Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin condemns any people. (Proverbs 14:34)
Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save. (Psalm 146:3)
It is nearly impossible to avoid political ads or discourse during an election year. With all the election noise comes much emotion, even vitriol. For many of us, it also brings confusion about how we should vote, converse, or in other ways participate in the process as Christians. Should we vote for this candidate or the other? Is it right for a Christian to belong to a political party? Should I keep my views to myself? Wouldn’t it be better not to vote at all?
These questions and more can plague the minds and hearts of believers. Too often they can even divide us; it is a sad reality that many Christians have left churches because others in the congregation supported the “wrong” candidate or party. As Christ-followers, we must wrestle with all of this from a biblical perspective.
Charles Colson is often quoted as saying, “The Kingdom of God will not arrive on Air Force One.”
Elsewhere, Colson makes the logical application of his statement clear: “If our culture is to be transformed, it will happen from the bottom up - from ordinary believers practicing apologetics over the backyard fence or around the barbecue grill.”
He is not wrong. The problems we face in our society, like the problems we face in ourselves, are rooted in sinfulness. The problem is not a political one, but a spiritual one. While we see throughout the Bible (as in Proverbs 14:34) that righteousness among a people invites God’s blessing and sin brings His judgment, it is equally emphasized (as in Psalm 146:3) that real hope cannot be found in government or human wisdom, but in the Lord Himself.
Colson’s logic seems to echo the heart of Jesus’ own words in Matthew 5:14-16, where He calls His followers to function in this fallen world as salt and light. We are to influence the world around us for God’s glory by reflecting Him in our living. The call of Christ is not to fix the world through better government, but to make disciples by His authority (Matt. 28:18-20), bringing the lost to Him and teaching them all that He commanded us. This is the primary task of those who belong to Christ.
Jesus told Pontius Pilate (John 18:36) that His Kingdom is not of this world; if it were, His followers would fight (using earthly means) to prevent His arrest. We must remember this principle as we engage in earthly things as foreigners who belong to a different Kingdom (1 Peter 2:11-12). We must remember that, while we remain in this world below, we are not of this world—we do not belong to it any more than Jesus does (John 17:14-19).
Nonetheless, we are indeed in the world, and the Lord has called us to influence the world as salt and light. Though we must not allow ourselves to be pressed into the mold of worldly thinking and living (Romans 12:2), we must participate in society in order to carry out our mission as Christ’s ambassadors (Ephesians 5:20). Part of that participation involves engaging in the civic life of our community. In a democratic republic such as ours, that requires voting.
Part of loving our neighbor is working to promote the general welfare of the community and nation, which requires the blessings and providence of the Lord. If we recognize that sin condemns a nation, we must work to elect leaders whose policies and practices will promote a more righteous society. We must also remember that trusting human government, implemented by innately sinful people, to save us (or to exercise perfect justice or to bring about a righteous society) will always be a fool’s errand.
Human wisdom is limited and corrupted by sin. No matter who is in office, they are not Jesus. As the saying goes, the best of men are but men at best. This axiom should never be far from our minds as we inevitably evaluate the imperfect lives of our leaders and of one another. We must select the best leaders we can, but we dare not heap unreasonable expectations on them—nor on any other flawed humans. The Kingdom of God will not arrive on Air Force One.
As the coming general election nears and the tensions rise (perhaps most passionately regarding the presidency), let us remember who we are and why we are here. As ambassadors of the Most High God, we must conduct ourselves with Christ-like dignity, wisdom, and love. We must not fall into the trap of thinking and acting according to worldly wisdom; rather, we must approach the serious matters of politics with the balance that comes from knowing that only real and final hope is in the Lord. We must evaluate the good, the right, and the true in light of His ever-perfect Word, and then we must live it out in this ever-imperfect world of shifting shadows. We must never forget that we are Christians first and let that shape our duties and affections as Americans.
Vote…but pray. Pray…but vote. Do not neglect one for the other. Pray for guidance before voting, and make the effort to cast the vote you believe will best help to restrain evil and promote righteousness. Then pray for wisdom, humility, and—yes—repentance in the lives of those who govern (1 Timothy 2:14, Prov. 21:1). Pray for the person for whom you voted and perhaps especially for the one for whom you did not. Pray for God’s blessings on the nation and community (Jeremiah 29:7). Pray earnestly, and work to influence the world around you for Christ, because the core issues are always spiritual, and we are called to make disciples by reflecting the reality of Christ through relationships. Politics can never heal the sin-sick souls of people; only the Gospel of Jesus Christ can do that.
Government cannot produce godliness, and policy cannot produce purity. The latter must precede and drive the former. John Adams, one of the great thinkers in the founding of our nation, spoke well in saying, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”
The problem with our world is not political, but spiritual. The required solution is, therefore, not ultimately political, but profoundly spiritual. More than anything, the world needs the Church to be the Church—salt and light, influencing the world according to the Word.
Let your political views and votes be illuminated by the pure light of Scripture and applied with gracious wisdom from the Holy Spirit. You will always be choosing between imperfect options; neither policies nor people are without flaw. Trust that the Lord will honor your faithfulness to Him as you prioritize His Kingdom and His righteousness in both your public and private life. Politics always involves compromise, so commit yourself never to compromise Biblical principles. Always choose the wisdom of the Word over the wisdom of the world, even in voting. Never pledge a greater allegiance to a party or even to a nation than to Christ and His Church.
The Church is God’s embassy in this world—a world that will never be set right until He appears to establish His Kingdom on earth. As Christ-followers, let us live good, responsible lives as citizens here while we reflect the reality of Christ through relationships, knowing that our ultimate citizenship is in Heaven.
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