Gary interviews Kirk Cameron briefly about the influence of Marshall Foster and the application of the biblical worldview to all of life.
Early in the nineteenth century, a blasphemer in New York thought that religion and politics did not mix. “Nonsense, ruled Justice James Kent, for the people need religion and morality ‘to bind society together.’ He then added: ‘The people of this state, in common with the people of this country, profess the general doctrines of Christianity as the rule of their faith and practice.’ The decision in this case, the justice concluded, rested upon the incontrovertible fact that ‘we are a Christian people.’”[1]
While more Christians are steadily being convinced that the Bible has something to say about some social issues, like family and education where an immediate and personal moral impact is felt, there are others who still have trouble with a biblical view of economics, law, morality, and politics. Like oil and water, religion and politics are said not to mix. When the Bible does address political issues, the argument is made that it only does so in the context of a necessary and unavoidable evil. In this view, politics is more than dirty, it’s downright diabolic.
The claim is not being made that civil government (the political or legislative process) should be used to change or reform men and women (though the fear of punishment has an effect on people who might consider committing a crime). The purpose of God’s law as it relates to the civil magistrate is to punish and restrain evil, to protect human life and property, and to provide justice for all people. Only God can regenerate the heart. An individual cannot be made good by keeping the law. The law is a tutor to lead us to Christ (Gal. 3:24) and a standard by which we know if we are conforming to the moral will of God (Rom. 13:8–10; 1 Tim. 1:8–11). People who follow the law make good citizens. Those who despise the law are a terror to others. English philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679) asks, “For what reason do men [arm themselves], and have locks and keys to fasten their doors, if they be not naturally in a state of war?”[2]
Myths, Lies, and Half-Truths
Takes a closer look at God's Word and applies it to erroneous misinterpretations of the Bible that have resulted in a virtual shut-down of the church's full-orbed mission in the world (Acts 20:27). Due to these mistaken interpretations and applications of popular Bible texts to contemporary issues, the Christian faith is being thrown out and trampled under foot by men (Matt. 5:13).
Buy NowGary interviews Kirk Cameron briefly about the influence of Marshall Foster and the application of the biblical worldview to all of life. Our view of history matters and affects how we live in the present. Christians must know their biblical history, as well as the history of the church and Christians throughout the last 2000 years.
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[1] Reynolds v. Ruggles (1811), cited in Edwin S. Gaustad, Faith of Our Fathers: Religion and the New Nation (New York: Harper & Row, 1987), 117.
[2] Quoted in Baron De Montesquieu, The Spirit of Laws, trans. Thomas Nugent, 2 vols. (London: G. Bell and Sons, Ltd., 1914), 1:4