I’ve spent a lot of time over the years studying economics, governance, science, culture, etc. from a biblical perspective. Although a number of the books I’ve read are not written by Christians, by God’s common grace non-Christians can contribute to our understanding of the world and often do a better job than Christians–within limits. Here…
Category: Liberty
The Bible, Politics, and the Gospel
We have a fair amount of discussion in my church over what the Bible teaches when it comes to government and how to apply God’s Word to particular areas of public policy. During one of those discussions, a friend recently commented, “I reject the notion that someone needs to be a small government conservative to…
A Brief Primer on Church and State–and Oppression
“The purpose of government is to justly uphold life, liberty, and truth in order to bring increase and peace to the Kingdom of God.” This shouldn’t be a surprise. Because every government official, every government worker, every voter, every citizen, and every subject was made for one very specific purpose: to glorify God and enjoy…
The Trinitarian Nature of Private Property
Genesis 1:1 clearly establishes God as the owner of creation. Genesis 1:28 tells man to fill and subdue the earth (His property) and have dominion over every living thing (also His property). God didn’t transfer ownership–He is still the original owner, but He did delegate ownership. We see man’s responsibilities in properly exercising this delegation…
Private Property, the Great Commission, and the Trinity
In a recent email discussion, a friend from church recently noted, “I don’t think anyone is going to argue that government has carte blanche to take property from people.” As I told him, I don’t think that is the case. For starters, I certainly would. And so might folks like the justices on the Texas…
The Hope of Biblical Compassion: Charity
In my last article, I made the case that the welfare state is unbiblical. I built my argument on three premises: that the welfare state 1) is a form of theft, 2) destroys charity, and 3) harms everyone associated with it–funder, deliverer, and recipient. Let’s take another quick look at this. In 2 Thessalonians 3:10,…
The Tragedy of Evangelical Compassion: The Welfare State
What do we do when we realize the welfare state isn’t working? Well, for a lot of Evangelicals, the trick is actually getting to that point. Many appear content with government welfare programs as a means of assisting the poor; some even seem to think that we are sinning by not spending enough money on…
Evangelical v. Biblical Compassion
The United States of America spends over $1.8 trillion each year on welfare programs and public education systems that consign millions of people to lifetimes of ignorance and poverty, provide substandard housing and medical care, separate fathers from their families, and lead many young black men to prison or an early death. The federal government…
Christian Liberty and Civil Government
Christian Liberty Ever since the fall of man in the garden, natural man has been a slave to sin: None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one. (Romans 3:10-12 ESV) Jesus Christ came…
Why I Will Vote for Trump in 2020
In the days leading up to the 2016 presidential election, I shared with anyone who would listen why I wasn’t going to vote for Donald Trump. The primary reason for my decision was that I wasn’t sure the country would be better off with Trump as president than it would be with Hillary. I admitted…