Reformed Theology Resource Center
Theonomy: A Debate
Closing Argument for
Theonomy
By Jay Rogers
In
my defense of theonomy so far, I have alluded to the interviews with over a
dozen of the leaders of theonomy in the video I produced, God’s Law and
Society. I would greatly encourage readers wanting to know more about
theonomy to check out this video: http://www.forerunner.com/law/law.html
MAN’S
LAW OR GOD’S LAW
The
scriptures are clear that it is God and not man who ordains civil government.
Both the Old and the New Testament speak of civil offices as being chosen of
God. The civil ruler is God’s minister. The civil ruler is commanded to
punish evil (Romans 13:4). By
what standard will the civil ruler punish evil? Will he use “common sense”
-- his own idea of what is right and wrong -- or will he turn to God’s Word?
A Republic is a society ruled by law rather than by men. A Christian Republic is a society ruled specifically by the Law of God. I would much
rather be judged by God’s Law than by any man. I would much rather bejudged
by the merciful, loving Creator of heaven and earth than by any man, however
wise he may be.
Whenever
we have established man as the ultimate standard, we are ultimately vulnerable
to whoever is in power. That puts us in a very precarious state. To negate
God's law in favor of politics is absolutely frightening. What we are saying is that we would prefer man-made law over God’s Law.
In
the history of the world, societies that adhere to biblical law are always the
most free -- economically, socially, culturally, and racially. If we want
freedom, then we should affirm the freedom-giving standards of Almighty God.
If
on the other hand, you like the standards of Stalinism, Leninism, Nazism, or
Maoism, then you should defer to the wisdom of the 51 percent, or the wisdom
that flows out of the barrel of a gun.
THE
MYTH OF NEUTRALITY
The
greatest stumbling block to the antinomian is the myth of neutrality. One of
the most common objections tobringing the morality of the Bible into politics
is the idea that somehow there ought to be a public square that is neither
secular nor Christian, but “neutral.” Jesus addressed the issue of neutrality when He told His disciples in
Matthew 12:30: “He who is not for Me is against me, and he who does not
gather with Me scatters abroad.” The
very idea that we, as followers of Christ can peacefully coexist with a pagan
world system is refuted by the Lord himself, “Do not think that I have come
to bring peace on earth, I did not come to bring peace, but a sword” (Matthew 10:34).
Many
Christian leaders prop up the idea of “neutrality in the public square.”
This viewpoint expresses the essence of antinomianism: that the righteousness
of one’s conduct can be divorced from the moral Law of God— or that
one’s political views can be divorced from one’s theology. In truth, the
only option besides a biblically based society ruled by the Law of God is a
pagan society ruled by lawlessness. There is no neutral ground.
The
Word of God is clear on one thing: the moral Law of God is the standard, not
natural law, not pluralism, not what man thinks is right in his own eyes. The
Bible provides the vast majority of laws needed to govern a society. Those it
does not directly define, it addresses in principle. Although we may not
always agree on interpretation, we should agree on the Law of God as the
standard. We must stand for the Lordship of Jesus Christ in the totality of
life.
Is
there any “middle way” or neutral ground between man’s law and God’s
Law? Every law is an attempt to legislate someone’s morality. Civil law must
have some standard: either it is God’s Law or it is man’s law. There are
no other options.
Opponents
of theonomy have offered an argument which can be summarized as follows:
“Jesus said, Just love God and love your neighbor.” Yet this misses the
point made by Jesus. Love is the summation of the Law, not its replacement. We
don’t know how to love our neighbor or love God unless we look to God’s
Word to define it.
A
COVENANTAL BATTLE
God
has a covenantal strategy for His people to advance His kingdom on earth as it
is in heaven. In any war, first you need a worthy cause. Then you need to find
worthy allies who willbe loyal in the fight for the long term. Then you need a
workable strategy which will result in success.
The
battle is a covenantal battle. It is a battle between two allegiances: those
who would build a Christian Republic under the Lordship of Jesus Christ and
the liberal humanists who believe man is sovereign. It’s a battle between
those who stand for the Law of God and those who do not. It's a battle between
Neo-Puritans and Neo-Pagans.
The
battle in the Church is also a covenantal battle. It’s a battle between
orthodox covenantal theology and heterodox dispensational theology. It is a
battle between those who hold to a victorious ecclesiology, the Lordship
ofJesus Christ over the totality of human life — and those who believe we
are predestined for defeat, that the earth belongs to the devil and the
Antichrist. It’s a battle between the “Confessing Church,” those who believe Jesus is Lord over all the earth in time and history
— and the antinomians and liberals, those who will not confess that Jesus is
Lord over all.
There
are many fronts in each battle. The enemies of Christ will fight us. Others in
the church will try to remain “neutral.” But we must realize from the
outset that there is no neutrality. Only
when we take this stance, that Christ not man is king, will we win in time and
history.
Theonomy can be summarized as “rebuilding civilization upon the principles of the Bible.” Our vision is to see Christians everywhere doing all they can to take every sphere of society captive to the obedience of Christ (2 Cor. 10:5).
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