I am not trying to hedge my bets or play both ends against the middle. To the contrary, I have made my own political preferences clear and I will vote accordingly on November 3. But regardless of who wins and who loses, my message and emphasis will remain the same.
As I tweeted on Friday, “Whoever wins the elections on November 3, my message will remain the same: the times are extremely urgent; the church must give herself to the Great Commission; national awakening is our only hope; I do not put my trust in the government; Jesus is still Lord!”
It’s true that I often write and speak about political and cultural issues. That comes with my calling as a talk-radio host and op-ed writer. But that calling is subservient to my higher calling as a preacher of the gospel, which itself is subservient to my highest calling, namely, being a disciple of Jesus.
It is there, as a disciple, as a worshiper of the one true God, that I get my grounding. And it is there, on my knees before the Almighty Lord, that I get my perspective.
As the prophet Isaiah declared, “Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are regarded as dust on the scales; He weighs the islands as though they were fine dust. Lebanon is not sufficient for altar fires, nor its animals enough for burnt offerings. Before Him all the nations are as nothing; they are regarded by Him as worthless and less than nothing” (Isaiah 40:15-17).
That is the greatness of our God, and that is what the world looks like from His perspective. As expressed by the pagan king Nebuchadnezzar after himself being deeply humbled, “His dominion is an eternal dominion; His kingdom endures from generation to generation. All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back His hand or say to Him: ‘What have you done?’” (Daniel 4:34-35)
That’s why I say that my message will not change on November 4, regardless of the outcome of the election. The times will be still urgent. The nation will still need awakening. The Great Commission will still be the priority. And God will still sit on His throne. Human beings don’t get to vote on that.
That’s why I also tweeted, “I recommend reading Psalm 46 once a day until November 3, then continuing to read it daily as long as needed with whatever storms and turmoil follow the elections. God IS our refuge and our strength!” (If you’ve never read Psalm 46, click here.)
As for the urgency of the hour, even if all were well in America, I would still live with a sense of urgency. We have only one life to live and only one life to give. And every day, people are dying without the Lord, passing into eternity without forgiveness.
How can we not live with a sense of urgency in light of the fact that human beings face eternal salvation or eternal judgment? And, since things are anything but well here in our nation, the urgency is only intensified, no matter who sits in the White House or which party controls Congress.
As for the political world itself, it leaves me cold. Political campaigns get so nasty. Billions of dollars are spent on vicious, negative advertising. Lies are peddled and spread by the hour. And Washington itself remains so “swampy.”
That’s why I tweeted, “The more I look at the political scene, with all of its ugliness, the more I want to focus on Jesus. Once we get our vision set on Him, we can do something helpful and practical in this messed up world.”
That’s why I wrote in June that, “Christ, Not Trump, Is the Solid Rock on Which We Stand.”
That’s why, in 2018, I published, Donald Trump is Not My Savior: An Evangelical Leader Speaks His Mind About the Man He Supports as President.
And that’s why, this year, I published Evangelicals at the Crossroads: Will We Pass the Trump Test?
The last chapter of the book lists 10 essential keys for passing the test, including putting the cross before the flag, emphasizing spiritual activity more than political activity, not getting caught up in election fever, and regaining our prophetic voice.
That’s why I say my message will not change on November 4 (if, in fact, we have a final electoral outcome by then).
I absolutely do believe the stakes are very high in these elections. And I do believe that, as much as possible, we should get involved in the political process.
But let’s keep our priorities in order, recognizing that the ultimate battle is between light and darkness, not between the right and the left. And let us never forget that the gospel, not the government, remains the ultimate hope of the nation.
