Justin Martyr on Why Christians Are Not a Threat to the Government in 160CE

When you hear that we seek a kingdom, you suppose – without making an inquiry – that we are speaking of a human kingdom. But that is not so. We are speaking of a kingdom that is with God. That is why we so openly confess our faith when charged with being Christians, even though we know that death is the punishment for our confession. If we were looking for a human kingdom, we would simply deny our Christ in order to escape death. We would do our utmost to conceal the fact that we are Christians, so that we might live to attain such a human kingdom. But since our thoughts are not fixed on the present, we are not concerned when men kill us. We recognize that death is a debt that we must eventually pay anyway.

Please understand that Christians are your allies. For one thing, we help to promote peace and order. For example, we teach that it is impossible for anyone – the wicked or virtuous – to escape God’s notice. We teach that every person will eventually receive everlasting punishment or everlasting salvation, according to the merits of his actions. If everyone believed this, no one would choose wickedness even for a short time, realizing that he would receive the punishment of everlasting fire. Everyone would restrain himself and clothe himself with righteousness so he would obtain the good gifts of God and escape his punishments. …

The teachings of Jesus have transformed our lives. We who previously delighted in immorality now embrace chastity exclusively. We who used to practice magic arts now devote our lives to the Good and Unbegotten God. We who valued the acquisition of wealth and possessions above all things now bring what we have into a common pool and share with everyone in need. Many of us used to hate and destroy one another; we would not live with people of a different race because of their different customs. But now, since the coming of Christ, we live familiarly with such people, and we pray for our enemies. We seek to persuade those who unjustly hate us to live by the wonderful teachings of Christ so that they can enjoy the wonderful hope of God’s reward with us.