Oh,
Religious is Religious, and Secular is Secular, and never the twain shall meet. That sentence is
an altered form of a line from a Rudyard Kipling poem, and it correctly
expresses the general sentiment in our nation concerning religion. The idea is that religion is to be carefully
culled out of all other parts of life and is to be kept in a category of its
own. Religious ideas and motivations are
not to be expressed in the secular realm for fear that they might infringe on
politics, business, science, education, or some other area that has been deemed
to be the strict territory of secularism.
Religion is thought to be incompatible with secular things, and
therefore the two must never be mingled together.
However,
the Bible does not speak of such categorical separation between the religious
parts of our lives and the secular parts.
Religion, which pertains to beliefs about God, and secularism, which
pertains to temporal things (from the Latin word sēculāris, meaning a period time rather than eternal) are not
opposite or exclusive concepts in the Bible.
Instead, the Bible teaches Christians to practice their religion in such
a way that it envelops every part of their lives, including the secular or temporal. This is precisely what James indicated when
he wrote,
If anyone thinks
himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his
own heart, this man's religion is worthless.
Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this:
to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by
the world (Jas. 1:26-27).
These words warn those who consider
religion to be nothing more than a practice of ceremonial worship or a state of
mind. Such a practice of religion is
worthless, for God expects His worshipers to be completely transformed into
living sacrifices (Rom. 12:1-2). Faith
without works is dead (Jas. 2:14-26), so a Christian's faith must be manifested
through more than mere ceremony or thoughts.
True Christianity is a full-time religion that governs and transforms
every part of a Christian's life without exception.
The idea of secularism and its
separation from religion has been propagated not by the Bible or by Christians
but by humanists. The American Humanist
Association (AHA) defines humanism as "a progressive philosophy of life that, without theism and other supernatural
beliefs, affirms our ability and responsibility to lead ethical lives of
personal fulfillment that aspire to the greater good of humanity" (emphasis
added). This stated mission of humanists
is impossible, for ethical lives and the greater good of humanity cannot be
achieved "without theism and other supernatural beliefs" (see Acts 17:24-28;
Rom. 2:14-16). Despite such futility,
humanists want to eliminate the influence of religion, and they have been very
successful in their efforts. Through the
public schools, which were designed by the humanist John Dewey, and the false application
of "separation of church and state," humanists have done much to marginalize
Christianity and remove it from the public discourse.
Christians must resist the godless
influences of humanism and abide by the Scriptures' directions in all things
both religious and secular. Indeed,
there is no area of life where the word of God does not guide or the authority
of Christ does not govern. The Lord
Jesus indicated this when He said, "All authority has been given to Me in
heaven and on earth" (Matt. 28:18). The
broad application of Christ's authority is expressed in a practical way in
Colossians 3:17, which says, "Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the
name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father." This commandment leaves no place for
exceptions and implies no division between religious things and secular things. Whether the issue is government (Rom. 13:1-7;
1Pet. 2:13-16), occupation (Eph. 6:5-9; Col. 3:22-25), education (Deut. 6:4-9;
Eph. 6:4; 2Tim. 3:14-17), science (Ps. 19:1-6; 111:2; Col. 2:8-10), family (Eph.
5:22-6:4; Col. 3:18-21), entertainment (Ps. 101:3; Prov. 10:23), the church
(Eph. 1:22-23), or anything else, Christ has authority over all, and all must
be done in compliance with His will.
Therefore, let us not be taken in by the
false notion that religion and secularism must be kept forever separate. This is a doctrine of humanism and the world,
but it is not found in the word of God. Instead,
the religion of Jesus Christ teaches Christians to live for Christ, work for
Christ, marry for Christ, raise children for Christ, teach for Christ, be
educated for Christ, and do everything else for Christ. "For all of you who were baptized into Christ
have clothed yourselves with Christ" (Gal. 3:27). Christ is not a set of clothes to wear in
some places and take off in others, but rather Christ is to be worn at all
times. May the Lord Jesus adorn us
always.
