Q.59 Christians, the Law and Privately held beliefs

In this response to the 100 questions, the full objection here is, “Christians keep trying to use the law to impose their privately held beliefs on other people.”

Apparently this questioner believes it is only Christians who use the law to impose their privately held beliefs on other people. If this questioner truly believes that, then it shows a striking level of naievité and lack of awareness of how often the law is used to impose privately held beliefs on other people. So let me break it to the questioner gently:

Most, if not all laws that are imposed, are imposed by one group of people trying to use the law to impose their privately held beliefs on other people.

How many examples will be sufficient to make this point obvious? When I attended school, to support a point in a paper, it was taught that at least three examples or supporting evidences should be supplied. When the disciple Peter asked Jesus how many times he should forgive someone (Matt 18.21), the answer given by the rabbis at the time was three.[1] Peter generously doubled it and added one—though that was far short of the way it is done in the Kingdom, where forgiveness is given whenever needed (the essence of verse 22). But since this is not a matter of forgiveness, but a demonstration of a point, Peter’s approach of seven, in this case examples, will be sufficient to show how common it is that one group uses the law to impose personal beliefs on another group.

A few of the many privately held non-Christian Beliefs that have been forced on all, including Christians:

1. The (unconstitutional) Separation of Church and State
Though many people have pointed it out, many others are still surprised to learn that the phrase “separation of church and state” does not appear in the U.S. constitution. The “establishment” clause of the first amendment was not meant to keep the church and state separate. Rather, as Jefferson pointed out to the Danbury Baptist Association in 1802 in a letter, the “wall of separation” he referred to in his letter was to keep the government out of the church, not the church out of the government.[2] But those who rejected Christianity due to their private beliefs, and wanted to decrease the impact of the church, perverted the intention of both the constitution and Thomas Jefferson to make people believe the constitution requires a “wall of separation” between church and state when in fact it does not.

2. The removal of the Ten Commandments from the public schools.
Though there’s a movement to get them back in the class room [3], the Ten Commandments have long been banned from schools, as has school prayer. These prohibitions are part of a concerted effort to remove God from the classroom.

3. Creation cannot be taught in schools
Most are aware of the Scopes “Monkey Trial”, but that trial focused on evolution and was just the beginning of efforts to remove Christian teaching (which would include Creation) from schools. The final blow that outlawed teaching creation in school was the Edwards v. Aguillard case in 1987. This was followed by outlawing the teaching of Intelligent Design in schools in the 2005 with the Kitzmiller et al. v. Dover [4] case.

4. Roe Vs. Wade: Abortion. (The legalized killing of babies.)
This 1973 ruling is so widely known I won’t bother with links for it. The fact that the Supreme court kicked it back to the states [5] did not make it illegal throughout the country. The high court simply removed the federal allowance of it and left it for the individual states to decide for themselves.

5. The corruption of Marriage to allow gMarriage
The supreme court in its ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) has corrupted marriage to allow same sex couples to legalize a union which has been called “marriage”, but is better called gMarriage [6] (the g is silent) which is the U.S. government’s redefinition of marriage. This is against the belief systems of every major religion (Christianity, Judaism, Islam), yet it has been imposed on every person in the United States.

6. Attempts at making Sharia Law Legally binding
Islam is a religion of satan[7] (one of many) and so predictably includes immoral practices such as honor killings [8] and the perverse belief that there is no problem, issue or sin with Muslim men raping “infidel” (non-muslim) women.[9] Attempts at making Islamic or Sharia law the law of the land are ongoing, as muslims, attempting to bring about a world wide caliphate, are working hard to make the immoral dictates of Sharia law the law of the land.[10]

7. Vaccine mandates
Many people, Christian and non-Christian alike, were suspicious of the mRNA experimental vaccines when they were released, questioning their effectiveness, safeness, and the  draconian measures used to try to gain adoption and get people to take it. That did not stop the government from mandating the Covid-19 mRNA vaccines, even when not desired and contra-indicated.[11]

So clearly Christians are not the only people using law to impose their privately held beliefs on other people. All groups, be they atheist, Muslim, gay, or whatever, use the force of the law to impose their personal beliefs on others. As a Christian, I don’t agree with any of the above laws, yet they are imposed upon me by those fully willing to use law to impose their privately held beliefs on me and others who disagree with them. So the question should not be, [why do] Christians keep trying to use the law to impose their personally held beliefs on other people, but, rather, why do people in general keep using the law to impose their personally held beliefs on other people?

The answer becomes simple once you ask the correct question. People keep trying to use the law to impose their personally held beliefs on other people, because they believe their personally held beliefs are the ones that are better than other beliefs and thus should be enforced using the power of the authorities. That leads to an even better question:

Which personally held beliefs are better or correct and thus should be enforced by the power of the authorities?  Now we’re getting somewhere. The real question is not really one of why do Christians (as opposed to others) do it, but why are Christian beliefs the correct ones that should be believed and enforced (as opposed to other beliefs)?

The Christian beliefs are correct and should be enforced because the morals they teach are supported by natural law, most religions and governments around the world. You need look no further than the Ten Commandments given to Moses at Mount Sinai to see this. The Ten Commands are divided into two sections. Commandments one through four deal with people relating to God. Commandments five through ten deal with people relating to people, particularly how people should treat other people. This is the moral law. Commandments five through ten are:

5. Honor your father and mother (Ex 20.12)
6. Do not murder (Ex 20.13) (The word is murder, not kill – there’s a difference)
7. Do not commit adultery (Ex 20.14)
8. Do not steal (Ex 20.15)
9. Do not bear false witness against your neighbor (Ex 20.16)
10. Do not covet anything of your neighbor’s (Ex 20.17) (that you can’t have because it’s your neighbor’s)

For example, if you pretend people are not human, as the Nazis did to the Jews, then you allow the killing of six million Jews and other undesirable groups. Pretend there’s nothing wrong with adultery and you get easy, “no fault” divorce laws. Pretend stealing is not wrong, and you get states that will not prosecute theft of property if the value is less than a certain amount. Such refusal to police and deter such immoral acts does not make it right or moral. It just demonstrates the corruption in the authorities who exist to protect the people. (Rom 13.4)

So commandments five through ten are universal (though only six through nine can be objectively enforced). Moral people do not object to them. What about commandments one through four? As the bard would say, “ay there’s the rub.” The problem starts with the introduction to the Ten Commandments where God, the true and one and only God, identifies who he is and lays down the first commandment. First, God identifies himself:

 “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. (Ex 20:2)

Who is God? God starts the Decalogue by introducing himself, by giving his personal name, which the Jews considered too holy to be spoken, so “the LORD” is substituted for his true name [12].  God further identifies himself as the one who broke the power of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, with his miracles and led the children of Israel out of the bondage they were under in the land of Egypt. (Learn more about the Exodus here.) Having introduced himself and giving us a reminder of his awesome power sufficient to overwhelm the pharaoh of Egypt (by laying waste the land of Egypt (Ex 7.14-11.9; 12.29-32) and destroying Pharaoh’s army, who were chasing the people of God (Ex 14.15-28)), what is the first instruction God gives in this list of ten?

“You shall have no other gods before me. (Ex 20:3)

So, no worshipping other gods, no following their teaching and definitely no putting any of their teachings or instructions into your legal code to enforce upon other people. Thus no honoring Muhammed, Allah, Buddah, Shiva, Vishnu, Molech (the Caananite god of child sacrifice and abortion), etc. and no support for Sharia law or any other legal codes that oppose what God has instructed. The commands following the first one only become more precise regarding how God is to be worshipped: no idols, no misusing his name and remember to worship him weekly on his day.

What does this objection, about imposing beliefs, really come down to? This objection is really about a desire to not recognize God and rather, to reject the God of the Bible. This is the same God who has identified himself and given instructions on the proper way to live. Those who reject God’s laws do not want the the God of the Bible telling them what’s good and right. Instead, such people believe the lie of the serpent, the lie of satan that you can determine for yourself what’s good and right. (Gen 3.6)

The question comes down to the same question that confronted Adam and Eve: Who are you going to believe—God or the serpent satan? Who do you think knows what’s best for you—the Creator who made you who wants you to live with him (Is 57.15) or the lying serpent who’s trying to get you to follow him into hell? (John 10.10, Matt 7.13)

Why do Christians try to use the law to impose their privately held beliefs on other people as other people do? Christians do it because the law, when correct, is a teacher. It teaches you right from wrong. When obeyed, it can lead you to the truth and a good life and point you to something even greater. The apostle Paul tells us:

“So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith.” (Gal 3:24)

What is the motive of Christians who keep trying to use the law to impose thier privately held beliefs on other people? It is to be the preservatives of society we were called to be (Matt 5.13), to preserve (some would say conserve) good society and, just as importantly, to let the law be the steward it is supposed to be to lead you to Christ. For, as the apostle Peter reminds us, God is “… not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Pe 3.9 KJV) The message of salvation is much more difficult to believe when the law, and thus right from wrong, is not recognized. So, good laws—those in accordance with what God has mandated—assist in bringing people out of darkness and into the light of Christ. This is your answer to the implied question of “why” Christians do this.

Duane Caldwell  |  May 26, 2025 | Printer friendly version
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Notes

1. “In Rabbinic discussion the consensus was that a brother might be forgiven a repeated sin three times…”
D.A Carson, “Matthew” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 8; Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984 p. 405
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2. David Barton, The Myth of Separation, Aledo, Tx:Wallbuilder Press, 1991, pp. 41-42
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3. Mat Staver “The 10 commandments are back” Liberty Counsel, Mar 25, 2023, https://lc.org/newsroom/details/230325-the-ten-commandments-are-back
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4. Ten Major Court Cases About Evolution and Creationism. NCSE, June 6, 2016,
https://ncse.ngo/ten-major-court-cases-about-evolution-and-creationism
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5. Dobbs v. Jackson, 2022; See “Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, Sends abortion back to the states” Jon Ward, Yahoo!News, June 24, 2022,
https://www.yahoo.com/news/supreme-court-repeals-roe-v-wade-sends-abortion-back-to-the-states-142310680.html
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6. Stream commentator William Briggs defines gMarriage as:
“Gmarriage is government-defined marriage, which is not actual marriage, which can only be between a man and woman”
William Briggs, “A Mild & Temporary Victory over Gmarriage”, The Stream, june 6, 2018, https://stream.org/a-mild-temporary-victory-over-gmarriage/
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7. Satan has many religions. Since the muslim “mahdi” messiah is the Antichrist, Islam can appropriately be categorized as another religion of satan.
On the Mahdi being the antichrist, See John Macarthur, “The Mahdi is the AntiChrist – Pastor John MacArthur”, YouTube, Dec 12, 2017, https://youtu.be/b-f8zDeqy-k
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8. Though Islamists say technically neither they nor the Quran support honor killings, most honor killings are committed by and condoned by muslims.
Ibn Warraq, “Honor Killing and Islam”, City Journal,Jun 20, 2018,
https://www.city-journal.org/article/honor-killing-and-islam
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9. On allowance of Muslim men raping “infidels” see:
Raymond Ibrahim, “The Muslim Man’s Sexual ‘Rights’ Over Non-Muslim Women”, 2/11/2016, https://www.raymondibrahim.com/2016/02/11/the-muslim-mans-sexual-rights-over-non-muslim-women/
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10. On attempts to legalize Sharia law in America see:
“Sharia Law In America – Sharia Law Advancing in America”
https://www.billionbibles.org/sharia/america-sharia-law.html
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11. Alexandra Benisek, “Vaccine Mandates: What to know”, WebMD, Oct 25, 2022 https://www.webmd.com/vaccines/covid-19-vaccine/vaccine-mandates
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12. God’s personal name is represented by the four charachters YHWH, and is typically vocalized as Yahweh. Jehovah is a corrupted, incorrect translation of God’s personal name written in Hebrew. As a reminder not to speak the name of God, the Masorite copiers of the Hebrew text substituted the vowels for Lord (Adonai) for the vowels that belong to God’s name. This produces an impossible to read word in Hebrew that would have been a reminder to Hebrew readers not to same the actually name, but to substitute Lord (Adonai) instead. Later translaters tried to translate God’s name, and ignored the fact (or didn’t know) that the word is an impossible word form in Hebrew.
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Banner in stone on the Supreme Court Building