Does this mean that Christians should withdraw from politics and be unconcerned with cultural values? Absolutely not. We “seek the welfare of the city” where we are exiled (Jer 29:7). Jesus’s call to neighbor love certainly includes working toward a just society wherein human beings can flourish according to God’s good design. Faithful Christians must enter the public square to bear witness to Christ and his ways. We advocate for truth, goodness, and beauty for the benefit of all.

Christians are at war.

Where does your mind go when you read the above assertion? It’s Christmas time. Do you think about the so-called “war on Christmas” and get angry about Starbucks renaming their classic “Christmas Blend” to the boring “Holiday” alternative? Or perhaps you imagine fighting for the right side in a great cultural conflict that neatly divides along the partisan line separating Republicans from Democrats?

I recently received a letter in the mail that began like this: “Our country and state are in a war to maintain conservative and Christian values.” We’re so used to hearing such rhetoric that few who prize conservative and Christian values dare to question it. We don’t have time to debate worldviews when we’ve got an urgent culture war to win!

I’m a person who prizes conservative and Christian values. If you gave me a conservative values test, I predict I would ace it. As a Christian, I value marriage the way God designed it. I believe God created us male and female. Because each human being is created uniquely in the image of God, I abhor abortion and euthanasia. I value family and church and want my children to grow up in a culture that also champions these irreplaceable institutions. When I vote, I exclusively support candidates who live out these values in their personal lives and commit to them through sound policy agendas.

With that said, I reject the framework that Christians are at war to maintain conservative and Christian values. In fact, adopting this worldview may cause us to lose the real war God calls us to fight.

The Bible certainly calls Christians to war. However, the battle lines never place Christians on one side against secular enemies in the culture. Our primary war is against our own passions (1 Pet 2:11).

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