How Should Christians Navigate Political Differences?

If you are on the internet or social media to any degree, you will inevitably come across political news or people expressing their political opinions. Even offline, you have likely come across a friend, family member, or perhaps a church member who expresses a political opinion you don’t agree with. And perhaps more significantly, you think that their position doesn’t represent Christ or true Christian principles well.

When politics does come up, how do we navigate those conversations? Should we just avoid them? Should we call people out?

Romans 13-14 have a lot to say about these questions. But before we can start to answer these questions, we need to understand why people care about politics in the first place. Should we care about politics as much as we do?

Why Do We Care About Politics?

Let’s begin our journey in Romans 13:1-7.

Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience. For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed. (Romans 13:1-7)

After reading that passage, again I ask: should we care about politics in the first place? I would argue that, yes, we should care about politics. Here’s why:

Reason #1: It’s the way God made us

In part, we should care about politics because it’s the way God made us. Political questions and issues often raise questions of justice, truth, and morality. These qualities are deeply connected to God’s own nature and character.

We see this reflected in the passage in Romans 13. Look again at verses 3-4.

For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer. 

Notice how the words “good” and “bad” or some variation of that moral language are used in this passage. The government and the law are both intrinsically moral institutions, putting forward what is right or wrong to do in society.

As human beings made in God’s image, we are also moral creatures who reflect God’s moral nature. So when moral creatures like us see and interact with moral institutions like government and law, it’s only natural that we care about the things that God cares about and made us to care about.

Reason #2: Justice is at the heart of the gospel

We care about politics as Christians because justice is at the very heart of the gospel. In the beginning, God made everything good and perfect. But when humanity sinned, every person rightly came under God’s wrath and judgment. Yet Jesus lived a perfect life, and so he was able to bear our sin, suffer God’s wrath, and die in our place. By grace alone, through faith in him, we are justified—declared righteous—receiving his righteousness as our own. So while Jesus suffered unjustly at the hands of sinful men, God’s justice was not ignored—sin was fully dealt with, and his wrath was justly satisfied in Christ.

Because justice is central to the gospel, it is natural for us to care about justice in other areas of life, including politics.

Reason #3: We Love God and Love Neighbor

Lastly, we care about politics because we love God and because we love our neighbor.

Another thing that Romans 13 makes very clear is that God is the ultimate author of government. Verse 1 says, “For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.” God is the one who has established government and uses it to enact justice in the world. As it says in verse 4, “For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer.”

Therefore, since God is the author of government and since God cares about government, then Christians, as God’s people, ought to care for what God has instituted. Just as God has called us to care for other institutions like marriage, family, and the Church, we also ought to have a proper care for the institution of government.

Not only should we do this out of a love for God, but also out of a love for our neighbor. Politics has a tremendous impact on our neighbor. Whether you are talking about abortion or assisted suicide and how we value human life, or whether we are talking about taking care of the poor or the immigrant, the policies government makes have a big impact on people that we ought to love and care for.

So, though we often hear people talk about politics in a way that doesn’t honor Christ, the fact that we care about politics is actually a good thing, because it shows that we care about God’s truth, his righteousness, and his justice.

How do we have political conversations?

So, if it’s good that we care about these things, how do we go about having political conversations in a way that honors God? And how do we navigate those conversations when we don’t see eye to eye?

This leads into the second half of Romans 13. There are several things in here that help us answer these questions.

Principle #1: Check your heart; are you being motivated by love?

Look at verses 8-10:

Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. (Romans 13:8-10)

In reading these verses, the first principle for talking about politics is that we need to check our hearts and ask, “Am I being driven by love?”

We see in verses 8-10 that the purpose of the law is fulfilled in loving our neighbor. In fact, we learn from Jesus himself in the gospels that loving God and loving others are the centerpieces of what it means to obey God.

So, whenever we are talking about politics, we need to check our own hearts to ensure we are coming from a place of love. Are we seeking to love the person with whom we are talking, or are we just trying to win an argument? Is the position I’m taking coming from a desire to love my neighbor well? Or am I being motivated by selfishness or some other fleshly desire that doesn’t honor God?

So check your hearts before, during, and after your conversations to ensure that love is the primary motivator.

Principle #2: Earthly politics is not ultimate; so act like it.

Let’s go back to verse 11:

Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. (Romans 13:11)

As Christians, we understand that we live in a fallen world under fallen kingdoms with fallen political systems and sinful political leaders. Though Jesus has come and provided the means for our salvation and justification, the entire work of God’s salvation is not yet complete. Jesus said, and the Bible tells us, that Jesus will one day come again in the future where he will make everything right, including politics. And he will do that because Jesus will be the one ruling and reigning as King—not Donald Trump, not Joe Biden, but Jesus. That sounds a lot better, doesn’t it?

We need to remember that though it is right and good for us to care about the world, our gospel identity as Christians transcends this world. The Bible tells us that Christians have heavenly citizenship (Philippians 3:20-21) and it calls us “ambassadors” of that heavenly kingdom who are given the message of reconciliation in the gospel (2 Corinthians 5:17-21). Jesus himself said that his kingdom is not of this world (John 18:36).

So, if we find ourselves caring so much about the politics of this world that it distracts us from our heavenly mission, we as Christians need to repent from that. And if we find ourselves caring so much about earthly politics that it leads us to hate or sin against a fellow Christian, that should also be a wake-up call for us.

Don’t make earthly politics your ultimate goal or hope, and thus turn it into an idol.

Principle #3: Walk in love, not quarrelsomeness

Alright, let’s finish Romans 13, starting at verse 12:

The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires. (Romans 13:12-14)

The one thing I want to draw your attention to here is at the end of verse 13 where it talks about quarreling. If there is any temptation in having political discussions, it is to quarrel. Quarrelling is not from the Lord, but from our sinful nature. And as redeemed people of God, we are called in verse 14 to no longer make provision for our sinful flesh but rather to put on Christ and act like him. This doesn’t mean that we don’t have disagreements or that we don’t voice our disagreements, but it does mean that we don’t sacrifice loving someone in order to win a debate.

Principle #4: Allow room for disagreement

So, how do we walk in love, unity, and peace and avoid quarrelling when we are talking about politics? This leads us to our fourth principle based on Romans 14, which is that we need to allow room for disagreement on non-essential issues. Let’s read Romans 14:1-12.

As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand. One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living. Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; for it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.” So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.
(Romans 14:1-12)

Now, maybe you are reading this and are asking yourself, “Neal, have you gone crazy? Paul’s not talking about politics. He’s talking about whether or not to eat meat and about whether or not we should observe certain holy days or not. What does this have to do with politics?”

There’s a lot more here than would appear at first glance. Yes, Paul isn’t directly addressing politics in this passage, but he is establishing very important principles that are applicable to politics and navigating political conversations as Christians.

So, let’s look at the passage again. Paul is addressing situations in which Christians are able to have differing convictions about non-essential issues (what he calls opinions in verse 1).

In this passage, the topics of discussion are whether or not a Christian should eat meat and whether some holy days ought to be observed. Why would this be an issue for the Roman church? Because the church was a combination of Christians from both Jewish and Gentile backgrounds. Some Jewish Christians, because of Old Testament laws, would avoid eating meat and wanted to continue observing the Sabbath and certain holidays like Passover and Pentecost. And they felt like in their conscience that they needed to continue obeying those laws.

With the meat issue, even though Paul believes that all foods are clean, he leaves room for other Christians to obey their conscience and abstain from meat. In fact, he commands that they obey their conscience. This would only be possible if eating meat were a non-essential issue. In other words, it’s not a matter of sin. It’s a matter of opinion.

And what are Paul’s commands for the Roman church on how to navigate these matters of opinion?

• He says again not to quarrel (v. 1)
• He tells them not to despise one another or pass judgment on one another (vv. 3-4)
• He says, whatever side you take, be convinced in your own mind and honor the Lord in that, and give thanks to him. (vv. 5-6)
• He also stresses sobermindedness and humility since we will all one day give an account of ourselves to God. (vv. 10-12)

And so, if we do such things in faith, then God is the one who justifies us, has welcomed us into the Church, and will make us stand at the final judgment.

Therefore, we need to be cautious about treating non-essential issues like essential ones. Whoever treats a non-essential issue like an essential issue is treading on dangerous ground. Just because your conscience is bound on a certain issue, that doesn’t mean your brother or sister in Christ has to agree with you, unless Scripture itself would bind every Christian’s conscience.

Theological Triage

So, how does this apply to politics? Are political issues essential or non-essential issues? A tool we can use in making those decisions is called theological triage.

Christians borrow that word triage from the medical community. Imagine you are in an emergency room with a bunch of patients. You have to be able to prioritize (or triage) which patients need the most attention. Someone with a paper cut doesn’t require the same level of urgency as someone who has just suffered from a heart attack.

Similarly, we have to triage certain theological and ethical principles because not every Christian belief has the same level of importance. Normally, when people talk about this, they divide it into 3 levels:

There are first-order, core beliefs that are essential to the gospel.

Believing that Jesus is the only way to be saved, or salvation by grace through faith alone, or the Trinity, or the reality of sin, or the bodily resurrection of Jesus—these are all things that are foundational to Christianity and to the gospel, such that, if you were to change or remove one of those beliefs, then you have a different religion. Paul calls those “false gospels” in the book of Galatians.

Second-order beliefs are beliefs that you have to share in order to go to the same church, but you don’t need to agree on in order to be a Christian. So, for example, Baptists and Presbyterians are both Christian denominations, but they disagree on baptism. Baptists believe in what’s called “believer’s baptism,” which just means that you are baptized once you believe and profess faith in Jesus. Presbyterians, on the other hand, practice what is called pedobaptism, where they baptize infants and children of Christians.

They each have different theological reasons and convictions for why they do this, but this is a second-order issue because baptism isn’t necessary for salvation (see the thief on the cross). You don’t need to agree on the details of baptism to be a Christian. But you do need to agree on the basics of baptism in order to maintain order and theological consistency in a church.

Third-order beliefs are issues that are important, but not issues that we should break fellowship over.

Examples of this might include our beliefs about end times, spiritual gifts, worship style, or, as Paul mentions here in Romans 14, what food you eat.

With third-order issues, people can have real convictions, but they also have real freedom to believe differently from other believers.

To put it simply,

• 1^st order: What must I believe to be a Christian? Defines the gospel
• 2^nd order: What determines where I go to church? Defines the church
• 3^rd order: What can I disagree on while staying united?

Political Triage

So, where does politics fit in this system? Is it a first, second, or third-order issue?

The answer is that politics straddles the fence between second and third-order issues. Politics is a complex mixture of theology, morality, wisdom, and practicality that deals with some very weighty and serious issues.

However, I want to be clear: No political issue, in itself, should be treated as a first-order issue, such that someone would say that if you don’t hold to a certain political position, then you can’t be saved. To put politics as a prerequisite for believing in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ is anti-gospel and is just another form of works-based righteousness.

That’s not to say being a Christian doesn’t affect your politics—it should. But it is to say that politics isn’t a prerequisite for being a Christian.

Most political issues are third-order issues, similar to the disputable matters Paul describes in Romans 14. Christians can have strong political convictions, but most of those involve judgments of wisdom and application where faithful Christians can disagree. But when a political issue touches on clear biblical commands or the life of the church, it can sometimes rise to a second-order issue.

How this often plays out is the distinction between principles and policies: second-order issues are generally going to be dealing in political principles, whereas third-order issues are generally going to involve political policies.

If the Bible teaches and commands something such that it binds our consciences, this could rise to a second-order issue, particularly when it shapes the teaching or life of the church. It’s something that Christians should agree on. However, if you are debating what law or policy best implements those second-order principles, then you are probably debating a third-order issue, and Christians should allow for disagreement and differing opinions.

However, this isn’t a hard and fast rule. Not every clear biblical principle becomes a second-order issue, and it requires wisdom to be able to make that distinction. So be cautious before declaring something to be a second-order issue.

But let me give you a couple of examples to help flesh this out. Many political principles that rise to a second-order level will be derived from the doctrine of the image of God, which is the belief found in Genesis 1 that every person is created in the image and likeness of God. This will have pretty strong implications for some political issues.

• Sanctity of Life: Because every person is created in God’s image, from the moment of conception to the end of life, this gives every human life inestimable worth and value. As a result, a pretty direct application of this principle should lead us to oppose practices like abortion or assisted suicide, which violate that principle. This particular issue, in my judgment, would rise to a second-order issue, because if a church member considering abortion or ending their own life were to come to the pastors of a church, they shouldn’t be getting vastly different advice depending on who they talk with. In other words, this isn’t just a political disagreement. Taking innocent life is sin and something every Christian should oppose. However, certain aspects of how these issues get worked out politically (like whether we incrementally outlaw these things or take a strict abolitionist position) to honor these ideals would probably be a third-order issue.
• Definition of Marriage: The Bible paints a very clear picture of what marriage is and what it is not. Thus, our consciences are bound by Scripture as to what marriage ought to be, which places this in the category of a second-order issue.
• Caring for the Poor and Marginalized: Another example would be caring for the poor and marginalized. Scripture makes clear that God has a heart for caring for the vulnerable of society. That would be the second-order issue. But what’s the best way to care for them? That’s a third-order issue.

I’m not picking these issues in particular to try to push a political agenda, but rather these are examples where I think Scripture speaks most clearly. There’s maybe only a handful of issues that I would say rise to a second-order issue.

And again, where to even draw this distinction between second and third-order issues requires wisdom, and I want to reemphasize that most political issues are going to be third-order issues. Though we might strongly disagree about something, it shouldn’t normally warrant breaking fellowship or unity in the church or with another brother or sister in Christ. When it comes to debating third-order political issues, we should not quarrel with one another, we should not despise one another, and we should not pass judgment on one another because of our politics.

Not every disagreement is worth dividing over—but some are worth taking seriously, perhaps to the point of requiring confrontation or church discipline. If something truly does rise to that level of a second-order issue, we are still called to walk in love toward our brother or sister in Christ, but a second-order issue will warrant a more serious conversation, and probably one that you should talk about with a pastor first.

Summary

The first half of Romans 13 points to the reasons why we care about politics (or ought to care about politics):

1. Because God made us to care about truth, justice, and righteousness, which often overlap with politics.
2. Because justice, which is the heart of politics, is also at the heart of the gospel.
3. Because we ought to love God who establishes the government and our neighbor who is affected by the government.

The second half of Romans 13 helps us understand what our heart posture should be when we engage in political conversations. 3 questions to ask yourself in these conversations are:

1. Are you being motivated by love in your conversation?
2. Are you making politics into an idol by isolating it from the larger gospel narrative?
3. Are you seeking to be quarrelsome?

And then lastly, Romans 14 commands us to allow for differences of opinion on non-essential issues. While some issues in politics involve principles that Christians should be united around, no political issue is a prerequisite for salvation, and very few should lead to division. Most political issues are third-order issues where Christians can have strong opinions but also charitably disagree.

One final tip I would leave you with is that, as you are having these conversations as Christians, look for areas of agreement before you immediately jump to areas of disagreement. This will help reinforce your unity in Christ and demonstrate that you actually agree more than you think. Where there are disagreements, it’s likely that you agree on the principles behind politics but disagree over how that gets worked out practically in politics.