Election day is upon us, so it is time
to choose the leaders who will govern us for the coming years. Many Christians consider the business of
politics is too worldly to have the collective church involved in the choosing
of leaders, and the Internal Revenue Service forbids tax-exempt organizations
such as churches from endorsing candidates.
Moreover, there is no evidence in the New Testament that the early church
was involved collectively in the appointment of political officials. Concerning civil authorities, the church is only
instructed to offer specific prayers for them so that "we may lead a tranquil
and quiet life in all godliness and dignity" and that they might be saved. (1Tim.
2:1-4). Furthermore, each Christian is to
submit to the authority of civil leaders, to pay taxes, and to be ready to give
a defense of the faith if ever called on to do so (Matt. 22:17-21; Rom. 13:1-7;
1Pet. 2:13-17; 3:13-17).
With these things in mind, let us
understand that the church collectively and Christians individually do have
responsibilities concerning the election of leaders. The responsibility of prayer has already been
noted, but there is even more. The church's
responsibility as the "pillar and support of the truth" (1Tim. 3:15) is simply
to teach the truth of God's word in every area of life, including those which
affect the selection of civil leaders.
Moral and spiritual issues sometimes also become political issues, but
this does not mean that the church must cease from preaching on such
issues. Instead, the church must
continue to teach the truth on these matters regardless of the politics
involved. It follows then that each
Christian's responsibility is to make the application of the truth in the
election of civil leaders. If a
Christian chooses to vote, then he or she should vote in compliance with the
principles of God's word.
The Bible does offer a divinely wise
example and pattern for selecting our leaders.
Christians tend to overlook this pattern because the governing officials
of the New Testament era were not democratically elected, and first century
Christians did not have a voice in the selection of leaders. However, if we look back to the Old
Testament, then we find a model of democracy in the early years of the nation
of Israel. In fact, the founding fathers
of the United States incorporated this Biblical model into our own nation when
they established our government.
This pattern is found in the Law of
Moses beginning in Exodus 18:13-27. When
the burden of judging every dispute in Israel became too great for Moses, his
father-in-law Jethro advised him, saying, "[Y]ou shall select out of all the
people able men who fear God, men of truth, those who hate dishonest gain; and
you shall place these over them as leaders of thousands, of hundreds, of
fifties and of tens" (v. 21). Moses
followed this advice with the commandment of God (v. 23), and it went well with
Israel. In Deuteronomy 1:9-18, Moses
recounted these events, and he said that the people of Israel chose for
themselves "wise and discerning and experienced men" to be their leaders (v.
13). He also said that he told these
men, "You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small and
the great alike. You shall not fear man, for the judgment is God's" (v.
17). Later, this same process of
selecting judges and officers was codified in the Law in Deuteronomy
16:18-17:13. The responsibility of
choosing these leaders was given to the people, for Moses said, "You shall
appoint for yourself judges and officers..." (16:18).
From this pattern, we can learn a sound,
godly basis for selecting our own leaders.
They should be able men who fear God, men of truth, and those who hate
dishonest gain. They should also be wise
and discerning. Perhaps most importantly,
they should recognize their God-given responsibilities as civil
authorities. When Moses told the leaders
of Israel that their "judgment is God's" (Deut. 1:17), he indicated that their
judgment was to be respected as an exercise of God's own authority. This did not mean that they could make any
judgment they pleased, but instead it meant that they were to judge in
compliance with God's law. When they did
so, it was the very judgment of God Himself.
Likewise, all civil officials today must recognize that any authority they
have comes from God (John 19:10-11; Rom. 13:1-4). Therefore, candidates for office who have no
respect for God and His authority in civil government are not worthy of our
votes.
We all know that politics is dirty
business, but this must not cause us to shirk our responsibilities toward our
civil authorities. Let us therefore
offer our prayers for all of them just as God commands us. Furthermore, let us submit to them as they
exercise authority in compliance with God's will. Finally, let us choose our leaders according
to the precepts and qualifications given in God's word. As we do so, let us keep in mind that the
beginning and ending of a Christian's politics should rest on the wisdom of God's
word, for Proverbs 14:34 says, "Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a
disgrace to any people." Certainly, we
should allow our faith to shape our politics rather than allowing our politics
to shape our faith.
