delusional self-protective strategy to avoid the dirty work. It is imperative that we respect and cooperate with law enforcement agents, from the president to the county commissioner.

Five cousin boys were floating down a very small river in Michigan. We carried our kayaks and canoes filled with camping equipment over logs and sandbanks until evening. I remember this as a good time together grousing with good humor and getting soaked intentionally. Since the banks were just as brushy as the river, there was no reasonable place to camp. We had no plan. Then we found a place where the grass was mowed down a small trail to the river’s edge. We didn’t see any “No Trespassing” signs. To compound the folly, I went on a walk and knocked on a door to

ask for butter for our frying pan! The answer was gruff and brief: No butter. After dark, we were all pretty quiet around the fire. A general unease was in the air. We could just see a road up the hill where a vehicle spent some time idling with the lights on. Finally we put the fire out and quietly got in our tents and tarps. Suddenly there was a bright flashlight coming down the trail and an officer yelling, “All right, everybody out of the tents!” I distinctly remember the sinking feeling mixed with fear and anger. With eighteen-year-old cockiness, I said, “I have a question for you. Is that okay?”

He was already on the prod and said, “No, at this point that’s not okay.” A little later he focused on me and said, “You have a question?”

Still cocky, I asked, “Why aren’t there any ‘No Trespassing’ signs?” as if we actually had a right to be there.

He told me in no uncertain terms that it is our responsibility to know where we are. “This is private property, and if you don’t change your attitude, we can talk about it at the police station.”

I quickly subsided. My uncle had to come out in the middle of the night to pick us up, and the trip was aborted.

In retrospect I think that officer was a little sensitive about his position. He could have done better. But he had no way of knowing what was going on. In a situation like that, the officer is clearly in charge; my responsibility is to acknowledge that graciously without defense. He came around quickly when it was evident that we were just a bunch of naive Amish boys (including one with a bad attitude) rather than druggies or criminals.

We hear a lot about the systemic racism, targeted oppression, and police brutality in this country. I believe our larger problem is an entitlement mindset and disrespect for law enforcement. If we can see the need for law enforcement, respect authority, realize that the country would be a violent anarchy without them, and understand that it is through God’s mercy that we have law and order, we are in position to be model citizens. More importantly, we can model a life that, if emulated by everyone, would make government by force unnecessary. While this ideal will never be realized on earth, the most powerful force in this country is the influence of God’s people with God shining through them.

For God and Country!