Choosing our leaders

by Maurice Pujol
Published October 26, 2006

Voters nationwide will go to the polls on Nov. 7 to express their convictions about the candidates for various offices from the local to the national level.

This is the “midterm” election, in which the balance of power in Washington can shift according to the country’s mood about the sitting president. Happy voters usually go with the president’s party, while unhappy ones vote the other way.

Of course, believers should remember what the Bible says about political leaders. It is God who puts them in power, and God who takes them out of power. God has a history of using heads of state, both good and bad, to accomplish His purposes.

Believers should also respect the authority and the office of those in power, whether or not we agree with their stands on the issues. This is part of “rendering to Caesar” the things that are Caesar’s. Though we may be citizens of a particular country, our true allegiance is to Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ – so we render to God the things that are God’s.

There are several disturbing trends, however, tainting the electoral process in our nation today. These are a result of a basic clash of worldviews that has reached a fever pitch in recent years.

On the one hand, there’s a secular, postmodern culture reflected in our legislative and judicial branches that promotes its brand of religion, secular humanism, in the name of separation of church and state.

On the other hand, there’s a significant voting block of people who believe in traditional Judeo-Christian values and who feel the nation has strayed way off course in denying the validity of these values.

One of the unfortunate trends in this culture war is an ever-increasing climate of hate in the political process. There’s nothing wrong with disagreement over issues or even political satire, but the personal attacks candidates level at each other have often gotten out of hand. The personal attacks some have directed at President Bush go way beyond disagreement with his policies or his political views.

In some quarters, there is strong resentment of President Bush simply because he is a Bible-believing Christian. Because the culture at large stereotypes all Christians as mindless and backwards, many in the media have created this parody of Bush not because of his politics, but because of his faith.

All the presidents who have served during my lifetime have been pictured in the media attending church services. Not all of these presidents lived out Christian values in their personal lives. Though we should not judge anyone, including presidents, there are two whose personal faith no one has called into question.

One is our current President Bush, while the other is Jimmy Carter. These two men may be at different ends of the political spectrum, but their sincerity about their Christian faith is rather well established – both in their life stories and in the lives they live.

Another disturbing trend, on both sides of the aisle in Congress, is a rapacious lust for power at any cost. The party out of power shuts down the government, if necessary, to make the party in power look bad. The party out of power shoots down everything the party in power proposes, whether the ideas are good or bad. In this awful political climate, the idea of “public service” goes out the window.

Still another trend in our nation is a widespread sense of entitlement. The numbers of people who feel they deserve a comfortable life without exerting any effort are growing rapidly. In addition, every special interest group claims that its values should be imposed on the nation as a whole. Both of these forces threaten the economic and spiritual health of our nation.

God’s Word has an answer for all these issues, but His answers aren’t very popular among the secular humanists. First of all, the Bible teaches that there are absolute truths. There are right and wrong, good behavior and bad behavior, and God expects His people to stand always for what’s right and good.

Second, the Bible teaches that all who are able to work, should work, if they want to eat. There is an intrinsic value in work because it enhances the individual spiritually and mentally. It teaches responsibility and accountability.

Third, and closely related to this, the Bible teaches that those who are blessed with health and wealth should work and share their blessings with those who are unable to work.

Believers have an obligation to take care of widows, orphans and the infirm. The only reason government had to step into this role historically is because churches backed away from this biblical mandate.

Fourth, the Bible teaches that all life is valuable and that each individual is made in God’s image and, therefore, important to Him. This means an individual’s worth doesn’t depend on his or her role in society, or contributions to it. Only God gives life, and only God can take it away. This means we have an obligation to protect the unborn, as well as the elderly and the infirm.

Fifth, the Bible teaches that marriage is an earthly institution ordained by God and that it consists of a union between a man and a woman. Jesus indicated this institution would not exist in heaven, so we can conclude that it’s designed to promote spiritual and emotional development of spouses and the propagation and protection of the family unit.

When Christian voters go to the polls Nov. 7, we should make informed decisions about the candidates based not on what they say, but on what they have done in the past. How have they voted on the key issues affecting believers? What do their personal lives tell us about their beliefs?

Politicians are people and, just like all people, some just attend church, while others attend church and live out the beliefs they say they hold.

Though God ultimately is the one who puts people in power, He probably would be pleased if we voted for the latter group.

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