Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
-Romans 12:2
The 2016 Presidential campaign has officially begun. Never mind that we are over 18 months away from actually voting - the time has come for the plethora of political candidates to inundate us with messages of why they are the right choice to either save American or transform America, depending on what their particular political persuasion is. Undoubtedly mixed in will be commentary about whether or not America is a Christian nation, how we should vote for a particular candidate because he/she shares our Christian values, and how "you can't possibly be a Christian and vote for candidate X."
Let me just say it now, and say it very clearly - STOP. It is time to divorce politics from faith. Note I didn't say divorce faith from politics, but politics from faith. I phrase it that way for a very particular reason: I truly believe that both political parties are attempting to manipulate Christians for their own political power. And we as Christians are letting them. The Democrats say we should vote for them because they want to take care of the poor, and isn't that what Jesus did? The Republicans say they are going to restore the moral foundation that our Founding Fathers laid, and then what? Is everyone going to magically start reading the Bible and attending church?
There is quite the debate over whether or not we are a Christian nation. If you look at the poll numbers, by the way, we are a "Christian" nation. Over 51% of the population identifies as Protestant, with another 23% identifying as Catholic. So yes, officially we are a "Christian" nation. In this debate though, we lost sight of a greater issues: we are a "Christian" nation, but are we a nation of Christians? What is the role of faith in politics? Do we focus on entirely the wrong issues, abdicating our own role to "go ye therefore and teach" and substituting laws and the government to affect change in people?
This is only my opinion, but I think that we have become very confused. The Founding Fathers were Christian, to an extent. Exactly how Christian they were by the Biblical standard is up for debate, but they acknowledged a higher being, and yes, many referred to God. However, when they established America, they paid particular attention to ensuring that church and state were separated in their roles. They had a lot of reasons for doing this - Europe had suffered mightily from the interference of organized religion in government. Their faith influenced their decisions, but America was designed to be a nation of freedom, where you could live your life and practice your faith, whatever it was, without fear of being forced to accept another's faith. America is not, and has never been, a theocracy.
Yet today, we seem dead set on passing laws that force people to bend to a particular viewpoint. This occurs on all sides of whatever debate we are currently engaging in, but I can't influence the other side, I can only speak to mine. Is the role of a Christian to ensure that "Christian" laws are passed, thereby ensuring we remain a "Christian" nation and forcing everyone to remain morally straight? Or is the role of a Christian to reach the world with the message of the Gospel and save souls? These are very difficult questions, as there are no simple answers. So, WWJD? Well, I'd love to insert a great Bible verse here where Jesus tells us how to vote, but all I can seem to find is Matthew 22 and John 6. In the first chapter, the Pharisees attempt to trap Jesus by getting him to say that paying taxes to Caesar is immoral. Jesus refuses to take the bait, saying “So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” In John 6, the crowds see Jesus's miracles and want to make him king. So what does he do? "Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself."
Jesus's mission (and by extension, our mission) was not to bring about his Kingdom through politics, but to bring about his Kingdom through transforming lives. Why is this important for us today? Because no matter how many "Christian" laws we pass, it is all for naught unless we change lives. I grew up hearing lots of people grumble about how the government and liberals had somehow doomed the nation. Lots of "we never had this problem until they took the Bible out of schools." Guess what? We never had this problem until we stopped teaching our own children the Bible and left it up to the schools. Schools have our children 5 days a week, 8 hours a day. Last time I checked, there were 24 hours in a day and 7 days in a week. I have to really examine myself now that I have two children of my own. Am I leaving their Biblical development up to the Christian school I send them to? Am I leaving it up to Sunday school? Or am I teaching them every day how Christ taught us to live? To be honest, I'm not proud of my answer to that question.
If we truly feel that America has strayed from its roots, we cannot allow ourselves to focus on government and politicians to save us. The only thing that can save us is Christ, and "how,
then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can
they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they
hear without someone preaching to them?" (Romans 10:14) We cannot change our nation's moral trajectory by passing laws. We will never be a Christian nation because we pass laws. We will be a Christian nation because the Christians of this nation reach out to others and win them to Christ.
I'm not asking you to refrain from politics or political debate, nor am I saying not to vote. There are many legitimate concerns that need to be addressed - the budget, defense, and so many others. All I'm asking is that you stop allowing people who stand to profit by manipulating your faith from doing so. If you read the Bible, and study it, and truly feel that you are being led to vote a certain way, then I won't stop you. However, if you are caught up in the latest moral crusade to save America from itself, but have yet to witness to your neighbor, maybe you should examine yourself first before you decide to dictate to others how they must live.
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