Toward A Kingdom-Based Foreign Policy – 5

The second principle of a Kingdom-based foreign policy is to follow the order of favor.

A Kingdom-based foreign policy should favor Christian nations over all others, secular nations over non-Christian nations, and religiously non-hostile (toward Christianity) nations over religiously hostile (toward Christianity) nations.

When Jehu the prophet confronted King Jehoshaphat after he had aligned his nation with King Ahab of Israel he could not have been more clear, “Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord and so bring wrath on yourself from the Lord?” 2 Chronicles 19:2.

The order of favor is based on the premise that a peoples’ worldview will always be informed by their most deeply held religious beliefs. Christian and non-Muslim nations, for example, will never have peace with fundamentalist Muslim nations because Islam seeks world domination.

There is a much better chance for a Christian nation to have peace with a nation like Turkey, which is culturally Muslim but for all practical purposes is secular. There is an even better chance of peace with a secular nation that believes in pluralism because Christianity does well in the marketplace of ideas.

But Iran, for example, under its current Muslim government, will never allow Christian missionaries inside their borders, much less permit them to preach the gospel. And Christian nations will never be at peace for long with a nation like Iran whose worldview is driven so strongly by its anti-Christian religion.

Christians should also recognize that this same principle applies to Israel. For the last 2,000 years, Christians and Jews have not been the best of friends. The change over the last 60 years has been more political than spiritual and is merely a marriage of convenience for a season. Christians should realize Jews believe Christianity is a cult and a perversion of Judaism. As a result, in Israel Christians are horribly persecuted by orthodox Jews.

Secular Jews have less of a problem with Christians not because they care more about Christians but because they care less about Judaism. The same is true for secular Muslims.

Keep in mind that these are general rules. Every rule has exceptions, but the general rule is a good one because it recognizes that you can never be truly at peace or in alliance with a nation that believes it’s their God-given destiny to rule over you. It also recognizes the importance of worldview and culture and the error of assuming every nation is guided by Western liberal principles and a desire for pluralism and democracy.

The order of favor posits that a peaceful world is most likely if all nations are predominately Christian, less likely if other nations are secular, even less likely if they are predominately of religions not hostile to Christianity and least likely if predominately of anti-Christian religions like Islam.

Consequently, to advance the vision of a world where nations will beat their swords into plowshares, a Kingdom-based foreign policy favors and encourages relations with those nations in this order of favor.

The next post will address the third principle of a Kingdom-based foreign policy. GS

Leave a Reply