Politics matter, because policies matter, because people matter
This slogan strikes at the very common modern confusion between biblical compassion and political activism.At face value, the statement “Politics matter, because policies matter, because people matter” sounds virtuous. But biblically and theologically, it contains a subtle but serious error: it elevates human political means as the primary avenue of moral good, whereas Scripture consistently grounds all human good in spiritual transformation through the gospel, not in policy reform.
Let’s unpack this in a biblical way.
1. The Statement’s Core Problem: It Confuses Categories
The statement takes something true in part and builds upon it with unbiblical assumptions.
It’s true: people matter — every person is made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26–27).
But it falsely assumes that because people matter, policies (i.e., political instruments) are the means by which people’s worth is best upheld.
From there, it infers that politics (the machinery of earthly governance) is therefore central to human flourishing.
That progression commits a category error: it confuses the moral and redemptive work of God’s kingdom, with the civil function of human government.
Christ made this distinction absolutely clear:
“My kingdom is not of this world.” — John 18:36
2. The New Testament Emphasis: Spiritual Renewal, Not Policy Reform
Neither Jesus nor the apostles ever linked moral transformation to political policy change.
They always traced righteousness to regeneration — the new heart given by God (Ezekiel 36:26; Titus 3:5).
Romans 13:1–4 — Government is ordained to restrain evil, not to redeem it.
2 Corinthians 5:17–20 — The believer’s calling is reconciliation through the gospel, not renovation through government.
When we make political systems the primary means of human good, we are functionally saying: “The world can be changed from the outside in.”
But Scripture teaches the opposite: “The world can only be changed from the inside out.”
3. What This Logic Reveals: A Shift in Trust
That slogan — “Politics matter, because policies matter, because people matter” — often conceals a theological shift in trust:
Biblical View
Modern Political View
The gospel changes hearts, and changed hearts produce just societies.
Political power changes laws, and changed laws produce just societies.
Trust in God’s sovereignty and moral law.
Trust in man’s legislation and social programs.
“Thy kingdom come.”
“Let’s build a better world now.”