So-and-So May Be Our President, but Jesus is Our King

Presidential candidates sticking out their tongues at one another and insulting each other’s golf game.

Seriously?!

Okay, so maybe they didn’t stick out their tongues, but they were definitely acting childish.

Over 300 million people in the country, and this is the best we have to offer?

If you're like me, you might be so tempted to abandon your laundry and budget worksheets and just stare up into the sky, wondering when Jesus will return to make all things right.

Sometimes, things can feel hopeless.

So, what can we do?

1) Remember Jesus is King

“But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior.”

—Philippians 3:20

This is the Hope we cling to. As we’ve seen throughout the Old Testament, human rulers and laws cannot establish full justice and peace. These broken vessels and earthly policies cannot achieve righteousness.

The hope we look forward to is:

a) Christ-Initiated

Humans cannot accomplish it through laws.

“Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see—such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together. Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything. For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.” (Colossians 1:15–20, NLT)

b) Certain

This hope for renewal under Jesus’ kingship is a dependable promise from a faithful God.

“And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” (Philippians 1:6, NLT)

“Then the One seated on the throne said, ‘Look! I am making everything new.’” (Revelation 21:5, HCSB)

c) Incomplete

Creation will not be fully redeemed or sanctified until Jesus’ return.

“Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us. We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don’t need to hope for it. But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.” (Romans 8:18–25, NLT)

With our hope rightfully placed in Christ, the only perfectly righteous Man, we can have peace as we realize that earthly rulers will always fall short of our expectations or desires. Because NO presidential candidate is going to meet God’s holy standard. 

With our hope rightly placed, we will have strength to trust Him despite the frustration with our current leaders. If you doubt your ability to endure faithfully under a particular presidential candidate, look at the faith of one Dutch young man who was in hiding to escape being recruited by the Nazis:

“Two things we knew for sure. First, Hitler was not afraid to kill or murder whoever was in his way or disliked. But second, we also knew that his power and brutality would go only as far as the Lord would let him go, and no further.”

—Bas Vanderzalm Sr., When the Heavens Grew Dark

If this teenager could trust God’s sovereignty during the reign of Hitler—we can trust God’s sovereignty today, too.

2) Pray

The very Word of God commands us to pray for our leaders, whoever they are. So, let us do so! It is God who softens and opens hearts. It is God who provides wisdom. It is God who is the source of all Justice and Truth. 

3) Learn (Prayerfully)

Because we are directly affected by the decisions of our nation’s leaders, and because we are part of a democratic nation wherein we have voting power, I believe it is our responsibility to seek to become informed. 

Honestly, I struggle with this immensely. I avoid reading or watching the news, because I have a hard time believing any one source is being entirely unbiased or truthful. So, pray. Prayerfully seek to become informed, as God guides you. He may call different people to different levels of information, but please, don’t be an ostrich and stick your head in the sand completely.

An important part of learning is hearing other perspectives. Next week, we will dive more into respectfully discussing politics with fellow believers. I believe it is possible and—while challenging—necessary.

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Photo by Daniel Gutko on Unsplash.