There is a lot of confusion in the Christian subculture about how God governs a fallen world. This confusion has led–and will lead–to many Christians using their role in government, as voters, to do exactly the opposite of what God intends for government.
I am writing this post mere days before the Presidential Election of 2020. The candidates are former Senator and Vice President Joe Biden and current President Donald Trump. The stakes for the United States of America could not be higher, it seems, as the nation moves closer and closer to choosing not just a president to lead the nation for the next four years, but also a political platform that president will implement. In addition to the election of the next president, control of the Senate and the House of Representatives is up for grabs. In short, the votes that are cast on Tuesday, November 3, 2020, will be votes cast in favor of one vision of the future or another. And honestly, the visions being cast are extremely different and for almost half of Americans, repulsive, regardless of what side of the political spectrum you happen to fall.
Over the past few weeks, I have seen many posts on social media and elsewhere that remind me that many Christians, of all people, do not understand the role of government in a fallen world. They do not seem to have a Biblical worldview on the topic and that is made evident in the conversations that many have–often in public, to the shame of the Gospel–that demonstrates a stronger influence by culture than God’s word. I have even seen Christian leaders, some of whom I respect, get it wrong when it comes to directing people how to vote and what they should be voting for or against. The confusion is everywhere and it stems, I believe, from a wrong understanding of our role in government, as Christians, and what God is trying to accomplish in this fallen world through government.
First, our role as Christians in government. If you live in the United States–or in any constitutional republic or democracy–you have a unique opportunity, one that most people throughout time and history did not have. You have the unique opportunity to participate in the government even if you do not run for elected office or serve in some public way. The fact that you have a vote means that you, by default, are in government. As Abraham Lincoln famously said in his Gettysburg address, the government of the United States is “of the people, by the people, and for the people.” If you have a vote, you’re a participant in government and, I believe, therefore responsible for the government you have a hand in putting in place.
As Christians who are in government by virtue of our vote, it is important to ensure the government we help establish conforms to God’s vision for government in a fallen world. Here’s where we must be careful about how we analyze this issue. Our first allegiance is to the Kingdom of Christ. His agenda for the world must be our agenda for the world. His way of governing a fallen world must be our way of governing a fallen world. And to the extent that we are able to participate in making sure the fallen world is governed according to His will and word, we should use our vote and influence to see that come about. Remember, you are in government, if you have a vote, and you are responsible to God for the government you help establish.
So, how does God desire to govern a fallen world? Let me start by saying that the Bible is clear that God does not desire to force a fallen world to accept Jesus as Savior under the threat of government or any other kind of coercion of man. A fundamental belief of Christianity is that the Gospel is not to be compelled upon anyone. We cannot make people love Jesus, we cannot legislate sin out of the lives of the lost, and we cannot usher in utopia through our efforts. Our goal is not to establish a “theocracy” whereby people are forced to “act like” Christians when they are, in fact, not Christians. That is not the role of government in a fallen world. The role of government, a role given to government by God, is to restrain evil. The role of government is to promote good–human flourishing–and to order society in such a way as to allow humanity to possibly seek and find God. Beyond that, government has no legitimate role in a fallen world. But, as history tells us, government almost always does more than it was ordained to do and often with terrible consequences for humanity.
Romans 13 is the primary text for understanding, quickly and simply, the role of government in a fallen world. While it needs to be placed in the context of the entire Bible to be fully understood and to comprehend all of its ramifications, Romans 13 gives us the basic structure for government and God’s view of government’s role in a fallen world. Here is the relevant text, for your reference:
“Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience’ sake” (Romans 13:1-5, NKJV).
There a several big takeaways from this passage of Scripture:
- God ordains the authority of government.
- Government should praise what is good.
- Government is God’s instrument of wrath upon evil.
There is much more that we could discuss about the implications of Romans 13:1-5, but the major themes–that also align with the rest of Scripture–are that government is to promote good and restrain evil. Mostly, I believe, to restrain evil. Promoting good–the getting praise for government for doing good–is a portion, but restraining of evil is the precursor to that reality. If evil is not restrained, good cannot be promoted. So, I believe it is our utmost duty to help institute a government in our midst that restrains evil and promotes God’s definition of good.
How does all of this apply to our current situation in America? Let’s be honest: most people who are voting for Joe Biden are not voting for him because they think he will restrain evil, but because they either hate Donald Trump or because they have vision for the future of America that is a departure from the historic foundations of this experiment in Constitutional order. Most people who are voting for Donald Trump are doing so because they agree with his policies–even if they do not like his personality–and because they believe the vision he casts for the future is what they would desire to see come about. I doubt most people are asking, “Which candidate will restrain evil the most?”
To me, the answer is clear. Joe Biden is pro-death. He is for abortion and that includes abortion on demand and late term abortion. He is for the ripping apart of innocent children in the womb. Abortion is, without a doubt, unadulterated evil. Even if Joe Biden somehow promoted an agenda that was otherwise what I could agree with, I could never vote for Joe Biden because of his stance on abortion and because it is not only not the restraint of evil, but the promotion thereof. In other words, the government Joe Biden would help establish and lead would be the antithesis of the kind of government that God desires.
What about Donald Trump? Let’s ask this question: Is he pro-life? Has he done anything to protect life in the womb and to curb the unadulterated evil that is abortion? The answer is: Yes, he has. Surprisingly. I did not believe that he would do what he said he would do, but I have to take a step back now and say, “Thank God that we have had a President who defended life in the womb.” And, on this topic, Donald Trump has done–and I believe will continue to do–what God ordains that government do, namely, restrain evil.
We have one job to do this election, my friends. It is to restrain evil as best we can. It is to use the power of government that has been entrusted to us and use it to save lives, promote good, and restrain evil from spreading life wildfire. I do not have space in this post to talk about all of the evils that would spread under the administration of Joe Biden or the current Democratic leadership; I don’t have time to address the sexual deviancies and destructive economic policies promoted by the Democratic Party and its leadership. Suffice to say, there is more evil evident in its platform than any Christian should hope to encounter. And while I wish I could say I agree with everything that’s happening in the Republican Party, I cannot say that, either. But what I can say is that the Republican Party platform and its leadership puts forward a vision of government that more closely aligns with the kind of government I see evident in the Bible and it almost always does more to restrain evil than the Democratic Party, hands down.
What am I saying here? You are in government by virtue of your vote. You are a Christian, responsible to God for your vote. His word tells us that government’s job is to restrain evil. So, however you vote, for whomever you vote, keep that in mind. And remember, according to the record of the Old Testament, God hated nothing more than the sacrifice of children. Indeed, it was because of child sacrifice that God destroyed so many ancient cultures and eventually reigned down His wrath upon Israel. If there is one evil you should attempt to restrain in this election, it should be the evil of abortion. And to the best of my knowledge, there is only one candidate for President who says he will protect life and only one who says he will promote the destruction of life in the womb. With that in mind, the choice should be obvious.
Dear Christian, vote. And vote to restrain evil, if for no other reason at all.