The Problem With the Leftist Claim That “Jesus Was a Socialist”

One common argument made by those in favor of a socialist United States is that Jesus Christ himself was a socialist. Leftists point to Christ’s focus on caring for the poor as evidence that he would support socialism if he were to revisit the earth in 2019.

The argument is entirely absurd. Nowhere in the New Testament does Jesus support any economic or political system – socialist or otherwise. While he did emphasize caring for the poor, he never once advocated stealing from the rich in order to do so. Likewise, Jesus never placed the burden of caring for the poor on the government. Instead, He placed that burden on the individual and the church.

In fact, there is only one instance in the New Testament where Jesus even remotely approaches the idea of wealth redistribution. This took place when Jesus was confronted by a man who wanted his brother to split his inheritance with him. Christ’s response to this question is telling; he rebukes the man for being envious of his sibling.

In reality, very few socialists actually care about the teachings of Christ. Instead, they attempt to twist his teachings in order to target the Christian right. However, any argument that Jesus was or would have been a socialist is deeply flawed and has no Biblical support.

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