Your Christian Voting Guide

Note: I write my posts about a month prior to publishing. I point this out because this post could be seen as a response to the terrible news of the assassination attempt on Former President Donald Trump. It is not. While I condemn any violence at all, the news really changes nothing about my thoughts on the upcoming election. The point of this post is simply to show that Christians can have differences of opinion in good conscience and in what they believe to be faithful discipleship. If I disagree with a fellow Christian, I expect us both to have a respectful debate where we each continue to uphold each other’s faith. Unfortunately, in these heated times, many Christians are disrespectfully attempting to claim that their political views are somehow on the same level as their faith. Nothing could be further from the truth.

You are citizens of God’s Kingdom, don’t confuse that with the kingdoms of this broken world. There is no such thing as a Christian nation.

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In a previous post, “Answering a Fool According to Their Folly,” I discussed why you cannot use the Bible as a source for perfect, unchangeable answers that apply to every situation. We know this because the Bible itself wryly tells us.

Proverbs 26:4-5

Do not answer fools according to their folly, lest you be a fool yourself. Answer fools according to their folly, lest they be wise in their own eyes.

Why would the Bible contradict itself in adjacent verses? The editors who compiled Proverbs deliberately put these verses together to teach us that for most of life, there is no single right answer that satisfies every situation. The Bible points us in a direction, but it is up to our response to the Holy Spirit to decide how to act in each situation. The Bible is not an eternal rule book, it is a guide to help us discern God’s will in an ever-evolving universe. There are two ways you might answer a fool’s folly and both ways are biblical.

American Ideals

I’m going to go out on an enormous limb and state that what most of us think of as “traditional American ideals,” is just a set of classical liberal ideas– individual liberty, limited government, and economic freedom. These are the ideas we were taught growing up that are generally attributed to the country’s founders. I lean toward liberalism, even though the word, “liberal,” has taken on a different meaning for many. The word, “liberal,” has become synonymous with, “left-wing,” in conservative circles. Interestingly, some of my younger family members who understand what the word means find themselves to the left of classical liberalism. The argument I’m making here is that regardless of your political persuasion, you were probably taught that America was founded on liberal ideas despite how you use the word. You may not like the word, but both Republicans and Democrats are liberal in their philosophies.

What are those ideas and how might Christians respond to them? I would caution that it is tempting to worship our nation, our constitution and our founders because we’ve been so indoctrinated in our schools. I think that whether you agree with these ideas we should be grounded in Jesus, not what you were taught in civics class. You can agree with a liberal idea for a reason that has nothing to do with political philosophy. You can agree or disagree with any of these principles as a Christian and that’s what makes things so interesting when it comes to the intersections of religion and politics at this moment. My purpose in this post is to emphasize that no one gets to exclusively claim the Christian high-ground. Nor can anyone define exactly who is or isn’t a Christian based on their vote. Here are examples of liberal American ideals and why I think God-fearing Christians find themselves arguing over them in good conscience.

Individual liberty: This is the cornerstone of the founding of our nation. The founders—federalists and anti-federalists and everyone in between—believed enough in life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness that the Declaration of Independence declares those ideals to be God-given rights. Many Christians—St. Augustine would like a word—believe that adherence to God’s moral law is what really provides true freedom. Following Christ is true freedom. Should these moral laws be mandated? How do we know that other religions including atheists aren’t essentially following God’s moral law as well? How do we even agree on what they are? Should we have freedom of speech even if that speech is offensive, deliberately misleading or psychologically damaging? Who has a greater claim to individual liberty, a gun manufacturer or a child in school? Do privacy concerns outweigh national security? You’re not going to get a clear answer to any of these issues from the Bible. I have my reasons for being on the progressive side of these issues—how can individual liberty be exercised individually if we don’t have social and economic justice to level the playing field for everyone—but I should trust that other Christians who disagree got there through their own faith lens.

Limited government: Like the word, “liberal,” the phrase, “limited government,” has taken on a partisan hue since the 1980s. But the founders almost universally believed that the role of the government was to protect individual liberties and our rights to life, liberty and property. Coming from an abusive monarchy, it’s easy to see why they were so nervous about governmental overreach. Yet, if some Christians will argue that individual liberties come second to God’s moral law, wouldn’t consistency require them to believe that government should interfere on our liberties in areas that violate loving God and neighbor? Intervention with welfare programs infringes on the free market, but it also provides a safety net to the neediest among us. Government regulation indeed has a stifling effect on economic growth in most cases, but do we not have a moral responsibility to protect consumers, workers and the environment? If you’re truly for smaller government, how much are you willing to reduce our military spending?

Consent of the governed: The founders were up on their Hobbes and Locke. They believed in the social contract. They believed that governments derived their authority from the consent of the governed, not the divine rights of kings. But did any of us choose the family or country into which we were born? Are we not in fact citizens of the Kingdom of God and thus haven’t given our consent? Are we not born into a sinful and broken world and thus shed many tears over the inability of any government to align with God’s will?

My main point is that it is impossible to argue that there is one, “Christian,” side to any issue. So, we need to stop saying that one side of the country, or one political party or one presidential candidate is ordained by God. Christianity has essentially been 2,000 years of disagreement over everything, so we should embrace each other in heartfelt conversation not accusation. I’ll take up some specific hot-button topics as an example of how Christians might find themselves on either side of big issues.

Abortion

The dominant narrative is that Christians believe that abortion should always be illegal. The truth is far more nuanced. My father was and brother still is an OBGYN so I’ve always seen abortion as a private medical decision where a woman’s life is often at stake. You may also be surprised that the Bible clearly states what should be obvious, that the life of a woman is more valuable than an unborn fetus (Read Exodus 21:22-24). If you haven’t read Numbers in a while – and who does? – you may be surprised that the ordeal of bitter waters describes how to deliberately make a woman’s uterus drop (and thus miscarry if she is pregnant) or otherwise become infertile. In other words, the Bible might actually prescribe abortion in the case of adultery. I would think we would all agree that at least some of the time, abortion is the best decision. In cases of rape, incest or risk to the mother’s life, abortion has to be legal. But do you want a random judge appointed for life to determine if a life is at risk or would you prefer to leave that decision to doctors? Do you think a woman capable of deciding or is it better left to mostly straight, white, male Republicans in certain states? I must be in the majority of Christians in believing it’s better to leave this issue privately out of the public sphere between women and their doctors, trusting them to prayerfully make the most difficult decision they may ever face. There is certainly not one Christian answer to all cases and we have to leave it to a woman’s decision in each individual case made in God’s grace with the help of her doctor.

Immigration

This is one I think the progressive Christians have the Biblical upper hand considering there are so many passages about hospitality to strangers. Jesus in Matthew 25 clearly says that one of the ways to be welcomed to His right hand is, “I was a stranger and you welcomed me.” Yet Christians are divided on this issue. Some conservatives believe that we must balance immigration against economic and national security. I cannot find clear Biblical support for that but again, the Bible isn’t here to give us all the answers and I think some Christians can make a “greater good,” or even, “lesser of two evils,” argument for either side. How do you balance the call to help young families seeking refuge from crime and danger against your own fears of societal change? Every Christian has to make their own decision in good conscience. Like abortion, every case for immigration and asylum is unique and rather than force our hands through legislation I’d prefer flexibility to make sensible decisions and err on the side of compassion and God’s abundant grace.

Economy

Conservatives would argue that free markets lead to economic growth and thus greater opportunities for individuals. I disagree as the data doesn’t support that position. My degree is in Economics, not theology, but I’m here to make a theological point not an economic one. You can be a faithful conservative Christian and believe that a free market will treat people better than the government would. I might even be sympathetic to that argument in certain situations. After all, despite the economic data, I am also not a fan of first century Rome and I generally mistrust empires, including America. I can be tempted by free market arguments in my heart even when the data tells my head they’re nonsense. Yet, the words of Jesus lean very hard into communal living, the evils of money and many liberal economic ideas. Even (especially?) the Old Testament makes strong cases for economic and social justice. Again, there is no one-size-fits-all “Christian,” answer to which economic policies promote the greatest economic justice. I think you must leave your decisions either way to God’s grace because people will get hurt no matter what you try to do in a capitalist economy.

I hope the three examples above are enough to show that the Bible doesn’t give clear answers to life’s issues, and it requires a lot of God’s grace to navigate modern life. I didn’t even touch taxation, national security, health care, infrastructure or the death penalty.

I find myself on the far left of most of these issues, but not just because I’m following the economic data as I mentioned above or because I am somehow genetically progressive and trying to fit my theology to match my ideology. Like most Christians, I’m just trying my best to follow Jesus and I find it really hard to get it right most of the time. I would like to believe that is true of all my Christian sisters and brothers on both sides of the issues as well. So, I’m not really going to tell you to vote one way or the other, because far be it from me to know how to apply Christian ideals in every situation.

My Voting Guide

My plea to you this voting season is to truly follow Jesus as best as your conscience can allow. Just that, and recognize that all Christians are struggling to do the same.

There is nothing uniquely Christian about being a Republican, Democrat, Independent, Green, Libertarian or other. There is nothing evil about any political party affiliations, either. You can find a biblical support for a Christian position on almost any side of today’s issues. We all get to disagree and should still try to support each other in the body of Christ.

I do want to point out a warning, however. It strikes me that right now in America, only one political party is claiming God’s authority. Only one side is claiming that their presidential nominee was hand-picked by God. We are subject to a false American gospel. Paul tells us we are citizens of a different kingdom. Jesus never said, “blessed are the anti-communists who cut taxes, close borders, make a ton of money and wield great power.” He said quite the opposite. Those America-first attitudes are the attitudes of a fallen world and a broken kingdom, not Christ. We can disagree about policies and what eventually leads to the greater good, but it is the ultimate in blasphemy to argue that our personal opinions or self-interests are the values of God and that only one political candidate can be chosen for God’s will. God’s will be done no matter who wins. None of these things are on the level of the Kingdom of God, but they do drive views and clicks.

The rhetoric is only going to get worse the closer we get to November. My voting guide to you is to respect your fellow citizens in your debate. Do not equate national politics with God’s plan. Do not call those who disagree with you poor Christians or evil. Don’t suggest you have a monopoly on family values. And think very prayerfully before you decide to install a president who has vociferously promised a dangerous paradox — to be an authoritarian in the pursuit of God’s kingdom. Neither candidate can claim God’s authority, but only one of them is stumping on that ultimate sacrilege and if that doesn’t chill you to your core, what will?.