Jesus 2024
The election season is well underway and what a privilege it is to live in a democracy. There is no perfect form of government, but we are certainly blessed to be under a government instituted by men and deriving their just powers from the consent of those governed. The vote we cast makes a difference and we have the responsibility to engage in the process. Scripture is very clear that God has the ultimate say in ordaining governments and leaders (Romans 13:1) so why would we abdicate the opportunity when we’ve been afforded the right? Please educate yourself and vote. Local, state, and national politics are an intricate part of our lives.
As we seek to engage in the process, I’d like to give us a few points to prayerfully consider. When the Bible speaks about God’s ordination of governments, the governments being referred to were for the most part tyrannical. This was not written to a Christian culture that held a measure of political power. They had zero. This is a major point to consider because the early Christians had to overlay the Scriptures on top of their political situation. In a political climate in which Christians enjoy a degree of power it is easy to overlay our politics on top of Scripture. We want to “win” and it’s not easy to navigate a culture in which it feels like we’re losing. When cultural Christian values begin to diminish it should cause us to grieve, not at the loss of political power, but at the state of our culture. It’s not about a façade of values but genuine hearts desiring to serve God. If Biblical values aren’t supported at the ballot box, the issue isn’t political in nature, it’s spiritual.
The political state of a people, while important, is irrelevant to the health of Jesus’s community of faith. In good times and in challenging times, Jesus’s Church continues to grow. The gates of hell themselves can’t stop it (Matthew 16:18). It’s an affront to our hope in Jesus to walk around disparagingly like we’re a people contingent on a certain political outcome to consider ourselves “winning.” We’ve got the love of Jesus that not even death can separate us from (Romans 8:38). We do ourselves and those around us, most of all Jesus, a disservice when we jump into the political gutters of hitching our wagons of hope to election outcomes. Let’s please not be those people. We’re just as victorious today as we will be on November 6th either way the election goes.
There are aspects of both political parties that I appreciate, and that I am frustrated by. When we have a two-party system that is dependent on majority votes, one party will never have the soul (spelling intentional) custody on integrity and morality. Parties are led by flawed people so we cast our vote in support of Jesus thankful that we can do so in a way that best aligns with Biblical values. The real work that makes an eternal difference isn’t done at the ballot box, but through us the people of God. Jesus’s Church is the institution He has ordained to change the world! It starts with us, in our homes, in our neighborhoods. The flaws of government are a symptom of our culture and any frustrations we have should lead us to buck up and get to work.
The major political options before us today as Jesus followers aren’t black and white (maybe I should say blue and red) in alignment with Scripture. I plan to fast and pray and cast my vote accordingly. That’s the best approach we can have collectively. Some of the Biblical issues that we need to think through deeply are: the character of the people we vote for (Exodus 18:21), justice from womb to tomb (Micah 6:8, Psalm 139:13), family values (Matthew 19:4-6), treatment of the foreigner (Leviticus 19:33-34), the poor and oppressed (Proverbs 22:9), maintaining security (Romans 13:4), et cetera.
Beyond the next few weeks, my humble request is that we work hard to preserve the unity of our faith. Jesus came to break down the dividing wall of hostility not to build one up (Ephesians 2:14). Let’s not get carried away in the cultural moment of fear. Life will be good on November 6th because Jesus will be sitting on His throne! We get the privilege to be ambassadors of Jesus by living into our ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18) as we stay focused on our unity in Jesus Christ.