Election Wednesday
The What
The US is not a pure or direct Democracy. The U.S. is a constitutional republic and, more specifically, a representative democracy.
Constitutional Republic
• In a constitutional republic, elected officials represent the people, and their powers are defined and limited by a constitution.
• Laws and governance are conducted according to the rules of the Constitution, which protects certain individual rights regardless of majority rule.
Representative Democracy
• Rather than direct voting on most national policies or leaders, citizens elect representatives who make decisions on their behalf.
• The Electoral College is a form of indirect representation. Rather than a direct popular vote for the president, the system delegates that decision to a body of electors who, ideally, represent their states' choices.
The president is selected by the Electoral College:
The Electoral College was established as a compromise during the Constitutional Convention of 1787.
The framers of the U.S. Constitution created it to address a central question: how to fairly elect the president of a new nation with a diverse population and strong, independent states.
Balancing Large (populous) and Small (less populous) States:
Direct election by popular vote alone would give large states more power. while letting Congress elect the president could overly concentrate power in the legislature.
Safeguarding Against Uninformed Voting:
Electoral College was presumed to be well informed.
Federalism and State Sovereignty:
Federalism: a principle or system of government in which several states form a unity but remain independent in internal affairs
The Electoral College fits within the federalist structure of the U.S. government. By giving each state a certain number of electoral votes based on its representation in Congress, the system respects state sovereignty while uniting the country under one chief executive.
Basic Structure of the Electoral College:
Electoral Votes: Each state has a set number of electoral votes, equal to its total representation in Congress (Senators + Representatives).
How Its calculated:
Electoral Votes = Number of Senators (2) +Number of Representatives
Senators: Each state has 2 senators, giving every state at least two electoral votes.
Representatives: Each state’s number of representatives is based on its population, with more populous states receiving more representatives. The total number of representatives is capped at 435 and is redistributed among the states every 10 years based on the U.S. Census.
For example:
California: 2 Senators + 52 representatives = 54 electoral votes
Alabama: 2 Senators + 7 representatives = 9 Electoral Votes
*each state guaranteed 1 representative. the remaining seats (usually 385 out of the 435 total) are distributed using a mathematical formula called the "method of equal proportions."
Electors: Political parties usually select electors before the general election, and these electors pledge to vote for the presidential candidate who wins their state’s popular vote.
Winning the Presidency: A candidate must secure a majority of the electoral votes (currently at least 270 out of 538) to win the presidency.
The Why
Why Christian should vote?
The Bible doesn’t explicitly mention, mandate or command voting.
In fact if you are a believer you are a part of another Nation. See: Revelation 5:9-10 Galatians 3:28
However, voting is a way to exercise biblical principles and advocate for morality and righteous.
Responsibility and Stewardship
• Romans 13:1-7
"Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience. For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed."
• 1 Peter 2:13-17
"Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.”
1. Since we are to live in subjection to authority it would be in the believers’ best interest to vote for those who they are to be subject to.
2. Secondarily, leaders are called ministers of God, and servants so it would behoove believers to vote for those who resemble those characteristics, or the candidate who will allow them believers to continue to do so.
3. Lastly, it would be imperative for a believer to vote for the candidate who will uphold or promote biblical values and freedom of worship.
Seeking Justice and Promoting Good
The historical context of Micah 6:8 takes place during the 8th century BC, a time when the kingdom of Israel was divided into the Northern Kingdom (Israel) and the Southern Kingdom (Judah). Micah, a prophet from Judah, spoke to the people of both kingdoms during a period of significant social and political upheaval.
During Micah’s time, both kingdoms were experiencing moral decay, corruption, and social injustice. The wealthy and powerful were exploiting the poor, using dishonest measures in trade, seizing land, and engaging in bribery. Idolatry was widespread, and the leaders of the people, including priests and prophets, were complicit in these injustices.
• Micah 6:8
"He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?"
• Proverbs 31:8-9
"Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute. Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy.
For Who
Now comes the big question, FOR WHO?
To answer that question we must first see what God requires of man, because we have discovered the reasons for a Christian to vote are Responsibility and Stewardship and Seeking Justice and promoting good.
We will start with the foundational biblical requirements, the Ten Commandments.
1. You shall have no other gods before me.
(Exodus 20:3)
2. You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.
(Exodus 20:4)
3. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.
(Exodus 20:7)
4. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
(Exodus 20:8)
5. Honor your father and your mother that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
(Exodus 20:12)
6. You shall not murder.
(Exodus 20:13)
7. You shall not commit adultery.
(Exodus 20:14)
8. You shall not steal.
(Exodus 20:15)
9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
(Exodus 20:16)
10. You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's.
(Exodus 20:17)
The bible speaks more to what biblical morality looks like:
1 Corinthians 6:9-10 (ESV)
"Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God."
2. Galatians 5:19-21 (ESV)
"Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God."
4. Revelation 21:8 (ESV)
"But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death."
3. Ephesians 5:5 (6-15) (ESV)
"For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God."
6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not become partners with them; 8 for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10 and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13 But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14 for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,
“Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.
Christian Values Chart
Does their platform promote or accept these anti-Christian values
Anti Christian Practices Chart
What happens historically when nations turn away from God
Deuteronomy 30:15-20 takes place near the end of Moses’ leadership over Israel, as he prepares them to enter the Promised Land.
The Israelites had wandered in the wilderness for 40 years due to their disobedience and lack of faith in God’s promises. Now, on the edge of the land, Moses gives his final instructions and warnings, urging the people to remain faithful to God.
Deuteronomy 30:15-20 (ESV): 15 "See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil. 16 If you obey the commandments of the LORD your God that I command you today, by loving the LORD your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his rules, then you shall live and multiply, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. 17 But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, 18 I declare to you today, that you shall surely perish. You shall not live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess.
Approx 400 years later (David’s reign)
We see this play out.
The book of 2 Chronicles tells the story of 21 different Kings of the southern Kingdom of Judah (split from Northern Israel)
Solomon – Reigns from 2 Chronicles 1-9.
Rehoboam – 2 Chronicles 10-12
Abijah – 2 Chronicles 13
Asa – 2 Chronicles 14-16
Jehoshaphat – 2 Chronicles 17-20
Jehoram – 2 Chronicles 21
Ahaziah – 2 Chronicles 22
Athaliah (Queen) – 2 Chronicles 22-23 (although she was a queen and not a king, she ruled for six years as the sole monarch).
Joash – 2 Chronicles 24
Amaziah – 2 Chronicles 25
Uzziah (Azariah) – 2 Chronicles 26
Jotham – 2 Chronicles 27
Ahaz – 2 Chronicles 28
Hezekiah – 2 Chronicles 29-32
Manasseh – 2 Chronicles 33
Amon – 2 Chronicles 33
Josiah – 2 Chronicles 34-35
Jehoahaz – 2 Chronicles 36
Jehoiakim – 2 Chronicles 36
Jehoiachin – 2 Chronicles 36
Zedekiah – 2 Chronicles 36
Faithful Kings Chart
Unfaithful Kings Chart
When leaders follow God the people live and multiply, when leaders turn away to other Gods the people perish.
1. Worship of Baal and Asherah
• Practiced by Kings: Rehoboam, Ahaziah, Athaliah, Ahaz, Manasseh, and others.
• Description: Baal was a Canaanite god of fertility and weather, while Asherah was a goddess associated with fertility. Worship included setting up altars, poles (Asherim), and shrines on high places.
2. Setting Up High Places for Sacrifice and Worship
• Practiced by Kings: Rehoboam, Jehoram, Joash, Ahaz, and others.
• Description: High places were altars or shrines set up on hills or elevated areas where sacrifices and offerings were made to various gods. These locations often featured idolatrous practices, such as animal sacrifices or incense burning to pagan gods.
3. Offering Child Sacrifices in the Valley of Hinnom (Topheth)
• Practiced by Kings: Ahaz and Manasseh.
• Description: Kings like Ahaz and Manasseh engaged in the horrific practice of child sacrifice, burning their children as offerings to the god Molech in the Valley of Hinnom (also called Topheth).
• Leviticus 18:21 You shall not give any of your children to offer them to Molech, and so profane the name of your God: I am the Lord.
• Matthew 18:5-6. 5 “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, 6 but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.
• Ezekiel 16:20-21 20 And you took your sons and your daughters, whom you had borne to me, and these you sacrificed to them to be devoured. Were your whorings so small a matter 21 that you slaughtered my children and delivered them up as an offering by fire to them?
(Not her body, not her choice)
4. Sexual Immorality
• Practiced by Kings: Rehoboam, Manasseh, and Ahaz.
• Description: Many pagan religions, especially the worship of Baal and Asherah (Canaanite fertility gods), included homosexual and heterosexual ritual prostitution. People believed that engaging in sexual acts with temple prostitutes would encourage the gods to bless them with fertility, agricultural abundance, and prosperity.
5. Bringing Idols and Altars into the Temple of the Lord
• Practiced by Kings: Ahaz and Manasseh.
• Description: Kings like Ahaz installed altars and idols of foreign gods within the temple itself, defiling the sacred space intended for the worship of Yahweh alone.
6. Consulting Mediums, Spirits, and Divination &Astrology
• Practiced by Kings: Manasseh and others.
• Description: Manasseh consulted mediums, necromancers, and engaged in sorcery and divination practices, which were associated with pagan religions and forbidden by God. (Leviticus 19:31)
7. Making Alliances with Pagan Nations and Adopting Their Gods
• Practiced by Kings: Ahaz and others.
• Description: Kings like Ahaz sought alliances with powerful nations like Assyria and adopted their gods and religious practices, hoping to secure military support.
Platform Chart
Questions to consider
1. Is there a difference between my party and my morality?
2. How does the party’s views on religious freedom align with my beliefs about worship and religious practice in public and private life?
3. What are the candidates' stances on life issues, such as abortion, and how do these align with my views on the sanctity of life?
4. Does the candidate respect the role of parents in educating and raising their children, including issues related to school choice and curriculum content?
5. How does each candidate’s stance on family and gender policies align with biblical teachings on marriage, sexuality, and family structure?
6. What role do I believe government should have in addressing poverty and caring for the vulnerable, and which candidate's approach best aligns with these beliefs?
7. How do the candidates view and approach justice and law, especially in policies around crime, incarceration, and rehabilitation?
8. Does the candidate’s plan to address environmental issues reflect a biblical view of stewardship and care for creation?
9. In what ways does each candidate's immigration policy align with Christian values of compassion, hospitality, and respect for law?
10. Is there consistency between each candidate's personal conduct and the policies they support, and how important is this alignment to my voting decision?
