By Rolland D. McCune
Theonomy ("God's
Law") is a title given to a movement that teaches the earthwide rule of God
through the reinstitution of the Law of Moses for every nation. It is also
called "Christian Reconstruction" because it wants the church to dismantle the
present world culture and reconstruct it as a Mosaic society; "Dominion
Theology" because it sees the church of God as having eventual dominion over
the world; and "Kingdom Now" theology because it holds that Christ set up His
Messianic reign in the first century, which will eventually Christianize the
whole earth, after which He will return and consummate all things in
resurrection and judgment.
The movement had
its beginning in the 1960s through the efforts of Rousas J. Rushdoony, who founded
the Chalcedon Foundation to promote the ideas above. Other names associated
with the movement are Greg Bahnsen, Gary North, David Chilton, and Gary DeMar.
Theonomy had its heyday in the 1970s and '80s, but some of its ideas still
appeal to those who envision and politically work toward a "Christian America."
Such would include Jerry Falwell (Moral Majority), Jay Grimstead (Coalition for
Revival), D. James Kennedy, the late Francis Schaeffer, Franky Schaeffer, Pat
Robertson (along with Joseph Kikasola and Herb Titus of CBN University), Josh
McDowell, as well as remnants of the old "health and wealth gospel/positive
confession" notions of Kenneth Hagin, Robert Tilton, Kenneth Copeland, and Oral
Roberts. Some of Theonomy's proposals are also appreciated by many conservative
people who are rightfully alarmed at the rapid secularization, degeneration,
and deepening licentiousness of our Western, allegedly Judeo-Christian,
culture. It can also be argued that Islam's general hatred of the USA is fed more
by our worsening moral depravity than simply a jealousy over our political
freedoms.
Major
Principles of Theonomy
The
Immutability of God and His Laws and Commands
Theonomists
rightfully hold to the changelessness of God in His attributes and character
(Mal. 3:6; James 1:17). From this it is inferred that all His laws and
commands are also immutable, absolute, and perpetually binding on everyone.
This gives continuing validity to the OT Mosaic system in its minute details,
except where the NT indicates fulfillment in Jesus Christ and the New Covenant.
There are several
problems here. One, it ignores the plain fact that the Law was given only to Israel.
Gentiles, including the church
of Jesus Christ, were
never given the Law (Rom. 2:14; Deut. 4:8; Ps. 147:19, 20). Two, the whole Law
was an indivisible unity with its inseparable penalties; one cannot choose
which parts to keep and which to disregard. To keep one part makes one liable
for the whole code (James 2:10; Gal. 3:10; 5:3). Three, when the righteousness
of the Law was totally fulfilled by Christ, giving believers eternal liberation
(Rom. 8:1-4), the Law was nailed to the cross, abolished, and taken out of the
way (Rom. 10:4; Eph. 2:15; Col. 2:13-15; 2 Cor. 3:3, 11, 13). As a law system
it is not, and will never be, operative for any nation. Four, the patent truth
of the NT is that the believer is not under the Law for any purpose-salvation,
justification, sanctification, or a rule of life (Rom. 3:20; 6:14; Col. 2:14).
Five, God's immutability does not mean immobility. In His immutable sovereignty
God can change His requirements and dealings with His universe without any
change in Himself. For example, the minute OT laws and commands pertaining to
food, farming, clothing, holy days, and the form of Israel's government have
been rescinded (Col. 2:16; Mark 7:19; Heb. 9:10) and a whole new standard
pertains (1 Cor. 10:31-33; Col. 2:20-23). The platform of Christ's kingdom
demonstrates this point (Matt. 5:21-28-"it has been said . . . but I
say to you"). As well, God's whole dispensational program is based on epochs of
new revelation of Himself and His will that result in new stewardships with new
requirements and responsibilities that displace previous commands and laws.
Sixth, the Law of
Moses was designed specifically to serve a temporary purpose. It served as a
"schoolmaster"-a tutorial custodian of Israel-until Christ came "in the
fulness of time" (Gal. 3:22-4:7). Since then, the code of Moses will not serve
as a tutor for anyone, individual or nation (Gal. 3:19, 25).*
The
Continuity of Israel
and the Church
Theonomists hold
that the nation Israel was
"the church in the OT" and the church is "the new Israel" in the NT. However, the
Bible is quite clear that there is a fundamental distinction between Israel and the
church in origin, purpose, and destiny. Israel originated in the fifteenth
century bc as a political
organization at Sinai with an ethnic favoritism (the Hebrews) and a
fundamentally earthly agenda governed by its constitution and legal instrument,
the Law of Moses (Exod. 19-23). This institution lasted for about 1500 years
until dissolved by the Roman legions in the first century ad. There is no nation of Israel in the
Biblical sense. The church was born on the Day of Pentecost in the first century
ad as an essentially spiritual
organism with no ethnic or social favoritism (Gal. 3:26-28) and with no
political or social agenda. Its mandate is a heavenly commission to evangelize
the lost, baptize the believers, and mature them in the Christian experience
within the context of a local New Testament church (Matt. 28:18-20; 1 Tim.
3:15).
A
Post-Millennial Second Coming of Christ
Theonomy has an
optimism for this present age in that given enough time (some say 40,000 years
and more), the church will incrementally Christianize or "millennialize" the
world's social order so that Christ will return to His righteous world and
consummate all things.
The Scriptures
teach, to the contrary, that this age will deteriorate and apostatize (2 Thess.
3:1-3a;1 Tim. 4:1-3; 2 Tim. 3:13), culminating in the departure of those "in
Christ" to heaven (1 Thess. 4:13-17), followed by the universal acceptance of
the Man of Sin (2 Thess. 2:3b-10). This person, with his followers, will be
destroyed by the Lord Jesus Christ when He returns in cataclysmic glory and
power to suddenly, not incrementally, set up His Messianic Kingdom for a
universal reign of peace and prosperity (Dan. 2:34, 35; 2 Thess. 2:8; Rev.
19:11-21). Christ's coming is not after (post) the "millennium" of undetermined
length, but before (pre) the millennium of one thousand years (Rev. 19:4-6).
A Fundamental Baptist Response
to Theonomy
First, it must be
remembered that the church
of Jesus Christ is not
mandated to Christianize the existing world order along political and social
lines. Aside from assisting its own needy people (Rom. 12:13; James 2:15, 16; 1
John 3:17), the institutional church has no sociopolitical agenda for the world
community at large, either as fulfilling the Great Commission or as a means of
opportunity to fulfill it. Further, since the Messianic Reign with its
political, economic, social, and physical dimension is still future, there can
be no such "kingdom now" proposals for the church to fulfill. Second, the
church's mission is evangelistic/local church planting (Matt. 28:18-20) and has
gospel proclamation, not social work, as its motif (1 Cor. 2:1-5). Third, the
vision of Theonomy for a religious state or government in this present age
violates the Biblical and historic Baptist principle of the separation of
church and state-a free church in a free
state (Matt. 22:21). Fourth, an individual Christian
as a member of the civil state is not disenfranchised but may participate fully
in the political and social process as personal resources, interest, abilities,
and the will of God permit. But this is a wisdom issue (Eph. 5:10-"what is
acceptable [pleasing] unto the Lord") and not necessarily based on a specific
Biblical command or warrant. Fifth, individual Christians and the institutional
church on earth should manifest a non-antagonistic and non-belligerent attitude
toward the civil powers for the Lord's sake (Rom. 13:11-7; Titus 3:1; 1 Pet.
2:13, 14), except when the state attempts to force one to sin (Dan. 3:18; Acts
4:19).
Sixth, in matters
of Biblical interpretation, Bible-believing Baptists should practice the
literal method, understanding the words of Scripture in their normal
sense-i.e., the meaning the Biblical authors intended in their original
context. Theonomists want to interpret the Law of Moses quite literally for
today but, inconsistently, they do not do so with the prophetic literature of
the Bible with its distinction between the church and Israel and its testimony
to the coming Kingdom of God, where Christ will literally reign over the earth
from David's throne (Luke 1:32, 33). In the same vein, theonomists adopt a
method of prophetic interpretation (preterism) that says that the majority of
Bible prophecy has been fulfilled already in the first century, especially with
the destruction of Jerusalem and the dissolution
of Israel
as a Jewish state in ad 70. This
widely discredited method, among other things, destroys the unconditional
promises of the Abrahamic Covenant (Gen. 13:14-17; 15:12-21; 17:7, 8; Micah
7:18-20) and Davidic Covenant (2 Sam. 7:8-16; 23:1-5; 2 Chron. 13:5; Ps.
89:20-37), which guarantee a distinct place of favor nationally for restored
Israel in the future Kingdom of the Messiah.
Rolland McCune is professor of systematic
theology at Detroit
Baptist Theological Seminary.
* This is not to
say that the OT Law and its commandments are not relevant today, with
dispensational changes considered, of course, since we are "not under the law
but under grace." According Colossians 2 the Law has been abolished. As given
in the OT and for purposes that related to Israel, it is no longer in force;
it has been nailed to the cross. Galatians 3, in my view, does not teach nor
warrant using the Law of Moses evangelistically today except as it
depicts/demonstrates/illustrates that "all have sinned."
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