Disciples of Jesus & Elections in America
Yesterday morning I woke up via a nightmare, looked at my phone clock, thought it said 4:22 and thus decided to go on and get up, only to discover once I got downstairs it was 4:02. By then I was awake and ready to start the day. Sometimes when God gets me up early there is a reason. Yesterday morning as I began to meditate on Psalm 8, I began to detect the reason. God pretty much gave me a download for this post, that I had not intended to write at all. A number of others were more pressing on my mind.
I have three things mainly to say about how disciples of Jesus should respond to elections in our nation.
First, there is no excuse for a growing disciple of Jesus to not vote in any and every election if he/she is physically and mentally able to do so. While Jesus declared that He was the Light of the World during His earthly ministry (John 8:12), He made it clear to His disciples that they were and would increasingly be both the salt of the earth (Matthew 5:13) and the light of the world (Matthew 5:14). He expected His disciples to give to God the things that are God’s and to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, which I realize specifically dealt with taxes re: Caesar. He expected us to live responsibly in both worlds. Paul – affirming our identity as “Light in the Lord” (Ephesians 5:8) – then commands we disciples, “Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them.” (Eph. 5:11). I could go on and on about the responsibility and privilege we disciples of Jesus have to be meaningfully involved in helping to determine through voting (among other things) the destiny of our cities and nation. Many of our brothers and sisters in Christ around the world either do not have the privilege of voting at all, or their votes are meaningless because of the authoritarian way their nations are run. Thanks to our founding fathers, and thanks to many of the political leaders who have followed them through the last 250 years - - greatly influenced by the voice of the church (when it chose to speak into contemporary culture and society) we Americans still have the privilege of voting and our votes on the most part still count. And yet I am told, of the approximately 90 million Christians who are eligible to vote in the United States, approximately 40 million do not vote and another 15 million are not even registered to vote. May we be good stewards of such a privilege brothers & sisters.
Second, There is no excuse for a growing disciple of Jesus in America to vote for someone or some issue/policy/law which is not in accordance with Biblical values. Our voting should always be in harmony with the entirety of Scripture or the whole counsel of God. Our voting should always reflect principles over personalities. Our voting should always focus on a particular candidate’s life long practice, not his/her promises. Our voting should reflect what the Bible clearly says about God’s expectations for government leaders. (If you would like to learn more about God’s expectations please see these posts: https://www.kingdomstreams.net/post/the-church-and-civil-government-part-i
Our voting should be deeply concerned about how the said leader or proposed law would affect babies in the womb. It was after getting this download from the Holy Spirit yesterday morning that I got on Kingdomstreams to see what I’ve written about abortion, and discovered I hadn’t posted my sermon notes on a sermon back in 2014, and thus I posted it yesterday morning.
Yesterday morning some time after meditating on Psalm 8, wherein I was struck by our responsibility “…to rule over the works of Your (God’s) hands…” vs. 6, which would include playing our part in influencing the governance of our/His land, I then meditated some in Matthew 18 wherein Jesus addresses the importance and value of children in the kingdom of God in vs. 1-14. Then this morning in Matthew 19 Jesus was found laying His hands on children being brought to Him by their parents, and then having to correct His disciples, who initially “rebuked” these parents. The Bible is unequivocally clear that the lives of everyone of these precious children (in God’s sight) began in the womb. We have the opportunity to declare their value by voting in this upcoming election and probably everyone after it.
The third thing I received yesterday morning was: There is no excuse for a growing disciple of Jesus to worry, fear or fret re: the outcome of our elections in light of the greatness of our God and His absolute sovereignty over all of His creation. While Psalm 8 speaks to the amazing fact that God has “…put all things under his feet” (that is man – His image bearers) and thus calls each of us to “…rule over the works of Your (God’s) hands”, it is very important to see how the Psalm begins and ends, “O Lord, our Lord, How majestic is Your name in all the earth!”. God is so great and sovereign and all wise and powerful that He uses the wickedness and power and pomp of godless men to accomplish His purposes. As I saw this morning in Psalm 9, David joyfully declares of our God, “You have sat on the throne judging righteously,. You have rebuked the nations, You have destroyed the wicked; You have blotted out their name forever and ever…..He will judge the world in righteousness; He will execute judgment of the peoples with equity.” Vs. 4,5, 8.
After we turn our ballots in as Anne and I did yesterday morning at the Post Office, we return to worship and focus on our great God and to devoted prayer. He will have the last word. Everything that every evil government official or person hoping to be elected has sown, they will reap (Galatians 6:7). God will in no way be mocked by any individual, faction or party. We must rest in this and in growing confidence of this devote ourselves to prayer to see His kingdom come and His will be done in our cities and in our nation.
So some concluding thoughts on all of this:
1. I want to encourage pastors/local congregations of disciples of Jesus to pray about appointing someone in their congregation to take on the arduous task before each election of doing the research necessary to make wise and God pleasing decisions on our ballots. By God’s grace a godly and seasoned couple in our church has stepped forward in the last two years to help people who want help to think through Biblically all of the issues raised in a given election. We scheduled a meeting this last Sunday after church wherein this couple led a room full of us in a discussion based on all of their research, which was significant. We pastors and church leaders must continue to “…devote ourselves to prayer and the ministry of the word.” (Acts 6:4). While we shouldn’t be ignorant of these things, it is much better that someone else lead such an effort. Our lead pastor (Joshua) and I both attended. But we did not lead the meeting. There are some very helpful resources out there to help disciples of Jesus vote in a principled, Biblically sound, God fearing way. But lots of believers are not aware of them. Most of the people in the room (if not all) were very thankful to know of the resources out there that are Biblically based and well thought through.
2. Voting very well may bring up some grievous emotions for some of you. And if so, Jesus wants to heal you of those emotional wounds. Often I have seen cases over these years where a person (often women) was abused or significantly mistreated by older men (perhaps one’s father, step-father, coach, priest or minister or husband) in authority over them, and those emotions have affected how they voted or whether they even were willing to take the time to vote. While all such cases of abuse deeply grieve the heart of God, and He longs to heal us of the wounds incurred, He still expects us to vote according to His revealed will and not according to our pain and grievances. Shepherds of the sheep – this again is why we must watch how much time we give to the political process (especially watching and reading endless news cycles) - - knowing that no politician can heal such deep wounds. Only Jesus can and thus our intercession is crucial for this to happen.
3. Our society is increasingly filled with angry and spewing men and women in response to political issues, though the roots and foundations of their wrath are actually elsewhere. It is very important we disciples of Jesus do not react to these folks or be unduly focused on their ranting and raving. Please remember that the apostle Paul, as I read yesterday in Galatians ch. 1, was one of those ranting and raving, full of anger men with significant and seemingly unrestrained authority to expend or focus his wrath on disciples of Jesus. “…how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it.” (vs. 13); “…He who once persecuted us is now preaching the faith which he once tried to destroy.” (vs. 23). What turned this around? “but when God, who had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace…” (vs. 15).
You know what though effectually brought this about? Jesus’s fervent and continual prayers for future disciples (see John 17:20) and the church’s fervent and continual prayers as seen in Acts 1:14, 2:42, etc. And that leads me to my last observation,
4. No revival or awakening that I am aware of was inspired or led by a politician or government leader. We are to thank God for them and pray for them and honor them (per I Tim.2:1,2 & Romans 13:1-7), but may we never put our hope in them for what only revival and awakening can bring about.
God bless you and use you increasingly to bring the latter about through your prayers and repentance.
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