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The Social Agenda of the Bush Administration

The Bible-believing Christian must boldly, loudly and unashamedly insist that the social agenda of the newly re-elected Bush administration be founded on the written Word of God. Why?

  • Joe Morecraft, III
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The Bible-believing Christian must boldly, loudly and unashamedly insist that the social agenda of the newly re-elected Bush administration be founded on the written Word of God. Why? The answer is to be found in the book of Proverbs:

Those who forsake the Law praise the wicked, But those who keep the Law strive with them. Evil men do not understand justice, But those who seek the LORD understand all things. (Pr. 28:4-5)

When the righteous increase, the people rejoice, But when a wicked man rules, people groan. (Pr. 29:2)

Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained, But happy is he who keeps the Law. (Pr. 29:18)

When the civil magistrate or the voters forsake God’s law revealed in the Bible, they will praise wicked politicians, legislation, and policies; but when the civil magistrate obeys God’s law, he will protect the citizenry by working against the lawless and the criminal. When leaders increase who seek to bring themselves and their policies into conformity with God’s revealed law, the citizenry will rejoice in liberty, justice, prosperity, and security; but when political leaders try to govern without or in opposition to God’s law, the people groan under tyranny. Where the revelation of God does not govern those who govern, the people are unrestrained and ungovernable.

The Principles of Christian Politics

In Romans 13:1-7 we are presented with three fundamental principles of Christian politics: the origin of civil government, the function of civil government, and the powers of civil government. It originates with God. Its function is to protect the law-abiding by terrorizing evildoers. Its powers are the power of a minister of God, the power of the sword of taxation. Each of these ideas must be defined Biblically and applied consistently.

Because the origin of civil government is Almighty God and since all civil governments are answerable to the source of their authority and power, President Bush is answerable to the God of the Bible in all things, and so should be more concerned with doing His will than the will of the voters. This means that his administration must at once confess publicly that the God of the Bible is the only righteous source of law, liberty, and government. It should endeavor to restrict the imperialistic role of the federal judiciary and its attempts to dechristianize America.

To do these two things, President Bush should encourage the passage of the “Constitution Restoration Act of 2004” (S.2082) that says: “…the Supreme Court shall not have jurisdiction to review, by appeal, writ of certiorari, or otherwise, any matter to the extent that relief is sought against an element of Federal, State or local government, or against an officer of Federal, State or local government (whether or not acting in official personal capacity), by reason of that element’s or officer’s acknowledgement of God as the sovereign source of law, liberty or government.” He should make every effort to rein in all branches of civil government to their specified powers and functions spelled out in the U. S. Constitution according to the original intent of its authors.

The Bush administration should work to dismantle all federal bureaucracies, cabinet positions, policies and legislation not in accord with limited constitutional government based on the Word of God, especially those in the areas of health, education, welfare, and human and natural resources. The President must make clear that, under his administration, the civil government will no longer usurp powers and jurisdiction not given it by the U.S. Constitution and that he will give the Tenth Amendment its fullest application — The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Godly Terrorists

Second, since God gives the civil government the singular function of protecting law-abiding citizens by terrorizing criminals and criminal behavior, it should multiply its efforts to defend the most defenseless of our citizens, the unborn. The President should take immediate steps to outlaw abortion as a capital crime. Any laws prohibiting abortion should have teeth and should be diligently enforced. He should appoint to the federal judiciary only those judges who are pro-life and who will be champions of God’s law, because judges who are not are hatchet men for the humanistic status quo.

Third, since the power of the civil government is that of a minister of God (Rom. 13:4), with the authority only to pass and enforce laws based on the law of God in the Bible, the Bush administration should pass no laws and make no regulations that are not rooted in the Law of God contained in Holy Scripture. Since God views a culture that condones homosexuality as morally bankrupt and under His judgment (Rom. 1:26f), the Bush administration must work hard to discourage and outlaw homosexual behavior, along with same-sex marriages.

Fourth, since the power of the civil government includes the power of the sword, it must bring swift, severe and just retribution against convicted criminals. It must see itself neither as an agent of social change nor as a marriage and family counselor, but as the administrator of justice and only justice (Dt. 16:20). It must be blind to race, wealth, economic status or gender. All people must stand equally before the law.

Furthermore, since “crime in most cases is to be dealt with by state and local governments, to the degree that the federal government, in its legislation, in its judicial actions, in its regulations, and in its Executive Branch activities, interferes with the ability of the people in their communities to apprehend, judge, and penalize accused lawbreakers, it bears responsibility for the climate of crime which has grown more destructive with each passing year. [He should] favor the unimpeded right of states and localities to execute criminals convicted of capital crimes and to require restitution for the victims of criminals who have not threatened the lives or physical safety of others. Federal interference with local criminal justice processes should be limited to that which is constitutionally required” (U. S. Taxpayers 1992 Platform).

The power of the sword should also be swiftly, justly and severely used in defense against all terrorists or nations that injure or threaten to injure American citizens. The commander-in-chief should commit himself never to place American soldiers in harm’s way for political reasons, nor for any purpose other than the defense of the life and welfare of citizens of the United States; nor should he place the American military under the authority of the United Nations or allow it to be answerable to any international court.

Godly Tax Reform

Fifth, since the power of the civil government includes the power to tax, the new administration must make sure that all the taxes that are levied on American citizens are Biblical. It should seek to abolish income taxes, property taxes, corporation taxes, sales taxes, capital gains taxes, value-added taxes, and any other tax that is detrimental to Americans, their families or their businesses. This means the establishment of a head tax that would require all Americans to pay the same, small amount necessary for the civil government to carry out its one task of the administration of justice (Rom. 13:6; Ex. 30:11-16).

Sixth, without being intimidated by false and unhistorical misinterpretations of the First Amendment that call for the secularization of the civil government of the United States, the President should publicly covenant with God and the people to govern solely in terms of God’s revealed law and publicly pledge his allegiance to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Ruler of the kings of the earth (Rev. 1:5), the King of kings and Lord of lords (Rev. 19:16). Why? The answer is found in Psalm 2:10-12:

Now therefore, O kings, show discernment; Take warning, O judges of the earth. Worship the LORD with reverence, And rejoice with trembling. Do homage to the Son, lest He become angry, And you perish in the way, For His wrath may soon be kindled. How blessed are all who take refuge in Him!


  • Joe Morecraft, III

Dr. Joseph C. Morecraft, III, is a preacher of the gospel and a noted lecturer on contemporary political and historical trends in the United States and world at large. He is the founding pastor of Chalcedon Presbyterian Church (RPCUS) located near Atlanta, Georgia. He is married to the former Rebecca Belcher of Haysi, Virginia, who is a writer and an accomplished singer. They have four children and two grand-daughters.

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