As a Christian, I believe in the Lordship of Jesus. But I don’t want a Christian theocracy. There is only so much we can do through making laws – as it is said
No governmental system can rule an immoral people
This leads me to my two main points:
1. Civil Government Should Be Based Upon A Biblical View Of Man
Man is both sinful and made in the Divine image. This basically means we need a system that allows freedom within constraints – freedom to express the divine beauty and intelligence of man, and constraints in the form of checks and balances, and laws and penalties, in order to prevent society from devolving into chaos. We need a combination of inner restraint (i.e. virtue or personal morality) combined with external support and restraint (laws that support virtue and morality, and punish evil) in order to keep society organized and safe. Kirby Anderson at Leadership U has a nice article on this entitled Christian View of Government and Law.
2. The Five Spheres of Government
This viewpoint is very instructive: each realm of government (self, family, church, business, and civil) has its own limited sphere of authority, which interfaces with the others, and each sphere should not try to assume the responsibilities of the other, even if the other abdicates. For example, if I as the head of my family government do not take care of my kids, the solution is not to have my family become permanent wards of the state. Sure, the church or the state can step in, but the goal should be to get me to re-assume my responsibility, or get someone else (i.e. a new husband!) to assume it.