Writing people off as “racist” or “fascist” has become pretty popular lately, and of course neither Christians nor the God of Christianity have been left out of the name-calling fest. Early in a conversation with a man named Jeff, I found out that it is the idea of a singular, all-powerful God that has driven him to prefer the pagan Gods of ancient Greece. It seemed to him a single, authoritarian God would ultimately be petty and vindictive. He even went so far as to accuse the Christian concept of God as being “fascist”, which refers to the kind of authoritarian ruler, beginning with Mussolini, that is characterized by dictatorial power, forcible suppression of opposition, and strong regimentation of society and of the economy.
But it’s a big mistake to try to judge God, especially by
human terms. What makes facism truly
ugly are our human tendencies to be petty, vindictive, and jealous. These traits are so ugly because of the sheer
audacity of presuming to fill a role that we clearly aren’t capable of filling –
to be God over others.
But what about the One who IS God over all? People who are petty put a lot of time and
effort into keeping track of others, and we wonder why they don’t have more
important things to do. But being all
powerful and all-knowing, God knows about every detail of our lives without any
effort whatsoever. Jesus said the very hairs of our heads are all numbered. God
looks at us and sees and knows all without being petty.
What comes across as being vindictive in humans - of having
or showing a strong or unreasoning desire for revenge – is really just a pathetic
attempt to build oneself up by tearing others down. It is pathetic because we who need
forgiveness as sinful human beings are refusing to give it to others. But in God vengeance is an eternal and
consistent expression of His good character which loves justice. Romans 12:19 tells us “Vengeance is mine, I
will repay, says the Lord.” God will have the final word without being
vindictive.
The Bible refers repeatedly to God being a “jealous”
God. Our thoughts may go immediately to
a nervous, insecure, jealous man who wants to be more than he truly is in the
lives of others. But God, who has no
need of us, wants us to be all He created us to be which can only happen when
we allow Him to be all He truly is in our lives. In Isaiah 42:8, God says “ I
am the Lord; that is my name; my glory I give to no other”. He is jealous for the glory He rightly
deserves, but human jealousy only tries to steal that glory from Him.
God can’t be fascist because God doesn’t have human failings
and limitations, but this doesn’t automatically point toward democracy. Just as
the parents of a large family wouldn’t allow it to be a democracy, lest the
immature and foolish desires of the children outvote the wisdom of the parents
and they end up with ice cream for supper every day, so the Kingdom of Heaven
isn’t democratic. It is described as a Kingdom, which means there is a King,
and it is the perfect wisdom, power and goodness of the King that keeps it from
being fascist.
Jeff and I also talked about whether some churches and
Christian organizations can be described as fascist. Of course they can. There are human leaders who are petty,
vindictive, and jealous, and organizations characterized by dictatorial power,
forcible suppression of opposition, and strong regimentation. Others are ruled by democracy, and they
likewise have problems due to the immaturity and foolishness of the majority
vote. There is no perfect church
government, so there is no perfect local church or denomination.
But we can take heart because God isn’t through with us yet,
and we have the Kingdom of Heaven to look forward to, one that will be a
reflection of the peace and harmony described in Revelation 7: “…a great multitude that no one could count,
from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and
before the Lamb.” It will be the
ultimate Kingdom because we have the ultimate King, one who rules with absolute
goodness and wisdom.
Thanks, Jeff, for allowing me to record our
conversation! It can be seen HERE
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