Jesus the Socialist?
by Providence Crowder (providencecrowder@gmail.com)
Was Jesus a Socialist?
Many people question whether or not Jesus Christ of Nazareth promoted and supported the ideas of a socialist government. That question can be emphatically answered no. Socialism can be defined as “an economic theory or system in which the means of production, distribution, and exchange are owned by the community collectively, usually through the state. It is characterized by production for use rather than profit, by equality of individual wealth, by the absence of competitive economic activity, and, usually, by government determination of investment, prices, and production levels” (World English Dictionary). By this definition, Jesus can be said to espouse some socialist views, but he does so only within the confines of His Church, not secular government. Out of love for God and fellow man, Christ taught His followers to voluntarily and charitably give of their possessions to care for and respond to the needs of the most vulnerable in society; the sick, elderly, poor, widow, and orphan.
The visible church, the people of God, was to be a conduit for healing and deliverance through proclaiming the good news that Jesus Christ saves; a message of hope to a lost and dying world. All who acknowledged and turned from their sin, received Him and placed their trust in His name (whether rich in this world or poor) would be awarded eternal life (Jn. 1:12). Through Christ’s example, His disciples were taught that preaching the gospel of the Kingdom, the worship of God Almighty, and righteous living were to be primary focuses in this life, not accumulation of wealth or material goods. The poor were warned not to covet (Lk. 12:13-21) or be anxious about temporal hardships (Phil. 4:6), and the rich were cautioned not to trust in uncertain riches (1 Tim. 6:17) and admonished to give generously. Because of sin, the poor and the rich alike were both spiritually depraved and in need of salvation. The Church was tasked to share the gospel, while showing the same care and concern for the needs of all people as Christ did.
The Problem with Socialism
The concept of socialism in government (government sanctioned equality of outcome) is not biblical. Jesus never proposed that any secular king or government should take on the role of provider or savior. Government was established by God to punish evil and promote good (Rom. 13:1-5), and administer justice (1 Pt. 2:13-15). Its function was not to make victims of its citizens by robbing and forcing charitable acts upon the most productive in society to subsidize government prioritized charity; where its citizens were forced to succumb to that government’s definition of equity and fairness concerning one’s fortune, health, and personal sustenance; where acquiring wealth was considered criminal and immoral; where a man’s worth was measured merely by earthly standards; and where Christ was nowhere preached. 
Besides increasing poverty through minimizing economic growth and opportunity, socialism creates inequity by placing most societal resources in the hands of a few bureaucratic bandits and politicians who relegate individual freedoms. Socialism rewards failure and discourages hard work. Socialism reduces incentive and motivation and encourages mediocrity and laziness. Scripture taught just the opposite. Personal responsibility, saving, hard work, and ingenuity were encouraged throughout Scripture and laziness and idleness were rebuked. The disciples taught that every able-bodied individual was to work and contribute toward their own livelihood. The Apostle Paul warned against idleness and urged the brethren to follow his example, “In
the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, withdraw from every brother who walks disorderly and not according to the tradition which hereceived from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to follow us, for we were not disorderly among you; nor did we eat anyone’s bread free of charge, but worked with labor and toil night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, not because we do not have authority, but to make ourselves an example of how you should follow us. For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat” (2 Thess. 3:6-10).
Some proponents of socialism claim the advice such as the Apostle Paul gave to the Church at Corinth in His second epistle to them prove equality of outcome is a biblical principle that should be held by all. The Apostle stated, “
I speak not by commandment, but I am testing the sincerity of your love by the diligence of others. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich. And in this I give advice . . . For if there is first a willing mind, it is accepted according to what one has, and not according to what he does not have. For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened; but by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may supply their lack, that their abundance also may supply your lack—that there may be equality. As it is written, ‘He who gathered much had nothing left over, and he who gathered little had no lack’” (2 Cor. 8:9-13).
Essentially, Paul knew that all wealth belonged to the Lord, and men were mere stewards. His advice and challenge for believers was to emulate Christ’s selflessness in giving. People with material wealth, because of their abundance, were in a position to help others. If everyone followed Christ’s example, then men’s basic needs would be met. Jesus showed mercy to all people and He especially cared for the poor; He loved them, He rebuked them, He corrected them, He taught them, He fed them. Believers should do the same. Generosity was a principle strongly promoted throughout the Bible and the concept of giving was valued, not only so that none should lack anything, but so that money would not become their taskmaster. Those who gave charitably were considered good stewards (1 Pet. 4:9-10). Christian giving was always voluntary and
“as each has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion” (2 Cor. 9:7) unlike in socialist governments in which giving is coerced and involuntary. Biblical charity always involved choice. God also commanded men that when they gave, they were to “give generously to Him and do so without a grudging heart” (Deut. 15:10).
Wealth is Not Evil
The Bible indicated that certain believers had been entrusted with riches (Abraham, Joseph, David, Solomon, Job, etc.) and others had lived in poverty. Although Christ encouraged the idea of community and admonished believers to care for the poor, He never guaranteed any man an income, poor or otherwise, nor did He rectify inequalities in material wealth. In the book of Luke, a man from the crowd asked Christ to make his brother share his wealth with him. The man demanded, ‘“
Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.’ But Jesus said to him, ‘Man, who made Me a judge or an arbitrator over you?’ And He said to them, ‘Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses’” (Lk. 12:13-14).
There were “evil” and “good” men in Scripture who were considered rich; therefore, wealth in and of itself was not wicked. There were wicked and righteous men in Scripture who were deemed poor; therefore poverty in and of itself did not guarantee a higher degree of righteousness.
Christ rebuked men, both rich and poor; those who would make money their idol, those who suffered greed, those who coveted, and those who would seek after riches instead of seeking the kingdom. Jesus observed men’s attitudes towards money and possessions, and He addressed the very condition of their heart, which Scripture taught was deceitful and wicked (Jer. 17:9). Over and over again Jesus, through his teachings, redirected mankind away from being consumed with material possessions and the accumulation of them, because serving God and serving possessions were incompatible. Jesus said, “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money” (Matt. 6:24).
The Necessity of Evangelism
Certainly some modern Christian communities have taken to modeling after the early church at Pentecost, where the believers were said to have given all of their possessions and they held all things in common (Acts 2:44-45). This idea of a communal church in which no property was privately owned and all things were shared equally has had an appeal to some as they have reasoned, equality is fair and just. Yet, in the context of the early church, which suffered great persecution at the hands of the Roman government, community was all they had. Until the rule of fourth century Roman Emperor Constantine, Christianity was outlawed and Christians did not share in the wealth that is common for Christians today. Christians held no positions of authority, they had no political power, they did not live peacefully among other Roman citizens, and they could in no way look to their government for any type of assistance or help. Their government hated Christians and sought to kill them and drive them from the land. The earliest Christians were in no way proponents of big and powerful governments who overtaxed its citizens to “provide” for them because big government is what they had and big government resulted in more oppression and less freedom.
Because persecution was so severe in the land, these citizens voluntarily gave all they had for their common good, so that all of their brethren may both worship God AND eat. These Christians did not cling to material wealth or possessions but lived each moment not knowing if it would be their last. As the Apostle Paul has said, “For our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory. So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen; for what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Cor. 17-18). Paul understood that life was but a moment in the scope of eternity, so he set his affections not on things of this world, but heavenward.
Whether Christians today choose to live communally or not, inequality will still exist; even regenerate men struggle with sin. The early church community dealth with the effects of sin in their camp. Certain among them stole and lied (Acts 5:1-10), certain among them murmured and complained (Acts 6:1) and certain men were lazy and did not contribute their fair share. Disparities remained. Proponents of socialism declare that this is a perfect reason for government to enforce equality. Yet, they force ”equality” at the expense of freedom. These proponents miss the point. As long as sin is in the world, inequity will persist. Even Christ did not attempt to rid the world of inequality, for some men and women were highly favored (Lk. 1:28) and others were not. Christ cared for the poor in spirit above all and in addressing the physical needs of a man, that man became more receptive to God’s message of salvation and redemption. Governments, on the other hand, will steal and oppress in the name of righteousness, tyrants will abuse their citizens in the name of goodwill, all in an effort to “eliminate inequalities.”
Many societies feel the social and moral obligation to provide for those who are unable to care for themselves, and rightfully so. And even with billions of dollars being pumped into impoverished communities all over the world, poverty persists. That is why Christian evangelism is extremely essential to this lost and dying world. Were people to know God through His Son, they would soon learn that happiness isn’t contingent upon material wealth. Through the preaching and receiving of God’s Word, man’s heart and desires would be turned from self toward others, generosity would be instinctive, and the basic needs of people would be met. However, because of the perpetual selfishness and the wickedness of the ungodly, and because many in the church often fail to “remember the poor” (Gal. 2:10) in their clamor to erect buildings instead of building people, greed, vanity, and covetousness reign above charity.
To reiterate, Christ has illustrated through His Word that when people’s physical needs are met, they are much more open to receive the gospel. Were the Church to lead the world in charity and champion the cause of the sick and downtrodden, the needy would not seek the help of the government; but seek Christ to fulfill their needs. When people are in Christ, they are empowered by the Holy Spirit to live righteously, according to God’s Word. They are taught how to live responsibly and selflessly. They are taught personal responsibility. They are taught to love their neighbor. The people would not be so deceived as to elect governments to do the work that the Church was intended to do. Secular governments would have immense disapproval when they erect themselves in opposition to the Church. Nearly every socialist government has always led to the suppression of Christianity. Were the Church to proclaim the Word of the Lord all over the earth, people would not be consumed with temporal affairs but rather be taught that “man does not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matt. 4:4).
Church, Rise Up
Jesus said that “the poor you will have with you always” (Matt. 26:11); men will have many opportunities to be charitable. Regardless of such, inequality of outcome will exist if some who are able-bodied are unwilling to work. The Apostle Paul said that these men who choose not to work should not eat (2 Thess. 3:10). Inequality of outcome will exist if some have a great God given ability that others do not that can earn them success (Deut. 8:18), or some work harder than others. Inequality will exist if some are reckless in their spending, or drunkards, or gamblers. Great inequality will exist as long as the condition of man’s heart is not transformed by Christ. Therefore, although socialist governments attempt to rectify disparities within their lands, socialism falls short. It exacerbates the inequities instead of alleviates them. It fails. These governments are only successful in making its citizens substantially deprived slaves of a godless state.
Christ never condoned or advocated for such a system. Christ entrusted the moral responsibility to care for the less fortunate to His church, not the government. The rampant spread of socialism throughout the earth should cause a sleeping Church to wake up, rise and reclaim its rightful place. Preach Christ everywhere, give to those in need, and defend the faith knowing that heaven and earth will pass away, but His Word will live on forever (Lk.21:33).
by Jerome Hudson (7-10-11)
by Dr. Walter Williams
