Why Christians Must Vote

Word from the Center
Written By LCRL Staff

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In his letter to the church in Rome, the Apostle Paul writes, “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God” (Rom. 13:1-2).

With that statement, Paul defines the relationship between Christians and government. Throughout the Book of Acts, Paul invokes his Roman citizenship to make a passionate defense of the Gospel. Instead of shying away from engagement with the governing authorities, he engages them by proclaiming truth. However, he also puts his trust in God’s sovereignty because he knows that the ultimate authority and judge is the Lord, who has allowed those to be in authority so God’s purposes can be accomplished.

One of the ways God’s purposes are accomplished is through the faithfulness of believers who use their influence, in a proper and respectful manner, to influence secular governments and to hold government officials accountable for their actions. In his book Politics According to the Bible, respected theologian Dr. Wayne Grudem shares numerous examples such as Daniel’s influence on King Nebuchadnezzar and John the Baptist boldly speaking biblical truth to King Herod and the other officials of the Roman Empire.

Additionally, Chuck Colson, the founder of Prison Fellowship, once noted that, “Christ, not politics, is our hope.  He’s called us to engage, to discern, and to the best of our abilities, uphold good and lessen evil.” He also reminds us that, “It’s our duty as citizens of the kingdom of God to be the best citizens of the society we live in. To do that, we must vote.”

Not all of us are able to boldly stand before the government officials to speak the truth. But what we can do is use our God-given right to exert significant influence through exercising our right to be involved in the political process by voting. That is what we are Christians are to do: to utilize the authority the Lord has given us to influence those God has placed in authority over us and hold them accountable for their actions. It is critical that we do so if we want to live in a nation that honors God and His truth while keeping our trust in the Lord and His plan for our nation and world.

Timothy S. Goeglein is vice president of Government and External Relations for Focus on the Family.

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See Also
Why Christians Must Vote
Why Christians Must Vote

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With that statement, Paul defines the relationship between Christians and government. Throughout the Book of Acts, Paul invokes his Roman citizenship to make a passionate defense of the Gospel. Instead of shying away from engagement with the governing authorities, he engages them by proclaiming truth. However, he also puts his trust in God’s sovereignty because he knows that the ultimate authority and judge is the Lord, who has allowed those to be in authority so God’s purposes can be accomplished.

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LCRL Staff
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