How Should a Christian Vote in 2008?

Someone called me this morning and asked the question I often hear just before election seasons begin, “How should a Christian vote?”

I have answered this question in a booklet I wrote several years ago entitled “How Shall I Vote? – choosing godly leaders in an ungodly world.” But let me here summarize some of the main points, particularly as we look forward to the November 2008 elections.

These are my personal views, and not necessarily the views of any organizations I have been associated with now or in the past.

We begin with the Bible. Throughout the Scriptures we are instructed to choose leaders who

“fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain.” (Exodus 18:21)

So when we look at the candidates we want to compare their positions, voting records, and governing philosophy with the standards of the Bible. The candidate whose positions on issues most closely lines up with God’s standard of righteousness, as revealed in Scripture, should get the Christian vote.

Before we even investigate a candidate’s general philosophy of governance, we must look at two major issues facing us in 2008 that, by themselves, in my opinion, settle the issue.

First is the issue of baby killing -abortion. Proverbs 24:11 is a clear call to rescue those who are perishing, who are being led away to slaughter, with the warning that we dare not turn a blind eye by saying we didn’t know. This was the sin of the Church during the Jewish holocaust, and it will be the sin of the current-day church if we pretend it’s not happening in America to 3,000 babies each day.

A Christian must not vote for a candidate who would continue to promote baby-killing, even if it is in the name of “choice,” nor should a Christian become an accomplice to murder by voting for anyone who would promote such an agenda.

This one issue outweighs all others. It is the only issue that matters to a million babies each year. Without the right to life, there can be no other rights.

A Christian cannot vote for a candidate who supports abortion –no matter where he stands on other issues- or he will surely have the blood of these babies on his own hands.

Though Barak Obama claims that he is driven by the Scripture,

“Whatever you did not do for the least of these you did not do for me.” (Matthew 25:45),

it’s obvious he does not count a baby in the womb –or out of the womb- among “the least” when a woman’s choice is involved.

Obama’s voting record is radically pro-abortion. He even voted against a bill that would protect the life of a baby if it was accidentally born alive, claiming that the mother’s intent for an abortion should be paramount.

On this issue alone, a true Christian cannot vote for a candidate whose views are so radically pro-murder. This would be no different than cheering on King Herod while he gave the order to kill every child under two years old in his quest to murder the Christ child for his own personal reasons.

The Roman Catholic Church, a champion for the unborn in our country, has categorically denounced Obama and his Vice-Presidential candidate, Joe Biden because of his pro-murder voting record though he claims to be a Roman Catholic.

Obama and Biden would clearly continue this American holocaust, and expand it, while Senator McCain has always demonstrated a clear pro-life position in all his years in Washington.

Furthermore, McCain has declared that he would select Supreme Court Justices in the mold of Scalia, Moore and Thomas, strict constructionists, to replace more liberal retiring justices allowing the possibility of overturning the horrendous Roe v. Wade decision.

This issue, alone, disqualifies Obama and Biden from gaining the vote of the Christian.

The second major issue is the definition of marriage.

“Marriage should be honored by all and the marriage bed kept pure.” (Hebrews 13:4).

God is the one who defined marriage, “male and female, he created them.” (Genesis 1:27)

Any attempt to redefine what God has called holy could only bring detrimental consequences to a nation. Billy Graham reminded us that if God allowed us to accept homosexuality as normal, he would have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah. Founding father, James Wilson, taught us that civil law must be consistent with divine law.

Therefore, any candidate who will not protect the definition and the sanctity of marriage should not get the Christian vote.

Though both presidential candidates have publicly stated that they believe marriage to be the union of a man and a woman, only John McCain has publicly supported efforts to protect that definition through constitutional amendments in California, Arizona and in other states where the issue is in question.

Barak Obama, on the other hand, has publicly denounced efforts to protect the definition of marriage calling such efforts, “divisive and discriminatory.”[1]

The definition of marriage will be fundamental to the peace and order of our society for generations to come. It is imperative that we maintain this godly order or be prepared to suffer consequences yet unimagined.

In his farewell address, the Father of our country, George Washington reminded us that

“The propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained”

Therefore, the Christian looking at these two major issues must disqualify Obama and Biden from receiving his or her vote.

General Philosophies of Governance

Though my father has long ago left this planet, I can still hear his voice as I was growing up saying, “The Republicans are for the rich; the Democrats are for the poor.” This same sentiment is still operative in the thinking of so many well-meaning supporters of the Democratic platform. But the truth is that both parties have the interests of the poor in mind. They just have different ideas about how to take care of the poor.

The Democrat idea is that it is the government’s responsibility to provide for the poor, while the Republican philosophy holds that liberty requires the citizenry to care for the poor with the least government intrusion as possible.

What does the Bible teach? Jesus commanded us to take care of the poor directly. He never encouraged us to pay higher tribute to Caesar so that Caesar would care for the poor. The same reason why no one would dare think of entrusting Caesar to care for the poor should warn us today about paying higher taxes to government and expecting the government to care for the poor.

Nationalized healthcare, guaranteed college tuition, and all the other promises made by the Democratic platform necessitate government control. What the government gives it must control. The more it gives the more control it must have, thus the loss of liberty.

A vote for the Democratic Party is a vote for Socialism and government control –a loss of liberty.

The Republican Party philosophy of governance places more responsibility on individuals, and voluntary associations and institutions established for the purpose of caring for the less advantaged. It adheres to the Jeffersonian idea that the government that governs least, governs best. The danger here is that the citizenry must freely choose to care for its own. Liberty necessarily implies the freedom to fail as well as the freedom to succeed.

We can go on and on illustrating the contrasts in the two distinct governing philosophies. For a further study I would suggest the booklet “How Shall I Vote?” However, I believe it sufficiently sums up the difference to say that the Democrats are for Socialism, while the Republicans are for Liberty.

IN CLOSING
In making these statements, I am exercising my own First Amendment Right to Freedom of speech much as the preachers during our founding period spoke out against the unbiblical policies of the British government, and I encourage preachers around the country to do the same.

Teaching our people how to vote is part of teaching the full Gospel. We must teach our people how to “choose leaders who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain.” (Exodus 18:21)

[1] Letter to a San Francisco Homosexual Activist Group