Once the grueling two-plus year campaign came to a close, and Election Day was upon us, I put the rancor and the fighting and the misleading commentary and the truthful accountability behind me as I entered into the polling station. I took my paper ballot and entered into a partnership with history, and with my fellow Americans cast my vote for my next President and for my Representative to Congress and for the issues that affect me and my community. I relished being able to express my opinion and know that my opinion counted – whether what I wanted won or lost – I was heard, and the majority ruled. Democracy in action – truly a blessing from God, don’t you think?

Oh, sure there were snafus here and there – but the more of these we have, the faster we’ll get them fixed so that, one day, there will be no mix-ups on Election Day, and all voices will be heard loud and clear.

But now what? What’s next?

Regardless of who you voted for, Barack Obama is our new President-elect, and Christ-followers have a responsibility to him and the other new and current stewards of our centuries-old form of government.

It has often been said that God only established three institutions – the home, the church, and the state. In establishing these institutions, He gave us explicit instructions on how all three were to operate. Most Christians know a great deal about what God has to say about the home and church. But we seem to know much less about what God says about the state and how we should relate to it.

I watched a news commentary the other night that really caught my attention. The basic thrust was that since the Republicans had such a bad showing in the 2008 election, it was a clear sign that the influence of Christians in our nation has diminished, and that “the far right Christians” had lost significant say in the national dialogue.

I’m not sure – but I think I was offended!

First of all – who said that “Christian” and “Republican” are interchangeable terms? I know many Democrats who are Christians! Being a Christian does not make you a Republican any more than being a Republican makes you a Christian.

Second – Christianity is not the same as “the far right.” A Christ-follower’s faith in God may make him or her more conservative on faith issues – but it does not always make him or her conservative on economics, conservative on the military, conservative on the environment, or conservative on any other political issue. “The far right” is a political term – not a description of a Christ-follower’s thought process or opinions or actions in society, and as Christians, we need to stop being defined by CNN or Fox or political pundits.

If I were to try to encapsulate what happened in this last election cycle, it would be this:

For some time now, the “far right” politicos have consistently failed to fully explain their foundational principles, and then lived out an unfortunate mixed message that tended to undermine or discredit their own principles. This caused a failure in philosophy in the sight of the majority of Americans.

That’s what decided this election.

But what was being surmised in that political commentary was that Christians have lost influence in this nation. President-Elect Obama was not elected because Christian influence is diminished. The political commentary was as much an insult to Mr. Obama as to Christians. Barack Obama was elected because the majority of Americans voted him in, and they voted him in because they were unhappy. Period.

The TV commentary inferred that many people see Republicans and Christians as one and the same – which is erroneous. The commentary also stated directly that the world sees Christian influence on the retreat.

I think the commentator is absolutely right about our diminished influence – but when he applied it to this election, that’s where he went wrong.

> Far Right Christians push the Pro-Life agenda.
- Far Left Christians push for more social support for the poor and disabled.
> Far Right Christians believe a strong military is biblical.
- Far Left Christians believe peace is biblical.

Those are over-simplifications, but the point is that there are Christians on both sides, believing in and striving for the things they believe are biblical and God-honoring. The problem is, there are God-honoring things on the Right and God-honoring things on the Left. . . what set of issues will you choose? You can’t choose both.

I’m suggesting that individual Christian are still involved in the political process – but as the Body of Christ, we’re so fragmented and beset by mistrust and infighting that we no longer vote as a block, and haven’t voted as a block for many years.

In that respect, Christian influence is on the wane – and that translates to mean that anything a Christian supports will be marginalized – and that includes our belief in Jesus.

I am not encouraging Christ-followers to get up-in-arms and become elitist or militant about our influence. That would actually be going the wrong way! Christians on the Right and the Left have tended to stand on the sidelines and throw rocks – at each other and at non-believers on both sides.

• When something doesn’t please us, we complain – instead of praying and serving.
• We get very much preoccupied with politics, and political maneuvering – but we’ve pretty much completely turned our backs on holiness!
• We try to legislate the virtues of our choice – but won’t take the time for our own, personal piety through lives of devotion.
• We get all wrapped up in the concerns of our nation and world – but have disregarded or lost sight of the concerns of the Kingdom of God lived out in our hearts.

Regardless of who you wanted for president – and regardless of who serves as President in the 2012 term or the term after that, I want us to know our responsibility as Christians in our nation. We’ve got to know how to live as Christians in an anti-Christian world in order to correctly and persuasively influence the people around us so that they can come to a knowledge of Christ and surrender their lives to Him as Forgiver and Leader. Knowing our responsibility and living it out improves our influence, and actually allows God the room to work in and through our government – no matter who is elected to any office!

The best passage in Scripture to show us our Christian responsibility is found in Romans 13:1-7:

“Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you. For he is God’s servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God’s servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience. This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.”

Look at the essentials found in this powerful passage.

1 “Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.”

Essential 1: That means that our United States government – and the results of our recent election – are by God’s decree!

I don’t care how you slice this – the Bible says that the governing authorities that exist have been established by God. (Not just in America, but in Iran and Saudi Arabia and Syria and Israel and North Africa, etc.) For the purpose of this blog, let’s just focus on our government here in the United States.

Paul wrote a parallel instruction in Titus 3:1-2: “Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men.”

We are called to be submissive to our government. I’m not saying we roll over and let the government – or the politicians who work in it – do anything they want. We’ve been blessed to live in a Democracy, so we vote in and vote out who we wish to serve us in our government. But once they’re in, we’re to submit to that government. We’re to live as peaceful, godly, model citizens. We work out our differences, we solve problems through prayer, and we accept what we cannot change with thanksgiving knowing that God Himself put that government in place according to His own plans and designs for our nation and world.

You know, in reality, all we can truly expect from a government is perhaps food, safety and security. Almost any government in the world does that to some degree. We should not expect that we’re going to get everything we want out of a government – especially a government that for the last hundred years or more has been supporting the personal agendas of humanity rather than living up to the mandates of Scripture. The Bible doesn’t say submit to the government when it is overtly Christian – the Bible says submit to the government no matter what. Good or bad; democracy or communism; representative or dictatorship. . . any governing authority is placed there by God to give us the bare minimums of what we might need. In America, we’re blessed that we have far more than our bare necessities.

The Apostle Peter instructed us: “Live such good lives among the [world] that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day He visits us. Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men. . . fear God, honor the king.” (1 Peter 2:12-17)

Author and theologian Robert Haldane, in his Exposition on Romans said: “The institution of civil government is a dispensation of mercy [from God], and its existence is so indispensable, that the moment it ceases under one form it reestablishes itself in another.”

What he’s explaining is that when a coup takes place in a country, it doesn’t really eliminate government – it only results in the change of one government for another, because the citizens cannot survive without some form of government. Electing new leaders to government doesn’t do away with government, it just means the government changes a bit.

Haldane goes on to say: “The world, ever since the fall, when the dominion of one part of the human race over another was immediately introduced. . . has been in such a state of corruption and depravity, that without the powerful obstacle presented by civil government to the selfish and malignant passions of men, it would be better to live among the beasts of the forest than in human society. As soon as its restraints are removed, man shows himself in his real character.”

We see evidence of that all over the world, and Judges 17:6 says: “In those days Israel had no king, so the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.” (New Living Translation)

The government of the United States of America could change its form - but we would still called to submit to it and be model citizens! Why? Because Scripture tells us that God is the source of government. Christ-followers are called to honor those in authority over us so that no one can truly speak badly about the name of Christ. If people are going to criticize Christ-followers, let’s have it be a condemnation of our strong and undying faith – not our political viewpoints and wrangling!

Romans 13:2: “Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted. . .”

Essential 2: Resistance to our government – or the leaders elected and in charge – is rebellion against God Himself!

Listen to me Far Righters and Far Lefters – Christ-followers all of you: no matter who is elected, we must submit to them, and not rebel against them. Rebellion can mean revolution, insurgency, rioting, uprisings – but it can also mean hostility toward our government and our leaders using unforgiving and bitter talk with no attempt at reconciliation. It can mean vengeful actions such as sending hateful letters, refusing to pay taxes, moving to Canada out of protest. Rebelling is not the same as exercising Free Speech or exercising the right to Gather for Peaceful Demonstration. We can express our views – we just can’t do it in a nasty, hate-filled way, putting people down. We can demonstrate to get our point heard, but we cannot allow violence to enter in. The best way we can have our voices heard is to write and call our leaders and representatives, visit them in their offices, get organized on the grass-root level, get our issues heard, and express ourselves in the voting booth. But we must not rebel in hateful, disrespectful, illegal ways.

Still, there could be times in our future when our government forces us to do something that conflicts with our faith. What then? God is our ultimate authority – not our government. Until God’s authority is defied, we must not rebel; but when our faith in Christ is on the line – we will die before we offend God.

We can see an example of this with Peter and John Acts 5:29. Peter and John were brought before the Sanhedrin, the ruling Jewish Council, and given strict orders not to teach in Jesus’ name. Their response was “We must obey God rather than man.” The Bible records that because of their refusal to obey, the Sanhedrin wanted Peter and John executed, but they opted instead to have the men flogged and let them go with the order to stop speaking in the name of Jesus.

Christ-followers can and must disobey the government when it asks us to:
• violate a commandment of God,
• commit an immoral or unethical act, or
• go against our Christian conscience which is informed by Scripture and is in submission to the Holy Spirit.

Author, pastor, and theologian John Stott gives us this summary: “We are to submit right up to the point where obedience to the state would entail disobedience to God. If the state commands what God forbids, or forbids what God commands, then our plain Christian duty is to resist, not to submit; to disobey the state in order to obey God.”

Only in these extreme situations will God bless our disobedience – and only if we do it with the right heart – even if it means imprisonment or death! In Daniel 3 we read about Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego who were ordered by the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar to fall down and worship an idol of gold. The men refused because they worshipped the One True God. But in their refusal, they were submissive and respectful to the King! Can you be submissive and respectful – even as you stand up against the government for something? That’s God’s expectation of you! Even if you’re being thrown into a fiery furnace like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were. You’re to submit – and not rebel – until you’re commanded to do what God forbids, or forbid to do what God commands – then you may respectfully disobey with a submissive heart. The attitude of your heart in this is vital.

Romans 13:2 goes on to say: “. . . and those who do so [rebels against authority] will bring judgment on themselves.”

Essential 3: Resisters get punished – and it’s OK with God.

Now – let’s move away for a moment from the concept of rebelling if we’re asked to go against God’s commands, and speak again of rebelling or resisting our government just because we don’t like something or we disagree with an election or a leader or a policy. Remember – we’re supposed to submit and not resist.

Listen to Paul’s words to us through Romans 12:14-18: “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”

Christ-followers are to do good and live in harmony and bless everyone – including those who persecute us. If we rebel against our government without trying to do good and live in harmony and bless people around us, then we’re rebelling against God – and we bring judgment against ourselves.

Paul told us in Galatians 6:7-8: “A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.”

Rebels and resisters get punished – if we’re doing it because we’re sore losers or demand our own way.

Romans 13:3 says: “For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you.”

Essential 4: This means that our Government restrains the evil in the world on our behalf.

Authorities are only a threat if you’re trying to get by with something! Decent citizens should have nothing to fear. We may not agree with all of the laws – but if we uphold our end of the bargain and keep the laws, then the only people breaking the laws will be the criminal element of our society, and we can put our trust in God’s promise that our government and our leaders will go after the criminals and keep evil at bay. Sure – we’re talking about a government of mere humans who make mistakes – but God told us in this Scripture that our authorities should not frighten us who are doing our best to do right, but the authorities will frighten those who do wrong. We’ll do what the government says and be on good terms with the leaders, and we’ll all get along fine.

You see, submitting and not resisting now has a “doing good” and “doing what is right” component added to it. It’s not just passive compliance – it’s intentional acts of good. God wants us to live a life that is peaceable; we don’t make trouble we don’t resist or rebel. When we live our lives in godliness and holiness, we affect our society from the inside by changing the hearts of the people. Christian influence is best done by living correctly, with people watching our lives lived out in front of them. That far outweighs any political maneuvering or posturing or campaigning. We can either live godly lives and change the people of our society. . . or we can be rebellious and militant and attempt to change the structure of our society.

Galatians 6:9 says: “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people. . .”

At the proper time we will reap a harvest. . . what does that mean? I want to show you a Scriptural principle that applies to our situation here in America. I’m not talking about the recent election – I’m talking about this perceived diminishing of Christian influence. We live in an anti-Christian world, and in what amounts to a post-Christian nation. We’re not really “under God” anymore like our pledge of allegiance says; we don’t really live out our motto of “in God we trust.”

Listen to what God says through Isaiah in Isaiah 1:18-20: “‘Come now, let us reason together,’ says the LORD. ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best from the land; but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.’ For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

Let’s just take that “sins like scarlet” section out for a moment and put it on the table. This is what God is telling us: “Let’s think this through together. . . if you’re willing and obedient, you’ll get my best. . . but if you resist and rebel, you’ll die.”

Now, let’s put the “sins as scarlet” passage back into place – and we see that God is telling us: “I can do anything – if you’ll just be willing and obedient! Why, I can take something that is stained with blood, and make it perfectly white and pure and clean again! I can take what was horrible, and make it wonderful. I can make messy society safe and secure and perfect.”

God goes on to say through Isaiah: “‘I will thoroughly purge away your dross and remove all your impurities. I will restore your judges as in days of old, your counselors as at the beginning. Afterward you will be called the City of Righteousness, the Faithful City.’” (Isaiah 1:25-26)

Our judges will be restored, even our lawyers will be made to be like they were intended – and we will be called Righteous and Faithful! We’re to “do what is right” and the authorities will commend us as we’re told in Romans 13:3. When Christians start doing what is right, President Obama will commend us. That means he will praise Christ-followers and speak well of us. He will mention us to the nation. He will entrust to us more and more of the moral and ethical steering of our country. He will commit to support us, and hand over authority as we earn it with our right living.

Listen to God’s instructions in 2 Chronicles 7:14: “. . .if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

Do you get that? It doesn’t say “If all Americans” or “if President Obama” or “if Congress” – it says, “If my people who are called by my name”. . . that’s us.

If my people who are called by my name – will:
• humble ourselves – that’s what Romans 13:1-7 is showing us how to do;
• pray – speak to God consistently and relationally;
• seek my face – that’s living lives of holiness and devotion;
• turn from their wicked ways – notice it doesn’t say that the nation turns from their wicked ways – it says MY PEOPLE WHO ARE CALLED BY MY NAME – it’s you and me who must turn from laziness and sin and wrong-doing;

THEN – this passage assures us – God will forgive our sin and HEAL OUR LAND!

It starts with Christ-followers – with you and me. And if we’re “willing and obedient” – then America gets healed! Now THAT’S Christian influence! Are you getting this? It is so vitally important.

Let’s go on to Romans 13:4: “For he is God’s servant to do you good.”

Essential 5: That means that the Government promotes good in our lives and in our society.

Barack Obama and Joe Biden and John McCain as leaders of our national government are put there by God to do you good! Governor Strickland is put there by God to do you good. If Sarah Palin is elected President in 2012, she’ll be put there by God to do you good! If Hillary Clinton is elected President in 2012, she’ll be put there by God to do you good! They are God's servants – whether they know it or not – put there by Him, to promote good in our lives and in our country.

I personally heard President-Elect Obama say he is a Christian. I also heard him make some comments that he is “on the journey toward Christ.” That makes him either a believer or a seeker looking at the claims of Christ. Either way, he deserves our respect. Can you imagine what Obama could do if he ends up being sold-out to Jesus? What might it look like if he comes to deeper faith in Christ while in office? He’s going to hold the highest office in our land, and be the most powerful leader in the world, and he’s there because God put him there to be the servant of God and to do us good. We need to pray for our new President everyday, and for his walk with or toward Christ! We need to pray for his influence in our country and in the world!

Look at what the Apostle Paul asks you to do in 1 Timothy 2:1-4, no matter where you fall on either side of the election results: “I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone – for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.”

Pray for President Obama – don’t make snide remarks.
Pray for Senator John McCain – don’t hurl insults.
Pray for Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Representative Marcy Kaptur, and Senator George Voinovich – don’t throw stones!

Romans 13:4 goes on to say: “But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God’s servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer.”

Essential 6: The Government has the right to punish.

I’ve already opened Galatians 6:7-8, which tells us: “A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction. . .” If we simply discard all of these teachings about our responsibility as Christians in our nation, we can expect punishment – even punishment by “the sword” or the death penalty.

If we disagree with abortion – then bombing abortion clinics is the WRONG way to go about fixing it. If we disagree with the war – then disrupting the funerals of those who died in combat is the WRONG way to go about protesting it. If we don’t like the results of the election – then assassination is the WRONG way to go about remedying it. Those are extremes, I know, but the message is clear: if we do wrong – we can expect to be punished – even put to death.

Yes, we talked about rebelling if our government told us to do something against God’s commands – but right now I’m talking, as God has told us – that rebelling because we’re unhappy or disgruntled is going to result in punishment. And the punisher is God’s servant – so our punishment will actually be coming from God Himself!

Romans 13:5 says: “Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience.”

Essential 7: Submission to Government builds our conscience.

Obviously, we’re going to want to submit because we’re wanting to avoid punishment – but we’re also submitting because God promised that this submission builds our inner being.

Notice that the Scripture makes no distinction between good leaders and bad leaders. It makes no distinction between fair laws and unfair laws. It just says we’re to submit – and keep on submitting. By doing so – our conscience is clear – we’ve done what we’re told – we’ve submitted and not resisted and worked to “do what is right.” The Greek word for “conscience” means our knowledge of our self; our ability to bear witness through our actions of what’s going on internally with our moral thought process. When we submit – we prove out what we believe and know to be true, and therefore are true witnesses of Christ to the world!

Paul finishes these instructions about our responsibility to our society bay saying: “This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.” (Romans 13:6-7)

The Bible is clear on our instructions for living responsibility in our society. We’re to submit to those in authority over us, we’re not to resist or rebel, but instead, we’re to pray for our leaders and do good by doing what is right.

When you and I – when Christ-followers in America – decide to humble ourselves, pray and seek God’s face, and turn from our negative and spiteful and self-centered ways and choose to follow God’s instructions, God will heal our land. No amount of political posturing and maneuvering can get that done! Humble prayer and repentance and living right will allow God to make what is messed up perfect.

When Christ-followers learn this and do what is right, our leaders will praise us and speak well of us throughout the entire nation and world, and will entrust to us more and more of the moral and ethical steering of our country. They will commit to support us, and hand over authority to us as we earn it through our lives of example.

Now, that’s Christian influence!

Exposition on Romans by Robert Haldane, (c) 2001, Sovereign Grace Publishers, Lafayette, IN.

Romans: Encountering the Gospel's Power, by John Stott, (c) 1998, InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL