I have no idea.

As I write this, I have no idea as to who the next president of the United States will be. I have no idea of who the winner of the Senate seat of my state is. I have no idea of the outcome of the ballot issues of my state and county. I just have no idea.

We may not have the answers to these questions for some time yet. It may be that as you read this, you have the answers to all the questions because it is Wednesday or Thursday. You may feel pain, or you may feel joy. Frustration or justification. Fear or confidence. 

However, I do know that the evil and hateful political ads we have been treated to are over by the closing of polls tonight. The yard signs and billboards will soon disappear. Thanksgiving is coming and Christmas is on the way. Life is just about to go on.

We all feel we are right and the 'opposition' is wrong. We have been told that there has never been an election as critical as this one. And we are told that the nation has never been this divided. However, I have lived through thirteen presidents (Really? That doesn't seem possible, even to me!) and I have to admit I have been surprised at times. I have heard over and before every presidential election that there has never been a more important election. And the nation has been more divided. After all, we did have a civil war.

So, for a bit, let's put the hyperbole aside and look at something else.

How would Jesus vote?

If you support former president Trump, you are a conservative and you would say conservative values are all about Jesus, so Jesus would wear a MAGA hat. If you support vice president Harris, you are a liberal and you would say that liberalism is all about love and that Jesus was all about love and so Jesus would vote Harris. But what does the Bible say?

I know what some of you are thinking. "Here he goes again, always using the Bible to connect the dots." Good! That is the way I want to be remembered! That is good! So again, what does the Bible say?

Romans 13:1-7, 1 Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2 Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. 4 For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. 5 Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience. 6 This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. 7 Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.

Wow! This creates all sorts of questions! What do you do if the government is unjust? What if the government bans Christianity? What if..... Well, those questions certainly deserve study. But let's look at the time this was written. Rome was unjust. Rome did ban both Judaism and Christianity for a time. And yet Paul tells these people to follow the laws and the rulers. What goes on here?!!?

IF Christians did their job, people would be turning to the Lord and accepting Christ and the governments would change. It is not government's job to cater to Christian concepts, it is the job of Christians to bring all to Jesus. When persecution against Christians was at its highest, the church in Jerusalem and Rome and all the others began to grow and grow. When the Catholic church persecuted true believers, the underground church blossomed. When communism tightened down on Christianity in China and the Soviet Union and places like Cuba, the underground church thrived. Christianity gets better and better when the persecution gets tougher and tougher. 

How would Jesus vote? 

Clearly, He has. Verse one in the above passage tells us that God gives the authority. Not man. God. God, and therefore Jesus, desires us to be a fruitful people, to share the Gospel and to be a light to the world. Since human nature has shown us that when times are good, we get weak, God has allowed the hard times to come so that we would be stronger. The parade of presidents and prime ministers and kings and all the rest have served the purpose of the Lord.

So, if it is all in His hands, why vote at all? Well, He allowed this democratic republic to be created. He has blessed us to live here in the safety of this democratic republic. He gave us the way to be involved. We do the citizen thing.

But our ultimate citizenship lies elsewhere. We have a responsibility far greater to the Kingdom of the Lord's than our little earthly home and we have been given a job.....bring the light to the lost.

I took a call this evening from a dear friend, a person who has walk along my rough roads with me as I have walked along her rough roads. She asked who I thought would win. My answer was, I have no idea. But just tell me your gut reaction! I have no idea. And I don't. But I do know that Christians need to wake up and start acting the way they talk. Change will only come through Jesus and the world will only hear of Jesus if we tell them.

The Lord is in total control.