The Limits of Politics (2)

“All this,” said David,“the Lord made me understand in writing, by His hand upon me, all the works of these plans.” 1 Chronicles 28.19

A skilled politician
Perhaps the greatest politician in the Old Testament was King David. He demonstrated keen political skills very early on, serving faithfully within and honoring the reign of King Saul, even though his days were numbered and David had already been appointed to succeed him.

During that period of biding his time, David built strong friendships with men who looked to him for leadership in troubled times. He proved his prowess as a military leader and gained the respect, even the fear, of kings and generals from other nations.

When the time came for David to ascend the throne, he found himself in the midst of a fierce civil war. After seven years of patient and measured conflict, he warmly welcomed the rebelling tribes into the renewed federation of Israel, and served the people well for thirty-three years.

Certainly, David was a man with many faults, and who, from time to time, fell prey to the practice of corrupt politics when he felt like it was in his interest to do so. But God described David as having a heart for Him, and, through most of his reign as king, David seems to have served according to God’s good plan for the monarchy of Israel.

Toward the end of his reign David made careful preparation for the orderly succession of power to his son, Solomon. He organized as much as he could of the affairs of the nation, setting up local governors, appointing military leaders, defining the roles of various religious and civil servants, gathering the resources to build the Temple, and forging a strong alliance of leaders from every tribe of the nation. His last act, having put everything in order and in writing, was to call the leaders to Jerusalem and lead them in a solemn ceremony of devotion to God and the new king.

An example of political leadership
David provides an example of how politics can serve to establish and maintain order and justice in a society. People can’t be allowed to do what they want, whenever they like. The book of Judges is ample testimony to the chaos and misery that happens when there is no organizing center for society. In order to flourish, people need to be able to enjoy and develop their property, pursue their chosen vocation, marry and raise children, and live in peace with their neighbors. Given the inherent sin nature of human beings, such things don’t just happen. Someone, some institution, needs to establish and enforce whatever parameters may be necessary for people to enjoy orderly relations with their neighbors.

This is the role of government.

Solomon, following David’s example, demonstrated his wisdom for keeping order in society early on in his reign. The well-known story of the two women, quarreling over a baby, is an example of how government used its powers to bring an orderly resolution to a dispute between neighbors.

What governments do
This is what governments do. They set up boundaries, within which individuals understand what is good and true, and what they may and may not do in their relationships with one another. Then government enforces those boundaries to secure order for the members of society and the society as a whole.

This is a very good thing, I think you’ll agree. Who would want to live in a society where there were no rules defining the way neighbors must relate to one another, where everyone felt free to do whatever he liked – or whatever he could get away with – and everyone’s peace and prosperity were always subject to being infringed or destroyed by the next stronger person to come along?

So we expect politics to yield good government, government that brings justice and order to society. And we expect politicians to do nothing which threatens the stability of neighborly relations.

In any society there must be boundaries, and people must understand and respect those boundaries, or society ceases to exist, and anarchy obtains. Government, at various levels, and politicians practicing the science of government, is the divinely-ordained instrument for ensuring order in society. The example of David and Solomon, among many others in Scripture, shows us that people who are entrusted with the workings of political power can learn to wield that power for good, establishing limits for all kinds of social activity and interaction that allow all members of the society to flourish and live in peace.

This is what we expect of government, and it’s what politicians must pursue if they would fulfill their God-given mandate.

For reflection
1.      In what ways is David a good person to study in order to learn about the right and wrong uses of political power?

2.      Meditate on Deuteronomy 17.14-20. What limits did God impose on the civil government He envisioned for His people?

3.      Meditate on 1 Timothy 2.1-7. What limits for political power did Paul seem to have in mind here?

Next steps: In your community, which branches of government are responsible for maintaining order and justice? How do they perform their work? Begin praying for those who serve in these branches of government. Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper calling all the members of the Christian community to join you in praying for those who maintain order and justice in your community.

T. M. Moore

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This week’s study, The Limits of Politics, is part 3 of a 5-part series on The King’s Heart, a Biblical view of government and politics, and is available as a free download by clicking here. We cannot understand God’s view of government, or how to function in a political environment apart from faith in King Jesus and His rule. Order T. M.’s books The Kingship of Jesus  and The Ground for Christian Ethics to supplement our studies of God and government..

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.