THE STATE MUST HAVE A RELIGIOUS FOUNDATION

THE STATE MUST HAVE A RELIGIOUS FOUNDATION FOR THERE TO BE A SUFFICIENT MORAL CONSENSUS IN SOCIETY

Nathan Awad

April 2021

THE STATE MUST HAVE A RELIGIOUS FOUNDATION FOR THERE TO BE A SUFFICIENT MORAL CONSENSUS IN SOCIETY

Humankind was God’s special creation as the story begins in the first chapter of the Bible. The idea of government has been held to humankind since the beginning. God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth” (Gen 1:26, NKJV). God gave Adam and Eve authority over his creation, so God trusted them to rule over his creation. Even though God gave humankind authority over his creation, God reminded Adam in an indirect way that he is under authority by warning him to not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Therefore, for any further instruction, Adam must get back to the Lord to understand how to do things. God was never far away from his people all the time, so God revealed himself to his people throughout history in different ways to let them understand that God is there and watches over his creation. After Adam and Eve ate from the tree, they were able to distinguish between good and evil. Also, today, every mature believer is able to discern both good and evil (Hebrew 5:14).

Human conscience was put in human beings as a gift and a moral nature in every person serves as a personal educator to do everything right before the Lord. God gifted the moral law not just for his people; rather, he gifted it to all peoples on earth. Herman Bavinck says, “Although the heathen nations received no law, as the people of Israel did, and in the concrete sense therefore have no law, they nevertheless show by sometimes doing what is commanded by the law that in their moral nature they are a law to themselves, and have the law written in their hearts.”[1] Unfortunately, not everyone obeys that natural law, so God allowed authority and governments to exist. Governments must rule by that natural law to create a society that fulfills God’s purpose on earth. God gave Moses an early form of government at the mountain of Sinai after the people of God departed from Egypt. Hence, they needed a law to govern relationships between each other and between them and the other nations as well. The law revealed the sinful nature of people and their need for God. For the children of Israel, they needed to get back to the Lord since they broke the law constantly. For believers today, God’s law is the Bible, which directs us to get back to the Lord. David W. Jones states,

 When serving in this capacity, then the law convicts men of sin by becoming a mirror that reflects man’s sinful condition in light of God’s holiness and moral standards. However, the goal of this is not solely (or even primary) to crush men under the weight of their revealed sin; rather, this use of the law entails conviction with the intent of driving men to Christ (cf. Gal 3:24).[2]

So, the Law of Moses was to guide people to God, for God wants his people to be holy as he is holy (Lev 11:44). Later, God’s judgment through Amos, was over gentiles like Damascus, Gaza, Tyre, Edom, Ammon, and Moab, including Judah and Israel for their immoral acts (Amos 1-2). Andrew E. Hill and John H. Walton say about the prophet Amos,

 “His impassioned pleas for the socially disadvantaged (i.e., the poor, needy, and afflicted; cf. 2:6-7; 5:11-12; 8:4,6) and his denouncement of their affluent oppressors (i.e., rich women, dishonest merchants, corrupt rulers, opportunistic lawyers and judges) and false priests; cf. 4:1; 6:1, 4:7:8-9 have earned him a reputation as God’s spokesman for social justice.” [3]  

As I mentioned above, God allowed the earthly government, and these government’s laws must be built on a religious foundation; in our case, our laws must be built on a biblical foundation. The biblical foundation creates social justice. Isaiah says, “Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke the oppressor; Defend the fatherless, Plead for the widow” (Isa 1:17, NKJV). Also, it creates equality between people. As Paul says, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Gal 3:28, NKJV). Lastly, it creates peace. As the author of Hebrews writes, “Make every effort to live in peace with everyone” (Heb 12:14, NIV). Consequently, if we want to accomplish God’s will in our society, we must build our society based on biblical principles. It is worthy to note that law based on biblical foundation only accomplishes better life on earth, but it does not change people’s hearts to not sin; rather, it establishes earthly justice for us to live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness (1 Tim 2:2). Regarding the relationship between law and human heart, John Jefferson Davis says, “Only the gospel of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit can produce radical transformations in the human heart. At the same time, law not only restrains violent behavior, but serves as educator.”[4] So, God cares for his creation, and he loves even unbelievers. God loves the whole world and he wants everyone to come to him (1 Tim 2:4). Therefore, our society and our laws must be conformed to biblical principles in order to gain God’s satisfaction and his blessings. When David was on the death bed, he advised his son Solomon saying, “Observe what the Lord your God requires: Walk in obedience to him, and keep his decrees and commands, his laws and regulations, as written in the Law of Moses. Do this so that you may prosper in all you do and wherever you go” (1 Kgs 2:3, NIV). Solomon was a successful king after his father. So, if we live according to God’s plan as revealed to us in the Bible, many of our contemporary issues would vanish.   

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bavinck, Herman. The Wonderful Works of God. Glenside, PA: Westminster Seminary Press, 2019.

Davis, John Jefferson. Evangelical Ethics: Issues Facing the Church Today. Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R, 2015.

Hill, Andrew E., and John H. Walton. A Survey of the Old Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2009.

Jones, David W. An Introduction to Biblical Ethics. Nashville: B&H, 2013.  

 

---

[1] Herman Bavinck, The Wonderful Works of God (Glenside, PA: Westminster Seminary Press, 2019), 36-37

[2] David W. Jones, Introduction to Biblical Ethics (Nashville: B&H, 2013), 61.

[3] Andrew E. Hill and John H. Walton, A Survey of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2009), 612.

[4] John Jefferson Davis, Evangelical Ethics: Issues Facing the Church Today, (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R, 2015), 14.