The Elections, Churches, and Voter Turnout

This from David Barton and WallBuilders (http://www.wallbuilders.com):

October 20, 2008

In Matthew 22:21, Jesus commanded His followers: "Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and unto God the things that are God's."

Today, many mistakenly act as if the conjunction in this verse is "or" -- that is, "render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, or unto God the things that are God's," but to the contrary, the verse deliberately uses the conjunction "and" -- that is, "render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and unto God the things that are God's." Very simply, Christians are commanded to do their duty in both the spiritual and the civil arenas -- to fulfill a dual responsibility in both.

Christians in previous generations fully understood the scope of this command. For example, the Rev. Charles Finney, a minister and leader in America's Second Great Awakening, reminded Christians in his generation:

The Church must take right ground in regard to politics. . . . God cannot sustain this free and blessed country which we love and pray for unless the Church will take right ground. . . . God will bless or curse this nation according to the course Christians take in politics.

There are three weekends left before the November elections, and churches can do five things during that time to help ensure that Christians fulfill their civic responsibilities in this election.

1. Preach an ELECTION SERMON.
Election sermons began in America in 1633 and continued for the next 270 years. These sermons reminded Christians of their Biblical responsibilities in the civic arena, addressing the issues of the day from a Biblical perspective. As the Rev. Ebenezer Thayer noted in 1725, the preachers of Election Sermons were to offer thanks for the blessings received and also were to be "watchmen upon Jerusalem's wall, whose proper business is to decry dangers and give seasonable notice thereof -- to observe the sins of the times and the awful symptoms of God's departure." Dr. Timothy Stone's Election Sermon from 1792 can be read online.

2. Utilize these BULLETIN INSERTS.
We have a church bulletin insert with quotes from five famous American ministers on the importance of Christians voting according to Biblical standards and values. Obtain these bulletin inserts in packages of 50 or 100, and distribute them on Sunday, November 2 before the November 4th election. These bulletin inserts are offered at a 50% discount.

3. Make VOTERS GUIDES available to parishioners.
In the three weeks leading up to the election, make these guides available so that the people will be equipped to cast an informed vote either in early voting or in on site voting on Election Day. Those voters guides are available free on our website and are downloadable so that they can be printed in whatever quantities are needed by each church or group.

4. Show "YOUR VOTE COUNTS" DVD.
We have produced a 3-minute DVD, "Your Vote Counts," showing the historic role and importance of Christians voting. This DVD can be shown in church the Sunday preceding the election to encourage voter participation. (This video can be downloaded from our website or you can email us to order a copy of the DVD.)

5. All of the above activities are completely legal.
To assuage any concerns that pastors or parishioners might have, we not only have a letter from the IRS setting forth the freedoms of churches to engage in these activities but also the legal analyses of several national legal groups (including Liberty Legal Institute and Liberty Counsel) further affirming the right of churches to engage in these activities. In fact, these legal groups will represent free of charge any church that is attacked for engaging in these constitutionally protected activities.

Let's do all we can to be salt and light in the civil arena this election cycle, and these five things will help achieve that objective. (Feel free to forward this information on to other pastors, churches, or Biblical voters.)

God Bless!

David Barton

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