Abraham Kuyper was a prominent Dutch politician and theologian who came up with the concept of “sphere sovereignty.”

It is the idea that God created distinct and independent social spheres that derive their respective authority directly from Him.

And though Christ is Lord over them all, each sphere is sovereign unto itself and accountable only to God.  

There are three of these primary spheres—they are the family, the church, and the state.

They all have vital functions and purposes to fulfill in society, and each one is self-governed by those empowered with divinely sanctioned authority.

In the home, that authority is the parents, and in the church, it is the overseers. In the state, the authority is the elected and appointed leaders.

It is, therefore, crucially important that each sphere respects the jurisdictional boundaries of the others and does not impose on their sovereignty.

For this reason, the state should not have authority over the church, and, in turn, the church should not have authority over the family.

When one sphere asserts itself over another, it disrupts the balance of authority and results in unjustified tension and conflict.

This matters because we live in an age in which the boundaries between these three spheres often get blurred and even erased.

And the way to avoid the inevitable confusion and conflict is for each of them to remain in their own domain out of respect for the others.

The domain for the family is the raising and educating of children. The domain for the church is the evangelism and discipleship of its members. And the domain for the state is the protection and governance of its people. 

When the state imposes itself on parental oversight and education of children, it exceeds its domain. And when the state imposes on church polity and doctrine, it oversteps.  

Likewise, when the church usurps the rearing and the disciplining of children in the home, it also goes beyond its domain. And when it seeks control over the state, it overreaches.

The same goes for the family, but it is the family domain that most often is violated by the others, and especially by the state which at times attempts to tyrannize the other two.

Religious liberty is important, and parental rights are also important. And when the state exploits those liberties or abuses those rights, then it becomes a tyrant to the church and the family.

This is precisely why we must protect and preserve the “sovereignty of the spheres,” making sure they remain that way under the lordship of Christ and not of the state.