Be a Good Citizen and Vote
As I was reading Jeremiah this week in my devotional time, I was reminded that the Lord wants His people to be engaged with the world of unbelief and need around us. God called Jeremiah to be a prophet to the southern kingdom of Israel before and during the dark days of their Babylonian exile (70 years). While God’s people were deeply troubled by this exile, Jeremiah wrote a letter to the elders, priests, prophets, and all the people who were taken into exile by Nebuchadnezzar to Babylon. This letter contained how God wanted His people to live and here is part of what he wrote: “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, ‘Build houses and live in them; and plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there and do not decrease. Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its welfare you will have welfare.’ For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Do not let your prophets who are in your midst and your diviners deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams which they dream. For they prophesy falsely to you in My name; I have not sent them,’ declares the Lord” (Jer. 29:4–9).
Jesus told us to “render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s; and to God the things that are God’s” (Matt. 22:21; Mark 12:17). As believers, we are dual citizens. We are citizens of an earthly nation and we as believers are citizens of a heavenly kingdom, “the kingdom of His beloved Son” (Col. 1:13; Phil. 3:20). And with every citizenship comes privileges and responsibilities. As citizens of the heavenly kingdom, we are given several obligations as citizens of the United States:
Citizens will be submissive to governing authorities and the laws of the land (Rom. 13:1, 5; 1 Pet 2:13–14; Titus 3:1). Why? It is “for the Lord’s sake” (1 Pet. 2:13), the “Lord’s will” (1 Pet. 2:15), and it keeps you from opposing God’s ordinance and avoids exposing yourself to condemnation (Rom. 13:2). It is also the right thing to do before God “for conscience's sake” (Rom. 13:5), and it can “silence the ignorance of foolish men” (1 Pet. 2:15).
Citizens will pay their taxes to governing authorities. God calls “servants of God” (Rom. 13:6a, 7a), and Jesus modeled this for us (Matt. 17:24–25).
Citizens will give proper respect to governing authorities (Rom. 13:7b: “fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor”). We can disagree and still give respect. Jesus called Herod a “fox,” identifying his deceptiveness or destructiveness, and Peter reminds us to “honor the King” which at that time was evil Nero.
Citizens will pray for our governing authorities (1 Tim. 2:1–4; Prov. 21:1), prayer for God’s wisdom to be given to them as well as for their salvation.
Citizens will participate for the flourishing of our society. This is what God commanded His people to do during their exile in pagan Babylon (Jer. 29:7: “Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its welfare you will have welfare.”). Titus 3:1–2 calls us to “to be ready for every good deed, to malign no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing every consideration for all men.” And because we live in a constitutional republic (ruled by laws and a constitution), it is our privilege and responsibility to let our voice be heard (like John the Baptist when he confronted Herod; like Paul when he preached to Felix, Festus, Agrippa, and Caesar’s household; like Daniel when he shared his conviction with King Nebuchadnezzar; like Esther when she risked her life voicing her burden to King Xerxes regarding the planned genocide of the Jewish people; like Nehemiah who spoke up about the great rebuilding needs of Jerusalem to King Cyrus; like Moses who boldly proclaimed God’s message to a stubborn Pharaoh). We are given the privilege of choosing our leaders, so every believer should cast their vote for initiatives and candidates who will best promote our biblical values and the greatest good for our communities and country. Choosing to opt out of voting does not seek the welfare of our cities or country as Jeremiah 29:7 states. The Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University study found that approximately 104 million people under the "people of faith" umbrella are not expected to vote this election, including 41 million Christians and 32 million of whom regularly go to church. This is a big miss for God's people.
If you’d like to hear an excellent message on being a good citizen, I would recommend listening to Pastor Gary Hamrick of Cornerstone Chapel in Leesburg, Virginia, "Church Unite for the Soul of America," that was commended to me by several people in our church.
Pastor Jeff
“I believe the doctrine of election, because I am quite certain that if God had not chosen me I should never have chosen Him; and I am sure He chose me before I was born, or else He never would have chosen me afterwards.”