Have you ever noticed you can’t only avoid eating unhealthy foods; you must eat nutritious foods?
You can’t only avoid mistreating your wife or children; you must love and care for them as you love yourself.
You can’t only avoid mistreating your employees or those you have authority over; you must treat them with respect and dignity.
Borrowing the wisdom of my friend and Christian patriot, Bob Peck, this simple principle exists in everything in life. To simply avoid evil is not the answer. Rather, while steering clear of something that is inherently wicked, you must do the contrary or you will make no progress and inevitably fail.
Just look in our culture today…the negativity of finger pointing, gossiping, complaining, insulting, berating and so on. Has this behavior ever resulted in lasting motivation for individuals or society itself to reform?
Our Creator designed us by nature to actively pursue what is good. Rather than moral neutrality or standing as a judge and condemning every evil action, God has given us the following solution: “Love your neighbor as yourself,” and, “Overcome evil with good.”
Apply this to American government. The so-called “conservative” movement has spent decades opposing every evil political policy, reckless spending, socialized medicine, Agenda 21, etc. Despite their soapbox condemnation, all those things continue.
Even when we elect supposedly conservative majorities, or Republican majorities, truly good government is never restored. We’re calling out government overreach, but we’re not always advocating for, and leading people in, the works of Christian Constitutionalism.
Conservatism tends to be against something, but rarely is it for something. Perhaps if we spent more time being “for” the works, policies, and teachings of Christian Constitutionalism and working to implement the same, then Christian Constitutionalism would naturally replace all the unconstitutional, ungodly policies without having to continually fight against every manifestation of tyranny.
That is what our Founding Fathers did.
In his diary entry dated February 22, 1756, John Adams, one of the chief instruments God used to produce the Declaration of Independence, wrote:
Suppose a nation in some distant region should take the Bible for their only law book, and every member should regulate his conduct by the precepts there exhibited! Every member would be obliged in conscience, to temperance, frugality, and industry; to justice, kindness, and charity towards his fellow men; and to piety, love and reverence toward Almighty God…What a Utopia, what a Paradise would this region be.
Our Framers believed freedom was impossible without virtue. Neutrality and inaction will not produce this essential virtue. We the People provide virtue by actively and wholeheartedly exercising our religious/Christian values.
In the departing words of his farewell address, George Washington affirmed, “Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, Religion and Morality are indispensable supports.”
Please understand the role of Christianity in government is to help people become better, freer, and prosperous citizens.
*** Jake MacAulay *** is a Life and Liberty News Contributor and serves as the Chief Operating Officer of the Institute on the Constitution (IOTC), an educational outreach that presents the founders’ “American View” of law and government. The former co-host of the syndicated talk show, The Sons of Liberty, he is an ordained minister and has spoken to audiences nation-wide, and has established the American Club, a constitutional study group in public and private schools.
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