What will I do about voting?

As I have indicated in earlier posts (see here), I have come to the conclusion that I cannot vote for either main candidate for President this year.  I find both the Democrat and Republican nominees to have insupportable character and policy issues.  Many have asked what, then, AM I going to do?  I will answer that question in this post.  But first, I would like to comment on some ideas that I have encountered in social media during this election cycle.

Voting is a Christian’s moral responsibility:

Is this true?  Does the Bible compel a Christian to vote in every election?

It is interesting that the early Roman empire (a very early democracy) had a system of citizen voting in place at the time that Jesus walked the earth.  I don’t understand all of the workings of this voting system, but it seems to have been heavily weighted to those with more money or land and excluded all women, foreigners, and slaves.  As a conquered nation, the Jews at the time of Jesus, for the most part, would not have had voting privileges.  However, Jesus does not talk about voting.

As a male, Roman citizen, the apostle Paul probably had the opportunity to vote.  Yet again, Paul never mentions voting for government in all of the Scripture passages that he wrote.

The New Testament simply tells believers to obey/submit to government (Romans 13:1-2, and I Peter 2:13-14)  and to pray and be thankful for government (I Timothy 2:1-3)  These commandments can be obeyed by Christians under freedom or oppression.

Since voting and elections are not mentioned in Scripture, it would seem that this action would come under “grey area” rules.  For grey areas we should always make sure that our conscience is clean before God, and our testimony is clear before others.  These are two principles that have influenced my decision to not vote for either major Presidential candidate in this year’s election.

We have a great privilege in our land to be able to vote.  There are many in the world that cannot.  I appreciate the freedom and opportunity to use my voice to better my nation.  However, I also am very aware of the deep responsibility not to harm my nation with my vote.  Therefore, I think that it is a Christian’s moral responsibility to vote ONLY when they can vote for a candidate with a clear conscience before God.

Whenever I can, with a clear conscience before God and man, I will vote.

 

Just imagine the world under a ___ Presidency:

While part of discerning who to vote for is to consider what each candidate will support and implement while they are in office, many Christians are using this technique to instill fear in the hearers, and thus influence the vote.  These comments, in many variations, say that, while candidate X is not a good choice, candidate Y would be so much worse.  We vote for X because we are afraid of Y.  We should always remember that “God has not given us the spirit of fear…” (II Timothy 1:7)  

Whoever wins this election, God is still on the throne.  In Proverbs 8:14-16, the Lord, speaking as “Wisdom” declares that “by me, all kings reign…”.  In John 19, when Pilate points out his authority to either free or condemn Jesus, Jesus answers by saying “You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above.”  Furthermore, not only does God set all governments in place, but He also controls the ruler’s hearts.   Proverbs 21:1– The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord;  he turns it wherever he will.

God’s people are still safe in the hands of their Father, even to the point of death.  No government will ever be elected without God giving that authority from above.

We must not make decisions, including voting, based on fear.

 

If you aren’t voting for X, you are giving a vote to Y:

This is another very popular line of persuasion to influence people not to abstain from voting, vote for a third party, or write in a candidate.  This argument is based on a political, practical position of election mathematics.  It is only focused on “who wins.”  However, my concern with these candidates in this election is with my conscience.  And, I don’t think that such pragmatic thinking applies to God himself.  In other words, I do not believe that in God’s eyes, by not voting for one candidate I am really voting for the other.

I am very concerned with pleasing God in my vote.   By voting for someone I have seen to be immoral, am I at all held responsible?  In I Timothy 5:17-25 Paul is instructing Timothy in matters of choosing elders for the church.  Verse 22 says,  “Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands, nor take part in the sins of others; keep yourself pure.”  Some versions translate this a little stronger as “and thereby share in the sins”  Of course, this situation is dealing with elders in a church choosing other elders, not voting for President.  But, there is the implication that by participating in choosing the elder, you are sharing in the conduct of that elder.  If the elder you chose turns out to be sinful, you have some culpability.   I don’t think that it is too much of a stretch to assume that if we choose to vote for a candidate that we have SEEN to be immoral, we also have some sharing in the sins that result.

I do not want to share in the immorality of a candidate by voting for them with full knowledge of that immorality.

 

There are only two choices for President:

Many Christians have been repeating the phrase, “There are only two choices for President this year, and staying home is not one of them.”  I understand this logic from a political standpoint.  But, I do NOT understand it from the viewpoint of a Christian, child of the Almighty God.

Consider:  The Israelites were fleeing Egypt with Moses.  They came to the Red Sea, and there was no way to pass through it.  Behind them, the Egyptian army was furiously bearing down on them in their chariots, swords raised.  From a pragmatic standpoint, the children of Israel could have decided it was more noble to die fighting their enemy  than to drown in the sea.  (This is the “lesser of two evils” way of thought.)  What if, therefore, they turned their backs on the sea to fight, and never saw God open the waters like a wall?  What if they were so tied to only the two options that they could see with their eyes that they weren’t even praying, trusting, or looking for the miracle?

Consider:  God told Abraham to hike up the mountain with his only son, Isaac, and offer him as a sacrifice to God at the top.  At face value, there are only two options here.  Either Abraham disobeys God, or Isaac is sacrificed.  Neither of these is a good option.  However, Abraham knew that with God there are always more options.  He didn’t know what the third option would be, but he told Isaac on the way up the mountain that “God would provide the sacrifice.”

As the people who believe in an almighty, omnipotent, sovereign God over all of the universe, we should be sure that God does not want us to do anything to compromise our conscience.  We should know that, with God there are always more options.

This election, I am looking and praying for the miraculous third option!

 

 

What I am going to do about voting this year:

1.  Pray for the current government and for all who are running for election.
2. Vote for as many candidates as I can, in good conscience.
3. Look for alternate party candidates that I can vote for for President.
4. If I decide not to vote for an alternate party candidate, I will write in a Presidential candidate.
5.  Not be controlled by fear for the future, but trust in my good God that His will is going forth.
6. Look for the miracle option!

 

With Joy,

Kathleen