A Letter To Christian Voters…
Let’s not resist reality and hard truth. The engaged Christian cannot abandon the issue, decisions and implications of political power and its’ impact on land, state, and global economics and structure. Or at least, not the Christian that desires to steward their world well accordingly to the commands and principles of God. This article may not sit well with anyone, really. Democrat or Republican, you will likely get an unsettling feeling as your read my words and process my challenge to you. Because I am, essentially, calling out two sides of a very real coin in the western Church that I believe both to be irreverent of Scripture, and God’s desire for Christians to be engaged, informed and proactive advancers of His kingdom, alone. I ask you to extend to me grace as you read, and judge my words, only, after you have read the entirety of what I am sharing. I write these words not as a pastor, or politician. I merely write to you as a dude, who’s still figuring it all out as well.
The two sectors of Christians I am addressing is (a) the overwhelmingly large number of evangelicals that have made the Republican party and its platform an idol in their hearts, attitudes and conversations and (b) the increasingly growing number of young evangelicals that are either disengaging entirely from the world of voting and political opinion, or equating progressive and social values/movements with the values and principles of God…I believe both camps to make up the vast majority of Evangelicals who are walking into an election season, who have far more hope, direction and vision from God than we are giving Him credit for.
Since the rise of Donald Trump and the MAGA movement, I have witnessed a concerning attitude in the hearts of many conservative Christians. Donald Trump awakened a very real anxiety and perhaps fear in the hearts of many Evangelical voters. The fear that if you do not stand up for your country, your values and your God, you will be overwhelmed and beaten down by the Democratic party, leftist ideologies and an increasingly self-centered society. Trump made a point, and he made it clear. He birthed a movement and created a following that has made Him their leader, the representative of their values and defender of their anxieties. And while Trump has merely enacted a very Reagan like political agenda, he has become idol-like to many conservative Christians. Christians have been willing to scream his name, lose relationships over public and blatant support of him, and subconsciously prop him up as their great protector, their knight in shining armor, and their last place to draw hope or resolve when it comes to societal issues and tensions. My friends, this attitude and propping up of a leader to this extremity is wrong. This belief that we must fight now for the future of our children and the preservation of our country is not rooted in the plans and foretelling of Scripture. There is a real issue here, when Freedom is becoming the dominant factor in the equation of Freedom and Faith. I urge you to consider the Biblical theology that your freedom in America is not a right. The American constitution is not your greatest defense. Your city council and your schools are not your greatest threat to your children. American freedom, democracy and human rights/individual rights are a merciful gift we experience and that we never deserved in the first place. A people that claims to understand that they were once destined to the realms of Hell for their sin should never uphold their national pride and physical freedom in higher regard or devotion than their spiritual and eternal freedom in Christ. Do not misread me here. Voting matters. What is being indoctrinated to your children matters. You should care about what you see unfolding before your eyes in society. I did not say it is sinful and wrong to vote for Donald Trump, to agree with his platform or to attend with excitement his rallies. Do not allow your conclusion of my words to be that being a passionate Christian who is involved with and open about their support of political ideals or leaders is wrong and should be discouraged. I am grateful for the young men and women who are learning about politics, who aspire to be senators, representatives or presidents someday. My challenge/claim is not that politics are evil and you should therefore be disengaged. Rather, my encouragement and warning is that we must be a people, we are called as a people and we have the privilege to be a people that are so in love and so in awe of their God, that idolatry of any form, is not allowed to seep it’s way Into our lives. No president, pastor or leader can advocate for you or defend you and your loved ones more than the Supreme Deity of Jesus Christ and His provision, work and steadfast commitment to your life and wellbeing. So, this paragraph can be summed up as this: Do not love or value or prop up your leaders more than you love, value and speak about Jesus. Do not let loyalty to your party be the reason relationships come to an end. Love and admire and commit to Jesus above all things.
The other side of this coin is also a very real and concerning trend within evangelical voters, specifically younger ones. The belief that politics do not matter at all, or that supporting/voting for policies and leaders that make things like abortion, restructuring of marriage of gender confusion more accessible and permissible in the name of “civility” or “decency” is wrong and misinformed. The Christ follower who is engaged with Scripture and the things closest to the heart of God does not seek to openly advance things into society that deepens people’s confusion regarding their identity, the sanctity of life, or God’s design and purpose for marriage. Some of the principles and values of society that happen to line up with much of the agenda of the Democratic party are things that are in vile contrast to the nature and character of God. It can feel emotionally right to support movements regarding social injustice, ending racism, immigration reform, and feeding the hungry. And while God has called you to be a Christian that does advocate for the weak, that does care for the orphan and that does care about the equal value of every human being made in His image, you must not trade good social movements for a system that is also simultaneously mocking and seeking to rewrite some of the most fundamental parts of God’s image bearers. In other words, just as I stated that no conservative Christian will be defended or advocated for more than by God, the Christian who deeply cares about social injustice will not be empowered or given the opportunities to change the world more than by God alone. Just as I urged the conservative Christian to remove any idolatry in their heart regarding politics, I urge you to reconsider if voting for Democratic political leaders and their policies is really what God meant when he asked you and gave you the abilities and qualities and vision to help change the world for good.
You may be wondering then, what now? What are we to do if we have a political party that is holding its leaders and agenda higher than God and the other party is embracing values and principles that are not aligned with the Bible? Where do we fall into place as informed Christ followers who want to steward their cities, communities and country well? When it comes to the upcoming presidential election, I encourage you to vote, and to do so based on the facts. What does each candidate and their party want to enact? What would their policies mean and how would it affect the unborn, marriage, and economic stability? I urge you to look past the polarization and rhetoric of each candidate. As I stated earlier in this article, voting is not a Biblical right. But it is a right in the country you live in. We are given by God’s mercy, for now, the abilities to have a say into the decisions that go into running our land. We might as well exercise that right, but loosely, understanding it is a gift not to be held too seriously.
Vote, but then, live. Let the rhythm of Evangelism, discipleship and Christian community be what sits at the forefront of your mind. Entrust your family, their future and your country to the grace and sovereignty of God. Let your finances, your time and your conversations reflect a heart that is more committed, more at awe and more devoted to the work of Christ in your life and His world than anything else that you value and see as important. Let everyday conversations about Jesus be what takes more of your time, than any political awareness or advocacy. Be aware of the condition of this world. This world is fading. Political leaders, movements, and countries will fade along with it. You can be an informed individual who votes according to their conscience while also being a Christ follower who understands your greatest call and purpose is to make a lost and dying world aware of a living and victorious King. It is good to remember that you know and represent a God that embodies truth, but with a Spirit of gentleness, reconciliation, and relationship at the core of who He is. And He has graciously called us to imitate His likeness. We ask God to grant us the wisdom and ability to lean into what it means to fight, to defend, but also to listen and to radically love.
