What is
the Gospel&
Politics?
Christians are Kingdom of Heaven people (Matthew), meaning that we are exiles, strangers, and foreigners in our land of residence (1 Peter).
But how should an exile, stranger, or foreigner relate to his or her current country of residence? Should Christians be involved in the political sphere at all if we’re seeking things above? How do deal with the complexities of voting, issues, and partisanship in America? These can be difficult questions.During The Gospel & Politics we will explore what it means for Christians to have a biblical public witness by looking to Scripture, the early church, and today’s culture.
To be clear, WE ARE NOT going to tell you how to vote, what candidate is the right one, or what our stance is on certain issues. We will give you some indirect help on those things. But we know that the best thing we can do is to establish strong churches who proclaim the gospel of Christ that transcends any earthly party or politician.
Our primary political witness will be to a kingdom that cannot be shaken (Hebrews).
Speaker
Dr. Patrick Schreiner
We have invited Dr. Patrick Schreiner to join us for a Saturday morning conference on July 20, 2024 to help us navigate these waters. Dr. Schreiner is the Director of the Residency PhD program and Associate Professor of New Testament and Biblical Theology at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He previously taught at Western Seminary in Portland Oregon, and he received his Ph.D. in New Testament from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
He is the author of a number of books, including a commentary on Acts, one on The Ascension of Christ, several on Matthew. His most recent book is on political discipleship and is entitled Political Gospel.
Dr. Schreiner has written for The Gospel Coalition, Christianity Today, and 9 Marks. He previously hosted a podcast with Western Seminary called Food Trucks in Babylon. He serves as an elder at Emmaus Church in North Kansas City and previously served as an elder in Portland. He is married to Hannah and they have four children.
Additional Resources
Christians are constantly being accused of being too political or not political enough.
Often, the accusations are fair. Christians tend to get stuck in one of two political ditches: we either privatize our faith or make it partisan. We think religion and politics should be separate and never intermingle, or we align so tightly with a political party that we conflate the gospel with a human agenda.
In Political Gospel, Patrick Schreiner argues Christianity not only has political implications but is itself a politic. The gospel at its very core is political––Jesus declared Himself to be King. But He does not allow you to put Him in your political box.
In a supercharged political climate, Political Gospel explores what it means for Christians to have a biblical public witness by looking to Scripture, the early church, and today. Should we submit to governing authorities or subvert them? Are we to view them as agents of the dark forces or entities that promote order? In these pages, we’ll see that Christians live in a paradox, and we’ll see how to follow Christ our King right into the political craziness of our day.