October 23, 2000

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Nov. 19 Lesson

Religious liberty is a gift from Baptists to nation ___Romans 13:1-7 ___1Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 3For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you. 4For he is God's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. 5Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment, but also because of conscience. ___6This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, who give their full time to governing. 7Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor then honor.

___By Carol Younger
___From deciding how to vote to deciding whether to spontaneously demonstrate the Lord's Prayer before high school football, deciding how we will relate to our government is in season this month. As people who claim dual citizenship in this world and in God's kingdom, how does our activity in each realm affect the other? As people of faith, how do we relate to government, and what role should we take in shaping it?
___When we are tempted to use Paul's appeal not to conform to the world as an excuse for being uninvolved citizens, we must hear Paul declare that Christians have a responsibility to government. But when we are tempted to use earthly powers of government to advance religious purposes, Jesus reminds us, "My kingdom is not of this world," so "render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's and unto God the things that are God's."
___Religious liberty, the principle of a free church in a free state, is a gift that Baptists gave the world.
___On May 16, 1920, George W. Truett, pastor of First Baptist Church of Dallas, addressed more than 10,000 people on the east steps of the Capitol in Washington, D.C. He eloquently described how our Baptist ancestors endured persecution in the struggle for religious liberty. With conviction they won such statesmen as Washington, Jefferson, Madison and Patrick Henry "until at last it was written into our country's constitution that church and state must in this land be forever separate and free, that neither must ever trespass upon the distinctive functions of the other. It was pre-eminently a Baptist achievement."
___"It is the consistent and insistent contention of our Baptist people, always and everywhere, that religion must be forever voluntary and uncoerced, and that it is not the perogative of any power, whether civil or ecclesiastical, to compel men to conform to any religious creed or form of worship, or to pay taxes for the support of a religious organization to which they do not believe. God wants free worshipers and no other kind."
___Jesus' words about rendering to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and giving God the things that are God's were revolutionary. "That utterance, once and for all, marked the divorcement of church and state. ... Christ's religion needs no prop of any kind from any worldly source, and to the degree that it is thus supported is a millstone hanged about its neck," Truett declared.
___We Baptists need to remember our history so we do not lose our way. Every generation must learn the stories and understand the importance of that fight for religious freedom for which many gave their lives.
___In 1936, the Baptist Joint Committee on Public Affairs began to serve as a presence in Washington to contend for the historic Baptist position on religious liberty. Because decisions are made almost daily affecting the religious liberty of all Americans, the Baptist Joint Committee is there for us to this day as an effective voice on religious liberty issues.
___"Separation of church and state does not mean separation of God and government or separation of religion and politics. It does not relieve us of the duty of Christian citizenship," said James Dunn, former executive director of the BJC. "It does mean that the state in no way dominates, uses or infiltrates the church. The gears of the church do not engage the gears of the state. The church does not control or rule the state or use any public monies for religious purposes. It means a free church in a free state."
___Government is instituted by God
___Romans 13:1-7 teaches that government is a legitimate authority for Christians, because its authority comes from God. Why did Paul address this issue of obedience to civil authority? Perhaps some of his readers were rebellious toward government. Some may have claimed their allegiance to the lordship of Christ meant that they had no responsibility to human authority. Paul understood that society needed stability that depended upon common acceptance of civil authority. For this reason the necessity of government is rooted in God's purpose for meaningful community.
___"Advocating religious liberty never meant that Baptists denied proper authority to civil rulers," said Baptist historian Walter Shurden. "In fact, Baptists were Romans 13 people, fond of quoting 'let every person be subject to the governing authorities.'" But Baptists saw two spheres in the Bible. Romans 13 was for the civil, but James 4:12--"There is one lawgiver and judge"--that is, the Lordship of Christ, was for the church.
___As Paul wrote, he assumed a normal situation in which government uses its power in a legitimate way. He stressed the basic principle of civil obedience, rather than giving examples or grounds for exceptions to that principle. Titus 3:1-2 and 1 Peter 2:13-17 also echo Paul's sentiment here. The allegiance Paul commands is conditioned by the government's functioning within its true purpose.
___When Paul wrote this letter to the Romans (A.D. 58) the church had not experienced the severe persecution it would later face from the Roman government. At that time, government would force the church to choose between Caesar and Christ. Many became martyrs rather than being disloyal to Christ. Revelation 13 reflects a harsh governmental situation. Acts 4:18-20 and 5:29 describe how the apostles stood up to religious authorities when ordered not to teach about Christ.
___Paul's personal experience with government to this point had been positive. He had found the Roman rule to be valuable during his time of missionary work. The peace of Rome (pax Romana) created an advantageous climate for proclaiming the gospel. Freedom to travel and the excellent Roman roads helped him on his journeys. When he was attacked by mobs, his appeal to his Roman citizenship provided him with protective custody and a fair trial (Acts 22:22-29).
___Our responsibilities to each other
___According to this description in verses 3-5, restraining evil and punishing it is the basic function of government. It provides those who are good the opportunity to live lives unhindered by those who are evil. The responsibility to punish evil is left to government, while the Christian has been urged by Paul to return good for evil. In the previous chapter, Romans 12:19, Paul wrote, "Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God." In this chapter, Paul interprets civil government as a legitimate instrument of this wrath.
___What does it mean for us to be responsible citizens? Obedience to the law and paying taxes are legitimate responsibilities. Paul also adds an obligation to respect those who have authority. In one of his final writings, his first letter to Timothy, Paul encourages Christians to pray for their civil rulers at a time when many citizens were praying to them (1 Timothy 2:1).
___Being true Baptists
___Being true to our heritage as Baptists means being faithful to the cause of religious liberty for all. In recent years many have either forgotten our Baptist heritage or tried to rewrite it. The moral decline of our culture has persuaded many well-meaning believers to forego the gift of religious freedom for all in an attempt to save society from depravity. They want to revise how we interpret the separation of church and state and claim their understanding belonged to our ancestors in the faith. The policy of the separation of church and state has been called a myth by proponents who claim our nation's founders did not intend to build a wall between the state and the church. Instead, they say, the founders of our country intended to establish a Christian nation.
___To reach this conclusion, however, they ignore the testimonies of more than 90 courageous young preachers and laypersons who were imprisoned in Virginia and North Carolina jails before religious freedom was won. Says Baptist historian Bill Estep, "No nation can claim to be Christian, as Roger Williams argued centuries ago, for the new people of God--the New Israel--is made up of the born again of many different races and nationalities on the face of the earth."
___The Baptist passion for religious liberty has New Testament roots. In his article, "Separation No Myth," Jim Spivey, associate professor of church history at Southwestern Seminary, wrote that our forebears "ultimately succeeded because they unhesitatingly proclaimed a message empowered by biblical truth. Today the antidote for both infidelity and its counterfeit, civil religion, is the same as it was then. Transcending the secular warrant and any idolized view of original intent, Baptists must reclaim the biblical doctrine espoused by their forebears."
___When government and religion become entwined, Christ's church suffers. Its faith is affected and compromised by worldly power. History has taught us this lesson. When Baptists were in the minority, our religious ancestors fought with deep conviction for the right to religious liberty for all people. They knew, as Truett stated in 1920, that "God wants free worshipers and no other kind."
___As Baptists became the established church in the South, we left behind our radical ways. We have forgotten the separation of church and state for which our ancestors died. We've pursued alliances with right-wing politics. We've stopped being against government aid for private schools, because now we have our own private schools.
___Separation frees the church and allows true religion; which is not to be ruled by any other than Christ, the opportunity to flourish. That Baptists not abandon their defense of strict separation is crucial. The wall between church and state must remain if the church is to have its God-ordained impact on the world.
___The truth of Romans 13 teaches that legitimate political activism on our part is as important in our day as it was for our religious forbears who shaped our strong heritage as advocates of religious liberty.
___"But as Gethsemane teaches," writes Spivey, "this never sanctions the use of worldly power to win persons' hearts. Baptists must have enough confidence in the power of God's truth to transform a pluralistic society that they continue to fight for genuine voluntarism."

For thought and discussion
___ What are legitimate ways for Christians to be involved in the political process without using government to do the work of the church? How do we know when church and state have become entwined, rather than separated?
___ How can each generation learn and preserve its heritage? What happens when we forget our roots? What do we most need to remember about what was important to our forebears and why?
___ If Roger Williams, often called the father of the Baptist movement in America, were around today, how would he address our denomination? What concerns would he raise? What would he advocate that we do?
___ In the recent election, both of the major parties courted the votes of faith communities by defining themselves as candidates who were individuals of faith. When is this appropriate, and when is it not? What is the danger of using one's religion to advance one's political goals?
___ Why have Baptists distanced themselves from the issue of separation of church and state? What could you say to those who want to change our laws so that govern-ment could aid churches and religious schools? What is the danger in this?
___ Why is the term "Christian nation" a contradiction? What is wrong with using any means possible, including political power, to make our country faith-centered? Is it possible to at least legislate morality? Explain.

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