I remember when Charles Colson’s conversion first came out in the media in the 1970s, and I remember how many people scoffed that it was just an attempt to get sympathy which might help him in his Watergate legal troubles. He has disproven those critics many times over, dedicating his life to the Gospel long past the point where it made any legal difference, and sometimes even standing up to other Christian leaders as a voice of reasonable dissent.

No surprise, then, that this essay from Christianity Today is so good. Colson balances the need for Christians to stand on principle against the risk of becoming addicted to political power and driven by anger instead of love. Our ultimate goal, he reminds us, is not to change laws but to change hearts.