Believe it or not, it’s already that time again. The 2014 United States midterm elections will be held in less than 10 months. To think about how these decisions will help to shape the future of our country can be overwhelming. So, it is understandable that many people will take these elections very seriously.

If you have not already, you will begin to see many political signs and television ads promoting one candidate over another. You will also see those same ads tearing down opponents. Political viewpoints of both candidates and voters will be magnified. Republican and Democratic ideals will be center stage in most news programs. Many of these socially controversial topics could create a great deal of tension among co-workers, friends, and family members.

As children of God, we must ask ourselves a simple question: how should a Christian handle this onslaught of politics over the next few months? Last week, I read a blog post by Ben Giselbach (the preacher at Cedar Springs church of Christ in Louisville, KY, and son-in-law of Glenn and Cindy Colley). I want to share a small excerpt of it with you.

Things Christians Need to Stop Being Silly About (copied from http://www.plainsimplefaith.com)
Some discussions are simply nauseating to me. Why? Because when people take them too far (as they sometimes do), they become downright silly…I’m convinced that many Christians – because I’ve met far too many like this – are primarily Americans, and secondarily Christians. At one extreme, they are more concerned about being patriotic than they are about being faithful. At the other extreme, they are more concerned about social justice and wealth redistribution than they are about being disciples.

Now, it isn’t wrong to be concerned about the direction of our country and to have opinions about various issues. But when we get more heated about politics than we do spiritual matters, we need to reexamine ourselves.

I don’t go to church because I want to hear people talking about the evils of gun control, taxes, socialized medicine, and our president. I meet with the saints because I want to be encouraged “to love and good works” (Heb. 10:24) and to grow “in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Pet. 3:18).

Instead of judging those outside the Lord’s Church (1 Cor. 5:12), we need to be judging one another with righteous judgment (John 7:24). And if we are going to be preaching the “whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27), we need to teach the importance of respecting our governing authorities (Romans 13:1-17) and “rendering to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s” (Mark 12:13-17).

Yes, I love America. Yes, I’m deeply conservative in my political beliefs (I can make Ronald Reagan look like a liberal in some areas). But God is not an American, and we need to stop turning His Church into a political organization. Our citizenship is in heaven (Phil. 3:20).

To that, I say a hearty Amen! It is definitely not wrong to pay close attention to the political races. It is definitely not wrong to discuss the issues with those we are around, or to have opinions. However, we must remember that we are first and foremost Christians, not Republicans or Democrats or even Americans. Though we must live in this world, our home is in Heaven. Take care over the next several months to guard your thoughts and speech as the temptations will be abundant to place our Christian lives behind our political viewpoints.