Update (11/1/11): Here’s a more recent article on Christians and illegal “immigration.
———————————————————————-
Warning: Another long one!
This post may be referred to as “Part I” as I collect my thoughts on a Saturday morning. I never intended to blog about illegal immigration all week, but this post started it. After it received so many comments, I conducted further research and read reports, etc., to understand the policy implications of illegal immigration.
A few commenters grappled with what Christians should be doing/thinking about illegal immigration. These folks got my attention but never really fleshed out their thoughts. I will attempt to do so.
Let’s put aside the economic, social and cultural burdens illegal aliens impose on this country. From an economic standpoint, California is bearing enormous costs because of free medical care and overcrowding of government schools, for example. The budget shortfall in California is staggering ($38 billion? $40 billion?). Keep in mind that Governor Gray Davis was recalled for this reason.
It is not “un-Christian” to support restricted immigration into one’s country. It is not “un-Christian” to advocate deportation of illegal aliens. I challenge anyone to find in Scripture where such a concept is even hinted at.
Here’s the problem that arises when discussing biblical issues. In our secular society, humanistic philosophy is the norm. The Bible and God have been pushed out of government schools and the public sphere, and our society in general prefers that religious beliefs be kept private. In this regard, we don’t discuss these things in “mixed company.”
When referencing biblical things and speculating on “what Jesus would do,” there is a tendency among believers and unbelievers to argue philosophically rather than scripturally. I understand this temptation, especially when one doesn’t know what the Bible says about certain things. See Jesse Jackson’s Liberal Jesus, for example.
As a Christian, I look at it this way. My brothers and sisters in Christ come in all colors, shapes, sizes and countries. My fellow Christ followers are in Iraq, Iran, North Korea, Russia — in every country on the planet, including Mexico.
Among illegal aliens I have brothers and sisters in Christ. The call to share the Gospel with unbelievers and worship a merciful and gracious God with believers doesn’t stop at our national borders. God saves all kind of men, and all kind of men are my fellow inheritors of Christ’s bounty!
However, I am not required to ignore or oppose justice against lawbreakers, even if they are believers. Government is supposed to punish lawbreakers, and Christian criminals are not excepted. God appointed men to authority and laid down the function and role of government. In that same vein, as an aside, it is not unbiblical to support war. I’ve written about the role of government and a biblical view of war in a few posts:
- Onward, Christian Solders
- John Kerry and James 2
- Kerry Cites Scripture to Battle Bush View (Instapundit linked to this one)
People tend to confuse biblical instruction to Christians with the role and function of government. For instance, a commenter wrote (This is not intended as a criticism of the commenter.):
But for us who are Christians, how do we live out a Christ-like response to illegal immigration? The Lord Jesus was an immigrant Himself in the land of Egypt. He was poor and an alien in that land, just like many of the illegal immigrants here in America. His family fled harsh conditions just as many immigrants here have. God raises up and takes down governments at His sovereign will, so who are we to say that our secure borders trump the compassion we should have for the immigrant family who is just trying to live life to its fullest here in America?When we Christians move beyond numbers and start viewing each immigrant or immigrant family as people to whom we should be ministering the love of Christ in our own land, a love that transcends earthly laws and aspires to the greatest commandments Jesus cited (love God, love people), then the issue becomes less clear. Does not the love of God for these people render our desire for legal retribution against them null and void? When you actually talk to illegals here and listen to their plight, our commonality as men for whom Jesus died makes that phone call to INS impossible to make.
First of all, Christ was not an “illegal immigrant.” It is true that Jesus’ parents fled to Egypt to evade King Herod, who sought to kill the newborn Messiah, but that is not the point. The Bible does not make reference to Egypt’s immigration laws. Whatever their laws were, if any, are irrelevant! To try to draw a parallel between this biblical reference and illegal aliens is disingenuous and confusing at best (and obscures the point), and ludicrous at worst.
Secondly, Christians cannot nor are we obligated to demand that our government have a “Christ-like response” to illegal aliens (what does that mean, anyway?). This was John Kerry’s error when he implied several months ago that our government (and George Bush) should demonstrate “good works”, as referenced in James 2, by using taxpayers’ money. I’ll re-post part of it in case you have neither the time nor desire to go back to the archives and read it:
“The scriptures say, what does it profit, my brother, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? When we look at what is happening in America today, where are the works of compassion,” preached Kerry.
What he’s getting at is that faith without works is dead. While I don’t expect Kerry or the liberal media to know what’s in the Bible, I do expect him to have the decency to seek counsel from clergy before he starts using scriptural references on the campaign trail….
The passage Kerry took out of context is James 2:14-17:
“What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,’ but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.”
James wrote his epistle to Jewish believers, “the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad”, exhorting them to “count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience”, one of my favorite verses.
He urges the believers to be doers of God’s word and not hearers only. A believer is saved through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone, but that faith manifests itself through action or works (“fruit”).
James gives guidance on how individuals, not governments, can evaluate their faith to determine whether it’s living or dead. It is the personal works of believers that James has in mind in this passage. It wasn’t addressed to Caesar.
If Kerry were a Christian, he’d know that the biblical standard of the test of faith doesn’t rest on whether poor people exist or teenagers are killed in the streets. Using taxpayers’ money isn’t a work of faith.
What you do as a professing Christian, i.e., using your own money or time to feed the poor, would be considered “works.” Does Kerry see the distinction?
I believe he can get away with such misapplication, even in a church with a “learned” pastor sitting only a few feet away, because most Christians seem unable or unwilling to properly exegete and understand Scripture themselves. As a result, when someone like Kerry misuses God’s word, Christians don’t recognize it. This is why Bible reading is very important.
I used to assume that when people first become saved, they’re on fire for truth and hungry to know the God they worship. I don’t assume that anymore.
God gave us the Bible, written down by men inspired by the Holy Spirit as His revelation to us. He is Creator, Love, Righteousness, Perfect Justice, Savior, Friend, Advocate, and so much more.
We live in a postmodern age where people believe that there is no truth, that it cannot even be known! It is vitally important for Christians to know what they believe, know what’s in the Bible and always be ready to defend the faith and challenge people who misuse (purposely) Scripture.
John Kerry would do well to remember that the word of God is a two-edge sword. Works without faith, genuine saving faith, are just as dead.
As a Christian, I cannot demand of my government that it have “compassion” on illegal aliens because, after all, it is a Christ-like thing to do. Christians have no right to force others to do “good works.” It’s nonsensical. But I, at my own expense, can help the less fortunate. That is what Christ requires of me and other Christians, not of the government. I am not biblically mandated to impose burdens on others.
You see, it is socialism, pure and simple, to force someone to pay to support others. Redistributing income — taking from one to give to another by force (law) — is entirely unbiblical. This is where Christians themselves get confused, let alone non-Christians and/or those unfamiliar with Scripture.
Now as the body of Christ, whether gathered together in a church building or dispersed across the globe, we can help alleviate the suffering of others. I believe we are obligated to report lawbreakers and at the same time, offer assistance (food, clothing, medical care, the Gospel) to them.
Giving the commenter the benefit of the doubt, I know where his/her heart is. For immigrants who are starving, for example, and who are also brothers and sisters in Christ looking for work, my heart goes out to them. If I’m so moved, I can help them through the immigration process, intercede at deportation hearings on their behalf — whatever I need to do.
Does not the love of God for these people render our desire for legal retribution against them null and void?
The answer is no, and I don’t know where he/she came up with such a concept. When someone blows up an abortion clinic in the name of Christ, killing people, for example, my “desire” is that they go to jail, just as I desire the “doctor” killing the babies to go to jail.
How in the world (or in the Bible) does our “love of God for these people” mean that Christians should ignore crime? God is the ultimate judge, and he will punish lawbreakers. Yes, he is compassionate and merciful, but where in Scripture are Christians required to ask government not to punish criminals?
To require my government to ignore crime, ask others to do the same and pay to support criminals is unbiblical. Evading personal responsibility is unbiblical. Forcing others to pay for our good intentions is unbiblical. Supporting illegal immigration is unbiblical.
Read Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount.
As long as I’m alive, I suspect I’ll continue to struggle with all of this, so stay tuned.
