Church & State: Distinct Spheres, Related Mission
By Buddy Hanson The Covenant News ~ August 08, 2009
There is a lot of confusion about the separation of church and
state. One reason for this stems from the rewriting of history in the
public school textbooks to distort the clear intentions of our
founding fathers. Another reason is the activist bent of the Supreme
Court, which has set precedents based upon political interests instead
of upon the original intent of the Constitution. Such an erroneous
view sees the church and state as being two distinct and
non-cooperating institutions.
While the church expects its members to present a godly testimony
to the world (being "salt and light" Matt. 5.13), the state expects
citizens to be law-abiding and peaceful. Both the church and state are
accountable to God for their origin and authority. As the chronicler
teaches, "The chief priest is over you in all matters of Jehovah, and
... the ruler of the house of Judah in all the king's matters." (2
Chronicles 19.11) Both must confess, "The Lord is our Lawgiver!"
(Isaiah 33.22; James 4.12) The state has the God-given power to use
the sword to defend its citizens from outside aggression (Rom.
13.1-7), and to keep them safe from criminals by administering swift
justice according to the sure and certain terms of Biblical law.
(Deut.16.20; Prov. 21.3) It also has the responsibility to protect the
personal liberty of its citizens by keeping the total of the taxes it
collects less than 10 percent of a person's net income. (1 Sam.
8.11-18) To do its job effectively, the civil government should derive
its laws from biblical laws and the ethics contained in the case laws
of Exodus that follow the Ten Commandments.
In Jesus' view there is no such thing as a "sacred realm" and a "secular realm."
After all, it is Christianity that promises racial harmony, while evolution promises continued warfare between groups. The German philosopher Hegel taught that there will be continuous cycles of thesis-antithesis-synthesis.
The Bible's message is simple: Obey God and He will bless us.
Church
State
1. Minister of grace/Excommunication
1. Minister of Justice/Execution
2. Expose Evil
2. Restrain Evil
3. Teach God's Law
3. Enforce God's Law
4. Funded by God's Social Tax
4. Financed by God's Civil Tax
6. Welfare
6. Warfare
SIMILARITIES between Church & State
1. They are both from God and are "ministers of God" and shall give
account of their administrations to God.
2. Both must observe the law and commandments of God and each has
specific directions from Scripture to guide them.
3. Both are "fathers" and ought to be honored and obeyed according to
the principles of the fifth commandment.
4. Both are appointed for the glory of God and the good of mankind.
5. Both compliment each other.
DIFFERENCES between the Church & State
1. In their ultimate goal, the Civil Rulers bring about temporal
peace; the Church offers salvation and eternal peace.
2. The State executes capitol offenders; the Church excommunicates
unrepentant and disobedient members.
Next week's topic, is, "The Proper Role of Civil Rulers."
Buddy Hanson is President of the Christian Policy Network and Director
of the Christian Worldview Resources Center and has written several
books on the necessity of applying one's faith to everyday situations,
circumstances and decision-making.