Is Socialism Biblical?
By Scott Jones
In the previous post we observed that there is a great fascination with Socialism among young people today. In that post we also posed two questions:
Is socialism compatible with a constitutional republic?
Is socialism compatible with a Biblical worldview?
We discussed the first question in the previous post, concluding that socialism is incompatible with a constitutional republic. In this post, we examine the second question.
Jesus and the Poor
It is one of the tenets of Liberation Theology that Jesus espoused socialism, but is that supported by scripture? Certainly, Jesus spoke directly about the poor:
“’So, when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,’”[i]
“Looking at him, Jesus felt a love for him and said to him, ‘One thing you lack: go and sell all you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.’” [ii]
“For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you wish you can do good to them; but you do not always have Me.’” [iii]
“And he would answer and say to them, ‘The man who has two tunics is to share with him who has none; and he who has food is to do likewise.’” [iv]
“’But when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind…’” [v]
Clearly, Jesus cares for the poor and desires for His people to minister to their needs.
The Church and the Poor
God ordained three institutions, the Family, the Government, and the Church, and gave them distinct roles. In particular, the Church was given the duty to provide charity to the poor (not the government). The Apostle Paul provides direction about how the Church should model generosity:
“For Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem.” [vi]
“They only asked us to remember the poor—the very thing I also was eager to do.” [vii]
“Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share…”[viii]
Clearly the New Testament commands followers of Jesus to give to the poor, but notice that in every case cited, and in all other Biblical examples, giving is a moral choice. That is, the believer may choose voluntarily to give or not to give. Paul says: “Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”[ix] So, the New Testament view is that giving is not under compulsion, but should be carried out by individual moral choice, cheerfully! I know very few taxpayers who are cheerful on April 15!
Socialism is Secular Humanism
At this point, the reader should recall that when we looked previously at socialism, we saw that socialism is not about voluntary exchange or voluntary giving. In socialism the State owns all private property and the means of production. Therefore, all economic activity, including charity, must take place as directed by the government. Therefore, under socialism, or any form of collectivism, force is used to produce and to distribute material goods.
The New Testament does not say:
That the government should control all private property, including the means of production.
That the government should control the material factors of production.
That the government should force one citizen to give to another.
Indeed, the last point implies slavery, and God does not look favorably on that institution.
All forms of collectivism, socialism, Communism, fascism, etc., are manifestations of the secular humanist worldview. They do not view men and women as unique individuals created by God. Instead people are merely groups produced by a material universe through random chance and thus have no dignity or value beyond their membership in a group. Secular humanism has no provision for redemption of the individual. Groups must conform to the ideals of the philosopher kings or be eliminated.
This is a far cry from the Biblical worldview which sees men and women as individuals created by God in His image and thus worthy of value and dignity. So much so, that God sent His Son, Jesus, to die on your behalf of, to free you from the penalty of sins, so that you may enjoy eternal life with Him.
Marx on Christianity
In The Communist Manifesto, Marx himself declares that the Christian religion has no place in the Communist order. He states that first Christianity overcame all other religions, then he declares “Christian ideas succumbed in the 18th century to rationalist ideas…”[x] He goes on to explain that all past ages involved “the exploitation of one part of society by another.”[xi] He believes that all of the historical order and traditional ideas, including the Christian religion, should vanish, concluding: “They openly declare that their [the Communists’] ends can be attained only by the forcible overthrow of all existing social conditions.”[xii] Thus Marx himself, the preeminent socialist of all time, has declared that Christianity and Communism, and by extension socialism and all collectivist schemes, are incompatible.
Conclusion
So, while Jesus advocates cheerful generosity to the poor and commands His followers to give generously, He does not ordain the State to compel generosity. Indeed, it is exceedingly rare to find a cheerful giver among those compelled to give by force or by other forms of coercion. My father used to summarize this in a pithy statement: “Jesus said you should help your fellow man, and if you don’t you will answer to God. The Socialist says you will help your fellow man and if you don’t, you will answer to the State.” Finally, we see that Marx himself saw that socialism and Christianity were incompatible.
In conclusion, the socialist/collectivist worldview is compatible neither with the Biblical worldview, nor with a constitutional republic that values Liberty. By extension, charity and/or the distribution of wealth is not a proper function of government in a free society. On the other hand, this view does place a high responsibility on the Church to minister to the needs of the poor and less fortunate – through voluntary charity.
Scripture quotations taken from the NASB.
Works Cited
Marx, Karl. 1888. The Communist Manifesto. Kindle Edition.
[i] Matthew 6:2-3
[ii] Mark 10:21 (See also Matthew 19:21 and Luke 18:22)
[iii] Mark 14:7
[iv] Luke 3:11
[v] Luke 14:13
[vi] Romans 15:26
[vii] Galatians 2:10
[viii] 1 Timothy 6:18
[ix] 2 Corinthians 9:7
[x] (Marx 1888)
[xi] (Marx 1888)
[xii] (Marx 1888)
Do you want to learn more about how our government functions, and how you, as a Christian can get involved?