At the time of writing, we are just days away from another presidential election here in the U.S. Depending on your viewpoint, you may be excited, disappointed or frustrated at the results of the election.
Yet no matter who has won, the response of Christians should be the same. Here are four commitments that should characterize a Christians’ response to the election.
First, we should give honor. God calls us to honor the leaders in our lives, including government leaders. “But if he only knew of the corruption of our politicians he wouldn’t say that!” you may argue. Yet this command was given to Christians living under Emperor Nero, who was far from a godly ruler.
He killed many of his own family to secure political power. If they could honor Nero, we can honor our next president.
Second, we should submit. This is the standard posture that we should take toward governmental authority. It doesn’t mean we agree with their policies, it doesn’t mean we like the laws they pass.
Scripture teaches that by submitting to these authorities we are actually practicing submission to God, so this is our posture.
Third, we should pray for our next president. Whether you voted for them or not, we can pray that our next president would make wise decisions, that they surround themselves with wise counsel, and that they are a voice for the hurting and marginalized.
Pray for the good of our city, county, state and country.
Lastly, we should love. There have been too many hot takes by religious leaders over who people should vote for, and too little on how we treat those we disagree with. Perhaps the better test of our faith is not who we vote for but how we love those who vote differently than us.
Jesus said his followers should be known by their love, not by their politics. And even if you view the opposite party as your enemy, Jesus said we are to love our enemies too!
I will be practicing all four of these for our next president, and I hope you will join me as well.
Michael Best is the Lead Pastor at Morgan Hill Bible Church and a member of the Interfaith Clergy Alliance. He can be reached at mi*****@mh*****.org.
