The unprecedented nature of the upcoming presidential election cannot be overstated. In one corner you have a former president, Donald J. Trump, who lost his previous reelection bid and survived a recent assassination attempt. In the other stands a replacement candidate, Kamala Harris, who garnered a meager sixth place finish in her 2020 presidential run before signing on as Joe Biden’s running mate.
For the Democratic Party, the current president’s abrupt withdrawal from the race really has no historical parallel. Though incumbents Harry Truman and Lyndon Johnson also chose not to seek reelection due to failing support within their own party, each did so before the end of March, a full seven months before election day. Biden’s exit just 107 days before the nation chooses its next leader ultimately means that Democratic delegates, rather than voters, determined who will ride their donkey into November. Only time will tell if the American people affirm or reject their tactical moves.
Added to the aforementioned oddities is the incessant drama surrounding what many are calling the most important election in our lifetime (a common refrain every four years). Admittedly, each party represents a dichotomous vision for our country that cannot be reconciled. While political pundits continue to talk about undecided voters being the determinative factor in the next few months, it is difficult to imagine that anyone who’s paying attention doesn’t already know who will receive their vote. Rest assured, no matter who wins, half of our citizenry will be warning about the end of democracy as we know it.
My opinions are just as strong as yours, I assure you. In fact, my temptation to panic is real and my sporadic anger over today’s political realities reveals an uncomfortable inconsistency in my faith. Yet, even during a divisive season like this, the Spirit continually pulls me back to the reality that God is hardly intimidated by that which causes me anxiety. With that in mind, allow me to share a few certainties to keep in mind no matter the outcome on November 5th.
First, God is Sovereign Over All Governments, No Matter Who Leads Them.
God establishes all governmental authority in order to accomplish His purposes (Rom. 13:1). Sometimes He raises up godly leaders to be a conduit of His blessings on a nation. Or, He may choose a wicked ruler as a means of judgment on a people. Our tendency to believe that God loses when an unbeliever wins an election or makes bad decisions is patently false. The Bible doesn’t suggest that God tolerates wicked leadership despite His desires otherwise, but that He ordains leadership according to His greater plan.
Thus, a wicked Pharaoh became a testimony of God’s glory throughout the earth (Rom. 9:7). God appointed the first king over Israel as an act of judgment against them (1 Sam. 10:1; 10:18). Thankfully, the same God later chose David (1 Sam. 16:12) to establish the throne of the Messiah and bless the nations forever. But in both instances, the Lord can, and did, use good and evil leaders to achieve His goals for history.
These biblical examples are not an anomaly. When the Northern Kingdom of Israel rebelled against Lord’s covenant, an evil Assyrian power became “the rod” of God’s anger and “the staff” of His indignation, which He sent and commissioned against His own people (Isaiah 10:5-6). Nearly 150 years later, God also positioned a depraved Babylonian Empire to correct Israel’s Southern Kingdom (Judah) for their spiritual idolatry (2 Kings 20:17). Remarkably, God describes the ruler of Babylon, the degenerate King Nebuchadnezzar in very purposeful terms.
Daniel 2:37- 38 reads, “You, O king, are the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom, the power, the strength and the glory; and wherever the sons of men dwell, or the beasts of the field, or the birds of the sky, He has given them into your hand and has caused you to rule over them all. You are the head of gold.”
What does this glowing review communicate? No panic in heaven whatsoever. But why? Because in Israel long ago and in America today, God establishes all authority that exists. Or, to use scriptural language, He changes the times and the epochs; He removes kings and establishes kings (Dan. 2:21). No matter who our next president might be, the Lord remains thoroughly purposeful and perfectly in control.
Do you remember what Jesus said before Pilate? No governmental atrocity in history compares to the reckless, shortsighted decision to crucify the Son of God. Yet, Jesus refused to wilt in the face of the injustice unfolding before Him because He understood God the Father was sovereign and the cross was necessary. Therefore, with confidence our Savior declared to Pilate, “You would have no authority over Me, unless it had been given you from above; for this reason he who delivered Me to you has the greater sin (John 19:11).”
Don’t be fooled by the corruption of Washington, D.C. or the genuine disappointment you feel toward our politicians – God is still in control. I refuse to tremble in the shadow of a misguided electorate when the Lord of heaven and earth reigns on high. The kingdom of Christ marches on even as the nations of the earth rise and fall. Even when the principles of liberty and freedom are in jeopardy, God’s plan and purposes are not.
Second, this World is Not Our Home.
Without question, Christians should use our energies and rights as citizens to build a nation that honors the Lord. Much of the current outcry against Christian nationalism is nothing more than the efforts of secular progressives to shame those seeking to be salt and light into silence. Believers have a sacred obligation to live out our faith in the public square.
In doing so, however, we should always remember that we desire a better country that only eternity can provide (Heb. 11:16). Like Abraham, we are looking for a city whose architect and builder is God (Heb. 11:10). I don’t ever want to be so at home here that there is no longing in my heart for the world that is to come. We must be sure that our current lament over the direction of our nation is not a reflection of misplaced treasure rather than a biblical love for country (Matt. 6:19-21). My heart breaks for America, but it does not belong to it.
So, I will vote according to Scriptural principles, even as I use my influence to encourage others to do the same. I will pray for the nation that I love and seek to live out my faith without apology. I will work with my whole heart for the betterment of my community and my country. But I will rest knowing that God’s agenda is bigger and better than mine. And I will trust that no matter what this next election brings, the Lord is not shaken.