“Blessed is the nation whose God is YHWH”
Psalm 33:12
“Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the Prince of the kings of the earth”
Revelation 1:5
“Yea, all kings shall fall down before him: all nations shall serve Hm.”
Psalm 72:11
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The Biblical & Westminster Standards (1646) view
1. The Civil Magistrate has Authority around Spiritual Things (Circa Sacra)
The preferred term for the Reformation and puritan era’s teaching on the Church-State relationship, derived from the Word of God in accord with the light of Nature, was circa sacra, meaning that the magistrate has authority, not in, but ‘around the sacred aspects’ of religion and the Church.
Church and State are distinct and have separate jurisdictions. The State is to uphold and enforce God’s Moral Law (known from the Light of Nature and Scripture), the Ten Commandments.
While the civil government does not have formal authority over religion and the Church, as Christ is her only Head, yet the magistrate does have civil authority over religion and the material Church in legitimate civil matters that pertain equally in principle to civil society.
While the True Religion must not be spread by the sword, yet it may be civilly confirmed where it is present. As all people are to seek first the Kingdom of God with the natural power they have (Mt. 6:33), so likewise the civil government ought to use its natural, God-given, civil power (within it proper limits) for the good of Christ’s Kingdom, the Church (Isa. 49:23; 60:10,12,16), including in civilly professing, protecting and promoting the True Religion, and civilly establishing it in the land.
In addition, the State (as all authorities) only has God-given authority for what is true, upright and good, and none for error or destruction. That is, it has no God-given power for establishing false religion.
Where a nation is professingly Christian, and the memberships of the Church and State overlap, both authorities are mutually, materially subordinate to each other with respect to the nature of their power. The Church is under the State in civil things and the Christian State is under Church power in spiritual things.
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Other Views
2. The Establishment Principle
This view, coming to fruition in the 1800’s, was a later reduction of the Reformation’s view of circa sacra.
The State is to uphold both tables of the Ten Commandments and is to profess, protect, promote and civilly establish the True Religion.
Church and State are distinct, have separate jurisdictions and are co-ordinate (on an equal level), both to be governed by the Word of God. But where their memberships and jurisdictions overlap, Church government and Civil government were held (by their theologians) not to be mutually, materially subordinate to each other in their respective spheres. See further: ‘How Circa Sacra is Different than the Later Establishment Principle’.
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3. Voluntaryism
This is the de facto current view of America. Church and State are entirely separate. The State views the Church as a voluntary society, just like the Rotary Club or Boy Scouts. In its contemporary manifestation the State is generally held not to be accountable to God’s Moral Law or Word and most any and all churches and religions are civilly tolerated by the State.
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4. Erastianism
The State is over the Church, Church government and sacred things. This has been the view of the Anglican Church of England and is historically associated with the 1600′s notion of the divine right of kings.
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The Church is over the State in civil things. This has been the view of much of Roman Catholicism.
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“For the nation and kingdom that will not serve Thee shall perish… Thou [the Church] shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings”
Isa. 60:12,16
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Related Pages