Politics According to the Bible

September 11, war on terror, health care, immigration, mid-term elections, unemployment, taxes, marriage, and tea parties. These are just a few of the topics of discussion in America today. How should a Christian form an opinion on these subjects? Should they follow a party line? Does the Bible shed any light on these subjects?

Politics According to the Bible

Wayne Grudem‘s new book Politics According to the Bible: A Comprehensive Resource for Understanding Modern Political Issues in Light of Scripture couldn’t come at a better time. In it Grudem rejects five mistaken views about Christian influence on politics: (1) “compel religion,” (2) “exclude religion,” (3) “all government is demonic,” (4) “do evangelism, not politics,” and (5) “do politics, not evangelism.” He proposes a better alternative: (6) “significant Christian influence on government.”

Politics According to the Bible is a readable, comprehensive political philosophy, arguing for Christian involvement based on biblical teachings and a Christian worldview. Covering over 50 specific issues relating to protection of life, marriage, family, economics, environment, national defense, internationalism, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and special interest groups … this sweeping resource is a must-read for today’s Christians.

Here are a few endorsements of Dr. Grudem’s work:

  • “Dr. Grudem has written a sweeping, and inspiring, guide to politics and government in the new century, a comprehensive but extremely readable and easy-to-use primer on how a Christian guided by Scripture should think about all of the many issues facing a citizen today. Politics According to the Bible will be on the desk next to the microphone in my radio studio and on the bookshelf of every Christian—left, right or center—who wants to know—really wants to know—what God has said about what man ought to do and how he ought to live today.”

    - Hugh Hewitt, professor of law, Chapman University, and nationally syndicated radio talk show host

  • “Conservative and hard-hitting both biblically and culturally, Grudem’s treatise is essentially a giant tract for the times, covering the whole waterfront of America’s political debate with shrewd insight and strong argument. This book will be a valued resource for years to come, and right now no Christian can afford to ignore it. An outstanding achievement!”

    - J. I. Packer, Board of Governors’ Professor of Theology, Regent College, Vancouver

  • “If you read this year only one Christian book on politics, read Politics-According to the Bible. Wayne Grudem shows how we should approach more than fifty specific issues. His biblically-based good sense overwhelms the nostrums of Jim Wallis and the evangelical left. Wayne also shows why those seeking a vacation from politics need to rise up and go to work.”

    - Marvin Olasky, editor-in-chief, World, and provost, The King’s College, New York City

Interested? I am and want to share a great deal on this book with you. The Westminster bookstore has it for only $23.99—40% Off! That’s $3 less than Amazon, but it is only available for the next week at this great price. Order Politics According to the Bible today.

The Political Compass

Knowing that I am not a heretic, I decided to review my standing on The Political Compass.

Back in 2005

Economic Left/Right: 3.63
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -0.56

Today, Feb 20, 2008

Economic Left/Right: 3.88
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: 0.36

So it looks like I am basically consistent here, although slightly more authoritarian.

Eric Wallace's place on The Political Compass in comparison the 2008 Presidential hopefuls

What bothers me however is where I fall in comparison to the 2008 Presidential Primary field. Can the individuals behind The Political Compass really get an accurate score from speechs, policy papers, and voting records? I am really that different than most Republicans? I know that I have very little in common with the Democrats. I wish there were concrete scores available for the candidates. None of the candidates that I know of has taken the test and posted his/her score on the web. Maybe Lessig can post his if he decides to run for Congress.

How can I be closer to Hillary than Huckabee, let alone my preferred candidate Fred Thompson? Something is not right here. I just cannot figure out where yet, I dug through my Camino cache and printed out my answers to all the questions. Maybe I can learn something by reviewing them again. Who knows.

What about you, where do you score?

Hillary 1984

The Obama camp is claiming that they had no part in creating this video. Clearly, the video is borrowed from Apple and re-mixed for Obama v. Clinton. Looks like it could be a user-generated mash-up to me. There is no way the Obama campaign would stoop so low so as degenerate the socialism Hillary would bring to America if allowed to!

Regardless, this video could mean huge changes in the 2008 President Election campaigns. Just think of money candidates could save by not running so many TV commercials when they can run them on the net for free. No need to high production costs if your base can put compelling commercials together for you. Are you paying attention broadcast media? Do current election laws handle this?

Tom DeLay blogging a come back

I heard the tail end of Mike Gallagher’s segment with Tom DeLay this morning. Looks like he is going to make a come back via the blog and his Grassroots Action and Information Network (GAIN). Welcome to the blogosphere Tom. I wish more of our leaders were involved here.

In Tom’s own words:

In all honesty, I did not fully realize the impact or potential of the blogosphere until very recently, when Red State gave me the opportunity to post some of my observations in the wake of the recent midterm elections. The response I received was overwhelming, and I would like to again thank the fine people at that site.

This experience brought me to the immediate realization that I needed to become more directly involved in the blogosphere. TomDeLay.com is the product of our latest effort to find new ways to connect, unite and organize conservatives from all over America into a real grassroots political force.

Looking at the GAIN application (you might want to convert this to PDF format) I notice the requirements for two references who can vouch for one’s past in grassroots efforts. Are newcomers unwelcome in GAIN? The “impact and potential of the blogosphere” will bring many to want to get involved for the first time, only to be turned away. (Mr. DeLay, please correct me if I am wrong about GAIN membership.)