How do I vote as a Christian? Who or what should I support — particularly at a time like this?

You might feel like you’ve got the answer in the bag and don’t need any help. But as Christians, we should always be willing to have our assumptions checked. Because if God never disagrees with us politically, then it may not be God we’re thinking of. None of us are politically perfect. Not even close. So if God never disagrees with us and we’re not perfect, then it’s an imperfect God we’re claiming supports us. And that’s when we need a gut check.

But whether you’re asking the question or not, this article is designed to help you navigate voting as a Christian.

What I won’t do here is tell you who to vote for.

That would rob you of the opportunity to grow and acquire the kind of wisdom that lets you make godly decisions on your own. So what I will do is give you some principles and practicalities for voting. I want to teach you to fish, not just give you a fish.

If you’d like more detail on the thoughts that support why I suggest these principles and practicalities, you can find more in the talk I gave on The Church and Politics. If you’d like to watch me talk through approaches to voting instead of reading, you can jump to that part of my talk here.

Here my Principles and Practicalities for voting as a Christian…

Principles:

1. Vote from a heavenly perspective

   Remember, christian, you are not voting on THE King in this election. Our King, THE God of the Universe, is already on the throne and he isn’t up for election this year or any year. He is already our God and King if we are Christians and we are already his people. We belong to his kingdom before we belong to any other nation or authority here (Hebrews 11:13-16). We are a people whose kingdom, like our Savior, is not of this world (John 18:36).

   As such, God is already providing for you and our world and doesn’t need any political party or politician to help him (though he can certainly use them to that end).  So whatever happens in this election, God is still our King. We are still his people. He will still provide for us until he calls us home. And our mission to show what his heavenly rule on earth looks like and extend that gracious rule, continues unabated. We don’t need politicians to enact God’s kingdom on earth. Christians (and historically have) done that even when they have zero political power.

2. You have to make a less than ideal choice

   No candidate or party out there fully represents the gospel. NO. Candidate. Or. Party. None. All of them fall short of representing the full truth and call of the Gospel (you can find more on why that’s the case here). So, we should not think we are choosing the ‘Christian’ candidate or ‘Christian’ party on election day. That party only exists in heaven and we’ve already put our faith in the only Leader who deserves our ultimate allegiance.

   This means that as Christians (a people who live on earth but most fundamentally belong to heaven - again, see Heb. 11:13-16), we are going to have to choose between people who don’t truly or fully represent the kingdom of God (even if they say they do). We’re going to have to make a choice between two people or two parties who sacrifice different (and sometimes the same) parts of the gospel. In other words, we’re going to have to choose between bad options. And we’re going to have to do this every election until Christ comes back.

   Hopefully, my practical suggestions will help you make the difficult choice between bad options. It is, however, a choice I believe we should make rather than abstaining. While are consciences are not bound to vote, our third principle will show that a vote is something we’ve been entrusted with. So, I believe we should consider using it for the good of others (even if we dislike some of what that vote entails), rather than burying it in the ground (cf. Matthew 25:14-30).

3. See your vote as a resource entrusted to you for the good of others 

   We may tend to see our vote through the lens of Liberalism — this is my thing to do with in the way I like best.  We view it as our resource that no one else should have real influence over. But that’s actually not a biblical idea of a faithful use of our resources.  That’s an ‘individual-as-god’, an, “I know best and no one can tell me otherwise,” kind of mindset. Scripture doesn’t hold that same view of the individual. We are not our own masters — or if we try to be we make terrible ones.

   Rather, we should see our vote (as with all our lives as Christians — see Philippians 3:7-11) as given over to Christ for the glory of his name and the good of his Kingdom. As a God-given resource then, we need to see our vote as something we have been entrusted with — like any other resource — to advance the kingdom of God and his purposes in our world (1 Peter 4:10). Not simply to advance our preferences (even when they are well-intentioned). That can’t be our ultimate goal.

   In fact, seeing our vote as a resource which is not just ours to do with as we like, but as one devoted to the advancement of the good of the Kingdom, lets us move away from the polarization of the “I know best” politics that’s crippling our society right now. Seeing our vote as a resource entrusted to us lets us instead move towards the biblical concept of faithful, selfless stewardship.  

   As Christians we are called to be faithful stewards of what we receive (1 Cor. 4:2). And it is incumbent upon faithful stewards to use what they have been entrusted faithfully. Jesus calls us to this in the stark language of the Parable of the Talents (Mt. 25:14-30). And in that parable, were the faithful stewards the ones who took no risks and no action with what the master entrusted to them? No, they were the ones who took action and must have taken risks in doing so. They put their resources to work and received their reward. So too, let us put our resource of voting to work for the good of God’s kingdom.

Now, on to three practicalities based on these principles…

Practicalities:

1. Direct your vote toward the Kingdom

   Again, voting, as with all our lives, is not just about what you want, need or prefer. As Christians, our voting is meant (as with the officials it elects) to serve others. We need to ask then, “What will most benefit the kingdom? Where can my vote potentially make an impact in the flourishing of others in a real way right now?” We need to direct our vote toward the good of the Kingdom.

   This requires us to listen to (and dream with) other brothers and sisters in Christ. Because the kingdom of God is multifaceted and complex, with many needs and opportunities. There is no way any one of us by ourselves can see all the problems and have all the faithful ideas for how to address them!  The question of what benefits the kingdom requires more than just your (or your party’s) viewpoint.

   This also means we’re going to need to read & pray, because it’s foolish think we can work for the good of the Kingdom without consulting The King. So as we prepare to vote, we need to hear from God in his Word about what his character is like, what his kingdom is (and will be) like and what he cares about. We need to let his will inform our action. Likewise we need to take our desires and concerns to God in prayer — to talk to him about our world — that he might take action on the things we see.

2. Vote for the person more like THE King 

   We already said no one will be fully like God as a ruler. BUT voting for the person more like the King is still good. Not simply because greater Christlikeness leads to greater flourishing for a place, but because doing so consistently and as a body of voters (the Church), lets us start shaping what kinds of politicians we (as citizens of Heaven) will support. It’s not capitulating to our culture, but calling our culture to emulate THE King and his Kingdom.

   What does Scripture say a ruler should be like? If we turn to the 5th commandment (“honor your mother and father”) and what the Westminster Larger Catechism (“WLC”) draws out of Scripture to help us unpack what that commandment means, we see a few things. We see that WLC says that ‘superiors’ (those with power or authority — for our purposes, those in political office) owe some things to those they have power or authoirty over, ‘inferiors.’ Rulers are to (and this is me summarizing): 1) Love, pray for, and bless their people, Guide them, Favor what is good and correct what is evil,  Protect & provide for their people’s flourishing, and Honor God, themselves and their office through godly living (WLC Q&A 129). Conversely they are not to: Neglect what they ought to do, Be selfish, Create or support injustice or unattainable standards, Support or enable wickedness and/or discourage goodness, Correct what isn’t wrong and provoke people to wrath, Be careless and ambivalent towards the well-being of others, and Dishonor themselves and diminish their office (WLC Q&A 130).

   These are the things that define what it is to be more or less like The King. So, I encourage you to use the WLC’s unpacking of the commandment to help you consider which candidate lives and governs more like THE King.

3. Check your blindspots

   We all have parts of the kingdom we’re ignoring with our views or our votes. How can we know what parts we’re ignoring? Well, We need to check our blindspots. And we do that like you would in a car — by using your mirrors.  In the church your blindspot checking mirrors are your brothers and sisters in Christ who think differently than you. They are those you may think are looking in the wrong direction.  But it’s exactly their looking in a different direction that lets you see something you never would otherwise. You need them to help you see what you’re missing.

   So, ask 1 or 2 people you trust and who think differently than you to help you see if there are blindspots in the way you’re thinking about voting.  And you need to actually let their input shape your thinking and help you see your blindspots. Otherwise, why have a mirror at all? You can’t look in a rear-view mirror and say, “I don’t believe you” and make the lane change anyway.   That’s when accidents happen. Instead, let your mirrors help you as you seek to help the Kingdom alongside them.

None of us will or can follow these principles and implement these practicalities perfectly.

That’s not what this is about. The Christian life isn’t about you making perfect choices. It’s about God, his choosing and saving you by grace, your responding with a humility that puts your faith in this King, and bringing his kingdom to bear on our world.

The question that follows when we have put our trust in him is, “How do we grow up into the family likeness? How do we become more like the King and represent his kingdom?” That’s where I believe these principles and practicalities can help where that question pertains to voting. They don’t determine our salvation. Rather, they help us use it and extend it as good stewards of the gifts we’ve been given.

I pray that these things will indeed help you use and extend the salvation you have received to the world around you, being confident of the King you already have in Christ.