On June 22, 2024, The Associated Press reported: “Former President Donald Trump on Saturday urged evangelicals to get out and vote in an election that has him neck and neck with President Joe Biden. ‘The evangelicals and the Christians, they don’t vote as much as they should,’ Trump told the audience at the Faith & Freedom Coalition meeting in Washington, D.C. ‘They go to church every Sunday, but they don’t vote. And we have to make sure they vote. Just this time….’”
Why is it that some Christians do NOT vote in governmental elections? Why is it that they will not vote in the upcoming election, either? The reasons might be many. As the article said, “Trump’s stated opposition to signing a nationwide ban on abortion and his reluctance to detail some of his views on the issue are at odds with many members of the evangelical movement… He [previously] stated… that he would not sign a nationwide ban on abortion if it was passed by Congress.”
So, abortion is a big issue, and some Christians will not vote for either Trump or Biden, as they do not agree with their respective stance on abortion. While Biden, a professing Catholic, is not opposed to any form of abortion—a position totally at odds with the viewpoint of many Christians—Trump’s stance against abortion, but allowing abortion in some instances, does not go far enough for some, as they are opposed to abortion under any circumstances.
Another issue of controversy is immigration. While many, if not most Christians, oppose Biden’s open-border policy, some are concerned with Trump’s rather stringent and somewhat radical approach, including his position against chain migration and his (somewhat ambiguous) concepts regarding DACA.
There are certainly many more issues which would clearly prevent many Christians from voting for Biden—from his stance on the LGBTQ+ movement and same-sex marriages to his war-driven policies, the weaponization of the legal system and his attacks on personal freedom and liberty. But rather than not voting at all, should they not then vote for Trump, with whom they might not agree on every issue, but who would be closer to their viewpoint? In other words, should they not vote for the “lesser evil”?
But in asking the question in this way, some Christians would argue that this would still be voting for “evil”—something they could not do, as they feel that according to Scripture, they have to “abstain from every form of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:22).
However, the crux of the matter goes far beyond the issues raised so far.
In our free booklet, “Should You Fight in War?”, we are showing a connection between voting in governmental elections and joining the military and fighting in war (after all, the President is the Commander in Chief with the power to declare war).
In a chapter in this booklet, titled, “Why Christ Would Not Vote in this World’s Governmental Elections,” we quoted an article from the late Herbert W. Armstrong which was published in 1984, saying this:
“This is not a world of God’s making. This is SATAN’S world!… The Bible speaks of this world as ‘this present EVIL WORLD’ (Galatians 1:4, AV)… No, Jesus did not enter into THIS WORLD’S politics! He called His disciples out of this present evil world—out of all its customs and philosophies and ways—to live a life of SEPARATION from the world…
“Thus Jesus’ disciples live in this present evil world as though they were foreigners, here merely as the guests of the nation where they reside, as AMBASSADORS for Christ and His coming Kingdom, not of any of this world’s governments… [Foreign ambassadors do not involve themselves in] making their state [where they live] a better state, or voting, or entering their army or fighting for their cause… [T]he true Christian is one who follows Christ, and Christ did not vote! Jesus did not try to reform Caesar… He preached the doctrine of a radically different world to come… This is Satan’s world and Jesus Christ did not come to reform Satan or improve Satan’s handiwork, but to save His followers from Satan and his system. Since God’s Kingdom is not literally set up as yet, the true Christian’s citizenship is now reserved in heaven (I Peter 1:4, Ephesians 2:19)…
“What, then, would Jesus do in [a time of] presidential election?… HE WOULD BE TOO BUSY PROCLAIMING THE GOOD NEWS OF HIS COMING WORLD-RULING KINGDOM, and the way of salvation, to take any part whatsoever in the politics of this present evil world, or in any man-made form of government that is DOOMED very soon to be destroyed and replaced by the theocratic government of THE KINGDOM OF GOD! Our mission is, as ambassadors of Christ—as advance emissaries of HIS KINGDOM—to WARN the world of its plight and present danger, to proclaim to all nations the good news of the KINGDOM OF GOD!”
These words, written in 1984, are as relevant today as they have ever been.
We also stated this in another chapter in our booklet, titled, “Why do you teach that a Christian should not vote in governmental elections?”
“Another reason why a Christian is not to vote for a candidate in governmental or local council elections is because he understands the truth about this being Satan’s world at the present time. It is Satan who, with the general permission of God, places candidates into governmental offices. If we were to vote, we might involve ourselves quite directly in Satan’s system. Hosea 8:4 gives us God’s warning in this regard: ‘They set up kings, but not by Me; they made princes, but I did not acknowledge them.’’
“Sometimes, in order to ensure that certain aspects of His plan are fulfilled, God Himself might intervene to see to it that the person best (or perhaps worst) suited for the job at that time gets the job (compare Daniel 4:17). How would God look at us when He intervenes directly to place a specific person into office, while we did not vote for that person, but rather for someone whom God does not want to see in charge at that time? It is obvious that our vote would be found to be in opposition to God’s Will.
“To give a prophetic and an historical example, Biblical prophecy reveals that a final political leader of the resurrected Roman Empire – the ‘beast’ – will soon arise in Europe. According to God’s prophetic plan, this person will be placed in office in the very last days, wreaking total havoc on this planet. It is Satan, with God’s permission, who will give his power and authority to this person (Revelation 13:4-5). A Christian could not and should not vote for this person, of course, as he will persecute and kill many of the ‘saints’ (Revelation 13:7), and he will even attempt to fight the returning Jesus Christ (Revelation 19:19). Neither should a Christian have voted for Adolph Hitler, although it is clear now that Hitler came to power, as prophesied, to bring about the ninth resurrection of the Roman Empire. This is to say that God allowed Hitler to become ruler over Germany so that prophecy could be fulfilled…”
While many will tell you with seemingly logical arguments that Christians must vote in the upcoming presidential election, the Bible is quite clear that they must not do so. The question is, whom will you follow? Men or God?
