“If you don’t vote for X, I’m undecided that you just’re even a Christian!”
Confusingly enough, I’ve heard the “X” filled in with candidates from each side of the political aisle. We have one group shouting that we’d like to saddle a donkey and the opposite side would have our Christian duty be harnessing an elephant. And there’s an excellent probability that as you read this, you’re rolling your eyes on the thought that anyone could make a Christian argument for the “other” side of things.
It’s no secret that we’re a polarized country (though surprisingly not as much as we expect). And it’s no secret that nearly everyone feels as if the results of each election will indelibly impact the direction of our nation for the following 4 years. For so long as I can remember I’ve been told that “that is essentially the most consequential election we’ve ever faced.” If I’m being honest, it’s beginning to feel like a clothing store having the “biggest sale of the yr” every other week.
I’ll lay my cards out on the table at first. I’m immediately turned off to any argument which says a Christian must vote a certain way or their salvation is in query. For one, the thought of a vote would have been entirely foreign to the early disciples. We must admit that if we’re to make arguments from Scripture about voting, all we’ve are inferences. Secondly, our salvation is connected to Christ. If you’ll be able to have an offended tirade in traffic and still be a Christian, you’ll be able to botch your vote and still be a Christian. Your eternity is settled by what you do with Jesus, not by what you do with a politician.
Yet, I do consider our faith should inform our voting. These are essential inquiries to ask. But before asking how we should always vote, and even who we should always vote for, perhaps we’d like to take a step further back. What is a vote?
What Is a Vote?
I believe of a vote a little bit like how C.S. Lewis spoke of Satan. He said it way more eloquently, however the gist of his thought on the enemy is that we can provide the devil an excessive amount of or too little attention. I think our vote is analogous. We can dismiss our vote as if it’s an insignificant thing and has nothing to do with our following of Christ. But we will equally err in considering that our vote is entangled with casting a vote for heaven or hell. It may very well be, I suppose. But that’s likely a heart issue that was settled prior to the ballot box.
What is a vote for a Christian? I’d say that it’s a stewardship of our civic duty meant to advertise justice, righteousness, and neighborly love. Though our fundamental identity is present in a special city (heaven) our vote is a way by which we will seek the welfare of the community through which God has placed us.
Being capable of vote is a present. People in lots of other nations wish that they had the fitting to a vote. It is a stupendous a part of our country that we’re capable of select (not less than somewhat) our own leaders. And being an American citizen of voting age signifies that we’ve a civic duty to perform in voting. But as Christians we’re called to steward every little thing we’re given. This blessing of a vote is a stewardship which is ultimately given to us by God.
We are to steward our vote in the identical way that we’re to steward every certainly one of God’s blessings. We are to make use of this to advertise justice, righteousness, and the love of our neighbor. Our vote is forged to elect government officials which we consider will promote the welfare of the community.
It is here that we, at the same time as believers, might need differing opinions. We disagree on what qualifies as promoting justice and righteousness. We weigh things in a different way. One believer might view policies of healthcare, social justice, and welfare because the means to create thriving. They could be convinced that the plan of a certain politician will create thriving for everybody inside our nation, and concurrently feel that the plan of one other candidate will harm other segments of society. Another believer might emphasize one other set of policies — like religious freedom, family values, and small government.
I’m pretty big on allowing other believers to follow their very own conscience. That also makes me uncomfortable at times. I scratch my head wondering how a believer could vote for this policy, or that politician. But at the tip of the day, I believe we do well to maintain our understanding of the vote in its proper channels. It’s a matter of the guts greater than anything. And I believe we’re voting as a Christian once we forged our vote for what we truly consider will promote the very best welfare for our community.
But what when you end up unable to vote for any of the proposed candidates? Must a Christian vote?
Do Christians Have to Vote?
Jesus is pretty clear within the gospels that believers were imagined to pay taxes to Caesar. And Caesar was a wicked dude who would likely spend that cash on wicked things. We have to wrestle with all the implications of that. On the opposite hand, a vote is a little bit different than paying taxes to Caesar. It is not mandatory. No citizen is required to forged a vote. Therefore, it’s in a little bit different category.
Again, let’s think in regards to the nature of our vote. It is a stewardship of civic duty meant to advertise justice, righteousness, and neighborly love. It is a way by which we will seek the welfare of our community. What happens if, in your estimation, you can’t in good conscience forged a vote for any of the proposed candidates?
I appreciate what John Piper says here:
“One of those aspects is that this: when the duty to vote is elevated to the purpose where it overrides other Christian principles of virtue, it has been taken too far. That duty has been taken too far. At times, it happens in a fallen world that a vote for any proposed candidate is so offensive, so morally compromised, so misleading that it might be a matter of greater integrity, more faithful obedience to Christ, and a clearer witness to truth if we don’t vote for any of the proposed candidates.”
Our chief obligation is to God and His kingdom. If a Christian cannot in good conscience vote for either candidate, I’d personally suggest writing-in a candidate. I’d suggest voting for a candidate that you just can in good conscience vote for. It’s never a wasted vote to forged a ballot for the one you suspect will assist in helping others thrive. That is what it means to steward your vote. For me personally, if I cannot do this I’ll abstain.
I do know others disagree with me on this. They will say that to not vote for candidate A is to forged a ballot for candidate B. I’ve never understood that logic since it assumes far an excessive amount of. The stewardship of my vote isn’t about ensuring one party or one other stays in power. The stewardship of my vote is about giving my little shard of an opinion on what is going to create essentially the most flourishing of the candidates available. If I think neither will do that, then abstaining (not less than for me) is a sound option for a Christian. And if enough did this, it would hold much more sway than being within the pocket of either political party. Perhaps our options and our discourse may very well be improved if candidates once more needed to earn our vote—which results in our next section.
What Principles Should Govern My Vote?
This isn’t the primary and biggest principle, however the one which flows most naturally from the previous paragraph; namely voting against something is ultimately self-defeating. Our vote needs to be for something. Christians are supposed to be builders not stoppers. We’re imagined to create flourishing to work and to maintain the garden. Yes, that does at times mean keeping wickedness out. But our chief concern is to create. When we flip this and provides more energy to creating sure the “worse” party doesn’t win, we’ve cut the legs out from under our creation mandate. Christians, for my part, shouldn’t play the sport of lesser of two evils.
Secondly, we should always in the beginning know which kingdom has our primary citizenship. We vote as those that have a principal allegiance to Christ and His kingdom. This signifies that the character and way of Christ won’t only govern how we forged our ballot, but additionally how we engage in political discussion. This allegiance to Christ should inform every little thing we do. Our voting needs to be done for the glory of God. Again, I do know we differ here on how we live out the calling of Christ. We differ on what this implies for public policy. But as believers we should always have the option to be united across the shed blood of our Savior. This needs to be our fundamental loyalty.
Furthermore, character does matter. We usually are not voting just for platform. It isn’t policy alone which creates flourishing in a community. What is that saying about culture eating strategy for breakfast? It’s true. You can have all the life-giving policies on the earth but when it isn’t lived out by life-giving people then it’s only a pipe dream. Leaders lead. If we expect a frontrunner with an immoral character will lead us to thriving as a community, we’re sorely mistaken. There is a reason why boards consider the ethics of their CEO’s before hiring them. I’m undecided why we expect civic leaders would one way or the other be different.
Lastly, we should always be people of truth. I could be inching outside the scope of this text, but I believe it’s a vital consideration. Remember what your vote is. It’s about stewardship. It’s about flourishing. Sometimes we get our vote improper. And sometimes the person we put in office does things which create harm. This is where embracing all of those principles comes into play. We have to speak against evil and for righteousness no matter party. That is our goal as Christians. When we see beauty lets highlight it, irrespective of the party. When we see evil, let’s combat it, irrespective of the party.
Our vote is simply one little piece of our lifelong call to pursue the flourishing of the fallen community around us. We’re in Babylon and we’d like to live prefer it. We have to bring as much Jesus into our wayward world as we will. There’s 1461 days in a four-year election cycle. If Christians fail to like one another, fail to follow the way in which of Jesus, and fail to like our neighbors for 1460 days, casting our vote on someday in November isn’t exactly faithfulness.
Photo credit: Pexels/Cottonbro
Mike Leake is husband to Nikki and father to Isaiah and Hannah. He can also be the lead pastor at Calvary of Neosho, MO. Mike is the writer of Torn to Heal and Jesus Is All You Need. His writing house is http://mikeleake.net and you’ll be able to connect with him on Twitter @mikeleake. Mike has a recent writing project at Proverbs4Today.
