“Jesus is Lord.” This is no mere bumper sticker expression for the Christian faith. It’s a declaration that Jesus was no mere man, but that He is the Lord God come to earth. It’s a declaration that Jesus, and the things Jesus stands for, rules over all people, all places, and all things. This makes “Jesus is Lord” inherently a political declaration.

The church is a political institution, in so far as we are a community of people who embody and promote the politics of King Jesus. We will at times align with different nations and the political parties within those nations while we are on this earth. But it should always be clear that we are within those nations and those parties as citizens, and prophetic ambassadors from another kingdom. And as citizens and prophetic ambassadors of that kingdom, we must always seek, as best we can, to speak and act and vote on behalf of the Lord of that kingdom.

Sadly, the American church today has strayed away from this calling. We have allowed division and separation to be the norm. We have succumbed to the idolatrous temptation of power and status, and we have allowed our voice to be co-opted by the political powers of our day. We have given the impression that our ultimate hope and salvation comes through “winning” in the political arena, no matter the cost.

In the “How to Vote” sermon series at Roosevelt, I want to rally us back to the kingdom of Jesus. I believe “Jesus is Lord” is able to unite Christians together, even in an election year. This doesn’t solve all our political differences. There are things that we need to address among us, and we will need all the fruit of the Spirit to do so well. But it does give us the common language and values we need to work out those differences and still be pointed in the same direction.