Civility does not…mean the mere outward gentleness of speech cultivated for the occasion, but an inborn gentleness and desire to do the opponent good. – Mahatma Gandhi
The politicians and celebrities who most often make the news are those that tend to be overly aggressive, mean, sarcastic and basically willing to trample anyone in their path. Sadly, there are many professing Christians like that. Yet, I can’t think of a single justification in the Bible for such behavior. It’s of this dying world, not of Jesus’ Kingdom.
That’s why this recent story of the former governor of Florida, Buddy MacKay, stands out. Sometimes the big story behind the story in politics is a wonderful continuation of civility, even something that can be described as respect and kindness.
Buddy MacKay died recently at age 91. Here’s what makes his story so interesting, Buddy MacKay was never elected the governor of Florida. He only became governor when after serving as Governor Lawton Chiles’ lieutenant governor, Chiles died on December 13, 1998. Suddenly, Buddy MacKay, the then lieutenant governor, became governor of Florida and remained governor for all of 23 days. But just days before the governor died and the lieutenant governor became governor, Buddy MacKay as the lieutenant governor had lost his race to be the governor to the man that was going to become the next elected governor, Jeb Bush. So, Buddy MacKay had just run against Jeb Bush and lost. So, MacKay is not only not going to be the next governor, soon he’s soon not going to be the lieutenant governor. But then Governor Lawton Chiles dies unexpectedly, and Buddy MacKay is sworn in as the governor of Florida for a total of 23 days.
Here’s where kindness comes in. Newly elected governor, Jeb Bush, took office but because Buddy MacKay had only been governor for 23 days, the question was, do you hang an official oil portrait of a governor of Florida who served for 23 days and was never elected? Inevitably the question fell to the incoming governor, Jeb Bush, who’d just defeated Buddy MacKay in the gubernatorial election. I love Jeb Bush’s response! When he was asked this question, Governor Bush said, “You’re going to hang the full-size portrait of Governor MacKay because it doesn’t matter how many days or years he served; he was constitutionally the governor of Florida, and he deserves to be honored.”
Matthew 5:9 says, Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 1 Peter 3:9 records a continual theme of God’s Word. Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called… We are called to civility!
Please understand that to be civil doesn’t mean that we’re passive or a bunch of Christian wimps. It means though that we live out speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15). It means that we live like Jesus.
In a culture that’s increasingly angry and polarized, God has commanded us to be distinctly different. But a recent poll shows that nearly half of US voters believe those in the opposing political party are “downright evil.” That’s not true. According to the Bible, we’re all evil. It’s why we need the gospel. We’re not naturally nice. We need a supernatural change of heart that comes from committing your life to Christ.
The public square is volatile and even violent. Philosopher Blaise Pascal observed, “The more enlightened we are the more greatness and vileness we discover in man.” Christ-followers are the only hope of ushering in a new era of civility, something that has been all but lost in our country.
Civility is rooted in the Imago Dei, the inherent dignity we all possess as beings created in God’s image. This foundation is crucial for flourishing across our differences. While we can stand up for ourselves and be willing to graciously speak hard truths, our disagreements are not to devolve into dehumanization. How can they? Every person that we interact with is someone for whom Jesus died.
That means that we must not worship at the altar of politics. For many believers, their political tribe has become an idol. We must stop judging someone’s spiritual condition based on their political stance. Too many elevate political positions to the level of biblical orthodoxy, making them litmus tests for Christian identity. It’s wrong to judge a person’s faith on whether they think the “right” way or support the “right” person.
When was the last time that you had a meltdown? Did someone record it and then play it on social media? That’s what often happens to our leaders. They’re often reduced to their worst moments and then those moments are played over and over. We fixate on something they said or did that they’re probably ashamed of but thanks to social media, it has been immortalized and widely circulated.
It’s resulted in a hypocritical perfectionism. We expect our leaders to never make errors in judgment while forgetting that each of us is defined by both greatness and vileness. Personally, I’m continually amazed at the evil of my own heart that can become irate so quickly over the trivial.
Civility means that we need a sanctified sense of curiosity. On a shelf in my office, I have a stuffed animal, Curious George,sitting in a bulldozer. I have them there to remind me to continually remain curious and to not bulldoze others. I will never be able to befriend or reach those who disagree with me with Christ’s love if I don’t understand where they’re coming from.
When we dialogue with someone with a different worldview, instead of presuming they’re wrong and that we have total knowledge on the subject, we should ask, “Tell me more!” Many times, we’ll find that we’re much more alike than we thought. And maybe even, as we hear another person’s perspective, we will learn new insights that we’d never thought of before.
Then, many of those who so disagree with a biblical worldview have been hurt, mistreated, or abused. By taking the time to know and understand them, we can better show Jesus’ love to them.
At the end of the day, it’s not their beliefs that must concern us. It’s their final destination. There are only two kinds of people – those who know Jesus and those who don’t. I want to be a missionary of civility if it will help me influence and take as many to heaven with me as I can. Don’t you?