God’s will is made known by the vote of the people

God’s Will Is Made Known By the Vote of the People

For Christians like Mike Huckabee and Michele Bachmann, a calling from God to become president is required in order for them to run. Every aspect of their lives as Christians is to be directed to serving God and witnessing to the love in Jesus Christ including service as president of the United States if he or she is elected.

And that “if elected” makes all the difference with regard to whether God endorses a candidate or not.

The process for choosing the leadership in my church, the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), is a good model for what I mean. Just like for Bachmann’s call to run for president, the path toward leadership in the church begins when a Presbyterian senses a call from God to an office in the church. Then the church takes over, testing that call by a variety of requirements, examinations and votes.

Yes, votes, because the Presbyterian Church discerns the will of God through the deliberative assessment by various groups within the church. These groups include seminary professors, leaders from the candidate’s home church and regional committees from where the candidate lives and where he or she might serve. All of these Presbyterian faithful prayerfully discern the gifts and readiness of the candidate and all the groups complete their work with a vote to affirm or deny the candidate’s call.

The political process leading to the presidency is very much the same.

Bachmann’s sense of call to serve as president of the United States of America will be assessed by a host of different groups over the next 18 months. The caucuses in Iowa, the voters in New Hampshire and South Carolina, the corporations and individuals who choose to contribute money, and the voters on primary and election days will discern the gifts of the candidates and their readiness for service. All of these people complete their work as citizens with a vote to affirm or deny her call whether they describe what they are doing in that way or not.

One of the bedrocks of my Reformed Christian faith is that God is sovereign over all. This means every vocation is a religious vocation whether the person taking up the work sees it that way or not. It also means that God is active in the choice of leaders. Both in the church and in the government, the vote of people is the best avenue yet found to confirm or deny God’s endorsement of individuals.

It may be that God calls Michele Bachmann to run for president, but, in the end, not to serve. God’s will shall be known through the vote of the people, just as it is in my church.

Janet Edwards  | Jun 2, 2011 4:31 PM