The Heart of the Matter

I'm currently reading God and Politics, edited by Gary Scott Smith, to begin an understanding of the major views of how Christians should engage politics and hopefully come to a conclusion myself.  One thing that has always bugged me about these types of disagreements, and here I mean all arguments about particulars of the faith, is that they don't start in the right place.  

Where should they start?  I think one of the answers is found in James 2:8-13.  This exposition of Jesus' teaching concerning the law (Matt 22:37-40, Matt 5:43-48) is not reductionist.  The command to 'Love your neighbor as yourself' is not a simplified summary of the law deduced after the fact, but the very foundation the law comes from.  The law can be summarized in this statement, because that statement is the law.  That's why if you break part of the law, you've broken the whole law.

So, our discussions need to start with 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind' and 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'  Do our actions and thoughts and positions stem from these commandments?  If not, we are out of line with what God wants for us.  I'm not saying this will make our discussions easy, but to start anywhere else is at best, incomplete, and at worst, false Christianity.

Soli Deo Gloria