This is the third post in a series about what it does not mean to be a Christian. To read the first post in this series go here and go here for the second.

Being a Christian does not mean that we are a Republican, a Democrat or even an American. This sounds obvious but often Christians act as if one or more of these are true.

First things first
The best of political systems and politicians will fail us. Any nation carries out both just & unjust policies based on its own interests. This isn’t to say some political systems/politicians aren’t more just than others or that some nations don’t embody freedom more so than others. But we don’t look to those things – even the best of them – for our hope.

Justice
God loves justice. Now when I say justice don’t think in the Steven Seagall “wrong-doers will be punished” way – that misses the point. Think of justice as righting wrongs, equal opportunities for all and the absence of oppression. So much of the Bible deals with this brand of justice but somehow we often miss it.

Prophetic Voice
People have all kinds of ideas about what it means to be prophetic. But one clear Biblical function of the prophetic is to point out injustice of any kind from any source. When Christians align themselves with a political party it diminishes their prophetic effectiveness in all of society.

Christian Tested, Christian Approved
The problem is we tend to offer blanket endorsements of this party or candidate rather than deal with the injustice of the issue at hand. When you stand up and say that this candidate or party has nailed it and you mesh that with Christian values and the next week that party or person does something that absolutely does not line up with Biblical values – now what? Once we’ve slapped the Christian Approved label on a candidate/party/nation we’ve muzzled the prophetic voice & have no way to point out injustice and still be taken seriously.

Engage
I’m not saying don’t vote or engage in the political process- certainly engage and prayerfully vote your conscience, but retain your prophetic voice by understanding that all people/systems will fall short of the glory of God. Then be ready to speak to injustice wherever you find it and take action for justice & freedom as God defines it whenever you can.

As Christ followers, our hope is not in humans, political parties or government systems (although we are commanded to pray for them) – our hope is in Christ alone.