Season 4 - Episode 23

To listen to an audio version of this post, visit www.covenantchurch.ca/podcasts/covenant-weekly.

Good morning, Covenant Family. I have been trying hard not to focus on what is happening south of the border while still remaining somewhat informed. But something has become apparent to me in the chaos of the past few weeks. That is the tendency of people with differing agendas to invoke the Bible as an apologetic for their views. While this is true in the mainstream reality of American politics, I see a strong undercurrent of it within Canada, too.

With a provincial election looming and a federal election on the near horizon, all of this has led me to think again about how we as followers of the Jesus way should engage with our political systems. As we both observe the very significant impacts of an American election and prepare for elections here at home, I thought I’d do some of that thinking aloud. Just to be clear, I’m not advocating for or against anyone. I’m thinking more deeply about how we should think about our participation in selecting governments and the kinds of things we maybe should ask if we are going to cast a ballot. That is is this Covenant Weekly for February 11, 2025.

I should start by invoking the spirit of the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians when he says, “This is from me, not the Lord!” I’m trying to wrestle faithfully with important questions, but any conclusions I come to are deductions, not clear commands from scripture.

When considering anything related to governments in the Bible, we have to make leaps and connections that aren’t direct. The Bible was written within the context of a few different forms of governance. These include monarchies that were boldly aligned against God; loosely affiliated tribal systems; a monarchy that was supposed to be aligned with God, but was failing; and dictatorial empires with varying perspectives and approaches to religion - in particular, religion centred around Yahweh. But NONE of the Bible was written in the context of democratic elections. Our political systems were inconceivable to those who lived in the ancient settings of scripture. That being said, governments still existed back then. And some of the ways they are addressed may guide our thinking.

As a first thought, it seems to me that we shouldn’t trust governments to do the work of God in the world. In a book called Reckoning With Power: Why the Church Fails When It’s on the Wrong Side of Power, Dr. David Fitch talks about political powers - whether left or right, conservative or liberal - embodying a posture of “power over.” In contrast, the way of Jesus is co-labouring, non-coercive “power with” where power is given away. The one in whom all power rests, Jesus, doesn’t use “power over.” In part, because they do not and cannot embody the way of Jesus, he suggests governments can offer preservation. But this preserving effect does not achieve love, reconciliation, grace, forgiveness, and healing - the things that thrive when God’s power is at work. In short, they preserve, but not transform.

Jesus addressed the difference between political “power over” and Jesus’ shaped “power with” when some of his disciples started fighting over who would sit in the important positions of power in his coming kingdom. This is how Matthew recounted his words:

But Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. 26 But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. 28 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:25-28)

As we think about how we embody the way of Jesus we should notice the difference between the way of rulers of this world and Jesus. What are we aspiring to embody?

For the bulk of history, governments haven’t been democracies. And the development of the Anabaptist tradition that Covenant Church is a part of did not happen in places where people had a say in who governed them. But even when democracies developed, Anabaptists recognized that the political power that even elected officials wielded differed from Jesus’ way of working in the world. And because their exclusive priority was “seeking first God’s kingdom,” most in our tradition would not have voted in elections. And they certainly would never have run for public office.

For the most part, they believed that sitting in the seat of governmental power aligned them with forms of power that didn’t reflect the way of Jesus and pulled them away from the focus God had for them. Within our Ontario and BIC context, there are examples of those who tried to pursue political power and follow the way of Jesus. I would suggest that over the long haul, they identified more with their political party than with the example of Jesus.

I could talk about this at length, but I’ll sum up by pointing out that the questions about how change happens in the world and what mechanisms or powers are used to make those changes have been very important issues to Anabaptists through the past five centuries. And they/we have consistently (although not universally) sought to distance themselves from “power over” and align with Jesus' way of non-coercive suffering love.

With this in mind, it would be easy to conclude, along with our Anabaptist forbearers, that we simply shouldn’t participate in elections. We don’t run for office. We don’t campaign. We don’t vote. We remain mute on election issues and just work at the work of the church.

And I completely understand those who take this approach. I agree with the convictions that lead someone to not vote. Truthfully…this has been the approach I’ve taken in the last several elections But I am also deeply troubled by much of what I see going on in the world through elected officials.

I mentioned that in Dr. Fitch’s observations of power, he acknowledges that governments, despite not wielding godly power, can and should have a preserving effect in the world. I find myself considering, “If I am convinced that a certain leader or party will not only wield ungodly power but also do so in a way that fails to preserve things that remotely align with the heart of Jesus - in a way that actively works against love, reconciliation, grace, forgiveness, and healing - should I continue to refrain from involvement?” I also wonder, “Do I have the strength and conviction to engage in a democratic process which, by default, puts people in contexts where they will wield a non-Christlike form of power without having any of my hope and confidence in the resulting government to do the loving, reconciling, grace offering, forgiving, and healing work the church of Jesus Christ is called to do.”

Another way to put my questions would be, “Can I seek first God’s kingdom while doing my small part to help ensure that the coercive power isn’t handed to those whose values and behaviours embody something completely contradictory to the justice, love, and mercy of God?”

19th-century philosopher John Stuart Mill, “Let not anyone pacify his conscience by the delusion that he can do no harm if he takes no part, and forms no opinion. Bad men need nothing more to compass their ends, than that good men should look on and do nothing. He is not a good man who, without a protest, allows wrong to be committed in his name, and with the means which he helps to supply, because he will not trouble himself to use his mind on the subject.”

I don’t think we should let a philosopher drive our decision-making. But his point that if we have a means of standing against “bad men” - those who are acting out of selfishness, with deceit, and at the cost of those Jesus consistently aligned himself with - but don’t take it, are we not in some way culpable in their wrongdoing? I would add that for followers of Jesus, the means of standing against those bad men should not conflict with the teaching and example of Jesus.

In Romans, at the end of chapter 12, Paul exhorts the church this way. He says:

“If your enemies are hungry, feed them.
    If they are thirsty, give them something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap
    burning coals of shame on their heads.”

21 Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.

The very next verse, which we often read completely removed because it is the start of chapter 13, says:

Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. 2 So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished. 3 For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. Would you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right, and they will honor you.

A few verses later, he continues:

6 Pay your taxes, too, for these same reasons. For government workers need to be paid. They are serving God in what they do.

Remember, Paul was not writing in a context where people had any say in who their governing authorities were. In our setting, we could debate whether or not we can blame (or credit) God for people being put in positions of worldly authority in a democratic context.

But when you read chapter 12 and chapter 13 together, it seems that emphasis 1 is on doing good - doing what is right. Emphasis 2 is to engage respectfully with those in governance in a way that is consistent with emphasis 1.

Where does all this musing lead me? I welcome messages, pushback, and conversation about this to help me in my thinking, but at this point in my thinking, I’m focusing on two questions:

1. How can I keep my eyes on Jesus, staying connected with the Spirit of God and divine power? How can I not compromise and continue learning to live out his non-coercive love, reconciliation, grace, forgiveness, and healing rather than putting my hope in worldly powers that can at best do the work of preserving?
2. How should I engage with our system of governance in a way that seeks to help it do its preserving work in the world to ensure those who are hungry - even if they are enemies - will be fed; those who are thirsty - even if they are enemies - will get something to drink? How can I continue doing good in such a way that I am joining God in the work of overcoming evil?

The more I think about these questions, the more I find a focus for action apart from elections and the more I feel empowered to consider the things that are important to Jesus during the barrage of lies, half-truths, and manipulative messages that come out during election times.

Regardless of what you think about these thoughts, I encourage you to keep your eyes on Jesus and seek the kingdom of God above all else. Allow that to guide you more than political ads, social media posts, or the musings of a small-town pastor.