Politics and Gospel

A pastor with a national platform just announced that evangelicals voting for a certain candidate have "sold their souls to the devil."

1- The gospel is not partisan.

2- No political party or politician owns the gospel.

3- No two Christians believe everything alike. We are called to lives of transformation, not some static definition or litmus test of faith.

4- Politics is messy. Democracy is the art of compromise when it works at its best. Demonizing a party, a platform, or those taking a political position is an exercise in writing off people for whom Christ died.

5- As a pastor, I don't expect all my congregants to vote the way I do. I would hope that over the course of our lives we would be so transformed by Christ that we would actually change the way we vote, think, believe, and interact with others. Being faithful believers does not mean we are all on the same page. It means we are seeking to follow Christ Jesus more closely today than yesterday, closer tomorrow than today.

6- It is one of the hallmarks of a cult that differences in opinion cannot be tolerated. If everything in life is reduced to black and white with no room for shades of grey, we are not living in the real world. Where two of us agree on everything, at least one of us is not engaging life with thoughtfulness and responsibility.

7- If one's faith requires dehumanizing and demonizing those who disagree with one in the realm of politics, it is past time to consider whether one's faith is placed in God or in a political structure, platform, and party.

8- Politics is played by failed human beings. Those at the top of the ranks of power are generally attracted to power more than to the notion of serving their constituents. Power corrupts. When human beings are given power, we must recognize that it will call out the more corrupt part of their nature, just as Scripture records with kings Saul, David, Solomon, and others.

9- The prophets in Scripture saw fit to call the political structures to account for their misdeeds, failures to enact justice, and other shortcomings. The true prophets never propped up political leaders as fully implementing the will of Yahweh. Only the false prophets tried to do such. They exchanged their prophetic charge for being sycophants attracted to the trappings of power and comfort.

10- Beware those who would back any party or politician wholesale. There is only one who was worthy of such acclaim. There is only one worthy of following without question. I've never met a politician, priest, or pastor who rose to that level. We are called to follow Christ Jesus and no other.

11- If you can't see the flaws in your favorite politician, you are not looking closely enough. If you can't see the flaws in your favorite religious leader, you are not looking closely enough. If we can't see any flaws in our leadership, we are following too blindly or irresponsibly.

12- If we don't have to hold our noses even a little as we cast a ballot, there is something lacking in our assessment of politician, party, and the issues before us. That is as it should be. Politics is dirty. Politics is about power. Politics is about stepping on others to advance my own interests. It is really hard to do that with grace, love, mercy, and compassion for all people without discrimination.

13- Until our own lives are completely free of selfishness, ambition, greed, and discrimination towards others, our politics will continue to be a less than perfect arena of human action. To pretend otherwise is simply to pretend.

14- I won't try to tell you which are the best options in the coming elections. If I did, I would be taking away your personal responsibility to cast your ballot and live your life as a responsible human being and perhaps a follower of Christ Jesus. Politics, after all, will not effectively advance the Reign of Christ. There is a reason Jesus never sought political office. Just do the best you can to call all those who hold office to be responsible for their actions, positions, and policies. Hold them to account along with the prophets like Isaiah, Ezekiel, Amos, Micah, Micaiah, Jeremiah, and Elijah. That is the charge of those who have not "sold their soul to the devil." Anything less is not worthy of our upward calling in Christ Jesus to be transformed after the character of the only one worthy of our full allegiance.


— ©Copyright 2020, Christopher B. Harbin

http://www.sermonsearch.com/contributors/104427/

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