Can Christians Protest? If We Obey God’s Righteousness, Yes We Can
Word-of-the-Day: ‘<God said to Israel through a vision of Isaiah,> “Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed <or correct the oppressor>. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.”’ (Isaiah 1:17); ‘<God said to Israel through Amos,> “(23) Away with the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps. (24) But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!”’ (Amos 5:23-24)
In our society today, we have many protests over many things; political issues such as Federal immigration enforcement, the protection of natural resources such as oil drilling in Alaska or whale hunting in the northern oceans, and the occasional labor strike as workers walk a picket line to voice their demands. The US Constitution protects the freedom of speech, and that includes the right to peacefully protest and voice opposition (or approval) on any issue a citizen believes their opinion needs to be heard.
Some protests are righteous in nature; the Civil Rights marches led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in the early 1960s were done to protest unequal treatment of blacks, or Americans of African descent, in society and in particular the southern and formerly Confederate states where slavery was most applied. The protests led to the Civil Rights Act and equal treatment in society under the law of the land. Often local protests are formed to stop or intervene a government action or policy that many would deem harmful to their community.
For Christians, we promote, often through protesting, the peaceful resistance toward abortion. Some will peacefully, legally, and respectfully gather on public grounds (such as sidewalks) to pray and to encourage women who are going into the abortion clinic to have a change of heart and reject the societal ‘right to choose’ and instead choose the Godly ‘right to life’ for the unborn child they carry.
In Isaiah 1:17, God implores us to ‘do right’ and ‘seek justice’, There are those who are defenseless, so it is Righteous to defend them; to help those who are helpless and to provide for those in need. These can be done individually or in the public forum as a form of peaceful and Righteous assembly with fellow Believers. One can even apply this to ‘ringing the bell’ at Christmas time for the Salvation Army’s collection efforts; when you are in public ringing the bell you are promoting ‘peace on Earth’ and ‘goodwill toward men’.
When protests become unlawful, or are demonstrations meant to harass, harm or impede others who you do not disagree with, it is not Godly of the protestors and goes against His will. The context of Amos 5:23-24 is a ‘woe’ to those who do wrong and call it right, or those who proclaim God is approving of their actions when they are antithetical to God’s Word. Verse 23 states God wants nothing to do with that which goes against His Word or against His precepts – it is static, and not worthy of His attention.
Protests as we see in Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, as an example, goes against God’s Word as it is interfering with the instruments of government He has placed over us, and their attempts to maintain order and the integrity of the nation for its citizens. It is especially evil of them to disrupt a church service in the name of ‘protest’. Protests such as these, holding up unrighteous values that go against God’s Word are wrong, and double down on being wrong when becoming violent and destructive, or interfering with others who do not want to participate.
A protest can be against a government when that government crosses the line to interfere with God’s sovereignty above it and His people, and a protest is wrong when it crosses that same line. Unjust laws must be stood up to and fought against, but that fight must be done Righteously and under Godly actions. A protest can be held but it must respect the rights of all people, not just those who hold the same opinion. Isaiah 1:17 and Amos 5:24 both hold that justice and righteousness need to be upheld, standing up for those oppressed or disadvantaged, but they must be upheld using His principles, else they will fall short.
People have the right to voice their opinion, and hold public rallies to garner support of that opinion, even if we disagree with that opinion. Civility and discourse are necessary to have a functional society, and it is Godly to believe that His principles will always win over those who disagree with Him. When either side become belligerent or violent, and disrespects the other, then it goes against how God wants us to act and perform as His representatives. Seek His Justice and His Ways first.
