A Christian’s Role in Nation Building: Regaining the Biblical Mandate

The idea of a nation, as we read in the Old Testament, was the ‘people of God’ with a unique calling and purpose. They were to ‘demonstrate God’s nature and character, and to light the way for his salvation to extend to other nations’. The laws given to them weren’t limited to temple worship and purity, rather it was also for ‘shaping the corporate life of his people.’ 1 Hence the laws governed the nation in every area of its social, economic, political and religious life. Transitioning over to the New Testament, while we don’t explicitly see a society similar to the nation of Israel, the calling of the Church, the ‘people of God,’ was to proclaim and demonstrate the Gospel by being a Kingdom community in all expanses of life.

Reading through the history of the early Church, it becomes very clear that their intent in ministry was the transformation of the whole community. Their one desire was to replicate the life and work of Jesus Christ, whose ministry had no segregation between individuals and the society; rather he was ushering in the Kingdom of God in all its entirety. From being a Kingdom community, over the next 1500 years the Church became institutionalised and therefore the need for Reformation. While the reformers were focused to define the details of the faith, Bishop N.T Wright states that they failed to stress ‘the great narrative of God, Israel, Jesus and the world, coming forward into our day and looking ahead to the eventual renewal of all things.’ 2 The Church slowly lost a sense of historical continuity, faith became dogmatic 3 in nature and thus limited her scope and function to the spiritual matters of life! This calls us then to primarily reiterate the biblical mandate as integral; where there is no dichotomy between the sacred and the secular.

A Christian desiring to be part of the nation-building will first and foremost confess that Jesus Christ is no mere religious sage but the one in whom all created reality ‘holds together’ (Col.1:17) and through whom all created reality came into being and will finally be redeemed (Col.1:18). Such a confession upholds that Christ has unrestricted primacy over every area of life and thought. Every space becomes sacred; for Christ claims Sovereignty over every domain of life, enabling us to an engagement with all of reality.

The two analogies ‘you are the salt of the earth and light of the world’, as taught by the Lord in the Sermon on the Mount (Mat 5:13-16), clearly indicate the kinds of influence or role for us in nation-building. Especially in pluralistic contexts like ours, the role of being salt gains prominence. While the presence of salt is little recognised, the absence of the same is easily declared. As salt, our presence in our workplace enhances value and arrests decay. In fulfilling this calling, the system can make obvious corrections to the erroneous ways it functions ensuing flavour and healing. We also affirm ‘what is good, beautiful and true; and bringing reconciliation and peace to broken relationships ‘. When we fail in such a role, the entire system is found corrupt, fragmented and manipulative. Shouldn’t we be responsible? Because we have failed in our role as the salt!

The role of the Light though is very perceptible; it’s very proclaimed and loud. Our voices cannot be hidden or muted because they are prophetic in nature and it’s a call to expose the darkness of our systems. Prophets weren’t afraid of the portals of power and influence, rather they spoke the truth and it demanded justice. Being a nation-builder will call us to be whistle-blowers; a call that is risky but rewarding in the Kingdom of God. In the words of a Hindu scholar spoken to Lesslie Newbigin, “Christians need to realise that we as God’s people are ‘responsible actors in history’” 4.

What are some models of such an engagement? It can be political in nature, a social activist, an educationist, or an advocate who affirm the equality of all races, gender and class (Gal 3:16). Also, as one who recognises that when the economic policies are tilted in favour of the rich and mighty, we become the voices of sanity, seeking justice, especially for the poor and the marginalised.

As Christian institutions, especially in the public sector, we need to reaffirm the mandate received at its inception. Our institutions were recognised as ‘open doors’ for empowerment and healing. While these sectors have become competitive in nature, we need to continue our calling to uplift the poor and marginalised. In our struggle for existence and sustenance, there are possibilities that the focus has shifted elsewhere. As beacons of light, may we speak the truth in love even when it calls for us to become unpopular and disregarded. This is the response to the prayer, ‘thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth!’

Written by Sathish Joseph Simon (Director, TRACI & CNI Member Calvary Church, New Delhi)
29-04-2023

1 Jonathan Tame and Josh Hemmings, Shining in the Sun: A Biblical Vision for City Transformation, Jubilee Centre, Cambridge, 2017.
2 N. T. Wright, The Last Word: Beyond the Bible Wars to a New Understanding, HarperCollins E-Books, Adobe Acrobat eBook Reader April 2009, ISBN 978-0-06-194009-5, 76.
3 The development of Systematic theology as against a narrative theology.
4 Lesslie Newbigin, The Gospel in a Pluralist Society, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1989.

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