So, you are the “king.” You must govern your people as best you
can. And since you are a servant of God,
placed in your official capacity by him, your first concern is to please him as
you govern. What will you do when faced
with a two-party, democratic republic political system? I am not referring to your tone or behavior. Those are separate issues. I am addressing your responsibility to take
part in the political system into which God has dropped you. Will you associate with a particular party or
be an independent? Will you vote for all
the candidates of one party and none of the other, or will you vote for
whichever individuals you think will do what is right?
First, let us try to understand
this political system that has developed as a result of the type of government
God has established in our country. It
is a two-party system. There are other
parties, but they generally are only symbolic.
From time to time there is a serious effort to raise up a third party,
but they have all failed. We must accept
the reality that, at least for now, we have two choices when we visit the
voting booth.
The two parties are
differentiated by their stands on certain key issues. Some of these issues are fairly static, while
others come and go as various concerns make their way through the complex
social network of emotional responses.
Economics and foreign policy are two static issues that each party
approaches from very different bases, though the emphases in each area change
from one election to the next. Issues
like suffrage, prohibition, voting age, marriage and immigration make their
impact and dissolve into history as people either believe they have been dealt
with, tire of fighting the battle, or are distracted by other issues. People may choose to affiliate with a
particular party for many reasons, including family tradition, peer pressure,
or intellectual agreement. Those who
choose to remain “independent” usually claim they vote based on particular
issues and not due to loyalty to any one party.
We don’t get to vote on every
issue. That is why we are called a
republic, not technically a democracy.
Therefore, we must vote for people who will most likely champion the causes
which we believe God wants us to promote for the good of his people. This is where it gets complicated. We seldom get to really know those people. We can
only do the research and hope they will follow through on what they tell us
they will do. And what will cause them
to vote in a particular way? Lots of
things. Maybe greed. Maybe a pure conscience. More probably, pragmatism. Likely, they will have to give and take. They will owe the people who got them into
the office through their hard work or financial donations. They will have to make deals requiring them
to agree to something they don’t like very much in exchange for help getting a
bill passed which is important to them.
They will have to make choices based on their priorities, knowing they
will not get everything they want, and that they will have to support things
and people they do not really want to support.
That is the way the system works.
We don’t have to like it, but we ought to understand it. Our duty is to figure out who has the same
priorities we have, and to make sure our priorities are the same as God’s. It would be much easier to simply obey a king
or queen, but that isn’t the way God has set things up for us.
Our duty as Christians, then, is
to make that list of priorities. It is
easier to come up with the list than it is to prioritize it. Protection of innocent lives, freedom to
share the gospel, freedom to worship God, ability to earn a living and raise a
family, ability to protect oneself, military peace with other countries, are
just a few of the concerns we must consider.
What is God concerned about? What
does he want us (his appointed “king”) to work on ensuring? Once we figure out the top three or four for
our priority list, we need to look to the candidates and determine which are
most likely to promote those same issues.
We will not get everything we want.
We must understand this going into the process. We are looking for the best choices, not the perfect ones.
What is important to me? I believe God is concerned about the taking
of over 5 million innocent babies as a result of Roe v. Wade in 1973. I believe he wants me to care for the
orphans, widows, and others who have difficulty taking care of themselves. I believe he wants us to live in peace with
one another and with other nations whenever possible. I believe he wants me to be able to provide
for and protect my family and the innocent with whom I have contact. I believe he wants me to insure justice
prevails. There are many other issues,
but these are the ones I believe should be top priorities. How will they help me decide where to cast my
votes?
First, I need to understand
there are limits on what various offices in our government can do. When deciding on a candidate for the local
water agency, I am not going to take into consideration his view on
abortion. State representatives are
primarily going to affect how state money is spent, so I will examine the
candidates’ views on those issues only.
The president can’t make laws, but he can veto those the congress sends
to him. He also is responsible for
putting forth nominees for the Supreme Court, though the senate must approve as
well. So, if abortion is an important
issue for me, I need to support the presidential candidate I believe will
appoint acceptable justices, and senators who will confirm his choices. If economics is a major concern, I need to
support representatives and senators who will push for the kind of legislation
that will do the most good, but I also need to choose a president who will sign
those bills and enforce the law.
So, should I belong to a
particular party, voting for candidates from that party even if I don’t agree with
them on some important issues? I believe
it helps. Here’s why. If the party is, for example, pro-life, as
stated in their party’s platform, those candidates will be more likely to vote
as the party wishes because they owe the party for getting elected and because
they may want something from the party in return. What if that party is against some other
issue I find important? I need to go
back to my priority list. What is most
important to me? Am I willing to give up
improvements in the economy to achieve justice for the unborn, for example? As I have already shown, the passing and
enforcing of legislation is not dependent upon any one person or any one branch
of government. When I decide on the
issues of most import to me, I need to support the legislators, executives and
justices who will most likely bring about the changes I believe God intends for
us. Parties work together, even when
individuals within those parties disagree with each other on issues or
sub-issues.
This does not imply I am idolizing
the party I choose to support. It means
I have decided that party is the most likely means to the ends I desire I at
this time. Political parties are tools
to be used to get the job done.
There are issues about which we
do get to vote directly. In California,
we call them initiatives. I apply the
same principle to them as I do to the candidates for various offices. Which are important to me as a “king” servant
of God? Which will protect lives, make
it possible for people to earn a living and care for their families, etc.? But I also recognize, living in California,
that no initiative is safe from the California Supreme Court, so my votes for
those judges are also key to success.
That’s it in a nutshell. I don’t like posting a blog this long, but it
is a very complicated issue and not easy to explain. The bottom line is that I am responsible for
doing what I can to carry out God’s will in this country. Most of that can be done regardless of
government approval, but as the “king,” I have a responsibility to use my
governmental power to protect God’s creation from evil and to promote that
which is right.
