The following is my transcription of a segment of the Undeceptions podcast with John Dickson, who teaches at Wheaton College as the Jean Kvamme Distinguished Professor of Biblical Studies and Public Christianity. You can listen to the origianl podcast here.
There is an increasing movement of what is often called Christian Nationalism, or perhaps, more properly, theonomy—which just means, “God’s law.” The feeling is that God has given a law about what’s true and good in the Bible, so it makes sense that everybody should obey it, even those who don’t believe. A key text for this way of thinking about Christianity and the world is the so-called Great Commission at the end of the Gospel of Matthew. Jesus said, “All authority in heaven on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I commanded you.”
Those who hold this theonomist view say that Jesus has given us the mandate to make everyone obey the teachings of Christ. So this must mean through legislation, education, media, and so on. There are a couple of misunderstandings here in my view. The expression in English, “make disciples,” doesn’t actually in the Greek have the word “make.” There is no sense of forcing anyone to do anything. It’s just the verb meaning to “school” your students. This is then unpacked by Jesus in this statement as teaching people to obey the things He’s taught. This is key. For Jesus, persuasion—through teaching—is the principle means by which people become His students. We don’t “make” the world do anything. This actually rules out creating laws that force society to follow Christian doctrine and practice.
I’ve said many times before, the only tools Christ has given the Church are persuasion, prayer, service, and suffering. Persuasion is key. That’s how we convey the whole content of the Christian faith. And there’s a way to test this interpretation of the Great Commission. You only have to open up the rest of the New Testament to see how the Apostles thought they were to go about fulfilling this commandment Jesus gave them. And never do we find them taking on Roman laws, or reforming the education system and so on. What you find the doing throughout the whole book of Acts, which tells the story of the first thirty years of the Church after Jesus, is persuading people that Jesus is Lord. Forming them into communities that then embody those teachings. Then you constantly find them suffering for those teachings, and doing so cheerfully. And then, when you look at the letters the Apostles wrote to the churches in the rest of the New Testament, you don’t find a single word about reforming society through legislative processes. But you do find heaps about persuasion, prayer, service, and suffering.
We can also test this over the long term. Over the next 300 years, Christians uniformly advocated for a persuasional approach to changing the world. I could read statements from the Letter to Diognetus, or Tertullian, or Lactanctius. Even Constantine the Great—the first Christian emperor—emphatically stated that Christianity must advance through spiritual persuasion, not state force.
You have to wait till the end of the fourth century before you get any Christians who think we need to force Christian laws on the population. That happens in the reign of Theodosius I. He shuts down pagan temples. He punishes those who don’t follow Christian laws and so on. That is not foundational Christianity.
In short, I think the theonomist viewpoint arises from a kind of spiritual insecurity. Christian leaders look at the world that’s turning its back on Christ, and instead of turning to the old tools or persuasion, prayer, service, and suffering, they rely on worldly tools like political and legislative power. A truly confident Christian knows that persuasion alone, through the power of the Spirit, can change the world.
One last thing. None of what I’m saying here means that Christians shouldn’t get involved in education, in the health system, in politics. I think it’s great when Christians go into public life. I’d just emphasize that their role in public service has to be characterized by persuasion if it’s going to be Christian. They should make the case. And if people are persuaded toward the good, fantastic, things will move toward the good. If they’re not, we graciously leave people in their error. This should rule out bully tactics, backroom deals, and other nefarious things that often characterize politics. A Christian in politics will be all about persuasion, as well as prayer, service, and willingness to suffer—cheerfully.
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