Dear Springs of Grace Church Family,
Just wanted to write a few words [approximately 1200 🙂 ] about the election and how it relates to the church God has made us a part of. I would appreciate you reading it but would ask that if you read it, you read it as a church family member or someone who loves this church family and that you read the whole thing. Thank you in advance.
1. The United States of America is not the kingdom of God. I’m thankful for the nation I have grown up in and am a part of, but I don’t put my hope in this nation. As Christians, we are citizens of another kingdom (aliens and strangers here) and as we were reminded Sunday night, we are awaiting a future glory that is our preeminent hope.
2. As Christians, we are called to pursue the “shalom” – the good welfare of our city and as an extension, our country. So, while we are citizens of another country, we are called to live peaceably, honorably and as bearers of the image of God to the world around us nationally and globally. That means we want the true good for those around us, as we love our neighbors as we love ourselves.
3. In regards to the presidential election, I believe that sincere Christians could, in good conscience, make one of several decisions.
· Out of love for the Lord and a love for people, Christians could have come to believe that the most loving thing to do for those around us was to vote for Hillary Clinton, so that Donald Trump was not elected. They could believe that his character flaws and policies and statements were such that it would be so harmful that to keep him from becoming president, a vote for anyone else was justified. There could be other reasons as well.

· Out of love for the Lord and a love for people, Christians could have come to believe that the most loving thing to do for those around us was to vote for Donald Trump, so that Hillary Clinton was not elected. They could believe that her character flaws and policies and statements were such that it would be so harmful that to keep him from becoming president, a vote for anyone else was justified. There could be other reasons as well.

· Out of love for the Lord and a love for people, Christians could have come to believe that the most loving thing and God-honoring thing to do for those around us was to abstain from voting for either candidate (either writing in a vote, voting for a third-party candidate or abstaining). In good conscience, some Christians might believe it would be wrong to support either of the main two presidential candidates because of their character, beliefs and policies. There could be other reasons as well.

Even though, many have tried, I don’t believe you can make a biblical case that any of these positions are the ONLY way a Christian who loves God could possibly decide. Certainly, there are many people who feel strongly about their decision but it is dangerous to say, “This is God’s way” where the Bible doesn’t specifically speak. This seems to be a place where we should defer to one another in Christian liberty and be very careful not to impose our position on someone else.
4. We believe that God is sovereignly in control and that He raises up one and puts down another for His wise and good purposes. Often, those good purposes appear temporally bad. They may look like judgment and really be for the good of His people. They may look like blessing and actually be the disciplining of His people. His ways are not our ways but He is wise, right and good in all He does and He does all things for His glory and the good of those who love Him. So, as Jesus told the ruler whose daughter was dead (and us last Sunday), “Don’t fear. Trust Me.”
5. Christians are called to love one another. Biblical love covers a multitude of sins. Love believes and hopes the best in one another. Love strives to empathize with my neighbor and think about how I would want to be loved if I was in his/her place. Love in Jesus’ kingdom (as we learned in Matthew 7) means that we reject unbiblical judging of one another. We must be careful not to assign motives to decisions that we don’t know. We might be right but we don’t know and we should not judge. As Christians, we are to be known by our love for one another.
6. There are many churches that will not have much struggle with the election because they are all in one camp. They will all be mad about the election or they will all be fine with the election. They have a unity but it is a natural one. Many churches are made up of people who are largely the same race, same cultural background, same political ideology, same socio-economic class, etc. Some churches, like Springs of Grace, are largely unified by supernatural relationships. We are one body, not because we all think alike but because we all have received amazing mercy from God and have been brought into God’s family by grace. We are a body of people from different countries, different races, different backgrounds, different economic situations, people who are currently homeless, people with disabilities, people who have been accepted by society and people who have been rejected by society, people from strong stable families and people from dysfunctional families – and ALL brought together by the love of Jesus on the cross that made a way for us to be brought by grace into His forever family…and for now getting to live out that picture to the world around us…together.
Those differences make elections like this one particularly hard for us. Would you join me in praying and working to allow our love for one another to hold us together and to help us keep growing into the likeness of Jesus? Would you join me in trying to take our love to a higher level in these days? Would you join me in helping one another not to be afraid but to trust Jesus in these days? Would you join me in praying for the good of our nation and the world around us and for the advancement of Jesus’ kingdom? Would you join me in continuing to pray for laborers to join us in this body as we walk together in supernatural union with one another because of Christ and as we strive to impact our city for the glory of God?
I am very thankful to be one of your pastors and I love you very much.

Joe