Should You Let Your Religion Influence The Way You Vote?

Americans have been trained by progressives that religion and politics should not mix.  The left throws the phrase "separation of church and state" like a hand grenade at anyone who would dare use religion as a motive for a political stance, even though that phrase is not a part of the law (it was written in a personal letter by Thomas Jefferson, and has been grossly misinterpreted).  Should Christians vote their Biblical values, or is that the same thing as trying to force our religion on everyone?

Let me ask you this.  Do you ignore the Bible when it comes marriage or parenting?  Do you ignore the Bible when it comes to running your business or managing your finances?  Do you ignore the Bible when it comes to ethical and moral decisions?  Do you ignore the Bible when you coach a team or teach a class?  Of course not.  Why?  Because you believe that the Bible is true.  It is not just true for you, but for everyone.  And you know that when you live according to Biblical principles everyone will benefit.  So then why would you enter the political arena without the Bible?  Why would you ignore the Bible when it comes to political decisions?  The Bible is true, and when the government bases its laws on Biblical principles, then everyone will benefit.

Don't misunderstand.  As Christians we do not want a theocracy.  We do not want to use the power of the government to establish a religion -- i.e. to force people to convert to Christianity.  Genuine religion must be freely chosen.  But allowing the Bible to inform and influence your political decisions is not the same as establishing a religion.

Consider a Christian football coach who has decided to run his team according to Biblical values.  He instills in his staff and players Christian values like forgiveness, the Golden Rule, honesty, humility, love, servanthood, respect, compassion, and he teaches the evil of things like gossip, laziness, irresponsibility, jealousy, and stealing.  At the same time, the coach does not recruit or hire based on religion, he does not force his team to believe in God, and he does not force his team to pray or go to church.  In other words, even though the coach is building his team on a foundation of Biblical principles, he is not forcing his religion on others.  In the same way, allowing the Bible to influence your political decisions is not the same as trying to "establish a religion," or trying to force everyone to convert to Christianity.

Every law is either just or unjust.  In other words, not all laws are just.  Sometimes the government gets it wrong.  Sometimes the government legalizes injustice, such as abortion, slavery, and wealth redistribution.  And at times the government prohibits just behavior, such as prohibiting adoption agencies from only placing children in homes with a married mom and dad, or prohibiting Christian medical professionals from refusing to participate in abortions or sex-change operations.  And when the government gets it wrong, it leads to immeasurable human suffering.  How can we make good political decisions?  How can we determine whether a law is just or not?  This is just one of the ways that the Bible is an invaluable resource.  The Bible is God's revelation of moral truth.  Unbelievers do not have to believe it or utilize it, but as Christians we know that it holds the truth, and when we conform the civil law to God's law, humanity will flourish; on the flip side, when civil law contradicts God's law, then society will suffer.  Therefore as Christians we must hide God's word in our hearts and then carry it with us into the political arena, or we are like soldiers marching into battle without swords.