Is our current president an “instrument of righteousness”?

Last updated on: April 11, 2020 at 8:56 am by Rob Dalrymple

Is our current president an “instrument of righteousness”? 2020-04-11T08:56:32-08:00 Rob Dalrymple

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

When Christians take a stand politically and endorse people or laws it is imperative that we ask ourselves how will this affect my witness?

This question was posed to me by an acquaintance. Let me state at the outset that I am answering this question as a biblical scholar and not in terms of the current political climate in the US. In other words, my answer would not change regardless of who the current president is, nor what country I was writing about.

First, if one defines an “instrument of righteousness” in terms of a leader of a nation who is upholding the laws of the land in accord with his God-given responsibility, then it is easy to find some laws that even the most ruthless of leaders uphold and, thereby, conclude that that leader is such an instrument. In other words, almost anyone could argue that almost any leader is an “instrument of righteousness” based on this definition.

This is a classic example of Edward Sapir and Benjamin Whorff’s principle “words create worlds”—which stated succinctly means that what people look for is what they find.

The primary problem, and there are many, with the suggestion that our current president is “an instrument of righteousness” is that it misunderstands what “righteousness” is. “Righteousness,” biblically defined, is not a moral category, even though that is how we tend to use it, but is always closely related to the covenant: see the phrase, “righteousness of God” throughout the books of Romans and Galatians. In these books, the phrase is intimately tied to God’s covenantal faithfulness.

Consequently, an OT king could be such an instrument if he upheld the law of God (God’s covenant) for the nation of Israel—note the connection with the people of God. In the New Testament, however, the covenant with Israel finds its fulfillment in Jesus; who begins “a new covenant.”

To be an “instrument of righteousness” in the NT, then, means that one is advancing the new covenant; which Jesus proclaimed is the Kingdom of God.

[Thus, citing OT passages about God using kings to advance His kingdom is not applicable in the NT. Citing Romans 13 doesn’t work either because all Paul is saying is that those in authority are meant to do right. That is, they are to maintain justice in the world.

But this is different than bringing in the justice of the Kingdom of God; that is, national justice is not equal to justice done by the people of God—at least it cannot be now that the people of God are not a distinct national people group]

The key distinction between the old covenant and the new is that in the new covenant the people of God are no longer limited to a national identity.

Instead, the people of God are composed of anyone who acknowledges that Jesus is Lord. If, then, an “instrument of righteousness” is one who advances the kingdom of God, then no secular leader can do so today (unless one were to suppose that God were to bring a nation-state against the church in judgment; but there is no NT indication that such will occur).

There are two kingdoms in the world today: the Kingdom of God and the kingdoms of the world. The Kingdom of God comes through faithful, persevering, sacrificial, and loving witness of God’s people. It stands opposed to the kingdoms of the world in that we proclaim Jesus is Lord while they proclaim Caesar is Lord.

A secondary problem arises with this presumption. Namely, in the present Christians are to be “instruments of righteousness” by advancing the Kingdom of God in both word and deed to the nations. When Christians take a stand politically and endorse people or laws it is imperative that we ask ourselves how will this affect my witness?

Biblical Interpretation

Kingdom Of God

New Testament

Politics

Previous Post

August 31, 2019

The Gospel and Power (part 3)

Next Post

November 11, 2019 Women and the Church part 1

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category 000 1 Cor 11:17-34 1 Corinthians 1 John 1 Peter 1 Thessalonians 1 Timothy 10 Commandments 2 Corinthians 2 John 2 Peter 2 Thessalonians 2 Timothy 3 John 666 Abortion Acts 2:42 Ahmaud Arbery AIPAC All Saints Day America antisemitism BDS Beast Betting Bible Bible study Biblical Interpretation Biden Book of Acts Boycott Campus Protests Catholicism Ceasefire Chavez Ravine Christian Nationalism Christian Zionism Christianity Today Christmas Church Colossians Communion Convict Leasing Covid-19 Craig Blaising creation Crucifixion Daoud Nassar Deception Deconstruction Democracy Devotional guide Discipleship Easter Eden Education Election End-times Ephesians Eschatology Ethnic Cleansing Evangelicalism Evangelicals Evolution Fall Famine Fascism FIFA Freedom of Speech Galatians Gary Burge Gaza Gaza; Genocide; Boycott Genesis Genocide George Floyd Global Warming God's will Gospel Gospel of John Gospel of Luke Gospel of Mark Gospel of Matthew Government Grace Great Prostitute Hamas Harris healthcare Hebrews HeGetsUs Holy Spirit Holy Week Honor Father and Mother ICJ Immigration Indigenous peoples day Iran Israel Israel Palestine Itamar Ben Gvir James Jesus Joel Willits Jude Just war Justice Kamala Harris Kingdom Of God Kings and Queens land of Israel Law (OT) Lazarus Les Miserable LGBTQ+ Love Luke Mahmoud Khalil Man of Lawlessness Mark Mark of the Beast Marriage Martin Luther King Jr Mercy Mexican Repatriation Military-Industrial-Complex Ministry Mission Money NAFTA Nakba Netanyahu New Creation New Testament Nicaragua Nicodemus Non Violence Occupation Pacifism Palestine Parable Paul Peace Pentecost Peonage Philemon Philippians Politics Poor Power Prayer Pride Month Priests Pro-life Propaganda Prophesy Prophet Qatar Queen Elizabeth Racism Reconstruction Redemption Reformation Resurrection Revelation Roe v Wade Romans Romans 13:1-7 Rome Russia Sabbath Samaritan Seals Sermon Settlements Slavery Spiritual gifts Taxes Tent of Nations Terrorism The Beast Theology Titus Torture Trump truth Ukraine Uncategorized Veteran's Day War Warsaw Ghetto wealth Wedding Women World Cup 2022 Worldview Worship Wrath Yemen Zionism

Select a Month September 2026 May 2026 February 2026 November 2025 October 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 August 2018 June 2018 May 2018 March 2018 September 2017 July 2017 May 2017 November 2016 October 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who found a wife for Isaac?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Jacob Ishmael Abraham's servant Lot

Support this
Column