249: Michael Burns — Escaping the Beast

BEMA Episode Link: 249: Michael Burns — Escaping the Beast
Episode Length: 1:02:25
Published Date: Thu, 16 Dec 2021 01:00:00 -0800
Session 6
About this episode:

Marty Solomon and Brent Billings are joined by Michael Burns, a teaching minister in the Two Cities Church in Minneapolis-St. Paul. He taught high school history in the central city of Milwaukee for nearly ten years before graduating from Wesley Seminary at Indiana Wesleyan University. He is a national and international biblical teacher at churches, schools of mission, and workshops. He has authored many books, including Crossing the Line; All Things to All People; and Escaping the Beast. Michael and his wife, MyCresha, have two adult sons.

Discussion Video for BEMA 249

Marty on the All Things to All People Podcast with Michael Burns

Marty’s Sasquatch GIF

Escaping the Beast by Michael Burns

Jesus for President by Shane Claiborne and Chris Haw

Crossing the Line by Michael Burns

All Things to All People by Michael Burns

All Things to All People Podcast

Michael Burns Teaching Ministry website

Transcript for BEMA 249

Additional audio production by Gus Simpson

Special Guest: Michael Burns.

Notes

*Note: The following notes are handwritten by me, Adam, and I reserve the right to be wrong.

BEMA Episode 249: Michael Burns — Escaping the Beast - Study Notes

Title & Source Summary

Episode: 249 - Michael Burns — Escaping the Beast Hosts: Marty Solomon and Brent Billings Guest: Michael Burns, Teaching Minister at Two Cities Church in Minneapolis/St. Paul Focus: Kingdom politics, allegiance to Christ, and engaging political systems without compromising Kingdom values

This episode features an in-depth conversation with Michael Burns, author of “Escaping the Beast,” exploring how Kingdom people should approach politics in the modern world. The discussion examines the tension between withdrawing from political engagement (pietistic approach) and fully embracing culture war politics (evangelical approach), proposing instead a third way rooted in allegiance to Jesus and Kingdom values. Burns shares his journey from history teacher to ministry leader, explaining how his background in pre-Civil War American history and Greco-Roman studies converged with his ministry focus on race, culture, and Kingdom theology. The conversation addresses the challenging question: How do we engage politically without becoming complicit in systemic injustice, while maintaining our primary allegiance to Christ’s Kingdom?

Key Takeaways

There is a third way between complete political withdrawal (pietism) and full embrace of partisan politics - a Kingdom-focused political imagination that transcends American political categories
Faith in Christ can be understood as allegiance to Jesus as King, which by definition makes all other allegiances secondary and challenges national identities and political loyalties
The early church’s proclamation of “Jesus is Lord” was inherently political because it directly challenged “Caesar is Lord” and called people to a completely alternative way of ordering society
Romans 12-13 should be read together: Chapter 12 outlines Kingdom ethics (love enemies, don’t seek vengeance), Chapter 13 acknowledges governmental authority, but verse 8 returns to Kingdom vocation - “let no debt remain outstanding except to love”
Being made “in the image of God” (not “with” the image) means image-bearing is inherent to our humanity - sin occurs when we strip ourselves of this identity through the lie of superiority and “othering” people
Anti-discipling through media and culture shapes our worldview more than we realize, causing us to interpret the Bible through political lenses rather than filtering politics through Kingdom vision
The younger generation (35 and under) demonstrates hunger for Kingdom-focused engagement that addresses injustice without partisan alignment
Labeling and “othering” people violates the fundamental truth that all humans are image-bearers and transforms “I-you” relationships into “I-it” relationships

Main Concepts & Theories

The Two Extremes in Christian Political Engagement

Michael Burns identifies two problematic extremes in how Christians approach politics:

Full-Born Evangelical Engagement: The culture war approach that has characterized evangelical Christianity over the last five decades, where Christians fully embrace partisan politics and attempt to legislate morality through governmental power.
Pietistic Withdrawal: The approach of completely withdrawing from political engagement, focusing solely on “kingdom matters” and soul-saving while ignoring systemic injustice and oppression.

Burns argues both extremes are inadequate. The pietistic approach, while appearing spiritually pure, is actually a privilege that allows people to ignore injustice that doesn’t affect them personally. The evangelical approach compromises Kingdom distinctiveness by aligning Christian identity with partisan political movements.

Pistis as Allegiance

Drawing on scholarship from N.T. Wright, Michael Gorman, and especially Matthew Bates, Burns explores the Greek word pistis (traditionally translated “faith”) as carrying connotations of allegiance and loyalty, particularly when referring to entities like nations or leaders.

This understanding reframes faith in Christ as pledging allegiance to Jesus as King, which historically meant:

Switching sides from one kingdom to another
Making all other allegiances secondary
Living under a completely different set of values and priorities

The connection to metanoia (repentance) is significant - this word came from military contexts where enemies were called to “repent” (switch sides) or be destroyed. Early Christian baptismal declarations of “Jesus is Lord” directly challenged the Roman declaration “Caesar is Lord,” which is why Christians were charged in Acts 17 with “proclaiming another king.”

The Image-Bearing Foundation

Burns grounds his political theology in Genesis 1, emphasizing that humans are made “in” the image of God, not “with” it. This preposition is crucial:

Image-bearing is inherent to humanity, not an add-on or bonus feature
All humans equally bear God’s image regardless of status, race, nationality, or political affiliation
Sin occurs when we abandon our role as image-bearers and embrace the serpent’s lie of superiority

The progression of dehumanization follows this pattern:

Buy into superiority of our group (nation, race, political party, etc.)
Make other groups inferior
“Other” them - create us vs. them categories
Label them (liberal, conservative, Marxist, etc.)
Transform relationships from “I-you” to “I-it” (Martin Buber’s terminology)

Once someone becomes “it” rather than “you,” violence and oppression become possible because we’ve stripped them of their image-bearer status.

Discipling vs. Anti-Discipling

Burns introduces the concept of “anti-discipling” - counterfeit formation that shapes us to see the world through non-Kingdom lenses:

Biblical Discipling (Matthew 28):

Teaching everything Jesus commanded
Helping people see the world through Kingdom eyes
Becoming more like Jesus

Anti-Discipling (antichrist as “instead of Christ”):

Media and culture formation that shapes worldview
Creates predictable responses based on news source rather than Kingdom values
Leads to interpreting the Bible through political ideology rather than filtering politics through Scripture

The diagnostic question: Can you predict someone’s position on issues more accurately based on their media consumption than on their claim to follow Jesus?

Romans 12-13 as Integrated Teaching

Burns challenges the common practice of divorcing Romans 12 from Romans 13:

Romans 12 - Kingdom Vocation:

Love is sincere
Devoted to one another
Love your enemies
Don’t seek vengeance
Overcome evil with good

Romans 13 - Governmental Authority:

Be subject to governing authorities
God uses nations to maintain peace and justice to a degree
Governments have a legitimate role in keeping order

Romans 13:8 - Return to Kingdom Vocation:

“Let no debt remain outstanding except to love”
Kingdom people’s primary calling is to demonstrate what love looks like in each situation

The Kingdom role is showing an alternative to governmental systems while also holding those systems accountable to their calling of bringing justice and peace. Nations have a place, but Kingdom people demonstrate a better way.

The Life of the Age to Come

Burns emphasizes the concept of zoe aionios (often translated “eternal life” but more accurately “life of the age to come”):

Jesus brought the future age breaking into the present
Kingdom people live now as though in God’s presence
Demonstrates to the world what the future with God will look like
Enables living God’s will “on earth as it is in heaven”

This understanding shifts Christian purpose from merely having successful lives or fighting for the oppressed to living out Kingdom vision - doing justice through the way of the Lamb, which creates inherent tensions:

Stand up for the oppressed while loving enemies
Refuse to exercise power over others while advocating for justice
Lay down your life while confronting systemic evil

Sankofa - Journey Back to Move Forward

Burns references the Ghanaian concept of sankofa (depicted by a bird retrieving a seed off its back) - the principle that to understand your present and move forward, you must first journey back and understand the past.

Applied to Scripture:

Understanding historical context is essential for proper interpretation
Without historical understanding, we miss what texts are actually addressing
Example: 1 Corinthians 6 isn’t simply prohibiting lawsuits but addressing social inequity in the Roman court system

Applied to American context:

Understanding our historical myths and realities is necessary for Kingdom engagement
The myth of American innocence prevents clear Kingdom vision
The blurring of the Kingdom of God with the United States makes it difficult to see things clearly

The Three Parts of “Escaping the Beast”

Burns structures his book in three sections:

Part One - History: Examines the historical context of Revelation and the early church’s relationship with Roman imperial power. Establishes parallels between the Roman Empire and contemporary contexts.

Part Two - Bridge: Connects the historical context to the modern American context, showing how similar dynamics of empire, power, and allegiance operate today.

Part Three - Practical Application: Boldly attempts to practically apply Kingdom principles to specific political issues and questions. Burns acknowledges this section is most open to disagreement (he suggests 30% might be wrong) but argues someone needs to start the conversation with concrete proposals.

Examples & Applications

The Peter-Paul Political Argument (Chapter 12)

Burns creates a fictional manuscript depicting Peter and Paul arguing about whether Nero or Claudius was a better emperor. After presenting this “discovered text,” he reveals it’s made up and asks: Can you imagine Peter and Paul having such an argument?

The answer should be no - but we can easily imagine 21st-century disciples having exactly such arguments about contemporary political leaders. This illustration exposes how much partisan political identity has infiltrated Christian community in ways that would have been unthinkable for early Christians whose primary identity was Kingdom allegiance.

The Privilege of Pietism

When Marty shares his own journey from pietistic separation (“Kingdom and politics are separate things”), someone confronted him about his privilege - pointing out that he was in a position where stepping away from politics didn’t really impact him. This challenged the assumed spiritual purity of political disengagement.

Application: Those most affected by unjust policies cannot afford the luxury of “staying out of politics.” For Kingdom people to withdraw from political engagement while others suffer from systemic injustice is not spiritual neutrality but privileged complicity.

1 Corinthians 6 and Roman Courts

Without understanding the historical context, 1 Corinthians 6 appears to be a simple prohibition against Christians taking each other to court. However, understanding the Roman court system reveals:

Courts were structured to favor the wealthy and powerful
The legal system perpetuated and reinforced social inequity
Paul’s instruction challenges the social inequity itself, not just the act of litigation

Application: Many biblical passages that seem to be about individual moral choices are actually addressing systemic injustice and calling for Kingdom alternatives to corrupt systems.

The Early Church’s Political Witness

If the early church had simply proclaimed: “We want to tell you about a new God who died for your sins. If you believe, you’ll go to heaven when you die,” Rome wouldn’t have cared. Rome was religiously inclusive.

What caught Rome’s attention:

Proclaiming Jesus (not Caesar) as Lord
Upending economic injustices
Challenging social inequities
Blurring status lines
Living together as family across social boundaries
Creating an alternative way of ordering society

Application: When the modern church focuses exclusively on personal salvation and afterlife, we lose the politically challenging dimension that characterized early Christianity. The full gospel includes both forgiveness of sins and Kingdom allegiance that restructures all relationships and systems.

Media Consumption as Formation

Burns suggests a diagnostic test: Can you predict where people will come down on issues and how they’ll treat other people more accurately based on what news media they watch than whether they follow Jesus?

If yes, this indicates anti-discipling is more formative than Kingdom discipleship.

Application: We must examine what is actually forming our worldview. Are we taking “captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5), or are we absorbing worldly frameworks uncritically and then reading the Bible through those lenses?

The Civil War Question

Burns’ historical passion for pre-Civil War America raises the driving question: How do we develop a political ideology from the Bible that would have addressed slavery rather than being silent or complicit?

This question prevents both extremes:

Full partisan engagement that baptizes one political ideology
Pietistic withdrawal that ignores injustice in the name of spiritual purity

Application: Any Kingdom political theology must be robust enough to prophetically challenge systemic evil like slavery, not just focus on individual piety or align with existing power structures.

The Younger Generation’s Hunger

Burns observes that people 35 and under are animated by Kingdom vision in unique ways - they hunger for addressing injustice while maintaining Kingdom focus. When they discover there’s a way to do both, they pursue it passionately.

This isn’t because they’re more spiritual or holy, but because of historical and cultural factors converging:

Awareness of myth of American innocence
Exposure to diverse perspectives
Skepticism toward institutional Christianity aligned with power
Desire for authentic faith that makes a difference

Application: The church should pay attention to what animates younger generations rather than dismissing their concerns. Their hunger for Kingdom-focused justice engagement may be exactly what’s needed for this moment in history.

The Labeling Trap

Burns describes how labeling works:

You’re a liberal / conservative / Democrat / Marxist / socialist / etc.
Once labeled, you’re quantified and “othered”
Relationship shifts from “I and you” to “I and it”
Person becomes a category rather than an image-bearer

This happens across the political spectrum - both “sides” engage in labeling and othering.

Application: Before assigning a political label to someone, remember they are made in God’s image. The category we place them in should be “image-bearer” and “you” before any political designation.

Potential Areas for Further Exploration

Historical Parallels Between Rome and Contemporary America

What specific parallels exist between Roman imperial ideology and American nationalism?
How did the early church navigate being “in but not of” the Roman Empire?
What can we learn from periods when the church maintained Kingdom distinctiveness versus when it became co-opted by empire?
How does the concept of Pax Romana compare to Pax Americana?
What role did economic systems play in Roman oppression, and how do similar dynamics operate today?

The Theology of Allegiance

How does understanding faith as allegiance reshape our reading of Paul’s letters?
What are the implications of allegiance theology for baptism, communion, and other practices?
How did the early church’s allegiance to Jesus practically manifest in daily life?
What does it mean to have “no king but Jesus” in a democratic republic?
How do we navigate dual citizenship (Kingdom and nation) without compromising primary allegiance?

Race, Culture, and the Image of God

How has the lie of superiority manifested throughout church history?
What are the specific mechanisms by which racism violates image-bearing theology?
How did status function in the Corinthian church, and what parallels exist today?
What does Kingdom unity look like across racial and cultural lines?
How do we address historical and ongoing injustice without falling into partisan political categories?

Kingdom Economics

What would a Kingdom approach to economics look like?
How did the early church practice economic sharing and generosity?
What does Scripture say about wealth accumulation, poverty, and justice?
How do we address housing insecurity, healthcare, and other economic issues from a Kingdom perspective?
What alternatives to both capitalism and socialism emerge from Kingdom theology?

The Role of Government

What is the legitimate role of government according to Scripture?
How do we hold governments accountable to their calling of justice and peace?
When is civil disobedience appropriate from a Kingdom perspective?
How do we engage in political processes without compromising Kingdom values?
What does it mean to be “subject to authorities” while maintaining Jesus is Lord?

Formation and Counter-Formation

How do we recognize when we’re being formed by culture rather than Kingdom?
What practices help us filter everything through Kingdom vision?
How do we create communities of discipleship that form Kingdom imagination?
What role do Sabbath, worship, and spiritual disciplines play in counter-formation?
How do we engage media critically while staying informed?

Practical Application to Specific Issues

How does Kingdom theology address abortion, immigration, criminal justice, education, healthcare, environmental concerns, religious freedom, etc.?
What would it look like for experts in various fields to bring Kingdom imagination to their areas?
How do we navigate areas where Kingdom values may point in different directions on complex issues?
What mistakes should we avoid when trying to apply Kingdom theology to politics?
How do we remain humble and open to correction while advocating for Kingdom values?

The Myth of the Christian Nation

Is “Christian nation” even a biblical category?
How has American civil religion blurred the Kingdom of God with national identity?
What is the relationship between patriotism and Kingdom allegiance?
How do we honor our country without making it an idol?
What would it look like to challenge American exceptionalism from a Kingdom perspective?

Church Unity Across Political Divides

How do we maintain fellowship with those who disagree politically?
What issues are worth dividing over, and which require gracious disagreement?
How do we prevent political differences from destroying Christian community?
What practices help us maintain Kingdom focus when political tensions arise?
How do we create space for difficult conversations without demonizing or labeling?

Love of Enemies in Political Context

What does it mean to love political enemies?
How do we oppose unjust policies while loving those who support them?
Can we separate people from their political positions?
What does grace, mercy, and forgiveness look like in political disagreement?
How do we balance prophetic witness with humble engagement?

Comprehension Questions

Allegiance and Faith: How does understanding pistis (faith) as allegiance to Jesus as King change the way we approach political engagement? What practical implications does this have for how we vote, advocate, and engage in civic life?
Romans 12-13 Integration: Michael Burns argues that Romans 12 and 13 should be read together rather than separated. Explain how this integrated reading provides a framework for Kingdom people to engage with governmental authority. How does Romans 13:8 (“let no debt remain outstanding except to love”) return us to Kingdom vocation after acknowledging governmental authority?
Image-Bearing and Othering: Describe the progression Burns outlines from image-bearing to “othering.” How does the lie of superiority lead to labeling and dehumanization? Provide examples from contemporary political discourse where this progression occurs, and explain how Kingdom theology resists this pattern.
Anti-Discipling: What is “anti-discipling,” and how does it function in contemporary culture? How can we discern whether our worldview is being shaped more by media and cultural formation than by Kingdom discipleship? What practices or disciplines help us filter politics through Kingdom vision rather than reading the Bible through political lenses?
The Third Way: Burns proposes a third way between pietistic withdrawal and full partisan political engagement. What characterizes this third way? Why are both extremes inadequate from a Kingdom perspective? How do we practically navigate this third way in specific political situations?

Personalized Summary

This conversation with Michael Burns challenges us to reconsider the very foundations of how Kingdom people engage with politics. Rather than accepting the false dichotomy between withdrawing from political life or fully embracing partisan politics, Burns invites us into a more difficult but more faithful third way - one rooted in allegiance to Jesus as King that transcends American political categories entirely.

The most provocative insight may be understanding faith as allegiance. When early Christians declared “Jesus is Lord” at baptism, they weren’t simply making a personal spiritual commitment - they were pledging loyalty to a King in direct opposition to Caesar. This wasn’t a private religious belief but a public political statement that called them to an entirely alternative way of ordering society. Our faith should similarly challenge us to see Jesus’s Kingdom, not as complementary to our political ideology, but as the primary allegiance that judges and transforms all other commitments.

Burns’ emphasis on image-bearing provides the theological foundation for resisting the “othering” that dominates contemporary political discourse. Every human being - regardless of political affiliation, race, nationality, or status - bears God’s image inherently. When we label, categorize, and “other” people, transforming “I-you” relationships into “I-it” relationships, we participate in the serpent’s lie of superiority and strip both ourselves and others of our image-bearing vocation. This is perhaps the most direct application to our current moment, where political tribalism has led to unprecedented division even within the church.

The concept of “anti-discipling” exposes how thoroughly our worldviews are shaped by media and culture rather than Kingdom vision. If we can predict someone’s political positions more accurately based on their media consumption than their claim to follow Jesus, something has gone deeply wrong. We’re being discipled by MSNBC or Fox News, by social media algorithms and cultural assumptions, rather than by the way of Jesus. This calls for a radical reexamination of what’s forming us and a commitment to taking “captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”

Reading Romans 12-13 as integrated teaching rather than separated instructions provides a framework for engagement. Kingdom people are called to the Romans 12 ethic - loving enemies, not seeking vengeance, devoted to one another - while acknowledging that governments have a role in maintaining justice and order. But we never forget that our primary vocation, stated in Romans 13:8, is love. The question for Kingdom people in every political situation is not “which party is right?” but “what does love look like here?”

Burns’ willingness to attempt practical application in Part Three of his book, while acknowledging he could be 30% wrong, models the kind of humble engagement we need. He’s not claiming to have unlocked the definitive biblical political platform but rather starting a conversation, throwing down the first thought for others to build on, challenge, and refine. This is the kind of gracious but engaged dialogue the church desperately needs.

The call is clear: We must develop a Kingdom political imagination robust enough to address systemic injustice without compromising our allegiance to Jesus. We must engage without withdrawal (which is often privilege in disguise) and without full partisan alignment (which compromises Kingdom distinctiveness). We must remember that all humans bear God’s image and resist the labeling and othering that characterizes worldly politics. We must be formed by Kingdom vision rather than cultural anti-discipling. And we must hold our political positions humbly, recognizing that we’re all learning to see what the Kingdom looks like in these complex situations.

This is difficult, tension-filled work with no simple formulas. But it’s the work of being the church - demonstrating to the world an alternative way of being human, ordered not by power and partisanship but by the way of the slain Lamb, the party of Jesus, the Kingdom that has broken into this present age and invites us to live now as though in God’s future presence.

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S6 249: Michael Burns — Escaping the Beast

Politics, Allegiance, and Kingdom [1:02:25]