The Watchman's Diary

I’ve heard many Christian political commentators explaining why they vote the way they do while almost condemning those who vote the other way. Don’t each person have the same right to vote on what’s important to him or her? Listening to two professing Christian radio hosts explain why they voted for Mitt Romney in 2012 was almost sickening because they came across so disingenuous. Hey, they may have been telling the full truth of it but to me, the listener, it sounded more like they were only voting against the other candidate; which is fine but why not just say that. 

Now, I hear many televangelists and radio hosts; including the same two, lining up their arguments to justify their upcoming vote. They say, what’s really important to me are sanctity of life, marriage, and Israel. These are all very good Christian prayer points but that’s just three of the many issues facing our nation and the world. Politics seem to have become a god for many Christian leaders and many in the church. I’m still not convinced that no vote is a vote for “the other guy” but I’ve been wrong on many things. They say it really boils down to the lesser of two evils but evil is still…evil. 

So many politicians give lip service to God and some seem to be very sincere. Then why is it those who are sincere Christians don’t get the support of Christians across the nation? Why is it that someone who holds to their morals and openly declare Jesus Christ as Lord receive so little support from the church? Oh yeah, the latest excuse is that “we are not voting for a spiritual leader, we are voting for the president”! Last I checked, we have a good historical record of ungodly leaders and the outcome of their influence on the nation. 

Could it be that the majority of Americans no longer live by Christian values? Is it that too many churches are just embracing the secular culture instead of influencing it?

Well, by now many have already made up their minds about who they will vote for and why. Let’s not allow politics and the way we vote create further division in the body. God is at work revealing the secrets of the nations and the church needs to stand ready to identify the spiritual needs of individuals and the nation as a whole. Let’s refocus and stop letting the politics of the day distract us. We are called to pray for our leaders and in our democracy, hold them accountable. If we demonize and disrespect we only further alienate the world we are called to continue the ministry of reconciliation.