How to Vote (Not Who, but How)

(By the time you read this, the US presidential election will be over, but the ideas here still apply.)

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 1 Timothy 2:1-4

Our church in suburban Philadelphia had been praying for Uganda for a long time. We’d been deeply moved by the Christian refugees among us who had fled the brutal dictator, Idi Amin. Finally, in 1979 he fell from power, leaving the country in shambles. A year later, the church sent a team to Kampala to evangelize and help the nation rebuild. There they witnessed rampant lawlessness and violence. The city’s engineer lamented, “Here in Uganda we can only understand two motivations: force and money. Amin taught us this for eight years.” After returning to the US, one of our friends on that first team made a comment that we’ve never forgotten: “Now I understand what people mean when they say that America is a Christian nation.”

In fact, it’s beyond dispute that ten of the original thirteen colonies adopted state constitutions that were explicitly Christian. Even today—in spite of our many historical sins, blemishes, and blind spots—this country still reaps the benefits of a long-gone consensus about biblical social and moral norms. The very idea of a Constitution finds its roots in Scripture, as a written document that forms the bedrock upon which a nation builds its civil government. The United States is a constitutional republic, and therefore, as John Adams declared, we are “a government of laws, and not of men.”

As Christians, “how should we then vote?” (1)

We must cast our ballots…

…With earnest prayer.

First of all pray. In a cascade of prayer terminology, the Apostle urges us to pray for all people, probably meaning “all people-groups of humanity.” Jesus is Lord over the nations and sends out the church to disciple them. Aligning our prayers with that global task frees us from self-absorption, cultural snobbery, and political drum-banging. Paul then focuses our prayers on those with authority, power, and high cultural impact (2). Pray for Vice-President Harris and former President Trump. Pray for them, not against them—along with their counselors who will fill their minds with either wisdom or foolishness. The wisdom of the prudent is to give thought to their ways, but the folly of fools is deception. (Pro.14:8 NIV).

Pray in faith—faith in God, not in the accuracy of our perceptions and political preferences (It’s hard to believe, but you might be wrong.). We trust alone in a sovereign God whose Son is risen and reigning. He is Lord over the nations. He is Lord over elections. That’s why we pray with thanksgiving no matter what happens (or has happened) at the polls. And we pray together. Paul is writing to the church, and he commands corporate prayer. Remember the early church’s faith-filled prayer meetings which shook the earth and compelled them to holy boldness (Acts 2:31). We vote with prayer. And we cast our ballots…

…With love, for God and our neighbor.

What an astonishing reason Paul gives us to pray for these “high-ups”! What are we looking for? Nothing flashy, no fire from heaven, no earthquakes. No Big Mama state to give us everything we could possibly want. Just that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. How ordinary. How mundane. His words clearly remind us of God’s instructions for those authorities we’re praying for: to provide basic justice, protection, and social order (3). Such a setting encourages us to live as people who are free…as servants of God (1 Pet. 2:16). And if we love our neighbors, even our global neighbors, we want our leaders to consider their well-being as well as ours. Finally, we must cast our ballots…

…With intelligent commitment to biblical priorities.

Since government was God’s idea, we must engage with it in a way that is consistent with its God-ordained purpose—particularly in a representative democracy where, in a real sense, the citizens are the government. Paul, himself, provides an example. He knew that our citizenship is in heaven (Phil. 3:20), yet he didn’t hesitate to pull out his Roman Citizen ID card when necessary (Acts 16:37; 22:25). There’s no mystery here about his central motivation. He aligns our worldview with the heart of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. The church proclaims the gospel of Jesus Christ, whose Kingdom alone will stand forever. Hold fast to that priority.

We’ll close with an observation about this particular election that we hear with remarkable consistency. Professing Christians from both sides either do not like the other party’s candidate—or they hate the other party’s platform. One factor or the other rises to the surface for them. Certainly, both are important, because 1. A real person with real power will be elected as president, not an abstraction; and 2. Historically, party platforms are overwhelmingly accurate indicators of how presidents will use their power. We vote not simply for one person but for a complex administration that will direct the nation by a particular agenda. Those governing philosophies will never perfectly represent biblical priorities. Yet they help us make thoughtful judgments, grounded in biblical priorities, as we cast our votes for president and for every lower-level office. May we do so prayerfully, trusting in the God who directs all history.

(1) Misquoting the title of Francis Schaeffer’s seminal book from 1976, still worth the read, How Should We Then Live? The Rise and Decline of Western Thought and Culture.

(2) In addition to “kings,” Paul urges prayer for “prominent” people—a rare term that describes those with preeminence, people who are “high up.” It certainly includes lower-level civil authorities, but could we include those with high-level cultural influence? Think pop icon Taylor Swift, or any number of professional athletes and actors. With their enormous reach, such notables are both products of the culture, and drivers of it.

(3) See “Government: God’s Plan,” at www.ccmVT.org, Resources, Downloads. Two implications: 1. People turn government into an idol when they trust it to usher in some utopian vision—from either the political left or the right. 2. Let us pray for nations around the world whose rulers oppress their people and persecute the church.