I awoke this morning to discover that my Facebook account had been permanently disabled. Apparently, in the night, a hacker first tried to reproduce my site and then did something to have my account permanently disabled.
I have been engaged in multiple discussions about what it means to be a follower of Christ in this Orwellian time. I found people who vehemently disagreed with me. I understand high emotions in times of disorienting change. I know that part of what we face in our everyday lives is not just a difference of perspective but a deliberate attempt to mask the realities of implicit bias that derail our ability to communicate to people who are different from us in their ethnic or sexual identities or political persuasions.
I have two commitments that drive my thinking. First is a commitment to Jesus as Lord. I use this first-century title because it seems to have recovered its subversive nature. To say Jesus is Lord in the first century was to boldly undermine Ceasar’s prominence and the Roman Imperial government’s demands. Early Christians understood they were part of something greater, a new humanity, a new community that relied on something far different than ethnic or political loyalties/identities. They were not revolutionaries; they were not attempting to overthrow Rome. Paul’s reminder to be subject to governing authorities reinforces this. But, it does not suggest a carte blanc approach to silently endorsing everything governing authorities do. Paul himself pointed to political hypocrisy and evil more than once. He did it respectfully. He also confronted religious authorities for the same.
Esau McCaulley, PhD, The Jonathan Blanchard Associate Professor of New Testament and Public Theology at Wheaton College, points out that Romans 13:1-2 discusses the problem of evil rulers. Paul’s words cannot be taken without qualification as there are ample illustrations of individuals challenging corrupt or evil systems and structures (including Paul). Instead, McCaulley sees this section as (1) a description of action that recognizes the limitation of our discernment of God’s action to address evil systems and (2) the limits God places on the treatment of citizens (the recognition of the reality of structural evil, i.e., it is not the enforcers but the system that directs them that Paul calls us to engage from the foundation of submission. So he writes,
“Paul’s words about submission to governing authorities must be read in light of four realities: (1) Paul’s use of Pharaoh in Romans as an example of God removing authorities through human agents shows that his prohibition against resistance is not absolute; (2) the wider Old Testament testifies to Gods use of human agents to take down corrupt governments; (3) in light of the first two propositions, we can affirm that God is active through human beings even when we can’t discern the exact role we play; (4) therefore, Paul’s words should be seen as more of a limit on our discernment than on Gods activities.”1
My Second commitment is to intellectual integrity and the concept of common grace. By intellectual integrity, I mean a search for reliable and verifiable facts. I avoid using secondary sources if I can, I check for accuracy in reporting by searching more than one source, and I use the actual words and speeches of public figures rather than the commentary or reinterpretation of spokespeople. By common grace, I mean God’s continuing care for his creation, his restraining human society from becoming altogether intolerable and ungovernable, making it possible for mankind to live together in a generally orderly and cooperative manner, and maintaining man’s conscious sense of fundamental right and wrong behavior. Advancements that come through medicine, technology, or other sciences that improve people’s lives are initiated by and outcomes of God’s common grace. I do not see science as an enemy but a benefit.
So, while I have lost one platform, I will continue to reflect on the times in which we live, the actions of our government, and the actions of the church in light of my two commitments and my desire to fulfill the gifts God has given me and the calling God has summoned me to as a pastor, teacher, and friend. I hope that my words bring hope, peace, and thought-provoking agitation toward new ways of seeing the world and being a friend of God and others. I hope dialogue, the only way we can see our world more clearly, does not end. I hope the dialogue continues to render for you and me a wondrously richer life.
- Esau McCaulley. (2020) Reading While Black: African American Biblical Interpretation as an exercise in hope. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 31. ↩︎