:Reasonable Force

Pastor Mark Roberts weighed in prior to the outcome of the election with a thoughtful consideration of how Christians should respond to the election, regardless of whether the candidate we voted for won. I note, as he does, that he released this before the results were known because it could easily be charged that one’s approach to this subject might vary depending on one’s satisfaction with the outcome.

In a nice dovetail with what I posted (below) in the immediate aftermath of Kerry’s concession and Bush’s acceptance, Pastor Mark says this:

In [re-emphasizing our mission spread the Gospel] I’m not minimizing the importance of secular government and politics. Far from it. But I am aware that such matters, as significant as they may be on one level, can easily distract us from our primary calling as Christians. Given how much attention has been focused upon the presidential election in the last year – for better or for worse – it may be time for each of us to refocus our sights on what matters most in life. And it may also be an opportune time for our churches to do the same.

I agree wholeheartedly with this. I know for a fact that I have been too consumed by this election and far too anxious about the outcome. My action items for the next four years are based on a belief that we have an opportunity that may not soon come again. They are based on a view of civil responsibility within a representative form of government. They can’t, however, take precedence over the commission that Christ issued to His apostles and, by extension, us.

As the defeated liberals issue duplicitous calls for President Bush to unite a bitterly divided nation (more on that later), Pastor Mark calls for Christians of differing political views to unite under these five responses to the conclusion of the election:

1. Receiving the Call of Jesus to Peacemaking
2. Reaffirming Our Dual Citizenship
3. Refocusing Upon Our Fundamental Mission
4. Renewing Our Trust in the Sovereignty of God
5. Recommitting Ourselves to Praying for the President

He elaborates on each of these and I recommend you read what he has to say. Again, note that he wrote and released this before we knew who won. Obviously, I’m posting it with the knowledge that my candidate was the winner. Hopefully, that won’t call my sincerity into doubt when I say that while I strongly doubt that the country as a whole can be united on the issues about which we hold such diametrically opposed views, we in the Church are bound by something eternal that transcends our beliefs on the issues of the day; the blood of Jesus Christ makes us brothers and sisters for eternity.

To any such that read this who supported John Kerry, while I don’t understand your reasons for doing so, I am sorry that my victory had to be your loss, and that what was a cause for jubilation to me was, to you, distressful. I pray that my estimation of President Bush’s merits will not prove unfounded even as I pray that your fears for the harm he might do will go unrealized. May God give us all greater wisdom when we consider the many issues that confront us in this convulsive age.

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