Carry On
In Isaiah’s day, the people took offense at his message that they needed to completely depend on the Lord. The people of Judah considered his preaching to be subversive to the interests of the nation and a threat to their way of life. They believed that political alliances made a better solution. The Lord explained to Isaiah that he didn’t need to conform himself to this way of thinking. He just needed to continue sharing the message that God had instructed him to share:
“For thus the Lord spoke to me with mighty power and instructed me not to walk in the way of this people, saying, "'You are not to say, ‘It is a conspiracy!’ In regard to all that this people call a conspiracy, And you are not to fear what they fear or be in dread of it. It is the Lord of hosts whom you should regard as holy, and He shall be your fear, and He shall be your dread.” (Isaiah 8:12-13)
Jesus’ lordship over creation does not depend upon who resides at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. God’s plans are not in any way thwarted by the outcome of elections. This is not to say these things don’t matter or that there is a moral equivalency between every leader or every policy decision. There are good policies and evil policies. There are good leaders and bad leaders. Evil leaders and inept leaders. Great leaders and godly leaders. Elections do have consequences. And those consequences matter. However, God is not limited by any of these things.
As a Christian, my faith does not depend upon who holds the levers of power in Washington D.C. The spiritual vitality of America is not determined by who wins elections. America has declined morally and spiritually for the last century under presidents of all political persuasions. Without question the new administration will advance policies that are morally and biblically unacceptable. Laws and policies will change. Christians need to prepare ourselves for that. Yet, God’s Word never changes. Our mission as Christians never changes. Jesus has called us to make disciples. We will do this regardless of what political party is in power. We will not fear. We will regard the Lord as holy and keep telling the world about Jesus.