Give to Caesar?

[Gregory Matthews]

See:

https://spectrummagazine.org/views/2020/give-caesar-what-caesars

The above will challenge you in a number of areas. one of which is:

Two applications can be drawn from the above. First, Christians have invested too much authority in the institution called the church (Seventh-day Adventists are no exception). In doing so we may have inadvertently reestablished the empire of Caesar in the shape of a hierarchical religious construct that believes it has the right to determine almost every aspect of the lives of its members, at least in matters of values and practices. Should I dare suggest that there is an unwritten belief (certainly not acknowledged but real all the same) that one is saved by belonging to the Seventh-day Adventist Church? Anyone who dares to act in a different mode is suspected of rebellion if not of actual heresy/apostasy.

The second application is that Christians are not called to establish a Christian society in the world. They are called to live the Christian principles in a society, which at best is neutral in matters of religion and spirituality. France is a good example of a country that legislated the concept of laicity (no involvement of any kind in matters of religion). It grants its citizen the freedom to practice their religion as they see fit — so long as they are not a threat to society.

Believers do not spurn society. They are concerned about what occurs in its midst. However, they should not be driven to Christianize the world. This is because people are converted individually not as belonging to some group. Society cannot be converted. Only individuals can. There is no such thing as a Christian nation, as many Evangelical Americans love to believe.