The Government of Christ

Jun 7, 07:52 PM

“And the government will be on His shoulders.” Isaiah 9:6

In the Kingdom of God, there is no separation of Church and state. Whether or not it should be the case here and now is a matter of political opinion. We have seen and continue to see the inherent dangers of human beings trying to impose religious dynamics on institutions of government. Regardless of what may be the case in the course of human events, it is evident that the Kingdom of God is a theocracy. A theocracy exists when the spiritual and political leadership are combined. Christ is both High Priest and King. God’s dominion is not imposed on the earth by force. The Kingdom comes on the earth by submission, not by imposition, as men and women willingly submit to the reign of Christ and seek to walk in the way of life associated with it. The very fact that certain people take up arms or form political coalitions in order to affect their will tells me they do not understand the ways of Christ Himself. If the Kingdom could come by the pervasive will of man, why didn’t Jesus build His own political consortium and make Himself king? He certainly had more than enough pressure to do so. In fact, most people thought that was what He was going to do anyway. Many of His disciples were hanging with Him on the basis of that very hope.

Where there is godly government, the people dwell in peace. Where there is corrupt, oppressive government, the spirit of the people is crushed and they go off to their own individual ways. All human government is to some extent corrupt simply because of the fallibility of human nature. The Government of Christ can be trusted completely. All power in heaven and on earth has been delivered into His hands. No one else could be trusted with such ultimate power. He will reign forever and ever. The Government of Christ has the best interests of the people at heart. The task of any government is to serve the best interests of the people of the land. “If God so clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” (Matthew 6:30) The task of government is to provide protection for the people so that they may dwell in security. “The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid? Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear.” (Psalm 27:1/3) It is the task of government to provide opportunity for worthy and meaningful work so that the people might walk in their true purposes. “And God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.’” (Genesis 1:26 KJV) We were created to subdue and tend the earth not to exploit or trash it.

It is not by external law or oppressive force that the dominion of Christ is exercised, it is by the Spirit. The Spirit of God is the governing agent of the Kingdom. The laws of God are no longer external demands to be met but internal desire and motivation written on the hearts of those who are faithful to His covenant. “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” (2 Corinthians 3:17) But that freedom should not degenerate into licentiousness. “You were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather serve one another in love.” (Galatians 5:13)

Perhaps you think I am describing some kind of pie-in-the-sky utopia which I dreamed up in my own imagination. Actually, I am simply trying to describe what Christ has introduced and called us to proclaim. “He sent them out to preach (proclaim) the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick.” (Luke 9:2) The proclamation of the Kingdom is verbal and non-verbal. We describe the nature of the Kingdom but also live as if the reign of Christ had already come in its fullness. Instead of trying to build or impose it, the Church is called to demonstrate it. We are commanded to be a living embodiment of Kingdom life. When we heal the sick, dwell in love, and confront the powers of darkness, are we not in fact living proclaiming that the Kingdom of God is among us?

You may ask, how can one live in this corrupt world as if the reign of Christ had already come? Is that not our greatest challenge? How are we to be in the world but not of it? There are no easy answers. We, as fallible and corrupt human beings always struggle against our own humanity until Christ redeems us fully. We do the very best we can. Some days we are closer to it than others. We live and work and vote the best we know how in this pitifully short life of ours. We worship and serve, fully submitted to the Lordship of Christ, knowing that we sometimes we will fail but not always. We trust, pray, and hope that the grace and power of God are manifested through us daily.

Governments will come and go. Some will be better than others. But we live in the continuous hope of the Lord who, when He comes, will establish His reign and put an end to death and to all predatory and carnivorous activity which now infects the pristine beauty of God’s creation.

A Different Kind of Prophetic Voice That God Might be Glorified Through Us