Equipping the Church to Vote

Preface

Throughout my Christian walk, my convictions have strengthened concerning the powerful influence believers exert for good, but my concerns have deepened for the amazing number of apathetic believers that prefer to remain in their “holy cocoon”.  We enjoy incredible freedoms in this nation, and as Christians I believe we have a duty to be godly citizens, not just for our own good, but also for the good of everyone.

Eight years ago I began questioning the role of church leadership in equipping believers to be responsible citizens.  Little did I know that today my primary ministry would be educating believers (pastors and members) about “Christian Citizenship” – the active engaging of society, our culture, and our government at all levels with a Biblical worldview well grounded with facts and clear reasoning.  In saying this, I realize “politics” is but one of many areas we’re called to influence as we live our lives to honor Christ.

During this time I’ve been privileged to serve on the Elder Board of Grace Bible Church of Escondido California, where godly men ensured I kept proper balance in teaching members to be Christ-honoring citizens.  I also had the privilege of participating in a Home Bible Study and Christian Citizenship Planning Group that addressed citizenship issues.  Each was made up of sharp minds, inquisitive attitudes, challenging questions, and hearts that dearly love the Lord.

From these associations, and the loving support of my dear, patient wife Lynn, the material in this pamphlet was conceived and written.  It’s my prayerful desire it may show leadership in other churches some practical ways to equip Christians to apply Biblical principles to citizenship duties.  Indeed, as we look around us and consider what the Lord would have us do, may we become encouraged to be like the men of Issachar:

“...who understood the times and knew what Israel should do.”
(1 Chron 12:32)

Frank Kacer
September 2002

Introduction

The target audience for this pamphlet is primarily the leadership (pastors, elders) within a church, and secondly the membership.  Its focus is specifically on providing practical advice on how a church can organize and conduct what I refer to as an Election Pre-View Evening.  The actual mechanics for doing this are contained in Chapter 8, with the other Chapters addressing a variety of related issues that leadership, and church members will undoubtedly encounter along the way.  This is not a theological treatise, but a middle ground approach to a confused area of church ministry that I trust will appeal to both leadership and church members.

Each Chapter is intended to be a short, standalone treatment of questions that normally come up when the question is asked:  What role should a church play in politics?  By addressing these specifically, I intend to equip both church leadership and membership with a reasonable level of information to make both comfortable with doing “something”.  For instance, do we have a Biblical mandate to engage society and politics (see Chapter 3), do Christians vote any different than non-Christians (see Chapter 4), what can a church do legally and what should they be careful of (see Chapter 5), why is it believers can’t agree on major decisions (see Chapter 6), what should we be looking for in a candidate (see Chapter 7), why can’t I just use voter guides (see Chapter 9), what else should we be doing (see Chapters 10 & 11), and finally, if you think you have valid excuses for not doing anything, try out Chapter 12.

I took the liberty of writing letters to both pastors and church members at the beginning of this pamphlet.  I encourage you to read both because I believe it’s important to understand the different perspectives each group will have.  The greater the unity of the Spirit we develop in fulfilling our citizenship responsibilities as Christians in this nation, the greater the influence we will exert for the glory of Jesus Christ.  This is my prayer.

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