In our current political climate, many Christians seem to be conflating Christianity with conservatism and many conservatives are claiming to be Christians without ever having been truly born again. While I understand that many Christians will hold to conservative views because of the principles outlined in scripture, simply identifying as conservative does not make one a Bible-believing Christian.

I harken back to a Twitter post by a prominent Bible-believing Pastor who declared that he was excited about Larry Elder’s decision for Christ. Though repeatedly asked for clarification of his vague comment, he has yet to give any public answer clarifying his public declaration. To me, this is the epitome of conflating Christianity with conservatism. While I understand that both conservatives and Christians in California would prefer Larry Elder over Gavin Newsom for governor, a line is crossed when pastors pussyfoot around with politicians, cede the pulpits to them, and then declare to the world some vague undefined decision for Christ.

Do not get me wrong on this issue: I like Larry Elder. For most part, I agree with his conservative views and would vote for him if he ever continues his political career. But I would not be supportive of my pastor inviting him to the pulpit of my church, or declaring him saved without a public declaration from Larry Elder himself, acknowledging that he has received Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. Even if Larry Elder were saved at that point, he would still need discipleship and is grossly unqualified for any leadership or influential position in any church.

I also harken back to an interview of Ben Shapiro by Joe Rogan on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast. Here is a transcript of a section of that interview:

Now, do not misunderstand me here: I agree with a lot of Ben Shapiro’s politics. However, he identifies as an Orthodox Jew, and his views about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ are not only incorrect, but also blasphemous. He is also wrong about the the account of Moses’ parting the Red Sea, a belief held by both Jews and Christians.

Here are four areas where Biblical Christianity oppose Conservatism:

1. Conservatism says you are good based on your actions while true Biblical Christianity says we are all bad and cannot be good (no righteousness of our own) outside of Christ. Romans 3:10, Romans 3:23, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Ecclesiastes 7:20.
2. Conservatism says we can make our world a better place by having and preserving our values, practices, and norms while true Biblical Christianity says the world can only be made a better place through the gospel of Jesus Christ. John 10:10, Ephesians 2:8-10, Titus 3:5, Isaiah 64:6, John 3:16, Matthew 15:8.
3. Conservatism looks to men (politicians) to fix the world’s problems while true Biblical Christianity says only God can fix this broken world. Psalms 118:8,9, Philippians 1:12, John 10:10, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Isaiah 53:5, Acts 4:12, 2 Peter 3:9.
4. Though societal changes happen slowly, conservative beliefs are still changed by the pull and twist of culture and society while true Biblical Christianity is grounded on God’s word which never changes. Malachi 3:6, 2 Peter 1:19, Psalms 138:2, 2 Timothy 3:16, Psalms 119:105, Hebrews 4:12.

Politics are important, and I praise the Lord because we live in a country where we have the constitutional right to vote for our representatives. But I also think there should be clear delineation between our politics and our faith. We should be clear about what politics can and cannot do for the cause of Christ and look to God rather than to men for the answers to our world’s problems. When we blur the line between our politics and our faith, conflating our Christianity with conservatism, we not only cheapen Christ’s death on the cross, but we also risk lost souls dying and going to hell, thinking they are saved.

Check out the RBP episode addressing this matter.