Purity Spirals & Biblical Boundaries
Do you believe the truth about the world, or are you compromised?
This question is asked in a myriad of ways from every direction. If you took the vax, you’re a sheep; if you didn’t, you want people to die. If you’re MAGA, you’re not a true conservative; if you’re a Republican, then you aren’t mapping reality as it actually is. “All of you are fools for not seeing the world as I do!”
This is the world we live in, a world of chaos that threatens to destroy coalitions not from the outside but from within. But what is really happening, and what boundaries are actually biblical?
Let me start with what I mean by biblical boundaries. I’m a Baptist. SBC born and raised. But I’m joyfully in fellowship with Presbyterians, Charismatics, Non-denominational, IFB, and any number of people from other denominations. We disagree on important and significant things: baptism, church governance, spiritual gifts, and many more minutiae as well. But we share essential orthodoxy. The Trinity, the authority of Scripture, and salvation through Christ alone are all important and agreed upon. Within those boundaries, there’s room for genuine disagreement and true partnership.
Politics should work in a similar way. Scripture does, after all, establish clear commands for all of life. Even so, it leaves many prudential questions to wisdom and conscience. We cannot make coalition litmus tests out of questions Scripture doesn’t settle. That is simply a purity spiral waiting to happen.
Let me give you an example of a purity spiral that most everyone can agree was ridiculous. Defund the Police. The movement started with something many people could support: prison reform. But those of us who were paying special attention saw what was happening. The woke-warriors shifted the goalposts. “Abolish the police!” they demanded. “You’re a fascist who wants a dictatorship if you disagree!” The window became so narrow that no discourse was welcome.
And now? Conservatives are doing the same thing to ourselves.
Trump took advantage of the shrinking of the democrat coalition to win in 2024. But now, if you support the strikes on Iran, you’re a warmonger. If you question sending aid to Israel, you’re antisemitic. If you didn’t oppose the COVID vaccine, you’re controlled opposition. If you question election results, you’re a conspiracy theorist. If you don’t question them, you’re blind to reality.
This is how purity spirals work. Two sides of a potential alliance, each try to gain authority by claiming moral superiority. Neither side wins in the end. Instead, the coalition fractures and we all become weaker.
I think something important is happening right now, and we’re being used like pawns. Three months after Charlie Kirk’s death, people are still fighting for control of the coalition he built. This is exactly what his killer and all who support him want.
We must have strong alliances if the conservative movement is going to win. For us to proclaim that Christ is King of America, we need coalitions that can actually get the work done. But purity spirals make that impossible.
So what are the actual biblical boundaries?
Well to start, we cannot kick people out of our churches because they think that the moon landing isn’t real, that the COVID vaccine is actually effective, or even if they believe the numbers were fudged in WWII. None of those are biblical reasons for discipline.
But politics are different, right? So should we be more strict in politics than in religion? I don’t think so. In church, we’re pursuing theological truth and spiritual formation. In politics, we’re building coalitions for cultural change. Different purposes require different boundaries and if anything, political coalitions should have broader boundaries than church membership and fellowship, not narrower ones. Politics is less imporant than religion after all.
So what are the proper political bounds? I want a Christian nation with freedom of conscience and federalist framing. So to anyone who wants to make America better... within those bounds, I say welcome.
The question cannot be “Do you agree with me on every issue?” The question must be “Are you building a nation that aligns with a generally orthodox Christian nation?”
Debate is good. Iron sharpens iron. And once we win I say we can file down some edges. But we cannot let debate before victory turn into purity spirals that fracture the coalition and leave us vulnerable.
Will you work to build coalitions with those who share our essential goals, even when we disagree on tactics and strategy? Will you distinguish between biblical boundaries, personal preferences, and political propriety? I know I’m gonna do my best.
God bless.
I love you all, and Happy New Year.