How should Christians think about the upcoming elections in America?
Christians can differ on all sorts of things, and that includes how we might deal with politics and elections. But as even non-believers understand, the November 5 election in the United States will be hugely significant – for good or ill. Believers especially need to think clearly and biblically about all this.
With exactly 6700 articles now up on my site, and 4337 of them dealing with Christianity and 1192 of them dealing with politics, anyone who has been a regular visitor here would have a pretty good idea about what I think on such matters
So what I have to say here will not be anything radically new, and will be all rather familiar to even irregular readers of this site. But it is worth writing this piece anyway, and for several reasons:
-Repetition of ideas can be good and helpful.|
-Some of my newer readers might benefit from it.
-Restating basic biblical truths never goes astray
-This election will be very important indeed, impacting not just America but the whole world.
So let me offer a list of vital realities that must be remembered as we approach this momentous election. And let me state at the outset that I write as a Protestant evangelical. So that is where I am coming from. That is my ‘bias.’ But what I say here should be of value to all Christians of all stripes.
With each of these points I will also offer a link to an earlier article of mine which sought to make my case in much more detail, so feel free to check those out as well. Here then are ten key points that we all need to keep in mind as we approach this election:
One. Sadly there are too many Christians who foolishly think that politics and political involvement really do not matter. They think they should have nothing to do with the political process, and they are somehow being spiritual for doing so. This is a recipe for disaster, and it is wrong on so many levels.
We are called to be salt and light. We are called to see the Lordship of Christ extend over every area of life. We are called to see God glorified in all things. This includes the political realm. And as has been said so often, if we take no interest in politics, that does not mean it will take no interest in us. Politics and elections matter, and we need to be faithful stewards in this area as in all others. https://billmuehlenberg.com/2014/08/10/yes-politics-matters-are-you-listening-pastors/
Two. Related to this, some Christians – far too many, in fact – actually think that they can just sit this one out. They are not thrilled with either candidate, and will simply not bother to vote. As I said in an earlier piece, one report found that 32 million regular churchgoing Christians will not vote this time. https://billmuehlenberg.com/2024/10/20/christophobe-kamala/
But not to vote is to vote. If millions of evangelicals – who tend to be more politically conservative, and for good reason – refuse to vote, then that will just hand the election to Kamala. Their non-vote really will be a vote – for the other side. And God will hold us accountable both for what we do and what we do not do. Sins of omission are just as serious as sins of commission.
Three. No perfect candidates exist. If you are waiting for a perfect marriage partner, you will never marry. If you are waiting for a perfect pastor, you will never attend church. The same here: if you are waiting for a perfect political candidate, you will never vote. All this is obvious. In a fallen world there are no perfect people and there are no perfect institutions and no perfect anything.
Four. Related to this, we must remember that the best is often the enemy of the good. Because every candidate, politician, political party and policy is flawed and imperfect, we are simply living in dreamland, and not biblical reality, if we expect otherwise. Forget about sitting around waiting for a perfect anything to come along. The perfect just will not be coming in this world. Only in the next world will we find perfection.
Five. Because of those above truths, we are only left with choosing between the lesser of two evils in an election like this. The reason is clear: only evil people exist. Yes, some sinners have come to Christ in faith and repentance and are seeking to become more Christlike and less evil – it is the lifelong process of sanctification. So to disparage the idea of ‘the lesser of two evils’ is to flee from biblical realism and to engage in wishful thinking.
It would be nice if only the most pure, the most ideal, and the best forms of anything and everything were available to choose from. But that is seldom the case in most areas of life. As such, it is NOT unbiblical or unchristian to run with a relative evil that is clearly better than a much worse evil: https://billmuehlenberg.com/2024/07/08/on-choosing-between-evils/
Six. We must always keep in mind that prophetic, inspired truths were presented by God’s prophets in the Old Testament as they discussed what God was doing with not just individuals and leaders, but with nations as well. People could know exactly what God was up to because of these divinely inspired prophetic words. Thus a prophet could say ‘This is that.’ A prophet could say ‘This is happening because….’ Ordinary people could know the mind of God on national and international events, and they could respond accordingly.
But today we do not have this same inerrant and inspired prophetic word, so we need to be a bit more cautious in any commentary we make on such matters. We can seek to be wise and discerning as we read and study Scripture and seek to apply it to current events, but we must do so carefully and humbly. https://billmuehlenberg.com/2024/08/26/nations-and-divine-judgment/
Seven. In light of this absence of a clear divine word on the events of the day, we can only surmise whether something like a Kamala win will in fact be the judgment of God on an ungodly and wicked nation. At times in ancient Israel the prophets told the people not to resist an invading foreign pagan army. That was because God had raised them up as instruments of his judgment on a sinful and idolatrous Israel.
But this was not always the case. Sometimes Israel was to go out and meet their enemies in the field of battle. Again, God told them what to do. Because we do not have that same sure word, we can only guess if the actions of nations and rulers and the results of elections should be seen as divine judgment or not. We do know however that the words of Calvin about wicked rulers being the judgment of God do have some validity: https://billmuehlenberg.com/2016/02/27/calvin-on-wicked-rulers-and-gods-judgment/
Eight. Whatever the outcome of this election, the biblical Christian understands that the Kingdom of God will not be ushered in as a result. I happen to think that a Trump victory will overall be good for the nation and good for Americans. But I am under no illusion that a Trump win can be equated with the messianic rule.
He is not the Messiah, just as no politician is. So while a Trump presidency will certainly help to stop the rot, further drain the swamp, and put a hold on the destructive efforts of the secular left machine that we face, it will ultimately not be what all true Christians long for: the great and glorious Day of the Lord. https://billmuehlenberg.com/2022/12/19/we-are-all-a-mixed-bag-including-our-leaders/
But even here, we must see that God is still at work in America and the world. They will go on for as long as God intends them to. We know that evil and diabolical regimes have existed before, and more will do so in the days ahead. But not one of them has lasted, nor will they last. One day all nations and governments and regimes will come to a halt when Christ returns and his eternal Kingdom is established.
Ten. Prayer is our essential default position here. We of course need to pray much before the election. We need to pray for ourselves as we carefully and thoughtfully seek how best to vote in this election. We need to pray for the various candidates, including of course Trump and Harris. I pray daily for both of them. https://billmuehlenberg.com/2024/07/14/trump-prayer-and-politics/
And prayer for America is vital. In so many ways this has been such a great country and such a force for good in the world. Much of that is due to its Christian past and its large Christian population. But as the nation gets increasingly secular and anti-Christian, it can not long last. Pray that God’s purposes are done with the USA, and pray that it undergoes major revival and reformation.
