What thinkest thou? The Law of God, the State, and the Church.

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PuritanCovenanter

The Joyful Curmudgeon
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I believe that Christ mediates God's law through the State. Christ uses that Law as a means of Grace as it was used in Nineveh via the King's call for that Nation to Humble itself and fast before God for mercy without any proclamation of grace. And for the King of Nineveh it was also administered through the Church via Jonah.

I would also like to say that the better the State and Church recognize and proclaim God's law that the health of everyone under them do much better.

(Pro 14:33) Wisdom resteth in the heart of him that hath understanding: but that which is in the midst of fools is made known.

(Pro 14:34) Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.

(Pro 14:35) The king's favour is toward a wise servant: but his wrath is against him that causeth shame.

No, I am not a Theonomist via Bahnsen. But there is a General Equity of the Law of God in the Ten Commandments.

Christ Has all dominion over all things for the Church. Have a great day of remembering the King of kings.
 
I believe that Christ mediates God's law through the State. Christ uses that Law as a means of Grace as it was used in Nineveh via the King's call for that Nation to Humble itself and fast before God for mercy without any proclamation of grace. And for the King of Nineveh it was also administered through the Church via Jonah.

The first sentence is enough to make a soul shiver under coldness and darkness, but what follows warms the evangelical heart.
 
Psa 94:20-23 Can wicked rulers be allied with you, those who frame injustice by statute? (21) They band together against the life of the righteous and condemn the innocent to death. (22) But the LORD has become my stronghold, and my God the rock of my refuge. (23) He will bring back on them their iniquity and wipe them out for their wickedness; the LORD our God will wipe them out.
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Christ isn't the mediatorial King of the State but of the Church/the Israel of God, as He is also mediatorial Priest and Prophet over His Church. As mediatorial King over His Church, He rules over the states and nations unto His Church. As such He is King of kings and Lord of lords.

As the mediator between God and the Church - but not between God and the State - Christ rules over the State unto the Church.

States and magistrates "kiss the Son" by recognising His rule, His Church and His moral law, along with the general moral equity in the civil law of Moses. This is a slow process in history that involves Christ sending adverse providences - His rod of iron - if states and nations do not submit to His law.

Cameron (or Obama) isn't the Lord's anointed, or the deputy Lord's anointed, but a minister of God.
 
In the O.T. reading of the first service this morning, the Pastor had an applicable word toward this (i.e. on our responsibility to reform toward a godly government). I appreciated it immensely. Commenting on Proverbs 21:1 (The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.) he says:

Every ruler, every country, in all of history is under the command of the Lord, whether he acknowledges it or not. God is, indeed, sovereign in the affairs of men. This teaches us what we ought to be looking for, then: A change in heart for our present rulers who do not acknowledge the Lord. A change of rulers for those who will not bow the knee to Christ. A change in us as a people who might desire godly leadership. A change in ourselves that we might be a people who would profit from such leadership. We only need, but to ask the question, "Why has the Lord granted us such an atheistic, agnostic, and godless government? Why?" It is because we as a people do not warrant any better.

You remember, Daniel. I don't know about you, but there were a few real standouts. Moses would be one, Daniel would be another. Daniel was quite a standout. He has humility and all the gifts. He has very little to be humble about and yet he's very humble. He has faith in God to the extent that when he comes to the King's table he says, "That's unclean food, I can't eat that. Let's put it to the test." How much faith did that take? So in Daniel 9, as I've told you this before, and I tell you again . . . . when we focus in Daniel 9 it is normally because of the prophecy of the 70 weeks and we hone in on [it], but you know why the prophecy of 70 weeks is given, is because beginning in verse one, Daniel, although himself not involved in those sins, is himself, confessing the sins of his people. He is confessing the sins of his people. Although he himself was not an idol-worshiper, although he himself did not profane the worship of God, although he himself sought in everything that he did to keep the commandments of God, he was surrounded by a nation of apostates and idolaters and the Lord took that nation away and carried Daniel, with many of them, captive into Babylon and what do we find Daniel doing in Babylon? Do we find him complaining? No. We find him confessing the sins of his people.

Brothers & Sisters, do you want a new government? Do you want a government that acknowledges Jesus Christ? I know if I asked you for a show of hands, you'd all raise your hands for that. Then be in prayer for your government. Be in prayer for your rulers, for your leaders, for your senators, for your governors, for the president, the vice president, for both houses, local magistrates, for your local police officers, judges, for them all. And pray, confessing the sins of your people, other Americans. And the Lord has been pleased by such means in the past, to overturn governments. Perhaps He will overturn ours as well.

I quite like what your pastor had to say. However, I wonder how much of our eschatology influences our hope that government will change. Oh, I'm not suggesting that we don't pray for our leaders, or that all people/nations are equally under the command of the Lord. They are. But as I look at history it's been a long time since a nation has had a government that acknowledges Jesus Christ. I'm wondering when America last had an administration that acknowledged Jesus Christ. I'm not advocating pragmatism in our approach to God's law. Perhaps God will bring about a period of renewal. I pray that is the case.
 
Christ isn't the mediatorial King of the State but of the Church/the Israel of God, as He is also mediatorial Priest and Prophet over His Church. As mediatorial King over His Church, He rules over the states and nations unto His Church. As such He is King of kings and Lord of lords.

As the mediator between God and the Church - but not between God and the State - Christ rules over the State unto the Church.

States and magistrates "kiss the Son" by recognising His rule, His Church and His moral law, along with the general moral equity in the civil law of Moses. This is a slow process in history that involves Christ sending adverse providences - His rod of iron - if states and nations do not submit to His law.

Cameron (or Obama) isn't the Lord's anointed, or the deputy Lord's anointed, but a minister of God.

I think I understand Gillespie's Aaron's Rod Blossoming. I just disagree with it. Mediating has more implications than redemption in my estimation. But I could be incorrect. Strictly if you make mediation just about the redeemed I believe you leave some of the mediating that Christ does out of the picture.

BTW, thanks Josh for the passages. I am going to use them.
 
Gillespie's Aaron's Rod Blossoming

Which I haven't read.

I could probably do with some "tweaking" in this area of my thinking about Christ's precise relation to the nation states. He is King of kings and Lord of lords by virtue of having all power given to Him in Heaven and on Earth as the One Mediator between God and Man.

Mediating has more implications than redemption in my estimation.

Of course. Ultimately the whole creation will be transformed so why shouldn't good, God-given institutions like the state be transformed where possible to glorify God.
 
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