God's Got This

Hard to believe this month we will see democracy at its finest moment as “We the People” take to the voting booth to cast our votes for the next President of the United States of America. To say this is a tumultuous time in our nation would be an understatement. But you know, every four years is "the biggest election we’ve ever experienced". The path of our great nation continues or resets every four years. Some of those years have been our greatest moments and some would be considered only a small flicker of light. I remember Ronald Reagan as a young boy. I remember watching him, even though I really didn’t understand what all this political stuff meant at the time. He commanded attention and he was a great leader. I remember in 1986 when he spoke on the Challenger Shuttle explosion. He was my president then and at age nine, I knew it.

My parents played an informative role in my political views. They never missed a beat when it came to elections and they made sure I knew how and why they voted. They also taught me the meaning of Romans 13:1-7. That passage weighs heavy on my heart the closer we come to approaching November 8^th and the change of power that will occur in January. For me to say that we have two virtuous people of character and high moral standing running for office would be…well…overstating the truth like a bass fisherman who caught a minnow but says he landed a 15 pound monster. I’ve heard many times over through the process, “This year, it is the lesser of two evils.” But that is not a great Biblical worldview approach to what we face. Evil is evil and it does not come in degrees or stages. What we have this year are two fallen people who profess one thing and do something completely different. Sound any different than people we’ve met in the Scriptures? Moses was a murderer, David an adulterer, Solomon loved too many women…yet God used each one of them.

Ultimately, this is how Paul weighs government authority in Romans 13:1-7. (Read it!) 

·      Everyone is to submit to the governing authority.  It is a command that Paul gives the church. To submit to the authority of the government is to submit to God.

·      There is NO authority except from God, and those who exist have been instituted by God. God is sovereign and His rule is sovereign in the affairs of this world.

·      To help illustrate Romans 13, Daniel concludes from King Nebuchadnezzer’s dream that God is in control, setting up and taking down kings to accomplish His perfect will. Daniel 2:27-44 &: Daniel 4:17-27

·      Paul wants you to understand that “The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD; He directs it like a watercourse wherever He pleases.” Proverbs 21:1. So the tyrant Roman Emperors (who were NOT Christian) like Caligula, Claudius, and Nero, had ascended to power with God’s permission, actually by His direction. According to Romans 13, they were even “instituted by God.” The three emperors mentioned above were the emperors most likely alive while Paul is writing Romans. Nero was notorious for burning Christians in his courtyard for light at night. Yet Paul can write Romans 13, and inform us to submit to the governing authority…interesting isn’t it?

So, however the election turns out, on November 9^th we, The Church, will carry on because Jesus will be on His throne, and all these issues we face today will one day be subject to Him and placed under His feet. So be encouraged, and do not let your soul be downcast.

But is there ever a time for rebellion? We do have precedent in Scripture that we can resist if the government ever decides to force us to act contrary to God’s will. In Acts 5:29 Peter stands and says, “We must obey God rather than men.” Peter was not defending marriage or the unborn or lower taxes or gun laws or free trade. Peter just wanted to share the gospel.

On moral issues and in life, we win when we share the gospel. The key to changing our nation is not a Christian in the White House, though that certainly would help. But what will change our nation is a consistent witness of the gospel with proclamation and life-style witness. What we say and what we do must match up and we do this with the power of the Holy Spirit as we surrender ourselves to God’s will.

So pray before you go and vote on November 8. But also pray after you vote! Pray and ask the Lord to stir and awaken the Church in the United States of America. Pray and ask that God will return to our Oval Office the characteristics of a Christ follower…but remember…man will always disappoint us, but for those who call on Jesus as Lord, we will not be disappointed.

I pray this has caused you to think a bit, and I hope you have prayed about your decision. I know I have agonized over this entire election cycle. But God’s got this…no matter what…God’s got this.

Dr Chris Irving

Senior Pastor

First Baptist Church of Gonzales