The past months in the American political landscape have been stress-inducing, to say the least. News reports and social media posts have contributed to a tumultuous election season. Followers of Jesus are not immune from the pressure, the barrage of information, and the constant messaging. Try as we might, we can’t avoid it. And it is right to recognize that we shouldn’t avoid–all together–what is going on around us.
It will help us to have a some biblical anchor points for our thinking. Let me suggest a few.
Affirming God’s rule over the world and over our lives, we can acknowledge that where we live and when we live has not fallen out randomly. In addressing the people of Athens, Paul stated that God “has made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation” (Acts 17:26). Although what Paul has in view is the nations of the world, the implication is that nations–including their respective citizens–do not come to pass whimsically or by chance. Every disciple is a citizen of particular nation at a particular time as part of God’s intentional design. As a disciple of Jesus you are also a citizen of a particular earthly nation.
When Jesus was questioned about the paying of taxes under Roman rule, He asked the inquirers to show Him a Roman coin. Calling attention to the coin and the image upon it, He stated simply: “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s” (Mark 12:17). Although Jesus was specifically addressing the issue of taxation, the implication is that citizens of a given nation should live–as best they can under the leading of the Spirit–as participants in that nation. Every disciple should seek to live as a participant in the affairs of the nation in which he or she dwells. As a disciple of Jesus you still can participate in the national life in which you find yourself.
The last anchor point comes from a lengthier narrative–it is what we see woven into the life of Joseph, in the book of Genesis. I am sure you are aware of the general movements in his story. Sold into a foreign country by his jealous brothers, Joseph finds himself a slave in the house of a royal official. There, he seeks to live, in the situation he finds himself, under the hand of God. Falsely accused by the royal official’s wife, Joseph finds himself imprisoned in the royal dungeon. There, he seeks to live, in the situation he finds himself, under the hand of God. Ultimately, because of the favor of God, Joseph interprets dreams for the ruler of Egypt and is given a prominent role in the government. There, he seeks to live, in the situation he finds himself, under the hand of God. In the latter years of his life, we hear from him how he understood all that had happened to him: “God sent me here” (Genesis 45:7). Joseph knew that in all of his seeking to live appropriately in the situations he was in, it was God who was overseeing and working in and through everything that had unfolded. Every disciple should recognize that as we live out our lives in the various national situations in which we find ourselves, God is still overseeing and orchestrating things according to His will.
As a disciple, you are a citizen of a nation in which God has place you. As a disciple, it is appropriate for you to live out the responsibilities of a citizen. As a disciple, as you live responsibly in the situations in which you find yourself–whether in your personal life or the national life unfolding around you–God is still perfectly working His will.
We are where we are by His will. We should live as we live as those looking to His will. We can trust as life plays out that He is overseeing and over-ruling it all.