The church at work
By Paul Bawden
The church has been around a long time, actually, since the time of the New Testament. The study of the church’s development over the years is a fascinating study, for the church has had good times and bad times. The church has been praised and criticized.
But since 1954 in the “Johnson Amendment” promoted by then-Senator Lyndon B. Johnson, tax-exempt organizations, including churches have been prohibited from endorsing or opposing political candidates. The church was to keep quiet on political issues. This “Amendment” was used as a threat to intimidate pastors from considering anything political from the pulpit.
Recently, though, the IRS affirmed that churches can endorse political candidates without harming their tax-exempt status. As one writer, Craig DeRoche, CEO of Family Policy Alliance, wrote in his article, “Thank you, IRS. The era of silencing churches has ended” – “a major victory for free speech and religious liberty has been won.”
But, as DeRoche’s article pointed out, there are always the naysayers who oppose such liberty for the church. They say that the separation of church and state is being violated. Thusly, they ignore that such a phrase appears nowhere in the U.S. Constitution. Rather, the First Amendment of the Constitution guarantees the free exercise of religion and the right of free speech. Nowhere does the Constitution prevent the church from bringing its moral clarity to the cultural issues of the day that affect the moral life of the country including politicians who promote different issues.
Even the founders understood that churches would have a moral influence on the culture of the day. DeRoche quoted from John Adams, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”
A pastor of a church, who preaches the true gospel of Jesus Christ, will not act on behalf of a political party, or promote some kind of Christian nationalism. Rather, he will seek to lead his congregation into spiritual maturity in Christ while presenting the gospel of Christ for all to hear and accept. On the issues of the day, such as marriage, abortion, gender, and the sanctity of life, he will use biblical truth to teach in love what the Bible has to say on these matters, while also addressing politicians who have different ideas than what the Bible teaches. He will also point out the fallacies of the prosperity and social gospels, while upholding equality for all.
In that process, the pastor of a biblical church will lead his congregation to reach out in the community with the love of Christ to those with various needs. A beautiful example of that is the outpouring of love and support for those who have lost their loved ones, especially their children, in the recent horrific flood in Texas. Such has been done by churches, many other organizations and individuals. Christ’s love in action!!! Keep these families in your prayers for God’s comfort, peace, and hope.
The church’s work will continue for the Lord until He comes for His church, which could be anytime. In the meantime, the church is to occupy until He comes, while always looking for His any time return. May you be among that number through faith in Christ!!
Paul Bawden is married and served in the pastoral ministry for 45 years, retiring in 2011. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a B.A. in Speech and attended Dallas Theological Seminary, receiving a Master of Theology. He has taken counseling courses at Trinity Evangelical Seminary in Deerfield, Illinois. Paul is a lifetime member of the Evangelical Free Church of America, as well as being a member of Interim Pastor Ministries (IPM), which serves churches during their time of transition in searching for a new pastor. He writes for Union Gospel Press, as well as being a volunteer writer for GotQuestions.org. Paul likes to write, read, bike, and work in the yard. The Bawdens have had the privilege to travel to Mexico and Romania on mission trips and visited various countries in Europe.