As we approach yet another “most important election ever” here in the United States, I would submit that our greatest need is what is called EI, emotional intelligence, which refers to the ability to manage both your own emotions and understand the emotions of others around you. Have you noticed how intensely and reactionary we can feel about politics…a shadow side of our well-intended patriotic fervor and moral outrage that we often fail to self assess.  If we, as the people of God, truly want to yield to King Jesus, this reactionary mode that shuts down or lashes out should actually be one of our biggest concerns and of primary focus.

In a day of most people just letting their feelings lead the way through this current political cycle, how do we, in sanctified contrast, navigate it with more of a Spirit-structured intelligence? I am learning that to possess “election intelligence” our emotions must be informed by four biblical outlooks.

See politics through the filter of Jesus, not Jesus through politics.
Ac 1:6 “When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? 

According to Carey Nieuwhof, ““If God has all the same opinions your political party does, you’re probably not worshipping God.” Despite his earlier statements that no one knows the time of the end events, the disciples still ask him about it. And when Jesus is thinking about “the kingdom of God” (v. 3) and “the ends of the earth” (v. 8), they are thinking exclusively about the “kingdom to Israel”…their own nation. Twenty centuries later these two errors are still seen everywhere in our ranks as God’s people.

Jared Wilson puts it so well, “I try (imperfectly) to just ‘side eye’ politics. I don’t know about you, but all I know is that when I *stare* at politics, I get anxious, angry, and aggressive, and when I stare at Jesus, I don’t.” Our view of politics, IF IT IS TO BE GROUNDED AND CONTEXTUALIZED PROPERLY, must always be preceded by a look to where Jesus is and what He has promised to do in the future!  Where are you letting current political trends/shifts distort your view of Jesus?

See those of a different political view with careful consideration, not dishonest misrepresentation.
Lu 6:13, 15 “And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles…Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called Zelotes.”

Unlike the Pharisees (who were willing to compromise for political reasons), the Zealots, which included Simon, were militant, violent outlaws. They believed they were doing God’s work by assassinating Roman soldiers, political leaders, and anyone else who opposed them. The Zealots were hoping for a Messiah who would lead them in overthrowing the Romans and restore the kingdom to Israel with all its Solomonic glory in the “good old days.” They were red-hot patriots, ready to die in an instant for what they believed in. As one of the Twelve, Simon had to associate with Matthew, who was at the opposite end of the political spectrum, collecting taxes for the Roman government. At one point in his life, Simon would probably have gladly killed Matthew. MacArthur points out, “Several early sources say that after the destruction of Jerusalem, Simon took the gospel north and preached in the British Isles…This man who was once willing to kill and be killed for a political agenda within the confines of Judea found a more fruitful cause for which to give his life—in the proclamation of salvation for sinners out of every nation, tongue, and tribe.”

“Different” does not always equal “opposite” no matter who is trying to convince us otherwise with any “daylight” between us.  We are not called to fellowship with TWINS but BROTHERS AND SISTERS! It is key to note that I am not talking about those who are purposely gaming the political system or truly have evil intentions to destroy or change our country….it would be those who sincerely are running or supporting the opposite side as ours…yet we are called by God to be in relationship with them. Nothing kills our prospects of reaching the world with the gospel like permitting politics to convert our Christ-assigned mission field into enemies to be marginalized or demonized.

Tim Keller wisely asserts, “Never describe the view of an opponent in a way he or she will not own.  Describe their view so they say, ‘I couldn’t have said it better myself.’  Then proceed to refute the view.  If you caricature your opponent, you persuade no one.” Not everyone with a political difference with us will turn into “Judas Iscariot.” Many, if we will take the time, will become “Matthew’s” and “Simon’s” who rally around a Jesus who is greater than any human-assigned political affiliations or orientations. We cannot honestly and effectively speak to where our political views differ with others unless we take the time to be CURIOUS AND THOROUGH enough to genuinely understand their side on a given issue.

See the shakiness of this present world as the means to God’s plan, not the antithesis.
He 12:26-29 “Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: For our God is a consuming fire.”

At Sinai God’s voice caused an earthquake. But when He speaks in the future His voice will also produce a “heavenquake.” This was, in substance, predicted by the prophet Haggai (2:6). Prior to Christ’s coming to reign there will be violent convulsions of nature both on earth and in the heavens. When God ends the sifting and shaking process, only that which is real will remain…AND IT WILL NOT BE MUCH OF WHAT CONCERNS US IN 2024 ELECTION. Wiersbe comments on this passage, “None of us likes to have things shaken; we enjoy stability and security. But God was shaking already the Jewish economy and was about to destroy the temple in Jerusalem. The material things would have to go so that the spiritual realities might take their place. God was building a new temple, His church; and the old temple would have to be removed.” Thinking of this promised, secure future should help us sort out like nothing else what is truly worth standing for/fighting for in this current election.

A common post I have been seeing on social media says, “A vote is not a valentine.  You aren’t professing your love for the candidate.  It’s a chess move for the world you want to live in.”  I understand the spirit of this, but we must remember that even our vote is a vote BY A PAWN who must yield to the plan of not just the “next king” but the ONE WHO IS THE CHESS MASTER and put every usurper into checkmate including those who use organized religion to advance their political aspirations! Panic that “it is all falling part” will produce two extremes: to disengage from the political process or disproportionately to manipulate or attack on any front we can.  Where do you need to stop with the “everything is falling apart” vibe and replace it with a “everything is falling into place” vision?

See the local church as the hope of the world, not how our nation is trending.
Mt 5:13-16 “Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

Here, the disciple has one great function—to be the salt of the earth. If he fails to exhibit this spiritual reality, men will tread his undedicated testimony under their feet. Jesus also calls Christians the light of the world. He spoke of Himself as “the light of the world” (John 8:12; 12:35, 36, 46). The relationship between these two statements is that Jesus is the source of light (sun); Christians are the reflection of His light (moon). People do not light a lamp and put it under a basket. Instead, they put it on a lampstand so that it will give light to all who are in the house. He did not intend that we hoard the light of His teaching for ourselves, but that we share it with others.

When this current election is resolved, we are going to naturally want to feel one of two extreme emotions—a tremendous amount of panic or relief THAT WILL BOTH DISTRACT US FROM GOING ALL IN WITH THE ACTUAL HOPE OF THE WORLD, the local church! Rich Villodas challenges us, “When Christians are more conversant around partisan talking points than the Sermon on the Mount we demonstrate that our Christianity is secondary and a servant to our politics.” While God has been a part of our nation’s formation and preservation, “the city on the hill” is not a human nation of any era including the American one BUT THE COMMUNITY OF CHRIST FOLLOWERS CALLED THE CHURCH! The current situation in our nation is not an indictment upon our nation as a whole; it is an indictment upon those in the local church not prioritizing what God has assigned and empowered the local church to be/do! Voddie Baucham adds, “We are not seeing terrible things in our culture because WE VOTE THE WRONG WAY.  We are seeing terrible things in our culture because MEN LOVE DARKNESS RATHER THAN LIGHT.” A problem that cannot be addressed primarily through legislation and executive orders; it must be addressed through the message and ministry of the local church!

I recently saw a pastor post, “While leading at a church full of (young people) a conversation that I have at least four or five times a year is, ‘How can some of the people who raised me in the faith turn into political junkies obsessed with policy and not kingdom?’ I never have a good answer because I feel the same way. And I get it, the older I get, the more fearful I become of things, since I have so much to more to lose than I did when I was younger but still I want to cling to the cross, not a politician or ideology.” Navigating the tension created by elections/politics is only possible when we choose to CLING TO THE CROSS…no matter what other “banners” are flying around me and recruiting me to associate with it and attack all others.  This is what anchors our emotions and unlocks our ability to lead the way forward for all who are following after us…and, if Christ tarries His coming, will experience election cycles/seasons we will not live to see or feel that will require fresh, faith-filled doses of EI shaped by the abiding promise of “the kingdoms of this world will become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ” (Re 11:15)!

Photo by Manny Becerra on Unsplash