Spurgeon on Politicians
October 16th, 2008
(By Charles Spurgeon)
In particular, we must keep ourselves unspotted from the lepers of the world. There is a certain number of leprous men in the world. You can tell them by their conversation; and sometimes you cannot help going very near where they are; but if you hear them cry, “Unclean!” just give them a very wide berth. . . . We are to keep ourselves from all spots of the world when we have to mingle with it. Notice, there are spots which come from your circumstances. . . .
[Among these circumstances] are politics; you know what party politics are. We are all trying to [usher] in another set of maggots to eat the cheese; that is about all it amounts to; first turn out one lot, and then turn in another. It comes to little more than that. Even in the pursuit of really good matters of policy, do you know any Christian man who goes into politics who is the better for it? If I find such a man, I will have him stuffed if I can, for I have never seen such a specimen yet. I will not say, do not attend to politics; but I do say, do not let them spot you.
Thanks for posting this.
“We are all trying to [usher] in another set of maggots to eat the cheese” that bout sums it up!
Timely, thanks.
Not much has changed, eh?
I hear you, Charles Spurgeon, but let’s not forget Proverbs 29:2: “When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; but when a wicked man rules, the people groan.”
Americans have enjoyed great freedom and prosperity — which, among many things, has benefited gospel expansion here and abroad — because of the stucture of our government and the values of its leaders. Our gov’t and its leaders are not even close to perfect, but it more closely approximates the Biblical worldview for gov’t than any other in A.D. history.
It’s easy to put our noses in the air at “those dirty politicians” but keep in mind that God Himself places those politicians in positions of authority (Rom. 13:1).
Be sure you vote this November 4th for the “more Biblical candidates.”
Well spoken David, we just went through an election up here in Canada….much like in the US there is not a whole lot to choose from, but God places these people in candidacy and ultumately power and I vote because of that fact plus I would be the first to yell foul if someone tried to take that right from me…kbe
http://www.biblebb.com/files/MAC/j00-11-1.htm
Thank you Dr. MacArthur, could we see this discussed on Pulpit Magazine. We should be like the “sons of Issachar.”
Funny, John Stossel was just making vaguely similar points on his “politically incorrect” bit on 20/20.
Of course, there are some notable exceptions in the world of politics, where truly good men have turned it around for God’s glory – William Wilberforce comes to mind – but they are the exception and definitely not the rule.
The Bible does say ‘fear the king’ and give honor to who it is due’
Thank you for allowing the privilege of posting on your site. I wanted to share something with you that the Lord has given me to share with urgency. I am also a host on the Christian talk radio show “Breaking the Silence,” where we are discussing Christianity and politics for the next couple of weeks. Our web site is http://www.bt-silence.com. Here is the post:
I wanted to share this Scripture with you from the Old Testament. I believe that it speaks to us in a prophetic way.
1 Samuel 8 – 1When Samuel became old, he made his sons judges over Israel. 2The name of his firstborn son was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judges in Beersheba. 3Yet his sons did not walk in his ways but turned aside after gain. They took bribes and perverted justice. 4Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah 5and said to him, “Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint for us a king to judge us like all the nations.” 6But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And Samuel prayed to the LORD. 7And the LORD said to Samuel, “Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. 8According to all the deeds that they have done, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are also doing to you. 9Now then, obey their voice; only you shall solemnly warn them and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.” 10So Samuel told all the words of the LORD to the people who were asking for a king from him. 11He said, “These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen and to run before his chariots. 12And he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. 13He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. 14 He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his servants. 15He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his servants. 16He will take your male servants and female servants and the best of your young men and your donkeys, and put them to his work. 17He will take the tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves. 18And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the LORD will not answer you in that day.” 19But the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel. And they said, “No! But there shall be a king over us, 20 that we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.” 21And when Samuel had heard all the words of the people, he repeated them in the ears of the LORD. 22And the LORD said to Samuel, “Obey their voice and make them a king.” Samuel then said to the men of Israel, “Go every man to his city.”
Chapter 9 – 1There was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, son of Zeror, son of Becorath, son of Aphiah, a Benjaminite, a man of wealth. 2And he had a son whose name was Saul, a handsome young man. There was not a man among the people of Israel more handsome than he. From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people.
I pray that your may be open that you can see what the Lord is saying, and that your ears may be opened that you can hear what the Lord is saying.
It should be remembered we don’t have a king in America (yet). Although Bush acts like a king and rejects the government God gave him, we have to remember the government God gave us is the American form of government (where people are sovereign and the rule of law prevails, not the will of a man or party).
With this gift from God (government) that is supposed to keep the peace, resist evil, and promote the common good, comes INDIVIDUAL responsibilities we ALL must look to regardless of what man and the church says or fails to say about our role with government. We can’t sit on talents God has given us lest He throw us into the fires of hell. This is a serious and overlooked issue. Our neglect brings about dire consequences for all of civilization.
God made 3 institutions (church, family, and government) to prolong the life and size of civilization in the hopes that very many individuals would have the time to think about the truth and be saved (see 1 Tim 2). We have a responsibility with each of these institutions. It is a struggle to attend to each. It is a struggle to divide my time between the needs of my family and the needs of the church (see 1 Cor 7). Add to that my responsibility to this other institution God created for the benefit of family and church and my frustration multiplies.
It is a rare case that a man not be soiled or his motives and actions questioned who is given to all that God has given him. David got involved in the dirty work that is required of those that govern and God forbid him from building a temple. God Himself, when He confronted Cain’s desire to do evil against his brother, came as a representative of what did not yet exist for the betterment of that society – government. He set a patter that would be followed unto this day. He laid down a civil law that was practiced for more than 600 years as seen in its miss-application by Lamech. (See Gen 4) Although that law (not to kill the murder) stood in contradiction to a law to be given later to the nation Israel (put to death the murder), it served its purpose in preserving society and keeping them from self-annihilation through endless revenge. One could probably say that God Himself, when taking the role of government, can hardly make Himself fully understood. This is not a reflection on God as much as the institution of government. Government cannot make God known properly and was not designed to do so, but it can bring about the peace Paul commands men in the church to pray for. It has the tools to do that much, but not much more.
The church on the other hand can glorify God and is equipped to do so and is in the process of redeeming man to what God intended along with his other creations – family and government. We will never arrive, but we will always have work to do. May God help us to that end.
We wish well to all mankind, and for that very reason we sometimes blaze with indignation against the inhuman wretches by whom every law which protects our fellow creatures is trampled down, and every dictate of humanity is set at nought. ~ Charles Spurgeon