Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) said something like this: "Politics is like the weather — everybody talks about it but no one does anything about it." Christians are especially reluctant to do much more than vote.

The following is a partial list of "believers" who were in one way or another involved in civil government:

1. Melchizedek, king of Salem (Jerusalem), also high priest is given the New Testament as a believer and type of Christ (Heb. 7).
2. Abraham; although only the patriarch of a "clan," he had to make political and civic decisions (Gen. 14).
3. Joseph: second ruler of all Egypt only to Pharaoh (Genesis 37-50).
4. Moses; great emancipator, law-giver, judge (Exod. through Deut.).
5. Joshua; general of the army, judge, pioneer (Joshua).
6. David; general of the army, king, psalmist (I & II Sam.).
7. Solomon; king, scientist, author, international diplomat (I Kings).
8. Asa; king of Judah (I Kings).
9. Jehoshaphat; king of Judah (I Kings).
10. Uzziah; king of Judah (II Kings).
11. Jotham: king of Judah (II Kings).
12. Hezekiah; king of Judah (II Kings).
13. Josiah; King of Judah (II Kings).
14. Isaiah; counselor to Hezekiah, prophet (II Kings; Isaiah).
15. Daniel; very high official in the massive heathen empires of Babylon and Persia (Dan.).
16. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego; officials in Babylon government (Dan. 2:49).
17. Esther; queen of Persia (Esther 4:14).
18. Mordecai; next in rank to King Ahasuerus of Persia (Esther 10:3).
19. Ezra; organizer of the restored Jewish commonwealth (Ezra7:21ff).
20. Nehemiah; cup-bearer (a position of great responsibility) to King Artaxerxes of Persia (Neh. 1:11; 2:1) leader of the restored Jews.
21. Zerubbabel; levirate son of Shealtiel, heir to the throne of David, appointed governor of the restored commonwealth of Judah (Ezra 1:8-11; 5:14; I Chron. 3:19; Zech. 4:6; Hag. 1:1).
22. The centurion of Capernaum, commended by Jesus as having the greatest faith found in all Israel (Matt. 8:5-13).
23. Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod's "steward," supported Jesus' ministry (Luke 8:1-3). She participated in politics through her husband's position.
24. Cornelius; the Roman army centurion with great faith (Acts 10: 1ff).
25. Sergius Paulus; Roman proconsul of Cyprus, (Acts 13:7-12).
26. The Philippian jailer (Acts 16:25-40).
27. Joseph of Arimathea (Luke 23:50; Matt. 27:57-61; Mark 14:42-47; John 19:38-42), a rich man, on the Jewish high council.
28. Nicodemus (John 3:14), a leading Pharisee, a "ruler of the Jews," a member of the Sanhedrin, stood against the injustice toward Jesus (John 7:25-44), helped with Jesus' burial (John 19:38-42).
29. Erastus; city treasurer of Rome (Romans 16:23; Acts 19:22).
30. Some of the "Praetorian guard" (Phil. 1:13).
31. Some of Caesar's own household (Phil. 4:22).
32. Zacchaeus; the penitent tax collector (Luke 19:1ff).
33. Matthew; the tax collector worthy of being called to the apostleship (Matt. 9:9ff).
34. Jairus; the ruler of the Jews who believed in Jesus (Matt. 9:18-26).
35. Simon; the Zealot also worthy of being called to the apostleship (Luke 6:15).
36. The Nobleman; a believer who was a civil official (John 4:46ff).
37. Lot; "righteous Lot" (II Pet. 2:7) who "sat at the gate" (probably means a civil judge of some sort) of Sodom, and was "greatly distressed by the licentiousness of the wicked ... he was vexed in his righteous soul day after day with their lawless deeds."
38. The Lawyer; who was "not far from the kingdom" (Mark 12:28-34).
39. Zenas; the lawyer and co-worker of the apostle Paul (Titus 3:13).
40. Archippus; "our fellow soldier" (probably was in the military) (Philemon 2).

There are surely some names from both the Old Testament and the New not included here. And there must have been literally thousands of other believers, not named in the Bible, who were specifically involved in civil government in those ages. Jesus made much use of the titles and offices of civil service (king, general, nobleman, judge, ruler) in his parables. The list above should be sufficient to indicate that believers from all levels of spiritual growth were involved in many different areas of civil service.

Jeremiah, speaking for God, told the Jews who had been taken into exile by the Babylonians:

Jeremiah uses the Hebrew word shalom when he commands the Jews to "seek the welfare of their captors. Shalom is more than a mere grudging resignation to one's predicament. It requires an attitude that expresses itself in assisting one to find well-being, wholeness and tranquility. In other words, Jehovah commanded the Jews, prisoners of war to the Babylonians, displaced persons, not only to refrain from resisting captivity and displacement, but to actively seek the well-being (to assist in building up) of the foreign communities to which they were exiled. In order to do this Jews would have to participate in as much of the civic affairs of those communities in which they lived as they were permitted. Would God want the Christian today, who might find himself exiled from his homeland among foreigners, to do the same? We think so. It is highly significant that the Lord never commanded the Jews to protest, go "underground," escape, or start a revolution against their captors. Of course, for the most part and with but a few exceptions, the Jews were not imprisoned, tortured, or massacred. When that kind of danger arose, the Lord often (but not always) delivered by his providence. But the important point to remember from this text is that God commanded civic participation.

Biblical commandment for participation in civil government is to be found as well in the New Testament:

While the Biblical commandments do not specify that believers are to seek public office, they certainly demand participation by each individual in respect to promoting justice, paying taxes, and thanksgivings to Almighty God for civil servants. And since participation is required to such extent as the foregoing, the believer could safely assume that participation by entering civil service would not only be acceptable, but desirable as a "ministry" to the Lord.

It may be that many people do not participate in civil service because as believers they think they must be "separate" (sanctified) from the world. To them, politics, or a job serving one's government, is "worldly." Some have been made to feel repulsed by politics and government because most of the "news" they hear, see, and read focuses on the corruption and wicked behavior of politicians and civil servants; they do not want to "be corrupted." It is true, Christians are not to think of this world as all the world there is. Christians must "set their minds on things above." But that does not mean we are to have our minds so obsessed with heaven that we forget about this world completely. As a matter of fact, no Christian can truly serve God without serving men:

Christians who reject participation in civil government, or service in some way through the civic or political processes available to them, are shunning an opportunity to "love their brothers" that cannot be had through the church. And civil service is unequivocally called a "ministry to God" in the Bible. Senator Mark Hatfield of Oregon wrote in his book, Conflict and Conscience:

• If everyone in America were just like me what kind of country would this be?
• If everyone took the same interest in government that I do, what kind of government would we have?
• If everyone obeyed the law, including the speed limit, with the same faithfulness that I do, what kind of crime rate would we have?
• If everyone accepted public service or community work with the same attitude that I do, how much would get done for the public good?
• If everyone obeyed his conscience and the spiritual commandments of God with the same faithfulness and courage that I do, what kind of world would this be?

Many people who profess to be strong Bible believers, who insist verbally that all of government is ungodly and that something must be done to "put God back in government," would never think of allowing their names to be put on a ballot to run for public office, or join a patriotic organization, or become a member of a club devoted to civic improvement. They are too busy with heavenly things. Non-involvement is their political posture. It is not enough however to criticize the current political scene, or to espouse lofty ideals about how government should be, if such attitudes do not impel you to "let your light so shine among men ..." and actively participate in civic affairs. Christians must "as they have opportunity, do good unto all men" (Gal. 6:10). That may very well mean becoming specifically involved running for political office or taking up the vocation of civil service in some other area.

In a pluralistic society like America, a politician or other civil servant deals constantly with the hard realities of a world that is mostly unbelieving and not committed to Biblical standards and principles. The best that can often be expected is civic conduct from a basis of "the law of God written on the conscience" (Natural Law). Politics is the art of the possible. Someone has said, "Politics is the art of compromise." But that does not have to mean compromise of the fundamental standards of right and wrong. It usually demands compromise only in the area of opinions or of means (methods). There have been many moral giants who have served in civil government. Biblical history and secular history are records of their service as it pleased God and produced his justice in the earth. We have already called many of the Biblical names to your attention. Daniel is perhaps the most exemplary. Here was a young man with strong faith in God, with clear commitment to practice his religion, who was willing to learn all the "letters and languages of the Chaldeans" (Dan. 1:4), serve as a high official in heathen governments, and be used of God to help preserve the people of God and probably convert at least one heathen emperor (Nebuchadnezzar, see Dan. 4:34-37). He did not compromise his faith or his morals, and served in a government much less God-oriented in its ideology and practice than ours. Daniel was able to "compromise" where possible and be rigid when necessary. It can be done!

In the history of the United States of America there have been many examples of the same kind of civic "ministry." William Bradford, John Witherspoon, George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, Gouverneur Morris, Samuel Adams, John Adams, Patrick Henry, Roger Sherman, George Mason, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney — these are all "founding fathers." All these were godly men whose faith in God and reverence for the Bible as the word of God is well documented in their own writings. A long list of succeeding U.S. presidents and other government officials could be given who were godly men. Abraham Lincoln, James A. Garfield (a minister of the Christian Church), Theodore Roosevelt, Herbert Hoover, James Carter, Ronald Reagan, George Bush, and many others.

Some of our greatest military leaders were devout Christians. General Washington, General Francis Marion, General Robert E. Lee, General MacArthur. Twenty-five of our forty-one presidents have worn a United States military uniform. Thousands of other civil officers in America (national, state, local) who are believers have served unheralded, unknown, and often underpaid, to make this nation the best place on earth to be born and to live. Should anyone feel that civic service is not a ministry of God, let that person immigrate to any other nation on earth, take up residence and citizenship. He will soon be longing for the blessings of the United States of America where, for the most part, civil government is still considered a God-ordained stewardship.

It is not biblical and it is not reasonable that Christians should surrender the civil arena to unbelief where morality will inevitably be compromised. We have both biblical commandment and example that the political scene ought to be, and may be, served by believers whose service will not require a compromise of their faith. The weapons of the church in its spiritual warfare are not "carnal" — it is true — but we need to fight with our powerful spiritual weapons in the political arena in order to bring the thoughts of individual civil servants "to captivity unto obedience to Christ" (II Cor. 10:3-5). John the Baptist attempted to do so with Herod; Jesus tried with Pilate (and the Pharisees); Paul tried with Felix and Agrippa and many others. It need not be any different in this century.

Civil service, government service, is not only a necessary fact of this world, and so recognized by the Bible, it is also an honorable service and so honored by the Bible (see I Pet. 2:17; Rom. 13:7). Let no Bible believer contradict this for to do so is to "resist God" (Rom. 13:2). The office of civil authority does not, however, arbitrarily sanctify the individual who holds it. Each civil servant (from emperor to cup-bearer) is responsible to consecrate himself to righteousness as a "minister of God." If he does not, he brings disrepute upon the "ministry" of civil service and upon God who ordains it. The concept of civil service is unquestionably a part of God's "good" creation. It deserves "good" people to fulfill it. When these are united, mankind is blessed and the kingdom of God on earth is inevitably extended. May Daniel's, Esther's, Mordecai's, Ezra's and Nehemiah’s tribe increase!

The English word "patriot" has its parallels in French patriote, Latin patriota, and in Greek patros. It means "one who loves his country and zealously supports its authority and interests." Some biblical examples of patriots are:

1. Joseph was patriotic to the extent that although he had become a ruler of Egypt, had married an Egyptian woman, his great desire was that his dead body (bones) be carried by Israelites to the land of Canaan (his homeland) when they left Egypt, to be buried there (see Gen. 50:25; Josh. 24:32). Israelites had to keep his bones in a coffin for 400 years (Gen. 50:22-26; Exod. 13:19) until this could be accomplished.
2. Jacob requested the same patriotic thing (Gen. 49:29-50:14).
3. Moses killed an Egyptian who was abusing one of his countrymen even when Moses was a ruler in Egypt (Exod. 2:11-15). Moses refused to be called Pharaoh's grandson, choosing ill treatment as an Israelite (Heb. 11:23-2).
4. David was a great patriot. He loved Israel and the country with a deep, abiding affection (Psa. 14:7; 25:22; 53;6; 83:lff; 122:1-9; 136:1-26; 137:1-9). He was so patriotic (and obedient to God) he would not raise his hand against the anointed king (Saul) or Israel even when Saul was trying to kill him.
5. The Old Testament prophets were patriots who loved their country and the land. Most of them gave their lives trying to save their people from foreign invasion and exile. One has only to read the heart-broken Lamentations of Jeremiah (see Lam. 2:11,13,18; 5:15-18) to hear the cry of a patriot.
6. Naomi longed for her native Israel and was willing to make great sacrifices to return there from Moab (Ruth l:6ff).
7. Esther, even as a Persian queen, remembered her people and risked her life to save them (Esther 4:14-17). Mordecai also was a Jewish patriot.
8. The Jews of the Maccabean era who "put foreign armies to flight" (Heb. 11:33-38) and suffered tremendous privations for their land are approved of God.
9. The Lord Jesus Christ wept with great sobs over his beloved Jerusalem (Matt. 23:37-39; Luke 19:41).
10. One of Jesus' apostles was Simon the Zealot — most probably a former member of a radically-right group of Jewish patriots, "disciples of the Pharisees" (Matt. 22:15-22).
11. Daniel was patriotically responsible both to his Babylonian and Persian superiors (Dan. 2:37; 4:19; 6:22), and to his own countrymen and homeland (Dan. 1:12-21; 9:3-19).
12. The patriotism of Ezra and Nehemiah stands out like a great light to the world that believers can love, honor and serve their country with God's approval.
13. Paul, the great Jewish apostle to the Gentiles, was loyal to his Jewish culture when it did not interfere with his service to God and man (Acts 16:1-3; 21:39; 22:3; 28:17; Rom. 3:1,2; 9:1-5).
14. Paul wrote that we are to "give thanks for" our rulers (I Tim. 2:1,2) and to give "respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due" (Rom. 13:7).
15. Peter wrote, "Honor the emperor" (I Pet. 2:17) which takes some amount of patriotism.

There are undoubtedly many more names from the Bible which might be cited as examples of patriotism. Patriotism would probably be better defined as civic responsibility, for patriotism should not be blindly emotional — it should be rational and moral.

Some Christians are confused about patriotism. Some think Christians have no biblical sanction for loving any country in this world because they are only "citizens of heaven" and pilgrims here. It is true, Christians are citizens of heaven, but they are also citizens of particular nations and cultures while they are in the flesh.

Americans love not only their country (its geographical and topographical features) but its form of government, its liberties, its people and its history. If they did not, they would have no motive for sacrificially defending it against foes whose purposes are to conquer it, change its form of government, take away its liberties, kill many of its people, and plunder its great resources. The true patriot will also actively oppose, through peaceful and biblically-sanctioned means, all immoral and ideological influences practiced and preached by fellow countrymen which would bring about decadence and disorder to one's native land. Thus the prophets of old, the Lord Jesus, and his apostles were true patriots. But misguided patriotism often produces acute moral blindness. An over-reaching patriotism that vows, "My country, right or wrong ..." leads to an irrational and dangerous mentality which usually results in disorderly and destructive actions. Roger Thomas, who was then campus minister with Christian Campus House at the University of Missouri in Rolla, gave six fundamental principles which should guide the Christian believer:

Patriotism is anti-biblical when it places country or culture or race above God or his Word (the Bible). Patriotism is out of control when it will not submit to the revealed guidelines of the Bible and the "natural revelation" of God written upon the hearts and consciences of people (see Rom. 2). One has only to read the Old Testament prophets to gather examples of patriotism gone berserk. A classic example may be found in Jeremiah 26:1-24: Jeremiah is ordered by the Lord to declare the defeat and captivity of his beloved nation, Judah, but the "hotheads" refuse to hear the word of the Lord and declare Jeremiah to be a traitor who ought to be killed. Finally, when Jerusalem was being besieged and burned, a group of "patriots" who refused to accept the word of God from Jeremiah, kidnapped him and took him as a hostage to Egypt, rather than obey God's order to surrender to Nebuchadnezzar (see Jer. 42-43). Jeremiah had warned them long before, "Do not trust in these deceptive words: 'This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord' " (Jer. 7:4). Clinging to one's culture or nation, or its shrines and institutions when they are clearly disobeying God's revealed word is unacceptable for the believer.

There are many examples of great believers in the Bible who loved their country and their countrymen but whose supreme love for God and his Word compelled them to choose against the wrong in their country in order to be right with God. Moses often had to choose against the majority of the Hebrew people to keep God's commandments; Joshua chose against his countrymen and "served God" (Josh. 24:14,15); Samuel and David had to choose against an ungodly king (Saul), which appeared to some as "unpatriotic"; of course practically all the prophets, from Elijah to Malachi, were accused of being unpatriotic and traitorous (see Isa. 30:1-18; Ezek. 2:1-3:15; 13:1-23; Amos 7:10:17; Micah 3:5). Daniel, a man with two patriotic loyalties (Hebrew and Babylonian), chose to obey God's word against all other loyalties (Dan. 1,5,6). Jesus loved Jerusalem and her people, but he loved God first (Matt. 23:37-39; Luke 29:41-44). Paul was "zealous for the traditions of his fathers" (Gal. 1:14; Phil. 3:4-11) and for his countrymen (Rom. 9:1ff) but he would not let that come above obedience to God's revealed word. Peter and John were loyal, patriotic Hebrews, but they chose to go against their nation's leaders when they were commanded by them to disobey God (Acts 4,5). The Christian must be constantly alert to evaluate the political actions of his country and its leaders, nationally and internationally, in the light of clear biblical teachings and principles. National or cultural patriotism exercised outside the control of God and the Bible inevitably becomes political tyranny. One has only to study the history of the Israelites in the Bible or the great heathen empires in secular history to confirm this.

Clearly, however, Bible believers are not to let patriotism-gone-wrong deter them from active and constant participation in civil government. When the Lord said, "Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's; and to God the things that are God's," he said just as much about our duty to our country as about our duty to God. Believers often overlook the importance of political involvement because of the imperative emphasis on their heavenly "citizenship" (see Phil. 3:17; Heb. 11:13-16; 13:14). It is of great significance, however, that the same apostle who wrote the above three statements also constantly affirmed his earthly citizenship all through the book of Acts. He was also the one who told the Roman centurion, "I am from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no mean city." He was the one who insisted on his rights as a Roman citizen when he was shamefully treated; he was the one who appealed to Caesar for a fair trial when justice seemed to bog down around Jerusalem. The Bible makes it clear, that while the believer's citizenship is ultimately and eternally in heaven, he is also a citizen of the governments of earth — with both their privileges and their responsibilities.

When the Babylonian emperor drove the Israelites into Mesopotamian captivity, they did not forget their homeland. By the waters of Babylon they sat down and wept when they remembered Zion — on the willows there they hung their lyres, and sang patriotically, "If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand wither!" (Psa. 137).

As Christians we ought to long for the eternal Jerusalem, just as the Israelites longed for the old Jerusalem where their citizenship really was. But shortly after they were taken into captivity, Jeremiah bluntly told them:

Most of the Israelites followed the Lord's instructions through Jeremiah. Daniel became a prime minister; Nehemiah became the Persian king's confidant and advisor; Esther became a queen; Mordecai became a high government official. And because these, as well as many others, sought the welfare of Babylon (and later, Persia, Greece, and Rome), the Israelites themselves found their own welfare. Furthermore, a remnant was preserved and reconstituted back in their beloved homeland, from which came the Messiah and Savior of all the world.

In spite of the dangers and complexities of political involvement, the Christian today must realize that "rendering unto Caesar" means more than paying taxes and obeying the laws; it means participating responsibly and knowledgeably in the processes of civil government in every biblically-sanctioned way possible.

Copyright © 1990, Paul T. Butler