A few months ago I received this email from Franklin Graham stating:
“I will be going to the capitals of all 50 states to
proclaim the Gospel, rally prayer for our country, and encourage Christians to
vote for candidates with biblical values.”
I began to think, what would it look like if Christians voted for candidates
who espoused biblical values? What would that platform look like?
Deut. 10:18-19 - He defends the cause of the fatherless and
the widow, and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and
clothing. And you are to love those who are foreigners, for you yourselves were
foreigners in Egypt.
Who are the candidates who are advocating for care of
orphans or for providing greater funds and resources for foster care? Which
candidates are proposing more resources to take care of the elderly? And in
light of the recent rhetoric about immigration reform and the need to place
millions fleeing from war torn countries, which candidates propose providing
food and clothing to the immigrants among us? Especially remembering that
almost all of those currently living in the U.S. are descendants of foreigners?
Luke 4:18-19 - “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he
has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim
freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the
oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
Let’s look at these biblical values to see where our
candidates line up.
Which candidate’s agenda will be good news to the poor? Who
are the candidates who seriously consider prison reform? Which candidate will
make affordable health care a priority? Which candidate will tackle the issue
of debt forgiveness?
Galatians 3:28 – “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither
slave nor free, neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”
I recognize that this verse is talking about the equality of
Christians and not addressing society as a whole. But what if a candidate who
espoused biblical values applied this verse to their platform? Wouldn’t their
agenda be represented by a serious call at racial reconciliation? Wouldn’t
their vision include a call for trying to break down people’s value that is
based on their economic status? Wouldn’t there be a call for recognizing the
inequality of women in their work place?
James 2:1, 6, 15, 16 - “…believers in our glorious Lord
Jesus Christ must not show favoritism (between rich and poor)…you have
dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? …Suppose a
brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them,
“Go in peace; keep warm and well fed, “ but does nothing about their physical
needs, what good is it?”
If a candidate wants to uphold these biblical values, they
will take special care of the poor, providing food and clothing while not
showing favoritism to the rich.
As I scan just these few verses, I can come up with a few
biblical values that I can evaluate any potential candidate. The “biblical
values” candidate will stand for:
-Taking
care of the elderly, orphan, and immigrant
-Taking
care of the poor, prisoner, the sick and those bound by debt (and in light of the Bible’s overarching desire to see
the vulnerable cared for, this should speak to care for the unborn as well.
-Working
for racial reconciliation and gender equality
-Not basing
their work on who can do the most for them (showing favoritism to those who may be able to fund their
campaigns).
I recently looked at one “Biblical Voters’ Guide”. In spite
of the words over and over again in Scripture of taking care of the poor, they
did not think that that was something that should be undertaken by a
government. “In short, for both biblical and statistical reasons, addressing
poverty through the government should not be an election issue for Biblical
voters. They should instead remain focused on keeping first things first – on
keeping the four non-negotiables at the top of the list:
1.
Appointing originalist judges (preservers of the
Constitution)
2.
Protecting unborn life
3.
Opposing the ennoblement of homosexuality
4.
Publicly acknowledging God and honoring Him in
policy
http://www.wallbuilders.com/downloads/BibleVoters_lowres.pdf
I agree with number two above. I do find if interesting for
some pro-choice candidates talk about standing with the vulnerable but not
having more nuanced views on abortion. But I don’t know how 1, 3 and 4 can be
seen as biblical values in a pluralistic society. Especially seeing that no writer of any of the books of the Bible would have any idea what an "originalist judge" was.
Trying to find a candidate that truly espouses biblical
values? Good luck. Instead of placing your hope in any politician or party
platform, get involved with a church that is doing the things that God truly
values.
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