The Biblical Answers to Our
2006 General Election Questionnaire
By Dr. David J. Vaughan and Rev. Rusty Lee Thomas
Listed below are the responses which the MetroVoice
believes candidates should have chosen from a biblical, Christian world view
perspective along with our justification for those choices.
1. Legislative
Philosophy
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The Biblical Response: [c]
According to Romans chapter 13, God ordains human government as a means to curb
evil and reward good in this life.
Government officials are here called the “servants” of God. Government originates in the Divine will;
therefore, God desires that it conform to the Divine will or law.
Civil government is not, as
some have taught, an evil institution.
It is a good institution designed to punish evil. The State is required by God to keep law and
order by protecting the law-abiding citizen and punishing the law-breaking
criminal. The State is, therefore, an
agency of “wrath” or “vengeance” against those who violate the law. To this end, God has given the State the “sword,”
which is a symbol of its power to inflict physical punishments on criminals.
However, it is erroneous to
assume, therefore, that because Church and State are distinct institutions,
that the State is a non-religious, or purely secular, institution. Romans 13 teaches that civil government has its origin in
the Divine Will, thus it does not have a secular (non-religious)
foundation. Moreover, the duty of the
State is to implement law, and law has its foundation in religious belief. Law is inescapably moral, and morality
expresses notions of ultimate value or religious presupposition. In a
sense, law is the legal codification of a society’s religious values. For instance, in our founding legal document,
we are told that “men are endowed with certain inalienable rights,” such as “life,
liberty and the pursuit of happiness;” and that these rights are derived from “the
laws of Nature and Nature’s God.” Here
we have a religious principle codified in a legal document. As a result, we criminalize and punish
murder. Yet, we do so because we believe
that human life is sacred. But our
belief in the sanctity of human life is religiously derived; it is an article of
faith.
2. Immigration
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The Biblical Response: [c]
Biblically, God established
the nations for His glory and our benefit (Acts
17:24-27). The God of the Holy Bible
established the boundaries of each nation. Knowing man’s sinful, warlike
nature, his greed, lust, and quest for power, God established the different
nations as checks and balances to restrain the evil tendencies of our world’s
dictators, tyrants, and oppressive regimes. Therefore, each nation has a right
to defend those boundaries from foreign invasion, whether through defensive
measures militarily or through legislative measures as in the case of illegal
immigration laws. An invasion is an invasion, regardless of the means employed.
The other important point in
dealing with this thorny issue is God’s warning found in Dt. 28:43-44. God’s Word
states, “The stranger that is within thee shall get up above thee very high;
and though shalt come down very low. He shall lend to
thee, and thou shalt not lend to him: he shall be the
head, and thou shalt be the tail.” When this nation
is foolish enough to disregard and defy God’s moral laws, one of the
consequences is immigration nightmares. As a nation, our sayings and doings
have been against the Lord for years, therefore the alien, the stranger, the
foreigner, and the illegal immigrants are raising up
and damaging all our institutions and national infrastructure. They strain and
drain our schools, hospitals, law enforcement and failed welfare system. Thus
it behooves America not just to pass laws that protect our borders, but to
repent and return to the God of our fathers and the biblical principles that we
are violating to our own demise.
3.
Discrimination
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The Biblical Response: [b]
The Bible does not encourage persecution against persons because of
race, religion, nationality, religion or gender. The modern notion of “sexual preference” (a
code word for homosexual) is foreign to a biblical world-view.
In the Bible, we are told that God created “male and female” and commanded
them to “be fruitful and multiply” (Gen.
1:27-28). Marriage was instituted to facilitate procreation and alleviate man’s
loneliness, requiring the “man to leave his mother and father, and cleave unto
his wife” (Gen. 2:18-25). Clearly, then, God’s created order for human
sexual expression is heterosexual monogamous marriage.
All sexual activity outside of
the marriage institution is considered sinful.
Therefore, the Scriptures prohibit adultery (Ex. 20:14; Rom. 13:9);
fornication (Dt. 22:28-29; Mk. 7:21); bestiality (Ex.
22:19; Lev. 20:15); incest (Lev. 18:6-18; I Cor. 5:1), and homosexuality (Lev. 18:22; Rom. 1:24f; I Tim
1:10). Since the duty of the State is to
punish evil and reward good, it has a legitimate right (if not duty) to
discourage or criminalize each of these activities, rather than grant any of
them a protected status.
4. Abortion
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The Biblical Response: [e]
The Christian view of abortion
can only be understood in the broader context of the Bible’s overwhelmingly pro-life teaching. The indisputable sanctity
of human life is taught throughout the Scriptures. From Genesis
onward, for instance, the creation account states that men and women are
created in the very image of God (Gen.1:26-28). This simple but profound fact gives human
life a priceless value. Moreover, Genesis also tells us that God commanded
man to be fruitful and multiply, a command that includes a moral judgment that
human life is a positive good that should be reproduced. In addition, God required that murder be
punished by death because man is made in the image of God (Gen. 9:5-6). Of course, the
ultimate statement on the value of innocent human life is the death of Christ
for mankind. How precious is a human
soul for which Christ was willing to die?
In light of this biblical
testimony, we must answer the question of the “hard cases” – rape and
incest? According to the Bible, only those should be punished who
commit a crime.
Thus, the offending party, the rapist or incestuous perpetrator should
suffer, not the unborn child who is the innocent party.
For many Christians the most
difficult case is when a mother’s life is in danger from childbirth. However, the same Christ who laid down his
life for us has told us to lay down our lives for others. This is not mere cant; it is a literal
command. When necessary, we are to
follow Christ’s example and die that others may live. A Christian mother, who
risks her life that her child might live, is exemplifying Christian love of the
highest order.
5. Gaming
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The Biblical Response: [c]
That gambling has proven
detrimental to society is evident from all the studies that have been
conducted: it drains investment away from business, increases addiction, lowers
property values, and strengthens organized crime. From a biblical perspective, Christians must
avoid any activity that causes illegitimate harm to society. Thus, the second great commandment to “love
your neighbor as yourself” is sufficient reason for Christians to oppose
gambling. Moreover, gambling wastes one’s
time; estranges the heart from God; seduces to love of the world; breeds
laziness; inspires discontent; and is a contempt of
God’s providence – all further reasons for Christians to support the abolition
of State gambling.
6. The U.S.
Constitution
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The Biblical Response: [b]
The Bible does not directly address the question of Constitutional interpretation. However, it does address the issue of truth
telling. In the Ninth Commandment, we
are told not to bear false witness; this requires not only that we tell the truth,
but also that we accurately represent the words and actions of others. Misrepresentation of someone else’s words is
a distortion or perversion of meaning.
It is a form of lying. This is
forbidden by Scripture, and is the
biblical basis for a strict interpretation of the Constitution – indeed, of any written document. To read the Constitution contrary to the meaning of the drafters is to falsify
their meaning, which the Bible forbids. Those who argue that the Constitution is a “living, breathing document” generally attempt to
change the plain meaning of the text to fit a modern politically-correct
agenda.
7. Education
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The Biblical Response: [c]
The Bible recognizes at least three “orders” or “institutions” ordained
by God to administer His authority: the State, the Church and the Family. These three are institutionally separate,
with different duties and rights. The
State is to administer civil justice as defined by God: its symbol is the
sword. The Church is to administer grace
through the Gospel, the sacraments
and charity: its symbol is the keys. The
Family is to administer nurture, instruction and welfare: its symbol is the
rod. Thus, there is no biblical mandate
for State involvement in education, while there is a clear and forceful mandate
to the Family (the parents) to train and educate their children (See Dt. 4:9; 6:3-9, 20-25; Pr. 1: 8-9; 22:6; Eph. 6:1-4). A biblical
approach to education, therefore, will limit the involvement of civil
government while simultaneously encouraging parents to assume full
responsibility for their children’s education.
8. Second
Amendment
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The Biblical Response: [c]
Although the Bible does not directly speak to the
issues of gun control or the “right to bear arms” as we understand them, it
does teach that self-defense is permissible; thus the “means” of defense, or
the right to bear arms is assumed. The Bible gives us a specific law that
teaches the right of self-defense. Ex
22: 2 reads: “If the thief is found breaking in, and he is struck so that he
dies, there shall be no guilt for his bloodshed.” Commenting on this verse, Old Testament scholar Walter Kaiser
says, “the thief was exposed to the loss of his life
as the householder defended himself, his family, and his home by delivering a
lethal blow. This was especially true at
night when the thief’s intentions (whether to steal, kill or both) could not be
easily and quickly determined.” Because
the Bible recognizes the right to
private property, as well as the sanctity of marriage, a man has the right to
defend both his property and family from violent criminal action.
The right to self-defense
would be useless of course, if law-abiding citizens did not have the
appropriate means to halt aggressive criminals.
Thus, self-defense assumes and requires the right to bear arms. A disarmed citizen is a defenseless citizen,
regardless of his supposed “rights.”
This was surely the view of our nation’s Founders who drafted and
ratified the Second Amendment.
9. Stem Cell
Research
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The Biblical Response: [b]
The debate over stem cell
research revolves around the use of “embryonic” stem cells versus “adult” stem
cells. In the process of manipulating
embryonic stem cells, the embryo is destroyed – it dies. Thus, if the embryo is a human person, then
embryonic stem cell research requires the destruction of innocent human
life. This is the basis for Christian
opposition to the practice. Therefore,
the arguments against abortion are equally valid here (See Response 4).
10. Private
Property
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The Biblical Response: [b]
There is a sacred bond between
God, the land, and His people. There are no substantial freedoms for citizens
in America if private property can be subject to public opinion, Supreme Court
Decisions or Marxist environmental policies.
The Eminent Domain Supreme Court
Decision is a direct violation of our Constitution and more importantly, a
direct violation of God’s sacred law, “thou shalt
not steal.” Theft is theft regardless of the perpetrator - whether he be a hooded robber with a gun or a black-robed judge with an
unrighteous decree. This tyrannical decision needs to be reversed and our
elected officials must use their legislative powers to overthrow this despotic
ruling issued by the highest court in our land.
