I had thought about beginning this post with an apology for being so political, but the issues at stake in the upcoming election are not just political. They’re Biblical, and I will never apologize for advocating for and defending Biblical principles. At their roots, many of the major problems facing our country are spiritual, moral, and ethical, and we have a responsibility to address them. Let me be clear about one thing. I believe prayer, not politics, is our greatest weapon, but though prayer will always be our primary response, it doesn’t eliminate our responsibilities in the physical realm. Throughout history, God’s people have been threatened by enemies. Sometimes God just sovereignly intervened and gave them victories they didn’t have to fight for. But in the vast majority of cases, His people had to pick up a weapon and engage in the battle. And in our day, at least one of the weapons is a valid, electoral ballot.
Hijacking the Dream ~
The state of our nation today is a call to action that couldn’t be stronger. The attacks againstBiblical principles that have been bedrock of our Republic since its beginning have been going on for decades, but have never been this open or intense. The “American Dream” has been hijacked and shackled by a spiritually vacuous and morally corrupt collection of elites who can’t figure out what gender they are,
who classify the killing of unborn babies as “healthcare,” and refer to portions of the Word of God as “hate speech”. When we cast our ballot next Tuesday, we’ll be doing more than simply choosing a candidate. We’ll be making a public statement about the values we claim to believe.
God’s people have never been strangers to challenging times, and in almost every case, the hard times were harbingers of changes that would be coming. In those situations, God also included an opportunity to directly affect the direction those changes would take. Among the lessons we learn is that in order for us to have a positive effect on the nature of the changes that are coming, clear and sober decisions are required. Moses demonstrated that when he had led God’s people to the brink of entering the land God had promised them. He declared before them:
I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live. (Deut. 30:19 NKJV)
Deceived and Seduced ~
Once in the land, they began to feel more secure, and many of God’s people began to listen to the deceitful claims of the false gods and were seduced by the debauchery involved in worshiping them. Joshua eventually issued an ultimatum. There was no way the claims of the idols and the contrasting declarations of the Word of God could both be true, so one or the other had to be abandoned. Joshua’s words were brief and simple. It was to be a yes or no, in or out choice. He said:
Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve… (Joshua 24:15 NKJV)
Centuries after that, Elijah called out to God’s morally corrupt, spiritually naive, vacillating people once again and challenged them to make a decision. And again, the choice wasn’t complicated:
How long will you falter between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him. (1 Kings 18:21 NKJV)
Those instances in Biblical history have a few things in common with the situation facing us as we contemplate the choices we will make on Tuesday:
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- The values advocated by the opposing sides were irrevocably incompatible.
- The mandate to choose was individual, but the collective impact would affect the welfare of their entire nation.
- The options were clear and understandable. No complex terms were employed, and no ambiguous, nuanced language was involved.
- The call to decide was immediate. Circumstances were of such urgency that procrastination was not an option.
- There was no middle ground, no “neutral” place to stand. Refusal to take a positive stand for God constituted yielding to the other side.
Delegated Responsibilities ~
One of the fears plaguing many Christians these days is the threat of being called an “extremist”. The dread of being thrown into that category leads some to escape into the spiritual sounding proclamation that “God is in control.” It looks like safe territory and can be especially tempting when issues arise that 
are deemed to be “controversial”. Resorting to that argument may seem like a convenient way out, but the reasoning doesn’t hold up when compared to the Scriptural record. The same God some blithely declare to be “in control” today was also “in control” when Moses, Joshua, and Elijah were around. Yet in those instances, God’s people were called upon to declare their allegiance to Him clearly and publicly. The objective was to ensure that the watching world would not just know where they stood, but also what the God they served was really like. God’s plan has always been to reveal Himself to a lost and dying world through His people so that they might be saved. That has not changed. Timothy expressed God’s desire in that regard with indisputable clarity:
For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. (1 Timothy 2:3–4 NKJV)
God’s people are entrusted with demonstrating and defending truth. If we approve and embrace the toxic ideas and evil practices of the pagan cultures around them, we impugn His character and send a message to the world that His Word is unreliable. A God who declares Himself to be just and holy, but allows sin without accountability, is no better than the corrupt prosecutors who refuse to apply consequences to criminals. We are called to live our lives and make our choices in a way that reveals God for who He really is.
Things Not Stated on a Ballot ~
When the polls open on Tuesday, God’s name won’t be on any of the ballots, but the principles and values He affirms will be on every one of them.
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- Inflation doesn’t sound spiritual, but honest and transparent handling of our resources is.
- We won’t see a checkbox with a quote from Deuteronomy, but the physical, psychological, and sexual abuse perpetrated on our children under the guise of education will be up for a vote.
- Purposely excluding input from parents while racist perspectives, pornographic material, anti-Christian and anti-family ideas being forced on them in the name of equity and inclusion is more than just a political issue. It is deeply and profoundly spiritual.
We could add to that such things as the unmerciful attacks that have become almost commonplace on defenseless, innocent people. The unprosecuted career criminals, illegal aliens, and mentally ill people who are roaming our streets make safety a major concern even in smaller cities and neighborhoods. We know that if we take action to defend our homes and families, we might be the ones going to jail.
I could go on, but if you haven’t been in a coma for the past two years, you’ve already seen what the proliferation of godless policies have done to our beloved country. The issues in this election aren’t complicated, and the choices couldn’t be clearer. We’re confronted with profoundly important issues where there is no middle ground. On at least one occasion, Jesus presented a decision in those same terms. He said this to those questioning His authority:
He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad. (Matthew 12:30 NKJV)
The decision to stand with Jesus isn’t a political one, but neither do we have the latitude to lay it aside when we go to the polls. If you haven’t already voted, please vote on Tuesday. Beyond that, please pray with us that the Church of Jesus Christ will be blessed with unity like we haven’t seen in our lifetime. May the voice of truth, righteousness, justice, and faith in God reverberate across the land in a way that sends panic attacks through the ranks of evil-doers everywhere.
And now may God equip each of us with eyes that see deeper than superficial party politics and grant us hearts that refuse to be intimidated.
“TWEETABLES” ~ Click to tweet and share from the pull quotes below. Each one links directly back to this article through Twitter . . .
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- “When we cast our ballot on Tuesday, we’ll be doing more than simply choosing a candidate. We’ll be making a public statement about the values we claim to believe.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)
- “Many of God’s people were seduced by the debauchery involved in worshiping false gods. Joshua’s ultimatum … There was no way the claims of the idols & the contrasting declarations of God’s Word could both be true. One must be abandoned.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)
- “The same God some blithely declare to be “in control” today was also “in control” when Moses, Joshua, and Elijah were around. Yet in those instances, God’s people were called upon to declare their allegiance to Him clearly and publicly.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)
- “God’s people are entrusted with demonstrating and defending truth. If we approve and embrace the toxic ideas and evil practices of the pagan cultures around them, we impugn His character and send a message to the world that His Word is unreliable.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)
- “A God who declares Himself to be just & holy, but allows sin without accountability is no better than corrupt prosecutors who refuse to apply consequences to criminals. We are called to live in a way that reveals God for who He really is.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)
Check out Ron’s book, “Right Side Up Thinking in an Upside Down World ~ Looking at the World through the Lens of Biblical Truth”
The Kindle e-version is just $1.99. No Kindle device is needed. E-book readers are included on most computers, tablets, and smartphones. If you don’t have one, the free Kindle app can be easily downloaded directly from the Amazon site on almost any device.
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© 2022 Gallagher’s Pen, Ronald L. Gallagher, Ed.S. All rights reserved
Gallagher's Pen ~ 
As Christians, it is our moral imperative to stand up for our God, loudly and clearly, refusing to back down in the light of opposing sentiment. I have already voted, Ron. And although God’s name isn’t on the ballot, His principles are. May we cast our votes prayerfully in this election.
Blessings, Ron!
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So glad to hear from you, Martha–and we are once again on the same page re the blatant and relentless attacks against everything God ever ordained, from human life itself to the relationships He sanctified. If we don’t see a major pushback this time, I cannot comprehend what it would take to initiate one. Truth is, if we don’t see it now, we may not get another chance, and that isn’t fear mongering; it’s pointing out the obvious direction the godless powers running things are taking us. But whatever happens, it’s encouraging to realize that we’re not alone spiritually or otherwise–happy to be in the trenches with you, my friend.
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Amen sir. I don’t think I could add a single word to this piece that could make it any clearer clear than what you have so eloquently stated. I especially appreciated that you rose above the din of “talking heads” telling us how terrible life will be if their opponent is elected. Instead, you chose to describe the moral, ethical, and spiritual abyss many self-proclaimed Christians are about to hurl themselves into.
I was profoundly encouraged by your statement, “I believe prayer, not politics, is our greatest weapon, but though prayer will always be our primary response, it doesn’t eliminate our responsibilities in the physical realm.” Each one of us, as sojourners through this world, have a responsibility to demonstrate our commitment to our faith by voting for those candidates that align with the moral, ethical, and godly values we are supposed to base our lives upon. Each time we fail to do that, we weaken our testimony for the Lord. We cannot continue to be “Christian” and then vote for candidates who support freedom-reducing, life-ending, morally debauched views. Doing so is effectively saying that we do not believe God has control over this world, and anyone who believes He does not is deceived and is mocking our Creator God.
I am most grateful that you did not devolve into a Red vs. Blue, Republican vs. Democrat, Baptist vs. Roman Catholic battle. This is, as you so aptly said, a spiritual, moral, and ethical battle. It is our straying from these founding principles of our nation that has led to the rampant increase in crime, the on-demand abortions, and the de-evolution of society. If you stand back and look, it becomes clear that our culture is becoming more like the animal kingdom God gave us dominion over. If we continue down this path, we will become just another species, subject to extinction as we kill one another in a battle of “only the strongest survive.” All of these dividing lines (politics, race, denominationalism, etc.) are manmade constructs and are therefore flawed.
Sadly, as I look around at some of the political races, I find very little evidence of a true biblical worldview held by candidates of either party. In the cases where we find this to be the case, we need to identify and promote candidates that do represent our Christian values and beliefs. It has taken us many decades to devolve to this point, and it will take longer than one election cycle to return our once great nation to its God-ordained stature and place in the world. Yet, I am encouraged by your willingness to speak out and proclaim that God’s law is always just and right, but it must be administered by a just and right government. Remember that even the longest race has to start with the first step. Let that “first step” be how we cast our votes that best aligns with a true biblical worldview, then stand ready to support those values we claim allegiance to in every aspect of our lives.
Well said author!
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Thank you, J.D. Your reaction is gracious as always and another welcome dose of encouragement, and your stand about the election is not surprising. I run into people up here in middle Tennessee who seem to project the notion that God is a Republican. They appear to think that if the “right” party gains a majority again, we’ll have some kind of Christian utopia. Apparently, it’s easy to forget that we’ve had majorities before, and look where we are now. The track record of God’s people throughout history is that when they get control of the reigns of power, they get complacent and spiritually lazy. They soon begin to absorb the world’s deceptive and toxic philosophies and embrace the sins that go along with them. I feel greatly convicted that I’ve watched that happen in our generation. We allowed the Church to drift so far from our mission that we bear little resemblance to what God ordained us to be. Popularity, personality, architecture, creature comforts, and the quality of our “worship” arrangements crept up on our priority lists till they eclipsed our allegiance to the Word of God. As long as we could keep enough pews filled to meet our budgets and fund our programs, we were patting ourselves on our collective backs and thinking we were getting the job done. Meanwhile, the wolf pack from hell threw some fleece on their backs and invaded every level of every significant bureaucratic power structure we had, both in our churches and elsewhere. Now the enemy has discarded his disguises and attacked us both internally and externally.
I’m committed to the notion that all of us have the responsibility to vote, but like everything else we do, those decisions must reflect a deeper commitment to the clearly revealed values and principles of the Word of God. I’m convinced that the devil will pin on whatever political button happens to suit his purpose at any given time. I do hope that the baby killers, anarchists, and chaos mongers get voted out on Tuesday, but I’m not so naive as to think we can declare that our spiritual battles have all been won by some kind of political red wave. My great hope and my constant prayer for is that we’ll see a fresh demand for truth and righteousness and that there will be a spark created in thousands of churches that will set off a revival of faith in Jesus Christ that sweeps across the land like a prairie fire. But like I’ve said so often, no matter who wins, our job description doesn’t change.
I wish you could feel the encouragement that you always bring to Diane and me. Being in the trenches with a proven spiritual warrior is both comforting and inspirational. May God pour out His blessing and provide health and sustaining strength to you, Mrs. Diane, John, and all the residents of the Cross-Dubya.
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Nothing more to say, except “Amen” my friend. Love this piece and the convicted and compassionate man who penned it.
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YES!!
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Thank you for the brief, but encouraging response. It’s great to know you’re out there.
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