Alistair Begg with Biblical Wisdom for Voting

Dear Friend,

I haven’t checked, but I will not be surprised to discover that the content of my letter written four years ago on the threshold of the US election was not dissimilar to this letter, particularly in seeking to declare, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns” (Rev. 19:6).

There are conflicting views on whether or not King George II actually stood up during the Hallelujah chorus at the London premiere of Handel’s Messiah in 1743. I like to think it was so and can envision the sovereign of Great Britain standing in recognition of Jesus, Messiah, King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and the audience following his example.

In 1820, Thomas Kelly, in his hymn “The Head That Once Was Crowned with Thorns,” wrote, “The highest place that heav’n affords is His by sovereign right.” This truth is foundational to the Christian’s view of everything, not least of all political views. Christianity insists that God is always above government, the ultimate authority to whom government must be held accountable.

This perspective is vastly different from the prevailing norms in a society that is increasingly hostile to biblical Christianity. It is imperative that we learn to discipline ourselves to view the world through the prism of God’s Word. In deciding how to vote, I have been helped by being reminded of this quote from Gresham Machen’s book The Christian Faith in the Modern World:

If we take the Bible as the Word of God, then the Bible becomes our standard of truth and of life. When we are asked whether we can support any kind of message or can engage in any course of conduct, what we do is simply to compare that message or that course of conduct with the Bible. If it agrees with the Bible, we can support it or follow it; if it does not agree with the Bible, we cannot support it or follow it, no matter what we may be told by other authorities to do.

So let me encourage you to vote in light of the clear teachings of the Bible and to keep in mind: “‘All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.’ And this word is the good news that was preached to you” (1 Peter 1:24–25).

When the election results are declared, and especially if the outcome is not as you had hoped and prayed, remind yourself that, although it doesn’t always seem so, the Lord our God the Almighty reigns!

Finding the providence of God a soft pillow, and with my love in the Lord Jesus,

Alistair