Did NT Christians appeal to secular authorities?

[Bootstrap]

I see nothing wrong with appealing to the government, either a higher judicial court, or appealing to legislators or governors or presidents or sheriffs.

I agree. But there is always a danger: it's easy to start thinking That Other Kingdom is where the real action happens, that our own Kingdom is just a footnote.

One thing though about using Paul’s example. Paul isn’t Jesus. He isn’t God and he wasn’t perfect. So I’m not comfortable with wholesale taking everything he did as license to copy it. Same thing with Peter. The fact that something they did got recorded is not at all the same thing as Paul or Peter writing that we should or shouldn’t do a given thing.

But generally, I would look favorably on their examples and accounts provided there isn’t any violation of other known scriptural teachings that show that their actions were problematic.

I agree.

[Bootstrap]

Paul appeals to the Roman authorities, but not "New Testament Christians." It's just Paul, as far as we know. And I think it's mostly this one ongoing case, he keeps getting shoved to a higher court by making appeals.

I wouldn't say he is appealing the the Roman authorities "to intervene". More like, he is appealing to them to reconsider an intervention they have already begun against him. If we see Paul's actions as an example of Christians "asking the authorities to intervene", we might be tempted to say that Christians today can "ask the government to intervene" by attacking migrants at the border or jailing women for having abortions or shutting down speakers because we don't like what they have to say.

Paul isn't asking Rome to intervene in a situation. They are already intervening. He is appealing to an higher court for them to reconsider their intervention.

I am very comfortable with Christians asking the government to protect the vulnerable, including protecting unborn babies and refugees. Whether by speaking directly with officials or by voting.

But I also see real dangers in this. It's easy to think That Other Kingdom is the one that really counts and get all caught up in political campaigns. It's hard to keep our focus on what we, as Christians in our own Kingdom, should be doing for refugees and unborn babies and other vulnerable people.

So I think discernment is always called for.

[JohnHurt]

The other question is whether a Christian should vote or serve on a jury.

Christ said that we are the salt of the world to preserve what is good, otherwise we should be cast on the dunghill. Matt 5:13

Christ said that we are the light of this dark world, and we must let our light shine before men for this reason:

Matthew 5:(16) Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

When we separate ourselves from this world to live in a separate kingdom, our lights are put under a bushel, and we do not glorify the Father.

The only way the early Christians could be martyred or persecuted for Christ was by being present in the world, and boldly standing for the cause of Christ. Is our separation from the world the reason there are no Christian martyrs today?

So is voting for a candidate, or casting your votes on a jury, are these activities not Christian?

The only example I know is that the apostles voted, or cast lots and prayed, to select Matthais as the 12th Apostle. (Acts 1:26).

When I imagine a world where Christians do not vote or sit on a jury, I see a world far worse than what we have today.

When I imagine a world where the non-Christians for some reason do not vote or sit on a jury, it would definitely be an improvement.

Just one Christian, sitting on a jury and saying "no", can stop a horrible misuse of justice.