Episode 9: Oh, SNAP!

In the ninth episode of “Men Who Understood the Times,” we discuss the SNAP program and the 42 million people (roughly one in eight U.S. residents) who are without federal aid because of the federal government shutdown. We deliberate the benefits that come from the government wanting to help those who are in need. We also consider the problems where government is creating a large portion of the population who have become dependent upon them to meet their needs. A government that can feed you can also starve you. It makes the populace dependent and compliable. It makes the government like a god. This is what Scripture says the beast out of the sea will do (Rev 13:1-10).

We then examine solutions to the problems of government aid. Churches and Christians have allowed the government to take care of the poor and needy, the widows and the orphaned. Nowhere in Scripture does God say this is the role of the government. Instead, throughout Scripture, God says this is the vocation of the citizens of his Kingdom (Prov 19:17; Mt 25:35-40, Lk 3:11, Gal 6:9-10, James 1:27, 2:15-17, 1 John 3:16-18). What can we as Christians and churches do to take back this vocation from the government, so that we can fulfilling our calling?