Faith and Politics: Political disagreement

St. Paul

Sep 15

Political disagreement seems more like war—name calling, vilifying your enemy, and destroying the other side. How can we, as Jesus followers disagree better and more like Jesus?

SERIES INTRO

Today, we kick off our new series called “Faith and Politics”.

I don’t know about you, but whenever it’s a presidential election year, I feel overwhelmed.

I’m not well informed when it comes to politics even though there’s tons of information

about each candidate and their policies.

On top of that, it feels like everything is politicized

and polarized, and I feel like I have to be ready to defend myself at any time.

Apart what I feel, it’s been quite the election season.

Back in July, there was an assassination attempt on former President Trump.

And then a week after, we heard that President Biden was dropping out of the race with Vice President Harris stepping in as the new candidate.

These are things most of us have never experienced in our lifetime so there’s a lot going on.

With the first presidential debate occurring last week and election day less than 2 months away, we thought it’d be important to talk about how our faith informs our understanding of politics.

This series isn’t about who you should vote for or what issues you should care about.

We categorically reject the idea that a Christian should only vote one way.

Instead, this series will attempt to challenge four common political narratives in the American evangelical church.

These are:

What to do when you disagree
How to advance Christian causes
How to align yourself with political parties
What it looks like to love your country

Portions of American Christianity have specific answers to these questions, and many aren’t biblical.

So, I’m hoping to provide different answers, ones that might better reflect Jesus and build more of his kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven.

SERMON INTRO

Today, we talk about political division.

I going tell you something you already know.

Our country feels more divided than it’s ever been in our lifetimes.

And the data seems to support this.

The Pew Research Center in 2014 shows a widening gap between the median Democrat and the median Republican.

In other words, the ideological gap between parties is getting bigger.

This pattern has been confirmed in their research in 2017 and 2022.

At the same time, hatred of “the other side” has increased.

The same research from 2014 looked at those who viewed the other political party as a “threat to the nation’s well-being.”

Both parties show an increase in this oppositional hatred, especially in the last 20 years.

And unfortunately, Christians have not been immune to this political division.

Another research from Pew in 2014, the Religious Landscape Survey, noted that “40% of Christians leaned Democratic while 44% leaned Republican.”

However, in the 2020 election, almost 80% of white evangelicals voted Republican. However, among Catholics and Mainline Denominations, the vote was split.

And among non-white evangelicals, almost 60% voted Democrat.

Ask almost any pastor, and they’ll say that political divisions and anger have risen sharply in their congregations over the last ten years.

And I’m guessing you’ve seen this too.

You might have some relatives, Christian or otherwise, whose political views have gotten more extreme in the past decade.

And you don't know what to do with them at family parties or Thanksgiving.

Should you engage in debate, tolerate their rants, or avoid them altogether?

Love unconditionally

So, what are we to do with all this political division?

I want to propose an answer from our Scripture reading (John 17) and a sermon series from Pastor Andy Stanley:

Disagree politically. Love unconditionally. Pray for unity.

We already know what it looks like to disagree politically.

But what about to love unconditionally?

And what, exactly, is unconditional love?

So first, some basic contrasts:

Conditional love affirms people who agree with you.
Unconditional love affirms people who disagree with you.
Conditional love has rules and expectations.
Unconditional love loves regardless of words, beliefs, and political stance.
Conditional love is exclusive by name. It favors certain groups or ideologies.
Unconditional love is inclusive, where everyone is valued despite differences.

Here’s the interesting thing about unconditional love—you know when you receive it.

It’s a sense of peace, love, and acceptance that goes above and beyond.

If love is this good, why is it so rare in politics and hatred so common?

“The stakes are too high.”
“It’s the only way to get things done.”
“You’ll get rejected by your base.”
“The other side is evil. They deserve it.”

Love God. Love others.

Those are non-negotiable for the Christian.

You can choose whether to follow God, but you can’t choose how you follow God.

You must love.

Political hatred, mockery, name-calling, vilifying, sexism, and racism have no place and no justification for a Christian.

As believers, we must represent a different voice.

We must love unconditionally. But how? It’s so hard! That’s were John 17 comes in.

Take a look at verses 25-26.

25 Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. 26 I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.

These two little verses contain three secrets about how to have more unconditional love in your heart.

First, you must know that God sent Jesus.

He can’t just be a good moral teacher.

You have to believe him to be the sent Messiah Son of God.

Second, you must know God personally.

Not believe in him or call yourself a Christian.

You have to know Jesus and, therefore, know God.

Third, Jesus has to be in you.

This is way more than being associated with other believers or a church.

This is Jesus deeply integrated into your whole self.

You have a mindset that is like Jesus’.

You know what he desires and live accordingly to those desires.

With those three things, the love that God has for Jesus can live in you.

Do you find it hard to love other people?

Of course, we’re terrible at loving others.

God is great at it.

Jesus is great at it.

We are terrible at it. We’re selfish, wounded, prideful people.

We want people to love us, not the other way around.

But God loves generously.

He is abounding in love and faithfulness.

Jesus loves beautifully.

He is the embodiment of mercy and compassion.

And that love can be in you.

Trust me, if the love of Jesus isn’t in you, it ain’t coming out of you!

For unity

But we’re not done yet.

Disagree politically. Love unconditionally.

One more…Pray for unity.

Unity is critical for the body of Christ, especially when so many churches are divided over politics.

It is so important that, in Jesus’ prayer you heard earlier, he mentions it four times in three verses.

Let me read the first part of the passage again.

This is Jesus speaking.

20 “My prayer is not for [the disciples] alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be ONE, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be ONE as we are ONE— 23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete UNITY.

This was Jesus praying for us. He prayed for us, as the church, the body of Christ, to be one, just as he and the Father are one.

He prays that we are brought to complete unity.

That means that by ourselves, driven by our own politics, driven by our own self-interest, we will be divided.

But only in Christ, belonging to him, finding our identity in him, only then can we be united—united around a common set of kingdom values, not around a political platform. That is not what unites the Church, and it never will be. We are united around the cross of Christ.

Christian Republicans out there—can you be united with Christian Democrats?

Or can you only see them as the enemy—the radical left, liberal, anti-God, Marxists?

Christian Democrats out there—can you be united with Christian Republicans?

Or can you only see them as the enemy—the corrupt elites, racist, misogynistic xenophobes?

Can you put your Jesus filter ahead of your political filter and see others as beloved children of God.

You have to because the stakes are HUGE!

Here’s the next thing Jesus says in this passage:

Then (only when Christians are united, only when they are one)… Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

The reason Jesus prayed for oneness doesn’t really have anything to do with us.

He prayed for oneness because of what he wanted to do through us.

Think about that for a second.

If you are a Christian, the witness of God on earth is directly connected to your ability to be in relational unity with brothers and sisters in Christ, no matter how different they are from you.

So, when you judge, criticize, or mock other Christians, you are telling the world that God doesn’t love them.

When you argue online or share mocking political memes, you tell the world that Jesus was only human.

When you use your words to tear someone down instead of lifting them up, you damage the kingdom of God and undermine the mission of RiverLife.

Disagree politically. Love unconditionally. Pray for unity.

Conclusion

Here’s the conclusion in a nutshell.

Your candidates will win or lose based on how Americans vote in two months.

But the Church wins or loses on how we treat each other and love each other every single day.

That’s why we must not allow anything to divide us.

Church, we must put people over politics every time, without exception.

In John 17:22, Jesus says this

22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— 23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity.

Jesus prayed informing his disciples and us that he has given us his glory.

Glory is a word we use in church, but often don’t understand what it means.

The most basic understanding of glory is this.

Glory is God’s infinite beauty and greatness displayed to you and me.

I experience God’s glory whenever I see something so beautiful in nature like snow capped mountains or crystal blue water.

I can’t help but feel close to God because of its beauty knowing that there’s no way humans were able to create any of it.

In John 17:22, I believe the glory that Jesus gives us is the infinite beauty and greatness of being in an eternal, loving relationship with God, the Father, and the Holy Spirit.

Jesus comes to earth to dwell with humanity.

The Holy dwells with the unholy allowing humanity to experience a different kind of relationship.

A relationship that is beautiful and great beyond imagine.

A relationship of unconditional love, self-sacrifice for the well-being of others, and a supernatural hospitality that is above and beyond any hospitality that we’ve ever experienced.

We are gifted with the infinite beauty and greatness of being able to be in relationship with one another regardless of our differences so that we can experience unity.

Your political party’s ideals might sound great, but how does it compare to this?

Your preferred presidential candidate might have a more convincing campaign, but how does it compare to this?

If the Holy can be relationship with you, the unholy, we can definitely be in relationship with those who disagree with us politically.

May we disagree politically. Love unconditionally. Pray for unity.

Let’s pray.

Married Friends

Kong Moua