It is the hope of Renew Church that we can lead people to show the love of Christ so that others can know the love of Christ. To do that, we must navigate the culture of today. 

Therefore, we want to be very clear about our stand, especially since so many of those people who engaged in the insurrection and/or approved of the events leading up to the insurrection called themselves Christians. 

We condemn the violence and goals of the insurrection on January 6th. 

Jesus never condoned violence, never encouraged his followers to rise up against Rome, and never encouraged his followers to seek political power. 

We condemn the political rhetoric, conspiracy theories, and lies that led to the insurrection on January 6th.

Words matter. Whenever political debate moves to the point of personal attack, then our words have gone too far. No matter what “side” we’re on, if we have demonized an entire political party, if our whole attitude of political discourse is us against them, if everything from “our” side seems good and everything on their side seems bad,  then we have gone too far. When we excuse words that at their root are xenophobic, racist, misogynistic, or hateful because that person is on “our side”, then we have gone too far. When we accuse the other side of cheating, even when the courts have rejected those claims, and choose to continue to believe it, we have gone too far. When we are concerned that Twitter has removed the President’s power to tweet, but don’t objectively consider whether his words have led to hatred and violence, we have gone too far. 

We condemn Christian nationalism.

Christian nationalism is the merging of patriotism and Christianity. It happens when we assume being American means being Christian (and sometimes vice versa). It means that we might think being a good Christian looks like saying the pledge of Allegiance, standing for the anthem, and believing that all American ideals are Christian ideals. Christian nationalism can cause us to assume that one party or the other is the “Christian” party. It can cause us to look at the other side with contempt. We saw Christian nationalism on full display on January 6th by many who were convinced they were doing God’s work.  In a display of “patriotism”, we saw a giant cross next to a noose. We saw men with Christian flags storming the Capitol Building next to men with Confederate flags. In the midst of a scene full of chaos, threats against elected leaders,  and violence, we saw a giant “Jesus 2020” flag. Let it be clear that actions from that day in the name of “patriotism” do not reflect Christ at all.

We condemn the fact that the military response on January 6th looked so different from the military response to Black Lives Matter marches this summer.

The lack of military response to an actual attack on the Capitol Building by mostly white men compared to a large military presence and liberal use of tear gas toward mostly peaceful protests against racial injustice this summer expose something very disturbing about our nation. We must ask ourselves, how might this have all looked different if it were black men storming the capitol? Or Muslims with signs that said Allah Akbar? 

We mourn the loss of any life. 

Whether a police officer murdered by an angry mob or a domestic terrorist killed by the Secret Service protecting our elected representatives, we mourn the fact that lives were taken. God sees life as precious, and we should too. We are thankful for the police who faced a terrifying situation to protect the lives of innocent people. 

We encourage all Christians to live a life of repentance. 

This means living a life in which we are continually seeking to turn from our way to God’s way. In the face of current events, this might look like:

• Listening to others. Really listening. Without an agenda. This is a way of loving our neighbor.

• Evaluating what we’re taking in. What are we spending time doing that is affecting our thoughts and hearts? Too many Christians spend hours daily being “discipled” by cable news and political talk radio. Too many Christians immerse themselves in a social media echo chamber in which they’re hearing mostly things that they already believe, and they begin to assume that those beliefs are all right and true. Unfortunately this leads them into more and more extreme political beliefs, and all too often into believing conspiracy theories which agree with what they wish were true.

• Evaluating our thoughts and actions. When we agree with a political leader, ideology, or policy, are we asking ourselves, does this look like Jesus? Does it sound like Jesus? By aligning myself with this person or group of people, when I engage in political discourse, do I look and sound like Jesus? Are we longing for the things of Jesus and his Kingdom, or are we seeking to make our own kingdom that doesn’t really look like Jesus? Am I drawn to things that exhibit the fruit of Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control)? Am I engaging in activities and drawn to words and actions that Jesus calls blessed in the Beatitudes (those who are poor in spirit, who mourn, who are meek, who hunger and thirst for righteousness, who are merciful, who are pure in heart, who are peacemakers, who are persecuted)?