Over the last 15 years, our city, nation, and world have changed. My family moved to Washington, DC, to plant a church in 2010. Our church and our home are on Capitol Hill, right in the heart of it all. While it can be sound advice to limit exposure to the news cycle, many people in our church live it. Like the Athenians in Acts 17, our people “spend their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new.”
Our politically diverse church needs the constant reminder that the unchanging gospel of Jesus Christ is subversive in an ever-changing, polarized world. The gospel is not a tool to be leveraged for partisan ends—but putting our heads in the sand, as if we can escape the time and place God entrusted to us, does no good. Pastors and leaders must walk a tightrope: working to bring the full counsel of God’s Word to bear, and applying it to our lives and our world, while our people spend more time being discipled by sources far outside the church. There may be no more urgent message in Christian discipleship than a theology of citizenship in Christ’s Kingdom and a missiology of life as sojourners and exiles.
What does that look and sound like in practice?
Here is a letter that we sent out to our church on March 11, 2025. The letter also includes “Guidance on Protests” that we sent to the church in June 2020. It is a window into how we are working to address heated issues in light of our greater citizenship in Christ’s Kingdom.
[Original Content sent to Redemption Hill Church (RHC)]
Love & Unity in Polarized Times
Redemption Hill Church,
Things are tense right now in our city. It’s not the first time that we have faced partisan friction and deep divides in the political arena, but our current moment has challenges that are only made clearer and sharper because it is deeply personal for many in our church.
We can have good faith discussions and even robust debates about government spending, fiscal responsibility, which programs are valuable, or what the responsibilities of government ought to entail. Different people in our church will come to sharp disagreement on a variety of difficult issues and how they might be addressed. The tensions people in our church are facing are not merely partisan: they are personal. Sweeping changes, and the potential for more at both federal and local levels in DC, are having a real impact on people’s lives.
A significant number of RHC members and attenders are facing the anxiety of employment uncertainty. A number have already lost their jobs, some have been restored, others are uncertain, and many more can’t be sure whether they will be able to continue their work. That has major implications for individuals and families in our church and raises the question of how they can make it through, what the future may or may not bring, and whether they will be able to stay in DC/DMV.
There are some non-negotiables for us because of our greater citizenship in Christ’s Kingdom. As Christians, we have to remember Ephesians 4:1-3:
Walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
We have to be truthful about what is happening in our world. If we don’t speak truthfully about temporal issues and matters of this place, we can never be trusted regarding eternal issues and matters of spiritual significance. And yet, we must always have the truth and love, to be humble and gentle with one another, and to be patient and long-suffering as we bear with one another. We must not take on the tenor and toxicity of our world and the political arena, allowing it to bleed into Christ’s Church.
We are called to outdo one another in showing honor (Rom. 12:9-21). It is more important to pray for people who are struggling or suffering than it is to discern their political sensibilities. It is more important to mourn with those who mourn than it is to figure out if their politics offend you. It is better to give the benefit of the doubt on someone’s motivations and heart than it is to dismiss them for their party affiliation. It is more important to remember the glories of Christ’s Kingdom than it is to toe a party line.
Christians, of all people, ought to be the strongest and clearest critics of their own “side.” We need to rise above what James Hunter calls “the crude simplification of public life” and see that the common good is always more than its political expression. Our citizenship in Christ’s Kingdom, and His reign in our hearts and our lives, and all things, can free us from finding our hope in policy so that we can engage in our work and see people through the lens of the gospel. We ought to be able to say that:
- Government spending ought to be reined in, and the chaotic approach right now is doing real harm.
- Immigrants are human beings made in the image and likeness of God, and governments are responsible for maintaining borders.
- The truth matters, and efforts to obscure truth are wrong, whatever party.
- The ends don’t always justify the means, whatever party.
Historically, we haven’t simply avoided issues because they are partisan or seen as “too political,” but we have worked hard to undercut partisan narratives. It is equally dangerous to use political means to accomplish gospel ends as it is to use Christ to achieve political ends. We want to be able to address the concerns that are on our people’s minds as a church and speak into the real world that we live in, but all while we also avoid allowing the news cycle to become the center of the message for RHC rather than proclaiming the good news of a greater kingdom.
It is a political statement to say that Jesus is our King, and that we are citizens of His Kingdom. The gospel of Jesus Christ is at the center. Any other kingdoms are under His sovereign reign and rule. There is no nation, party, or candidate that embodies the fullness of Christ’s Kingdom. That political commitment means that there will be times when conservatives will be uncomfortable, and there will be times when progressives will be uncomfortable. There will likely be times that someone says something in a way that is different than how you would say it, or even downright offensive to your sensibilities. And in those moments, we need to cling to the truth that Christ has broken down the dividing walls of hostility to make us all one, united together as citizens of His Kingdom (Eph. 2:14-22).
Unity in Christ across partisan divides is a mark of the work of the Holy Spirit and the beauty of Christ’s work and power. Maintaining unity as a church in the midst of deep partisan divides that permeate our nation, our city, and places across the world, and creep all too easily into churches, is an ongoing challenge. From the very beginning, RHC has committed to elevating our citizenship, as Christians, in Christ’s Kingdom. We celebrate the political diversity of our church as we truly believe that unity does not require uniformity.
Our commitment to the unity of the Spirit and the bond of peace is put to the test regularly. In June 2020, in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, we posted “Guidelines on Protests” that you can find below. I hope it can be helpful and clarifying for you. I have also listed a number of resources below. It may encourage your heart to see how God’s Word directs us and to be reminded of what we are praying for and working toward at RHC.
Please join me in praying for our city, our nation, our governing authorities, our church, and our world. Let’s commit to immersing ourselves in God’s Word and finding our hope in Christ, pleading that the Spirit will move in power in our own hearts and through our church into our city. Remember that “God gave us not a spirit of fear but of power and love and self-control” (1 Tim. 1:7), and that we can bring all of our cares and worries to God, trusting that our good Father cares about us and will care for us (Mat. 6:25-34).
With love and hope,
Pastor Bill and the Elders
Guidance on Protests (June 2020):
We have received questions from multiple members regarding protests. While our city is no stranger to protests, this week is an especially tense time here. The staff team worked together to try to answer some of the questions we have heard and anticipate that you might have. If you have other questions, you can reply to this message, and it will come to me directly.
- Should members of Redemption Hill participate in protests? This is a matter of conscience. It’s important that members of the church extend love and grace to one another. Especially in points of disagreement that divide our city and our nation, our diverse congregation has the opportunity to show the beauty of the unity that the gospel of Jesus Christ provides. The participation of any individual members of the church does not indicate a stance for the entire church.
- What if I disagree with some aspects or positions of a protest? Again, this is a matter of conscience. There are very few platforms, leaders, authors, or positions with which any of us can agree fully. It is possible to participate and raise one’s voice in a moment for a specific issue or concern without supporting every aspect of the protest or the actions of other individual protestors.
- What are some safety precautions I can take if I want to participate? Go with a buddy, wear a mask, consider bringing eye protection, wear good shoes, and bring a bottle of water, especially on hot days. Consider making your way home well ahead of curfews or dark, as it is typically after dark that protests turn violent.
- May I post on CCB asking other members if they want to join me in a protest? We ask that you do not use CCB to organize for protests as an individual. Due to the open nature of the Bulletin Board and the potential for divisiveness even on the question of where to draw lines and which protests are or are not best, we ask that we all work toward the unity of the Spirit and the bond of peace on this platform. However, as an individual member, you are free to utilize your own social media and to reach out to your friends, as emphasized in question 1 above.
- If I upload pictures of myself at the protest, should I tag RHC on social media platforms? No. If the Leadership of Redemption Hill Church organizes and calls the church to action, you are welcome to tag us as part of it. If you are participating as an individual, please limit your representation on social media to clearly reflect your own voice.
- What about clean-up efforts or other support work in our city? It has been a great encouragement to see our members working to care for our city. DC is no stranger to protests. Sadly, many who come to our city do so to raise their voice and make a point, but leave their trash behind. You are always welcome and encouraged to take part in good work for the good of our city, and to invite others in the church to join you in doing so.
[End of Letter to RHC]
The Spirit of God has set us free to pray and work for the good of all people, and to serve and love our cities, without buying into the rollercoaster ride of partisan cycles. We can be an enduring and faithful presence that shows that there can be unity across seemingly impossible cultural and political chasms, but only in Christ. We can stay firm in hope without being shaken by the onslaught of daily headlines, because Christ is the sovereign King over all Kings. Preach and teach God’s Word, call people to the Father through the gospel of Jesus Christ, and trust the Spirit to move in power, we have nothing to fear.
Colossians 3:1-4
If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
