When The Election is Over
When it's all over, how now should Christians live?
We have less than a week before election day. Are you ready for it to be over? Soon, we will know the next occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. When it’s over, how should believers react?
The Baptist Review asked me to write about the aftermath. Here are five post-election postures for Christians:
1. Gratitude
This sounds counter-intuitive. Can we find something praiseworthy in a divisive, partisan season? Even if we will be grateful when we can stop getting hit with text messages, mailers, and TV ads, we can find room for gratitude that, unlike most people in human history, we even have a politics to complain about.
Consider that right now, nobody in totalitarian regimes like North Korea, Russia, or China is complaining about partisanship. In fact, if you were to ask the average citizen in those countries if they’d trade places with us, they’d gladly accept that offer. America is far from perfect, with lots of glaring problems and issues—hence a political campaign—and yet we are still the freest, most prosperous nation in human history.
We have the opportunity to choose the people who hold public office and the policies they enact. We may wish our point of view had more influence or got more votes, but at least we have some measure of influence. Today, billions of people long for that kind of freedom. So, we should thank God for the privilege of living in America, regardless of who wins the election. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 urges us to “in everything, give thanks.”
2. Prayer
In 1 Timothy 2:1-4, Paul urges Timothy to pray for “or everyone, for kings and all those who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good, and it pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” November 5th will put a different president in the White House. He or she deserves our prayer. We’ll also see several new Senators, House members, mayors, state legislators, judges, governors, and local school board members. Christians must make it a regular practice to ask God to direct those in office to govern fairly, righteously, and as a “God’s servant for good” (Romans 13:4).
It's important to pray for leaders, whether or not you agree with them or voted for them. Paul urged Timothy to pray for a ruthless Roman emperor whom neither of them would have supported if given a choice, a man who arrested, jailed, and executed Christians. On our worst day in America, we’re not anywhere close to living under this kind of tyranny. I am sobered by how often I complain about politicians compared to how often I pray for them. We should make this a regular habit, both personally and in our congregations.
3. Engagement
Our work in “seeking the welfare of our city” (Jeremiah 29) and living as “salt and light” (Matthew 5:13-16) doesn’t end when the last ballot is counted. There is much work for us to do in between elections, both locally in working with our state and local governments to help serve our neighbors and in speaking out on important issues. The scared, unwed mothers in our communities will still need the help of our pregnancy resource centers, even when the election is over. Our school boards still need the wise involvement of faithful Christians, and our schools still need help educating children. The hungry, the hopeless, and the homeless still need the tangible service our SBC churches so generously provide in communities across the country.
What’s more, our engagement in public policy is just beginning. The new officeholders will be making consequential decisions. Regardless of who inhabits the White House, who controls Congress, who sits in governors’ mansions, city councils, and other offices—we should support them when they make good decisions and oppose them when they make poor decisions. And we should do it while obeying 1 Peter 3:15-17, which instructs us to both “have an answer for every person” while doing it with “gentleness and kindness.”
You can read the rest here.
I also have a piece for World in which I talk about the importance of respecting our democratic institutions, including the Supreme Court.
My book, The Characters of Christmas, is now on sale on Amazon. Get it if you are planning your Advent season. If you have little kids, you’ll like Jesus and The Characters of Christmas.
If your church is looking for a resource about understanding spiritual gifts, check out my study with Lifeway.