Peter Sammons reflects as the British nation prepares to ‘go to the polls’.
NOT PARTY POLITICAL
If I can say this reverently, God is not a conservative, nor a liberal, nor a socialist. For that matter neither is He a Welsh-, or Scottish-, or Cornish- nationalist, either! Britain’s 2024 election has come a little earlier than many were expecting (me included!) and now I must decide how to cast my vote, and indeed whether to cast my vote at all. I am convinced there is no hard and fast rule on this from a Kingdom perspective. I do not believe that God is overly moved by our voting habits or non-habits.
Yet I do believe God is indeed moved should we cast our vote for egregious wickedness (which arguably pertains to most political parties today). I have in mind the idea that if I was living in 1933 Germany and I voted for the Nazis, I do believe I would be directly answerable to God. (Always remembering that the German electorate in 1933 had a basic choice between the Fascists, or the Communists. Frankly not an easy decision to make. A ‘spoiled vote’ in such circumstances might be the best thing a Christian can do.) Today’s analogy might be someone deciding to vote for Hamas, or anything pertaining thereto. Should a self-confessed Christian do such a thing, they are indeed personally answerable.
When a youngster I declined to vote in the first election that I could (1979) as ‘none of the above’ were acceptable to me. Whilst I leaned left politically, the 1979 Labour policy of cutting back on defence and potentially leaving NATO seemed to me to be utter madness. When the Social Democratic Party (SDP) emerged, I joined it, as here was a party that seemed sensible, and stood for social justice within a market economy. When the SDP was absorbed by the Liberals I reconsidered my position, and when the ‘Liberal Democrats’ campaigned for adoption of the Euro, I realised it was time to move on.
INVOLVEMENT
Since then I have voted for a number of parties, but generally as a tactical voter, and in order to keep one lot out, rather than elect a different lot in.
There is of course a noble Christian tradition of involvement in politics. There are still (true) Christians involved in politics across the spectrum and one senses that it is God’s will and purpose to have them where they are. To be involved in politics in this fallen world is to accept the reality of compromise and seeking the optimum good, rather than the perfected good. Politics, as they say, is “the art of the possible”.
A Christian in politics must seek to be salt and light, but accept that others may steer polity in ways that are sub-optimal in terms of Christian insight and belief. When ‘Sunday trading’ was essentially deregulated, many Christians – including those actively in politics – were appalled, but could nevertheless remain in good conscience within their political parties having ‘compromised’ to reach some sort of ‘workable settlement’ – making the best of a thoroughly bad job.
HELL BENT
How much longer can true Christians be involved in ‘politics’ when the world is hell-bent on ‘progressive’ social change that, for example, risks criminalising private conversations and criminalising parents for accepting and defending their child’s birth gender? When does ‘teaching’ become ‘grooming’? When does State-overreach become a counsel of evil? We are undoubtedly about to cross a political Rubicon. When politics ceases to be the art of the possible and becomes the nightmares of other people’s madness, is any involvement in politics possible for a true Christian? If our nation is headed towards anarchy, does direct action become the legitimate substitute for ‘politics’? Very troubling questions ………..
Since 2016 my wife and I have been part of a ‘pray for the nation’ group. For much of that time we have prayed that God would raise up a new generation of MPs who can be more usable to our Holy God. Our prayers have we think been answered in part, as at the 2019 election – totally unexpectedly – a ‘red wall’ disappeared. There was a big ‘clear-out’ of dead wood. It appears that in this 2024 election hundreds of new peoples’ representatives will be elected for the very first time. Good, or bad? Good, or evil?
Let’s not over estimate the power of MPs, however. In reality they have very little individual influence and it can be difficult for them to stand against the prevailing mood of the ‘party leadership’, let alone a God-opposed electorate. At its best, politics remains a murky business. Yet, our God moves in mysterious ways ……
THY KINGDOM COME
As a Christian I regularly pray Jesus’ truly immortal words “thy Kingdom come”. Unlike so many church attenders, I see this for what it is, a simple statement that no human government can ever bring true shalom, only government by God Himself. That three- word phrase is arguably the most revolutionary political call anywhere on the planet. No wonder governments everywhere are suspicious of Christians! For heaven’s sake we are saying, positively, that no human government will ever be good enough, and we cry out for His practical Kingly rule in this world. One day Jesus will reign in this world. And that involves the end of untrammelled secular rule.
But it also marks the end of ‘religions’ including the various institutional church denominations. Do our ‘church’ leaders really WANT Jesus to return? I sometimes wonder. Would they prefer to delay it? I also wonder whether this, in part, explains the hostility of so much of the ‘church’ to Eretz Israel; after all, if we are indeed today on God’ timeline, then the temporal (temporary!) power and influence of the institutional churches shall wane and wither. Do ‘church’ leaders really want this?
GOOD REASONS TO PRAY
A ‘traditional’ understanding of Christian involvement in ‘politics’ is expressed here: https://www.christiansinpolitics.org.uk/10-reasons-christians-should-vote-in-the-election. There is much that all (true) Christians can agree here, but each of these ten points is frankly debatable.
QUALITY, QUALIY, QUALITY!
Modern ‘politicians’ are not made of the stuff of earlier generations. In earlier times an aspiring politician would almost always have some career behind them and a practical track record of significant achievement and governance of one sort, or another. A political career would commence when they had real world experience, in spade-fulls! And they would be middle-aged, or older!
Not today, however. Today too many ‘politicos’ are career politicians, joining from university, studying PPE (politics, philosophy and economics), then moving to be adviser (or ‘gofer’) in a private office (as an assistant to a sitting MP). Whilst they learn politics, too often they are divorced from the real world and with very little direct experience of it.
On the Left, in particular, there is an inbuilt belief in ‘big government’ and the idea that the State exists to solve all ills. I find it ironic that on the Left, especially, we are always told that the State is about to “tackle” yet another problem or social ill. We’re going to “tackle” climate change. We’re going to “tackle” knife crime. We’re going to “tackle” housing shortages. Does the word “tackle” imply that, in reality, our politicos have little real idea what they are actually going to do? Finally, there is today’s all-encompassing catch-word ‘progressive’, reflecting ‘progressivism’ – whatever that may be. This word now seems to represent ‘woke on steroids’, but is essentially the polite word for Cultural Marxism. See Steve Maltz’s fascinating book “Into the Lion’s Den” if you want to understand Cultural Marxism (link below).
KNOCK, KNOCK. WHOSE THERE?
If a hopeful politician knocks on your door, ask them two questions:
- what have they actually achieved in life? What have they run, and how successfully?
- will they define what a woman is?
Their answers to these two questions may well tell you all you need to know. Cast your vote accordingly.
BIG TROUBLE
The Bible tells us that great trouble is coming to this world. There is no avoiding that reality. Mankind is an incorrigible rebel (sinner) and he yet intends to continue to defy God, Who describes Himself uniquely as ‘the God of Jacob’. Yet within this tragic reality there remains the clear instruction for Believers that we are to pray for those in positions of authority. The Bible provides clear instruction in 1 Timothy 2:1-4: “I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness”.
The Christian calling is not to make the world a slightly better place (which is of course what many politicians think is their role and what they claim to want to achieve). Too many ‘church’ people believe in an essentially social gospel where we humans strive, in our own power and in our own wisdom, to make the world slightly better, thus pleasing ‘God’. Ultimately this must always be the politics of convenient division as, in order to transform this world, we must first identify those who are our ‘enemies’ so we can ‘put them right’ and compel them to dance to our tune.
BE TRUTHFUL
The big trouble (biblical ‘tribulation’) will not be evaded or delayed. As Christians we must be truthful and realistic about this. Our Hell-bent world is not going to be much altered by the outcomes of ‘elections’. Indeed it may well be that those societies that actually elect governments (as opposed to totalitarian societies that do not) are largely about to disappear. The power of America is waning and USA looks set to find itself in something approaching a cultural civil war – or a real civil war? The entire West appears to be only 30 years away from being completely Islamised.
Yet within these sober realities as citizens and as Believers, Christians have an obligation to do their best. I value this short essay on why we pray for our leaders: https://larryodonnell.com/blog/what-does-the-bible-say-about-praying-for-our-leaders Vote and pray! Pray and vote!
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Peter Sammons is commissioning editor at Christian Comment. His recent book “Last Days and End Times – Making the Connection” provides a refreshing new insight into what Jesus taught about the ending of our present era. Available here: https://christian-publications-int.com/Last_Days_and_End%20Times.html
Steve Maltz’s valuable book on Cultural Marxism (“Into the Lion’s Den”) is available here: https://www.saltshakers.com/shop (Sale price right now – £5.00 = good VFM!)
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