Before we discuss the American election, we need to start with biblical election. I want you to grab a Bible and open it to Romans 8. It’s in the second part of the Bible, the New Testament. After Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, you’ll come next to Acts, then Romans.
While you’re finding that, I want to tell you about the first time I met my father-in-law. It was one month before Heather and I got married. We talked on the phone before, and he gave me his blessing to ask her to marry me, but this was the first time we met in person.
As soon as we got off the plane and saw her parents, Heather ran straight for the bathroom and left me all alone for the very first meeting. I was young, only 21. My father-in-law is much taller than me. He bench-pressed 300 pounds. He was an elder at his church. He fixed cars and built their house. I was a jumbled mix of respect and feeling intimidated.
Have you ever been so nervous that the muscles in your legs were shaking? My legs started shaking, and it worked its way up until my butt cheeks were shaking with nervousness. And Heather left me alone! I want to stress that. My father-in-law grabbed me with a big hug and said, “I want you to know that I’m not losing a daughter. I’m gaining a son.”
He wanted me to know that he was not the admissions committee. He was the welcoming committee. My mother-in-law was the admissions committee. From that first moment and for every moment since, he has always and only treated me with the status of a son. If you know my story you know my dad spent a decade in prison and died on parole. My father-in-law gave me the status of a son, which may have saved my life.
I hope you know this: If you are in Jesus, his status is given to you as though it were your own. God the Father sees us all, men and women, as having the status of first-born sons—heirs to the whole kingdom. That’s Jesus’ status, and because we are in him, that is our status, too. He is righteous, so our status is righteous. Jesus is the elect one, and if we are in him, we are the elect.
The biblical concept of election can be a hot topic. Some good-hearted, intelligent folks insist that election means that even before any of us existed, God pre-decided who would be saved. On the other hand, there are good-hearted, intelligent folks who insist that God pre-decided not who but how people would be saved. We are not going to settle that debate today.
Let me tell you what everyone, from all sides, agrees on. If you are in Jesus—you are elect. He is the elect one, and if you are in him, you are an elect one because you are in him. This is key to understanding the question that we are going to wrestle down to the ground today. What does it mean to live like the elect before an election?
ROMANS 8:1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,
Being in Jesus means you have his status, and God will never condemn you for anything. Being in Jesus means you have his status, and God will never condemn you for anything because Jesus settled that fully on the cross. This doesn’t mean that just anything goes. God has boundaries inside of which we are to live. His boundaries and his commands are non-negotiables. It’s inside those boundaries that we experience a thriving life, we experience love, and we express love. But even if we mess up and sin—which we will, even if we royally mess up, there will never be any condemnation for anyone who is in Jesus.
Do you know that? Does the way that you talk to yourself reflect that you know that? Does the way that you respond to the way that people talk about you reflect that you know that? Does the way that you talk about others reflect that you know that? I’m sorry, I phrased that wrong. Does the way that you “share prayer requests” about other people reflect that you know that?
There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Let’s jump down to verse 28.
ROMANS 8:28-29 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.
To predestine something to pre-decide. Those who God knew would be saved, and we’re not settling debates about that, so stay with me. Those who God knew would be saved, he pre-decided that they would be conformed to the image of his Son. God’s plan all along has been for everyone who trusts in Jesus to be like Jesus. God pre-decided that you and I would be formed to be like Jesus.
This is why our church is so committed to spiritual formation. Since it’s God’s intent that we be formed to be like Jesus, it’s our intention, too. We’ve made it a goal this year to get at least 50% of adults who attend our church to take Practicing the Way. We are convinced that life that is truly life is oriented around being with Jesus, becoming like Jesus, and doing as he did.
If you feel like you’ve tuned into the wrong channel because I haven’t said anything provocative or political yet, hang with me. Yes. We are going to talk about politics today. Please hear this first. What I say next is the filter through which I want you to hear everything that’s coming. It’s not my goal to get you to vote for anyone or to vote against anyone. That’s not my job; your vote is none of my business. Even if I had the ability to influence your vote, that would be an improper use of influence.
Whatever influence I may have with you, I want to use 100% of it to move you to decide if you are going to be formed by Jesus, to be like Jesus, OR, are you going to be formed by all things America. If we are defined by and formed by Jesus we will truly be free. If we are defined by and formed by America, we will never be free in the way Jesus defines freedom. He’s my agenda today.
MY AGENDA:
- Set you free from false charges of condemnation.
- Inspire you to take your next step to be like Jesus.
Let’s start with the first one.
Many people with big platforms and massive influence are trying to convince you that if you vote for a Democrat, you are not a Christian, or that you are sinning with your vote, being faithless with your vote. One has said that we have to protect the discipleship of the vote, by which he meant to vote for only Republicans.
There is no such thing as discipleship of the vote. There is discipleship of a voter, but not discipleship of a vote. The confusing nature of this is that most of these people are very intelligent. They are reasonable and admirable in other areas of life, but when it comes to politics, they are spreading false charges of condemnation. The only thing that defines whether or not you are in Christ is if you have humbly repented and given your allegiance to him.
THERE IS NO CONDEMNATION FOR THOSE WHO ARE IN JESUS.
It’s no secret that the majority of African Americans vote Democrat. Most of our brothers and sisters in Christ who are African American vote Democrat. These accusers are condemning people of profound faith. I’m talking about people of the Word. I’m talking about men and women of prayer. I’m talking about powerful men and women of God. Are you kidding me? We’re supposed to think of them as not Christians or lesser Christians. That is demonic propaganda.
I was in high school and college when Bill Clinton was president. All the pastors I knew personally, and all the prominent pastors we all listened to, 100% of them said the same thing. It didn’t matter what a president’s policies were; if he cheated on his wife, he wasn’t qualified to hold the office. One prominent Christian leader wrote an op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal claiming that if a president lies to his wife, he will lie to the American people.
That same man is now telling us that we must vote for a candidate who cheated on three wives! The exact same people are now telling us that the only thing that matters is a candidate’s policies, not their private sins. What has changed? Who has power and their access to it is the only thing that’s changed.
There are people getting rich and getting power by coercing Christians with false charges of condemnation. When we talk about important matters, we should be people who bring light, not heat. I don’t want to bring the heat today. There’s already enough heat. Believe it or not, I’ve done my best to drain all the hot sauce out of this sermon. But I’ve got to tell you that these false charges of condemnation make me angry.
It breaks my heart and as your pastor I feel protective of you against people who want to dangle Jesus like a mascot and use you in their lust for money and power. I’m begging you, please don’t take the bait.
On the other side there are people telling us to pick the candidate that is most like Jesus, which means voting Democrat. Are you kidding me? To be like Jesus means that you must first be in Jesus. No one is like Jesus without first humbly repenting and declaring allegiance to him. Being like Jesus requires the Holy Spirit working in us. How can we truly know that about a candidate for high office? Every single one of us must evaluate the candidates from a distance through professionally crafted PR messaging. Debates aren’t helpful. They are exercises in not answering questions, not exchanging ideas, and not explaining how they will make good on promises.
Instead of trying to find the most Christ-like candidate, maybe we should focus on being Christ-like citizens and neighbors.
If we are going to be Christ-like, then we have the tough job of making difficult judgment calls. We must evaluate weighty issues.
- Abortion
- Immigration
- War and international conflict
- The economy
- Health care
- The Environment
- Education
- And on and on
In our best efforts to do what we are convinced is wise, loving, and in the best interest of the most people possible, we are going to vote differently.
JESUS FOLLOWERS WILL:
- Vote for and support Republicans
- Vote for and support Democrats
- Vote for and support a third-party
- Vote for and support multiple parties
- Not vote at all
If you look at that and you just have a hard time accepting this can be true—welcome to the human experience. Being formed to be like Jesus means that we stop judging others and we joyfully embrace each other, even when we disagree on major issues.
The very first church in Rome was full of people with different ethnic, cultural, and religious backgrounds. Sometimes, the people in that church fought each other over important issues. These issues included whether one day was more holy than another or whether it was sinful to eat foods sacrificed to idols. Those issues don’t matter to us, but they were huge to them.
When the Apostle Paul wrote to them, he didn’t tell them who was right or wrong. Instead, he wrote this.
ROMANS 14:5 One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind.
ROMANS 14:13 Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister.
ROMANS 14:19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.
Not only are you free in Jesus to make a judgment call, you have to. You are responsible for doing what you are convinced is most right, most loving, and most wise. And if you and I disagree, we are not free to judge each other. We are free to disagree. We are not free to judge. And no matter what, we are all fully responsible for making every effort toward peace and building each other up—never tearing each other down.
Let’s be like Jesus. Let’s live this out together. Let’s remember the cost of getting this wrong.
When we CONFLATE our faith with a political party, platform, or candidate, we become PAWNS for their agenda.
If you are younger than me, you may not remember a time when Christians and churches had more influence in our country. There was a time when white evangelicals had significant influence. There was a time when politicians cozied up with churches and prominent white evangelical leaders because it was believed that partnering together was the best strategy to defeat the threat of communism. If you are older than me, you definitely remember that. And, understandably, anyone who had influence would grieve the loss of it.
Call me crazy; I think that the best kind of influence comes by being formed to be like Jesus, not conforming to any political party, platform, or candidate. Cooperate with any party or candidate that you are convinced is best. But don’t let a party, platform, or candidate co-opt your formation.
When we give ourselves as PAWNS, we give up our PROPHETIC voice.
Having a prophetic voice doesn’t mean giving a hard message, though it can sometimes be that. Having a prophetic voice means speaking the words of God to people who need to hear them. It means bringing truth and clarity. There is only one political term used to describe followers of Jesus. Who knows what it is?
Ambassadors. We represent the true king. Our responsibility is to represent his interests, not our own. Phil Vischer is a creative guy, probably best known for Veggie Tales. He’s a goofy but astute thinker. Recently, he shared something that exemplifies being a prophetic voice.
You wonder how one party came to be so fanatically committed to unfettered access to assault weapons. And the other to unfettered access to abortion. If you’re old enough, you remember that this was not always the case, and that both parties adopted their current positions primarily as a reaction to the other party. And so, at one convention, they’re raffling off assault rifles—a weapon designed to take human life—as political theater. And at the other convention, they’re giving away free abortions—a medical procedure designed to take human life—as political theater. –Phil Vischer
If you want to stand up and shout that gun rights is a complex, nuanced issue or that abortion is a complex, nuanced issue—you may be right. Neither one of those issues can reduced to a sound bite. It’s not my intent to debate those issues. I’m asking you to buckle up and lean in. Are you ready? If we can’t recognize that the only two political shows in town are taking serious, life and death issues and treating them like carnival side shows—we’ve lost the plot. We’ve lost our prophetic voice. We’ve forgotten who we are, whose we are, and the sacred task we’ve been given to be ambassadors of Jesus.
REALITY CHECK: It’s easier to reflect our CULTURE than our SAVIOR.
I think there is an example for us, in the Apostle Paul, of how to engage political systems in a way that reflects Jesus. I want to encourage to carefully read over Acts 21-26. Read it several times and make observations.
Paul knew that if he went to Jerusalem the religious leaders would try to kill him. He went anyway because he cared about Jesus's interest and people's needs more than his own.
Sure enough, he was attacked. Roman soldiers stepped in to break up the mob, and they arrested Paul. Paul asked for permission to speak once the soldiers had settled the chaos. And used that opportunity not to plead for release but to preach the gospel to the crowd.
When it seemed like the crowd was getting testy again, the soldiers decided to publicly beat Paul. But Paul was a Roman citizen, which made it illegal for them to beat him. He played that card to avoid a beating and to get a trial. He understood the system, and he used it.
He eventually finds himself on trial before a Roman governor named Felix. Again, he used that trial not as an attempt to go free but to share the gospel. Felix kept Paul in custody for two years. One, he liked him and enjoyed talking with him. Two, he hoped someone would pay a bribe to release Paul. He’s been in custody for two years. And yet, Paul honored Felix; he strategically engaged the system and took every opportunity to represent Jesus.
Felix was replaced by a new governor named Festus. When he brought Paul in for questioning, he couldn’t find anything to hold him for. But he couldn’t let Paul go. And here’s why. Paul used their legal system to appeal to Ceaser. Which meant he had to remain under arrest and be transported a as a prisoner to Rome.
Festus was confused and had no idea what to do with Paul. He consulted with a king named Agrippa. He naturally wanted to understand so Paul was brought out before him. What do you think Paul did? He used that opportunity to share the gospel with the king. He was honoring, and he even used humor. Here’s the crazy thing—as a Roman citizen, he strategically used the Roman system to remain under arrest and elevate his case to the next court up and the next court up. Intentionally using every one of those opportunities to share the gospel instead of gaining freedom.
There is a subtly stunning line at the end of Acts 26.
ACTS 26:32 Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.”
None of this makes any sense until you realize that Paul was intentionally ignoring his own interests so that he could give 100% of himself to the interests of Jesus. He would rather be a prisoner so he could share the gospel with the power brokers in the Roman political system.
Constantine Campbell is a biblical scholar from Australia. His writing captures the same disposition that we observe in Paul.
Love refuses to make enemies of those opposed to us. But love goes even farther, seeking the good of others ahead of our own. According to Dallas Willard and Gary Black Jr., ‘In the larger social, governmental, or economic setting, those motivated by love do what they can to establish and sustain arrangements and practices that will benefit everyone or as many as possible.’ How many evangelicals stop to consider whether loving neighbor might sometimes mean voting against their own interests? –Constantine Campbell
What we’re talking about today may take a little time to process. That’s OK. There are two resources I want to strongly recommend.
RESOURCES:
- Book: Compassion and Conviction by Justin Giboney, Michael Wear, and Chris Butler
- Podcast: Church Politics Podcast
I love these guys. One is a lawyer and the other a pastor. This is what you will hear over and over from them. “Get your Bible and get your mind right. Stop thinking like a Republican or Democrat and think like a Christian.”
It’s believed that he was a soldier in the Roman army, maybe even a member of the Praetorian guard for Emperor Diocletian. We know that Diocletian enacted the last and the most severe persecution against Christians. When George refused to recant his faith, Diocletian had him decapitated. It’s believed that he was martyred on April 23rd, which is my birthday. Another reason I love this guy.
The way that his story was told over the centuries is that he slayed a dragon. That didn’t become the story because people actually believed that he killed a mythical creature. A dragon has always been a biblical symbol for empire, corrupt power structures that stood in opposition to the way of life that’s found in Jesus.
He won by rejecting power and sacrificing himself. His story is commemorated like this to remind us that followers of Jesus win, not by taking power but by giving up our lives.
The history of the gospel movement is full of people who lost their heads for the true king. Let’s don’t be the ones who exchange that for losing our minds for a party, platform, or candidate.