Thread by @ChurchTherapist

A New 95 Theses (thread)
Out of love for the body of Christ and for the well-being of the Christian Church in America:

1. The Christian Church exists in the context of, but separate from, any political sphere.

2a. When those who claim to be Christian leaders enter the political sphere, there is an inherent danger in political power becoming..

2b. ...a direct influence over those leaders.

3a. When those leaders are publicly supporting, joining forces with, or operating under the influence of the politically/economically...

3b. ...powerful, the Gospel message they are called to carry begins to be shaped and tainted.

4a. Earthly power, including political and economic power, can be directly manipulated by evil spiritual forces at work in the world

4b. See Ephesians 6, 2 Corinthians 4

5. Thus these Christian leaders who are called to be the bearers of the Gospel, become subject to these evil forces rather than their master

6. Those in the Church who are not leaders are naturally guided by those who hold positions of influence as Christian leaders.

7a. As groups of people who belong to the Church are influenced by those Christian leaders who have aligned themselves with the...

7b. ... politically and economically powerful, the very name “Christian,” or in this case “evangelical,” takes on a new identity.

8. This identity is not one of Christ-likeness, but rather one of likeness to the powerful.

9. These changes are gradual, subtle, & toxic to the Christian faith, the definition of the Gospel of Jesus, and the mission of the Church.

10a. Any changes to the mission of the Church, such as claims that the message/mission of the Church is connected to...

10b. ...a specific political party or movement, is a sin on the part of the ones creating an altered Gospel.

11a. In these cases, it is necessary for those Christians who are not connected to political or economic power to reclaim...

11b. ... the message of the Gospel and redeem the mission of the Church.

12. Christian leaders who have become corrupted by championing political messages must be called to account, leadership called into question

13a. This confrontation must be done in accordance with Matthew 18. If one person is unable to confront a person and bring about repentance,

13b. ...then two and ultimately a larger group must continue to confront the sin.

14. Any confrontation must be done in love and in accordance with a Christ-like demeanor.

15. Unity of the church, rather than division, is the highest goal in accordance with Jesus’ own prayer in John 17.

16. However, there are times in which division clarifies and separates false teachers from those who bear witness to the Gospel of Jesus.

17a. If the end result of the confrontation is a lack of responsiveness, we are called to treat that person as though they are unbeliever,

17b. .... that is, to demonstrate love to them as you would an unbeliever but to not partake in their message.

18a. In today’s context, when disagreements occur between believers on a larger scale comprised of many smaller bodies of believers...

18b. ... known Christian leaders must call out those who have been given over to a way of being aligned with an earthly power structure.

19a. Additionally, those who have any power to remove compromised Christian leaders from positions of leadership must do so...

19b. ... in order to protect and preserve the mission and message of the Church.

20. Failure to do so allows the further spread of political and economic corruption of Christian faith and practice.

21. We are calling for a reformation of our Christian engagement with the political sphere in America.

22. We must return to a standard which focuses on Jesus’ words in Matthew 28:18-20 as the mission of the Church, the Great Commission.

23. True Christian leaders are those who carry out this mission and influence others to do the same as Jesus demonstrated while on earth.

24a. We take note of the reality that Jesus did not choose to use political or economic power to advance his message...

24b. ... even when it might have seemed advantageous for him to do so.

25. Jesus continually demonstrated humility and did not ally himself with the religious elite or the politically advantaged.

26. In contrast, Jesus gathered disciples who were socially marginalized, spent time with those who were religiously/economically outcasts.

27. Jesus did not seek to advance his own fame or use any type of earthly structure to promote a cause, no matter how seemingly “worthy."

28a. We must acknowledge that evangelical Christians in America, particularly those who are white...

28b. ...have been targeted by conservative political leaders over the past thirty to forty years.

29. These political strategists have intentionally sought to pander to Christian leaders with the interest of gaining a block of voters.

30. The large block of voters, in this case white evangelical Christians, are those who are directly influenced by Christian leaders.

31. Evidence of this strategy was clear in the 2016 presidential election, in which 81% of white evangelicals voted for one political party.

32a. Regardless of which political party is supported, this large percentage itself is spiritually concerning...

32b. ...as it points to the level of influence that a political party currently has over a significant segment of the Church.

33. Of equal concern is the fact that white evangelicals are largely disconnected from the wisdom and guidance from the non-white Church.

34. Believers of all ethnicities must be listening to each other more carefully than we listen to political parties or their leaders.

35. Church unity can be restored when Christians of all ethnic groups are able to come together for the purpose of advancing the Gospel.

36. This advancement will not come through any earthly means, including political systems and structures.

37. For this unity to occur, a rejection of political and economic power must take place.

38. We must acknowledge that our nation’s history plays an ongoing role in the disunity of the Church.

39a. Our early national leaders, some of whom claimed to be Christian as well, often demonstrated a willingness to engage in...

39b. ...oppression of slaves in order to maintain political and economic power.

40a. The heritage of our nation is morally corrupt in that the oppression of other people groups has continually been used...

40b. ... to advance our economy and global power while at the same time the Christian faith has been invoked.

41a. Thus, current Christian leaders who seek to align with any specific political party or economic power are repeating this history...

41b. ... and perpetuating the demonstration of a false Gospel.

42a. To preserve the integrity of the Christian faith and the message of Jesus, there is a need for a formal rejection by the Church...

42b. ... of any leader who claims to be Christian while also publicly supporting, endorsing, or aligning with any political leader or party.

43a. This act of rejection must include a process of removal from held leadership positions as well as...

43b. ...formal statements by non-politically affiliated Christian leaders denouncing the teachings of that person.

44. When such issues arise for discussion, Christian leaders must never align with/endorse a specific candidate or political party platform.

45. These issues must be discussed solely in light of the Gospel and how to best care for our neighbors.

46. Efforts to impact our society on moral issues must be accomplished through acts of love and service done by the local church.

47a. When these issues are discussed in the context of politics and become the central focus of preaching/teaching, the risk again rises...

47b. ... that politically-driven strategists will take advantage of those issues and use them to gain influence over Christian groups.

48. Rather than trying to create change via earthly power systems, the Church must maintain its connection to supernatural means of change.

49. That is, when we live our lives in the imitation of Jesus, we will see systemic changes occur on supernatural levels.

50. A focus on this living out of the Gospel will impact all of the various earthly structures around us, and in fact will tear some down.

51. Thus, the Church will become an influence on the political sphere by virtue of fulfilling its mission independent of the use of politics

52. Were the Church to fulfill its mission to love/serve the poor, for ex., many issues debated politically would be fundamentally changed.

53. No longer can Christians believe the lie that altered political powers will accomplish the work of the Gospel/the mission of the Church.

54. Attempts to advance the mission of the Church via political power poses a danger to the faith in that it attempts to legislate morality.

55. This type of legislation which favors one religious group over another is inherently risky to anyone of any faith.

56a. Earthly power cannot be trusted or sustained; thus, religious groups who seek to gain favor through economic and political power...

56b. ... are likely to oppress others in ways they would themselves fight as “persecution.”

57. The names “Christian” & “evangelical” have been harmed by attempts to use political power to promote or enforce religious practices.

58. We must return to a focus on the most eternally valuable commodities: faith, hope, and love (1 Corinthians 13).

59. Our faith in the kingdom of God must always supercede our faith in any earthly kingdom.

60. This faith is evidenced by where we invest our time, our money, and our message.

61. Our hope is in Jesus Christ alone, and as such we do not hope for political change as an answer to the troubled times of our world.

62. This hope is evidenced by maintaining a spiritual determination to bring about the kingdom of God via supernatural acts as Jesus modeled

63. Love is the most powerful of all these eternal commodities, and as such it is the one which must be demonstrated most actively.

64. This love will serve as the change agent that proves that Jesus truly was the Messiah sent from God (John 17:23).

65. If we are unwilling to rely on faith & hope in Christ & his love to influence the world, then we are unwilling to accept/live the Gospel

66. If, however, we re-embrace these virtues as the American Church, we are likely to experience spiritual revival and renewal.

67. Earthly systems and events will not be reflections of “success” and cannot define how we view or understand a revival of the Church.

68. In fact a removal or cutting away of “dead branches” may bring spiritual renewal while causing earthly pain (John 15).

69. In this process, we must embody humility (as described in Philippians 2) and embrace suffering.

70. These acts of faith, hope, and love carried out in humility and a willingness to suffer are a direct affront to American culture.

71. Thus, we expect that those who embody these virtues will not appeal to earthly power systems or the political sphere.

72. True Christian leaders demonstrate these virtues in public/private lives and seek to stake their reputation on this imitation of Jesus.

73. Aligning with political power is diametrically opposed to these virtues; any who engage in former will not be demonstrating latter.

74. There will be direct earthly costs to such a reputation, including losing funding or becoming politically oppressed.

75. These earthly costs are essential to the advancement of the Gospel in America.

76. When experiencing the earthly costs in the imitation of Jesus, Christian leaders will lead in humbly accepting these costs willingly.

77. As Jesus demonstrated, persecution and even unfair accusation must be accepted without complaint of personal or corporate injustice.

78. The Christian Church in America must no longer fight for its “rights” through the political system.

79. In the Spirit of Christ, we must intentionally forfeit our rights and lay them down in order to serve and love others.

80. We note that Jesus did not make political or theological agreement a prerequisite to loving or serving.

81. In fact, Jesus created many examples of loving and serving those for whom one feels disdain, including the story of the Good Samaritan.

82a. For the sake of the preservation of the Church, Christians must no longer use political systems to find ways...

82b. ... to be permitted to refuse to love or serve others with whom they disagree.

83. Such harm is done to the Gospel when protection is sought in these ways that such political power maneuvers must be considered evil.

84. We must enter a time of mourning in humility and repentance for acts that have been done in the name of Jesus for political advantage.

85. By definition, repentance requires a turn from old patterns of behavior and adopting new ways of living.

86. Thus, we must find new ways as a Church to unite across ethnic groups, theological disagreements, and social engagement.

87. These new ways of uniting will enable to us to love and serve one another and bring supernatural change to the world.

88. Christian leaders are needed to model this type of unity and repentance.

89. Thus, as a Church we will hold up as leaders those who lead us into a new era to reclaim the mission of the Church/the message of Jesus.

90a. These leaders will hold Scripture, the example of Jesus, and the active work of the Holy Spirit in high regard...

90b. ... rather than using it to suit their own purposes or platforms.

91. These leaders will be clear change-agents who are noteworthy for the ways in which they humbly love and serve (Micah 6:8).

92. These leaders will protect Christians whom they influence from anyone who attempts to entice them by political or economic means.

93. The message of the Gospel creates an accessibility to the love, forgiveness, and leadership of God in a person’s life.

94. The mission of the Church is to share this Gospel and open the doors to the kingdom of Heaven.

95. It is solely in & for this kingdom that we seek to access power, and we seek the power of Jesus Christ to bring hope/change to the world