Conversations of Faith at Common Ground

This article, by John Piper, raises a fair point.  Piper comments, “What do you think disqualifies a person from holding public office?”  He notes that for each of us, there is probably an issue that is a “deal breaker” when it comes to electing someone to office.

To flesh out our own “deal breakers,” what are they for us?  We may have multiple ones.

Further, It is one thing to not elect someone because of what they’ve done in the past, but it is another if it is a view they presently hold.  Would we elect someone if they advocate…  racism, animal sacrifices, torture, assassination, building strip joints next to schools, etc?

Any problems with positions that politicians have on common issues and concerns that come up for discussion during the campaign (see previous post)?

WHY is it a deal breaker for you?  WHAT do you think is a deal breaker for God?  Personalizing the question, “what do I think God’s perspective is on my deal breaker and am I in alignment with His perspective?”

I won’t pretend that trying to understand God’s heart on an issue is easy.  What may get uncomfortable is arriving to a conclusion that what God thinks may be different from me.  What are the implications of finding an issue that is a deal breaker for God?

Perhaps you’ve heard about the pastors who have decided to endorse a candidate for President from the pulpit in defiance of IRS rules prohibiting churches from doing that.  It was called Pulpit Freedom Sunday.

Is it really an issue of freedom of speech and religion?

Some answers I’d like to have from these pastors are:

• How is a political endorsement from the pulpit equivalent to the timeless truths of Scripture?
• Are you saying that your endorsement of a candidate is on par with, “Thus says the Lord…?”
• How is taking a stand on an issue different from endorsing a political candidate?
• If you endorse a candidate, are you saying you are embracing ALL their views as well as their political party?  How many caveats do you need to toss in?
• If a pastor endorses one candidate and another endorses their opponent, what are people to make of that?  Is one pastor more spiritual or biblical than the other?  Who decides?
• Likewise, can Christians disagree on who they vote for?  As a pastor, the spiritual leader of a congregation, are you making an indictment against those who disagree with you?  Is that God’s opinion or just yours?
• On what basis do you think God favors one candidate over another?  How do you decide what God cares more about?  On the issues of abortion, taxes, illegal immigration, the war in Iraq, the war in Afghanistan, same-sex marriage, the economic condition in the U.S., climate change, health care, welfare and education which one, according to God, is most important and least important?  Can you rank all these issues for me?  Who decides what the “most” important issues are?  What if the candidate gets two of them right, but is biblically off on the rest?
• On what Scriptural basis is tax-exempt status a “right?”
• Does a political stance (i.e. abortion or homosexuality) really say anything about the candidates relationship with God?  If the candidate was a mormon and you agree with their politics, are you also saying you agree with their Christology?  What has precedence — their view on Christ or their political positions?  Is your decision one of expedience/pragmatism or principle?
• If you endorse a candidate, are you also affirming their lifestyle and spirituality, or just how you think they’ll vote?

Encouraging the Body of Christ to vote is a good thing, even biblical (as a role we have in Romans 13, submitting to the government system God has placed us under).  Examining issues from a biblical perspective and voting out of those convictions is appropriate, too.

However, encouraging votes for a particular individual is messy.  I cannot judge a person’s spirituality based on their political positions, yet by endorsing a candidate as a pastor, I am suggesting that one person is more in alignment with God, from my POV, than another.

If we drop the argument about spirituality and make endorsements based on the end goal we believe God wants, what does that imply?  The ends justify the means.  As long as we get the person who will deliver what we want into a position of power, then we’ll vote for whoever takes a view that agrees with us.

By all means, go to the polls and vote.  Vote for the people and issues that you, by convictions that stand between you and God, think you should vote for or against.