The Law of God and Public Policy: Three Ls (2)

“Also it shall be, when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write for himself a copy of this law in a book, from the one before the priests, the Levites. And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the LORD his God and be careful to observe all the words of this law and these statutes…” Deuteronomy 17.18, 19

God is God
The first law of the logic of public policy is that governments serve God for the good of the people they serve. Those who hold public office must beware of the opportunities for self-aggrandizement such positions entail, and they must resist every temptation to use their office for personal gain.

The second law of the logic of public policy underscores the point that the people are not God. The vox populi must not be regarded as the final bar of appeal in matters of public policy. Yet this is what very often happens. Public officials are prone to follow public opinion polls in crafting laws and statutes. But the people are not God; their desires must not be the determining voice in public policy decision-making.

God is God, and rulers must look to Him for unchanging standards of goodness and justice. The second law of the logic of public policy is thus that those public policies will be good which conform to God’s standards.

In ancient Israel this meant that rulers had to be students of the Law of God, reading and meditating in it daily. Not only the kings of Israel but also the local elders and judges were expected to be conversant with the teaching of God’s Law and skilled in applying it to the needs of the community.

God’s Word is good
God’s Word teaches us what is holy and righteous and good. The people may clamor for this, that, or something else; but government does not serve the clamoring of the people. Government is God’s servant for good, not the people’s servant for whatever the public desires.

The Law of God is holy and righteous and good (Rom. 7.12). Since it is also part of Scripture—indeed, the very cornerstone of divine special revelation—we should also look to the Law to equip us for every good work, including the good work of public policy-making (2 Tim. 3.15-17). We have seen that God intended His Law as a standard of goodness and wisdom for all nations, and that our own nation still recognizes the value of God’s Law in a variety of ways.

The alternative to the fixed, unchanging standard of the Law of God, rightly understood, is whatever moral and ethical standards the spirit of the age may abide. But this can easily become a means by which public officials may advance their own interests, or special interest groups their individual agendas, without adding anything of lasting good to the common weal.

Believers in Jesus Christ must not allow the unchanging standards of goodness, revealed in God’s Law, to be obscured by the self-interest of public officials or the clamoring of special interest groups and the electorate in general. We insist that the spiritus mundi is not a reliable standard for policy-making; at the same time, we will work to persuade officials and the electorate alike of the goodness, justice, and peace to be discovered in following the teaching of God’s Law, rightly understood.

The danger of democracy
Democracy can be a particularly dangerous form of government, especially, as in our day, when what Christopher Lasch described as a “culture of narcissism” has become the dominant culture and mindset. “All through the day—I, me, mine; I, me, mine; I, me, mine…” The Beatles, back in the early 70s, observed this trend and celebrated (lamented?) it in song. People want what people want, and democratic governments know that the way to stay in power is either to give the people what they want or convince them that you are doing so.

Not only does this represent an inversion of the proper leadership roles of a nation—governments are supposed to lead, not follow—but it is also a perversion of the divine standard for good public policy. Unless God has the last word on what government implements in the way of laws, regulations, and so forth, all laws become subject to whim and the shifting foci of power politics. Governments govern well when they enact policies which promote what is good—what is in line with God’s view of how the world should be.

This is why familiarity with God’s Law and Word is so important, beginning among the members of the Christian community. How shall we weigh the demands of the people and decide what are the true needs of the day? Not, as we have seen, in a way that merely benefits those who hold public office. And not in a way that panders to the whims and fancies of the populace. Christians will insist that all matters of public policy are to be guided, shaped, and conformed to the teaching of God’s standards of goodness. Government cannot fulfill the requirements of its good purpose apart from familiarity with and input from the good Law of God. It is thus the duty of those who have been entrusted with the Law of God (Ps. 147.19, 20) to make its good teaching and blessings known to those who are called as His servants for good.

Doubtless this position will seem untenable to many and will likely elicit cries of “Theocracy!” from those who prefer to make public policy according to the temper of the times. But if the Law of God were removed from the Western legal tradition, including the legal foundations and policies of our own nation, much that is stable and good about law and public policy in the present would cease to exist.

Christians must demonstrate the value of God’s Law in our own lives and communities. And we must patiently work to persuade our neighbors of the benefits God’s Law can bring to the nation. Then we must take up the difficult work of helping to shape public policy according to the teachings of God’s Law, concerning which we shall have more to say in subsequent installments in this series.

The second law of the logic of public policy can thus be simply phrased: Those policies are good which conform to the teaching of God’s Law and Word.

For reflection
1. Why is the voice of the people not a reliable standard for public policy?

2. Why are the best ideas of politicians not a reliable standard for public policy?

3. What can you do to become more familiar with God’s holy and righteous and good Law?

Next steps—Preparation: Think of some issues today that challenge the authority of God’s Law. Add these issues to your prayers for our country.

T. M. Moore

What is the place of the Law of God in the Christian’s life? Our book, The Ground for Christian Ethics, answers this question and shows us again why Jesus taught us that keeping the Law is an indispensable part of our calling in God’s Kingdom. Order your free copy of The Ground for Christian Ethics by clicking here.

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