“The commandment of Jesus does not provide the basis for any kind of domination of the church over the government, of the government over the family, or of culture over government or church, or for any other relation of overlordship which may be though of in this connexion” [Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Ethics (New York: Touchstone, 1995), p. 293].
Another contentious election is ending. Several states already have early voting, and the final votes for President, House of Representatives, about one-third of the Senate, and other offices throughout the country will be cast on November 5. I know who I hope will win, and I suspect most of my American readers can say the same thing. Nevertheless, I would like to share a few thoughts about how American Christians should approach the election.
Recently, I have been reading Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Ethics. It requires slow and deliberate reading, as he delves into deep thoughts about the subject. For him, Jesus Christ is central to all ethics—even more so than biblical law, morality, etc. True Christians partake of the tree of life, which is Christ. Many religious people continue to partake of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Do we choose to follow Christ or a set of rules and rituals?
In a few chapters, he speaks of several mandates that God has established: the church, the government, the family, and the culture (which includes the economy and labor, as well as many of the things we usually associate with that term). Each has its unique divinely-ordained role. To maintain order, each must be free to fulfill its purpose within society.
In the quote above, Bonhoeffer is saying that each of these mandates should be free to fulfill its function without domination or subjugation by another mandate. In his time, though, the government was dominating the other mandates. Living in Nazi Germany, he saw churches that placed Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf alongside the Word of God, while government officials determined who was authorized to preach in church, who could have families, what shape “family” could take, etc.
We can see the seeds of similar circumstances today in America. We have not sunk as low as Nazi Germany did, but I believe we are on our way. In the years preceding Hitler’s rise to power, far-right Nazi extremists and leftist communists fought to gain control. It was almost inevitable that one of these groups would plunge the nation into tyranny. I wonder how close we are to making the same mistake in America.
We should pursue a government that lets the church be the church. In recent years, we have watched the government redefine the family, engineer the culture, and try to restrict the church. For some, the First Amendment guarantee of “freedom of religion” has been limited to the more restricted “freedom of worship.”
We should not allow the government to prohibit the church from fulfilling its divine mandate, nor should we expect the government to do what only the church can do. Much of the hostility in the current political climate stems from a spirit of idolatry among Christians. We expect a political party or candidate to accomplish what only God can do. Only God can save a nation. Only God can heal our land. Only God can restore us.
“At times I might shut up the heavens so that no rain falls, or command grasshoppers to devour your crops, or send plagues among you. Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land. My eyes will be open and my ears attentive to every prayer made in this place” (2 Chronicles 7:13-15, English Standard Version).
The church is not called to fight political arguments or to hate those who disagree with us politically. We are called to love our neighbors and enemies (Matthew 5:43-48) and to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Matthew 28:18-20).
As you go to the polls, try to discern who will allow the church to fulfill its mandate while seeking to ensure domestic tranquility (in the words of the Preamble to the Constitution). Pray for the candidate who wins the election, even if you did not vote for him or her or question his/her morals or integrity.
Most importantly, always seek to live a life of spiritual revival. Live in a state of confession, repentance, and faith in God, expecting Him to transform you and heal our land. Share Jesus with others and invite them to experience new life in His name.
May God have mercy on our nation.
Almighty God, to whom we must account for all our powers and privileges: Guide the people of the United States in the election of officials and representatives; that, by faithful administration and wise laws, the rights of all may be protected and our nation be enabled to fulfill your purposes; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Copyright © 2024 Michael E. Lynch. All rights reserved.
Darkened Glass Reflections 
2 responses to “Christians, Elections, Church, State, and Culture”
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Clearly, I call myself a “prophet” on this blog, though many passing through here will question that. Less clear, but equally true, you call yourself a “Christian,” but as yet I am not convinced. Be that as it may, for the sake of argument (and blogging), let us indulge and accept one another at face value. Or more importantly, let us value one another in some sense approaching the value God has for each of us. Basically, let’s have a little respect and decency despite our differences.
Shall we?
Now for my eccentric side note:
Those who know me, who really know me, also know that not only do I not vote, but I don’t pledge allegiance to the flag either. This is not the main thrust of my post, presently, but it is a little factoid which I expect could add a bit of color to, or a better viewpoint for, my presentation.
Also, not central to my point, BUT I constantly feel constrained to explain myself carefully on these matters: I do not preach against the vote per se. No condemnation HERE if you do vote or did.
Additionally (still only peripheral to my point), I do not believe the vote is a way to “make my voice heard.” If the people at the capitol in J6 had believed their voice was heard at the voting booth, they would not have resorted to “fight[ing] like hell” to be at the capitol that day. (I’m now stating the obvious, but of course, if you are American, you’d probably rather I didn’t.) (It’s the kind of thing prophets do.)
And one more excentric observation going in: I happen to believe very strongly that I still maintain my first amendment right to free speech independent from my voting status. I complain, and you can’t stop me (basically).
So… moving closer to the point of this post.
My engagement with politics is reduced, by self-imposition, to prayer and nontraditional/spiritual measures. IF I could attract engagement in the comments, I am sure I could explore this a LOT more and with a lot better detail and answer questions these remarks surely raise, some of which I cannot anticipate. But if I could sum up my intentions in short, I would say this:
Jesus takes the rightful, God-ordained crown of Israel’s king, having been chosen by God, installed there by God, and in spite of and despite God’s people or any of the usual political ploys. He comes in a mix of religion and politics, but he doesn’t play by any of the recognizable rules.
He is killed, buried, and then raised from the dead.
RAISED FROM THE DEAD!
(Show me where that political agenda is on anyone’s ballot!)
And then… for a while there, the only witnesses to his victory over death (his vindication of his claims and the implementation of his kingdom agendas) are lowly peasant women without enough clout to testify in any court in the world.
Think about that.
Women. Women back when they not only couldn’t have say over their own bodies, but they couldn’t vote or testify in court either one! But God trusts THEM first (before trusting men) with his GOOD NEWS!
And their own men don’t believe them – the exact reverse of Adam vis-a-vis Eve at the tree of the knowledge of good and evil! (Go figure!)
And even then, EVEN THEN, when those few men come to terms with the GOOD NEWS their women tell them, all you find there is these smelly, fishermen – peasants ill equipped to handle the smallest parcel the USPS handles. Not a one of them has a college degree or even a high school diploma! And these guys tell their friends and family who are all fellow peasants and bums too.
Oh, and did I mention they are all very fearful too?
Yeah. For many hours, days, and weeks, the most important edicts, decrees, commands, directives, comforts, encouragements, promises, and fulfillments of promises – in short, the GOOD NEWS – remains in these pitiful earthen vessels that most people wouldn’t listen to or pay heed. As the bums, beggars, and hangers-on around village after village begin to hear this GOOD NEWS and the hope of Heaven’s Politics circulate in these lowly places, the high councils, the governors, military tribunals, delegates, diplomats, kings, emperors, and rich white people are still not in the loop.
Rich white people. Always the last to know!
But in time, the world comes to know that when Pilate, Caiaphas, and Herod colluded to kill that one lowly peasant Jew during Passover, the principalities and powers just didn’t really know what they were doing, and God had already established his VICTORY in defeat.
And if you are reading this far into this post, I expect you believe everything I have described here so far.
No?
Maybe I put some emPHASis on the syLABles you aren’t normally accustomed to, but the words all line up.
Right?
Somebody say, AMEN.
Well, you see… I don’t vote. I do complain, but I don’t vote. I try to direct my complaints first and foremost to God. Sometimes a little slips out in conversations or blog posts. And I try not to actually HIDE my thoughts or feelings about candidates, parties, or policies, but I also try not to disparage them with contempt either. Thus, I aim more to say something like this: I never prayed for a president more than I prayed for Trump.
That’s a less contentious way of putting the idea than if I said I think Trump is an awful president and a worse Christian.
I also try to focus my attention specifically on the church vis-a-vis Trump or the election rather than just bag on Trump in general. There are, in fact, four votes for every vote, not one.
Let’s count them the way heaven sees them. Consider this: On your ballot appears two names. You will circle only one of the names, but this is the distillation of numerous possibilities. If you circle Harris, clearly you are not voting for Trump, but is that really a vote FOR Harris? What if you don’t like Harris, but you like Trump even less? In that case when you circle Harris, you are not so much favoring her or her agendas, but you are saying NO to Trump in the strongest way a ballot can deliver.
Hold that up to the mirror and you can say all the same stuff going the other direction. Many voters vote for Trump, not because they love him, but because they want even more not to support Harris.
So, where is any mandate in any of that? How has your voice been heard? How can you call that “speaking truth to power”? Why do you think your voice matters anyway? What is God doing in this? Care to pray?
Ahhh… politics through prayer.
Yes. I endorse that! I preach that. Vote if you must, but you really must pray! The vote is optional, the prayer is not.
See what I mean?
But the politics don’t end on election night. The vote does, but not the politics and not the prayer.
And the voting season, like the Christmas season, seems to come around sooner each cycle! And the candidates go to smearing each other… the electorate hates it but then joins in all the smearing despite ourselves… and it grows and grows until our election is more cancer than politics!
And, by the way, my church has become highly politicized! And evangelicals are a voting bloc FOR TRUMP!
Now I have a church problem, and the church problem has different “levels” too!
Do I think the church should champion Harris?
No.
The church didn’t get a vote in Rome, and despite Rome’s policy differences regarding suffrage, neither St. Paul nor any of the other New Testament writers endorsed or championed Nero or Claudius or any other contenders for the top office. Not even dog catcher!
But they did pray for their pagan, tyrant leaders. And they instructed us to submit to them too.
Ouch!
Man… that sounds like GOOD NEWS today if you like Trump! And I expect that is quite a point of confusion for many an evangelical today who has no idea about their own confusion on that matter … yet.
But in the weeks and months leading up to this most recent election, I found numerous blogs, articles, and even pastors pointing away from Trump as a matter of Christian reasoning. And they certainly had my sympathies. Also, they had my relief! I was relieved to see fellow American Christians thinking outside this hype that has swept over the church for at least the last decade (though I was seeing it clearly more than two decades ago and beginning to recognize it more than three).
Hmmm…
Why am I saying all this stuff?
Well, I hope it sets me up for the actual point of this post.
There is more for us to do than simple prayer, and now that the election is over and conceded by Harris, we have to move to a new political strategy. If you are a Christian, a REAL Christian, and not just somebody wearing the tee shirt, then you have reconciliation on your mind today. How might we join Jesus in the reconciliation of all things today in America?
Wow!
And if you are one of those Christians who did not endorse Trump, who see him as ungodly and problematic, then I figure you are feeling the sting of defeat.
No?
Well, there is an upside to that.
If you are among those feeling the sting of this election, then you are not one drunk on gloating today. You might be drunk on despair or wrath or something else, but you aren’t drunk on lording it over the others, and it shall not be so among you.
Feel me yet?
And rejoice in this trial! Just think how it would go if Trump lost and all those evangelicals taking the name of Jesus in vain chose a J6 2.0? It was only four years ago when they were feeling this pain, and they were some sore losers! But it shall not be so among you.
Let us be about reconciliation. And we must be humble to have it.
I don’t join Harris in saying the fight is not over. That’s just a liberal’s wordy version of J6. Face it. It’s just as vain and pitiful. It’s nothing like the GOOD NEWS those women found at the tomb of Jesus. It’s nothing like the entrusting of God’s treasure in bums and peasants.
But we can pray for Trump. We can show our Trump following friends the victory in Jesus – a victory which will circulate among the peasants and bums a long time before those on top even notice.
And for those Christians who did vote for Trump and who actually find something worthwhile in his victory, if you are really Christian and not just flying the flag, then you too have reconciliation on your mind today. You are not drunk on the victory of party politics, but you are humbly looking at your neighbors who lost and praying for them, reaching out to them, and seeking common ground where you can share faith.
It is God’s victory, not ours. It isn’t won with a vote, but by the Spirit of God.
Take heart and have hope.
We are in a very strong position now having pulled ourselves up to our knees.
Let us pray.
Amen?
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