What About God and Politics?
Well, THIS will be a fun topic! Many thanks (should I be thanking her?) to M.J. James (click her name to visit her fantastic website!) for bringing this question to me. Her actual original question was, “Voting and God- should these really remain separate or are we missing the mark?” However, I took the liberty to expand it into something even more divisive and uncomfortable. You’re welcome.
Just a reminder, if you’ve got a burning question about following Jesus and how that relates to life, feel free to send it in using our EverNearer.com contact form!
The Easy Out
I could make this very easy on myself. In the blog post What About the Dinosaurs? I quoted Paul in his second letter to Timothy:
“Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful.”
There certainly are a lot of foolish and stupid arguments in relation to politics, and I’ve been the agitator many times in the past. Should we just stay out of it all? Perhaps a good Jesus follower is above the fray.
In fact, some would even say that Jesus didn’t engage in the politics of His time, so we should not engage in politics either. The problem with that is, He did deal with politics when they came up…and politics are part of what got Him crucified.
Jesus and Taxes
Ok, probably the simplest political references people will notice for Jesus is in paying taxes.
“The Pharisees got together with Herod's followers. Then they sent some men to trick Jesus into saying something wrong. They went to him and said, “Teacher, we know that you are honest. You treat everyone with the same respect, no matter who they are. And you teach the truth about what God wants people to do. Tell us, should we pay taxes to the Emperor or not?” Jesus knew what they were up to, and he said, “Why are you trying to test me? Show me a coin!” They brought him a silver coin, and he asked, “Whose picture and name are on it?” The Emperor's,” they answered. Then Jesus told them, “Give the Emperor what belongs to him and give God what belongs to God.” The men were amazed at Jesus.”
-Mark 12:13-17 CEV
And then another tax reference, this time in relation to the politics of the Temple:
“After Jesus and his disciples arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma temple tax came to Peter and asked, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax?” “Yes, he does,” he replied. When Peter came into the house, Jesus was the first to speak. “What do you think, Simon?” he asked. “From whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes—from their own children or from others?” “From others,” Peter answered. “Then the children are exempt,” Jesus said to him. But so that we may not cause offense, go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.”
-Matthew 17:24-27 NIV
So, Jesus accepted the reality of the politics of His time and place, at least in relation to paying taxes. I should point out that Jesus didn’t reference whether the taxes were fair or unfair, just that in these specific cases they should be paid when expected.
How Else Did Politics Impact Jesus?
Let’s recall that there were approximately 400 years from the writing of the last book of the Old Testament and the birth of Jesus. Let’s also recall that between the death of Moses and the birth of Jesus approximately 1,400 years elapsed.
Now, we might ask, why such long gaps? Or why did Jesus come at that exact time in history? There may be many reasons, and we recognize that only God knows all of them, but one is clear from the circumstances around the betrayal, trial, and crucifixion of Jesus. That reason is, God wanted to make sure the political climate was right for the salvation of the world by the Messiah.
Jesus was crucified for, at least partially, political purposes. Now, we all know that Jesus went to the cross of His own accord. He said so Himself:
“No one takes my life from Me. I give it by Myself. I have the right and the power to take it back again. My Father has given Me this right and power.”
-John 10:18 NLV
But the circumstances that provided for how Jesus gave up His life were all about politics. Am I wrong? Let’s look at some evidence:
Caiaphas, the high priest said, “…it is better for us that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.” Politics here indicate that, according to Caiaphas, Jesus had to die to save the nation of Israel.
Lest we try to blame Caiaphas alone among the Jewish religious leadership, after Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, the Pharisees and leading priests called a meeting of the high council (can you just see that in one of today’s churches?). They asked what they should do? Because of His miraculous signs they were worried that “the Romans will come and take away both our Temple and our nation.” A loss of political power and religious authority.
Pilate released Barabbas, a riot leader and murderer, because of a political tradition and in order to satisfy the will of the people (as stirred up by the Jewish religious leaders).
Frankly, we could pull out many more examples. But the fact is, politics mattered to Jesus for several reasons, including that they were a necessary part of His path to the cross and the redemption of all who follow Him.
Let’s Ground Ourselves in Jesus
Let me be very clear here. Politics matter to God because they impact the mission Jesus came to accomplish. Let’s go back to the big three aspects of His mission. The first two are part of Jesus’ answer to a question about the most important commandment.
“Now one of the experts in the law came and heard them debating. When he saw that Jesus answered them well, he asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” Jesus answered, “The most important is: ‘Listen, Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
-Mark 12:28-31 NET
Jesus told us the most important commandment is to love God with all we are and all we do. The second most important to love our neighbors as ourselves. And of course, everyone is our neighbor. Next, we have the Great Commission.
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All power in heaven and on earth is given to me. So go and make followers of all people in the world. Baptize them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach them to obey everything that I have taught you, and I will be with you always, even until the end of this age.”
-Matthew 28:18-20 NCV
Here Jesus tells His disciples, and us, to make followers of all people, to baptize them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and teach them to obey all He taught the disciples.
Those three directives together define what we are supposed to do as Jesus followers. Everything flows from there.
What Does this Mean for Jesus Followers and Today’s Politics?
Everything we do is within a political environment. For now, I’ll ignore the politics of workplaces and focus on politics related to voting, so we don’t wander too far astray from M.J.’s question.
The simple answer is, anything political that impacts us loving God, loving others, or making Jesus followers, must be understood, and considered by true Jesus followers. For an explanation of what is a true Jesus follower, check out this video.
At this point, I’m not going to tell you to vote for or not vote for a particular candidate. I’m not going to tell you to support or not support a specific political issue or position. Candidates and positions change too often. I will say, if you reach out to me personally about a candidate or political issue, I’ll generally be happy to share my thoughts.
But I’m also not going to take the lame and unhelpful position of “just vote your conscience”. Frankly, if you’re like me, sometimes what we call our “conscience” is just an extension of our desires, and they can’t be counted on. They come from our heart, and as James, the brother of Jesus said:
“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”
-James 17:9 NIV
So, Jesus follower, how do you know who, or what, to vote for or against?
Voting Instructions for Jesus Followers
Do you like bullet points? If so, here you go:
If a person or issue makes it easier to:
· Love God
· Love other people as God loves them
· Accomplish the Great Commission
Then vote for them or it.
But by contrast, if a person or issue makes it more difficult to
· Love God
· Love other people as God loves them
· Accomplish the Great Commission
Then vote against them or it.
Ok, let me clarify, because the world and the enemy work very hard to sow confusion. Loving God is accomplished by obeying His word, focusing on commandments from Jesus (as we’ve already shown) and following the directives from those who spent time with Him while He was on earth. This means we primarily look to the New Testament for how to love God.
Loving others is the same. We see how Jesus loved others, how His closest followers loved each other, and how they cared for everyone else God brought into their lives. There is something else I need to state at this point, and it may upset some people. But truth is often difficult when we’re on the wrong side of it.
Notice that in the lists above, I did not just say “Love other people.” I said, “Love other people as God loves them.” It is not loving to other people who are seeking to follow Jesus to encourage them to continue to live in ways that are not in alignment with New Testament teachings. Much of what the world promotes today is basically a “live and let live philosophy”, because they believe in the end that God is a nice guy and will let everyone into Heaven. That is absolutely NOT true, and the New Testament makes it clear.
Loving others as God loves them means that when they ask what it takes to be saved, we tell them the unfiltered truth. That we love God by obeying Him, and that is how we gain eternal life. There is only one way to Heaven, and that hasn’t changed since Jesus told us about it, over 2,000 years ago.
Bringing it All Together
Here are the basic directions for Jesus followers and politics.
Any political candidate or position that works against spreading the Good News must be opposed. Any political candidate or position that degrades human beings, God’s highest creation, must be opposed. Any political candidate or position that directly conflicts with New Testament teachings must be opposed. Any political candidate or position that hinders loving God with all your heart, soul, mind, and or strength must be opposed. And any political candidate or position that leads people away from loving God, loving people as God loves them, or hinders the Great Commission must be opposed.
Just so you know, it's much easier to write the “oppose” list than the “support” list. 😊
Let me say it this way. Any political candidate or position that appears to draw people toward loving God, toward loving people as God loves them, or aids the Great Commission should be considered to be supported. The caveats with supporting are that decisions to support must be made with deep consideration for New Testament teachings, significant time in prayer, and, if necessary, counsel from more informed, more mature, and trustworthy true Jesus followers.
So, should Jesus followers concern themselves with politics and voting? YES, in situations where the candidates or positions affect our ability to love God, love others as God loves them, and accomplish the Great Commission.
Two more quick points and then we’re done.
1) As Jesus followers we should NOT be sowing dissension. Please don’t go on social media or in any other interaction and intentionally anger people by hating their candidate or position. Remember, avoid foolish arguments and be kind. Plus, Jesus followers aren’t allowed to hate other people, no matter their political beliefs. God doesn’t hate them, He loves them.
2) If you feel God calling you into politics as a profession, then follow His call with enthusiasm! We need true Jesus followers in every part of our society, including governmental leadership.
“Work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will reward each one of us for the good we do”
-Ephesians 6:7-9a NLT