Kingdom Voting (Part 7): Differences in View of Representatives

The differences between the election districts and processes for representatives in the House and Senate influence both chambers’ compositions and operations. Those are two reasons that representative systems of government are imperfect. However, differences in the way constituents view their elected representatives are a third reason for this imperfection. 

Conservatives tend to see legislators, and governments in general, as necessary evils that must be carefully monitored to avoid corruption. They tend to support term limits, and would prefer that nobody in Congress is ever there for longer than six years. Alternatively, liberals tend to see legislators as public servants performing an act of ministry for their fellow man. They believe public service is a high calling, and when they find someone who is able and willing to engage in it, they will continue to support them in that endeavor. When looking at someone who has spent a lifetime in politics, conservatives tend to be disgusted by graft and government corruption, while liberals venerate an honorable elder statesman who has selflessly served the community for decades. 

In practice, this means that liberals want to send the same people to Congress for decades while conservatives want single-term representation. Who do you suppose best understands the way the system works? Is it those who have been there for decades or those who are just arriving for the first time? Liberals are deeply embedded in the legislative system, regardless of whether they are in the majority, not because of any ill-gotten gains, but because of each side’s attitudes toward legislative longevity. 

God expects you to exercise your earthly dominion in the governmental sphere. This means understanding, working within, and transforming political systems as necessary. However, many conservative Christians forfeit their opportunity to engage in government because of their disdain for the system. They cede territory to secular leftists because they dislike the conditions under which they must operate to take ground for the kingdom. They forget that Daniel spent decades leading in the Babylonian system for God’s glory. 

Earthly government was ordained by God, and the people of God have limited their participation to a minimal level in the modern era. For too long, conservative Christians have championed term limits for their own representatives and unknowingly ceded power to those hostile to their interests. We must do better. We must find and elect godly representatives who are willing to stand in the gap and serve for decades. Then, pray for them and encourage them as they serve the kingdom in that capacity. Anything less forfeits kingdom interests, and that only makes things more difficult for future generations.