Issues That Matter to God

When the righteous increase, the people rejoice, but when a wicked man rules, people groan.
—Proverbs 29:2

Before you go into the voting booth to select your candidates in the next election, I suggest three questions you ought to ask yourself about anyone for whom you vote.

Question #1: Is the candidate a Christian? Proverbs 29: 2 says, “When the righteous increase, the people rejoice, but when a wicked man rules, people groan.” A Christian has been indwelled by the Spirit of God. A Christian is uniquely led by God. A Christian is favored by God. Why wouldn’t we want a Christian instead of a non-Christian as our leader in any office?

Question #2: Does the candidate embrace biblical values? For example, what do they say about abortion? When asked when life begins, do they waffle and say, “Oh, that’s a theological question.” Or do they say, “Life begins at conception”? Or what about the sanctity of marriage? Do they say marriage is whatever you define it to be? Or do they say marriage is a unique union of a man and woman for life? Now some of you are thinking, “Why did you pick those issues? What about other issues like global warming or tax policy? Doesn’t God care about those things?” Yes, He cares about those things. But these issues make God’s top ten list called the Ten Commandments. God addressed abortion when he said, “You shall not murder.” He addressed the sanctity of marriage when he said, “You shall not commit adultery.” These are issues that matter to God.

Question #3: Does the candidate’s private faith influence his public policy? Anytime a so-called Christian says, “Well, I have a private personal belief, but I don’t allow it to influence my public policy,” that person is either a dishonest politician or a superficial Christian. Because the Bible teaches that our faith ought to impact every part of our life.

In the Old Testament, whenever a righteous king ruled, God blessed the nation. Whenever an evil king ruled, God judged the nation. The king set the spiritual and moral direction of the country. Today, we no longer have kings, but we do have leaders who determine the spiritual and moral direction of our country through the policies they enact and through the justices they appoint to the Supreme Court. Our leaders determine the direction of our country. And God has given us the right and responsibility for selecting our leaders. When you go into that voting booth, you will vote not just for a candidate but for the spiritual and moral direction of this country. You are voting for righteousness or unrighteousness.

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Today’s devotion is excerpted from “America Is a Christian Nation” by Dr. Robert Jeffress, 2008.

Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.