Jeremy L. Berg

I just left the ballot box and have officially exercised my democratic right and privilege in the 2024 election. As a follower and representative of Jesus, I wish His Kingdom values and the Fruit of the Spirit were on the ballot with little ovals to fill in. But they are not. Or are they?

Christians are supposed to breathe in the oxygen of the Holy Spirit and exhale behaviors and allegiances that demonstrate we are “in step with the Spirit.” Should not our vote be somehow, someway, and to some degree “in step with the Spirit” as well? Galatians 5 says:

So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh [the unchecked sin-nature] desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want… Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

Galatians delineates two drastically different kinds of people and character: 1) those who are driven along by the unchecked impulses of “the flesh” or sinful nature, and 2) those whose words, attitudes and behaviors are aligned with and animated by the same Spirit that animated Jesus. We are either being carried along by the gentle currents of the Spirit, or being driven along by the churning waters of darker sub currents. “By their fruit you will know them” (Jesus).

So, we’ve endured all the TV ads of the politicians. Our recycling bin is filled with political postcards from our mailbox. We watched the debates and tried to sift through the unbalanced media coverage. Let’s now let the New Testament weigh in and have a word before we cast our votes. Which “spirit” and character is most on display in the people and movements, parties and agendas we are considering voting for? Here’s a stark choice to consider according to Scripture:

The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factionsand envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. 

According to Scripture, Christians — ambassadors for Christ in this land — should distance ourselves from people and powers characterized by hateful speech, sexual immorality, and idolatry (e.g., sycophancy). Am I supporting a candidate who is prone to petty jealousy, fits of rage, or selfish ambition? Am I casting a vote for a unifier or someone who will likely cause more dissension and deepen the division in our country? The New Testament is pressing this question, not me.

Shouldn’t Bible-reading Christians lean toward candidates who most display the character we as a Church are called to represent in our civic engagement? I wish the following qualities were on the ballot with little ovals to fill in next to them

“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Gal. 5:22-23).

Is it silly or naive to dream of a day when we once again have people of virtue and godly character in places of power and influence in our land? Is it not the gut instinct of a follower of the One who perfectly embodied the fruit of the Spirit and sent us into the world to imitate Him, to desire candidates who have the faintest aroma of some of these virtues? Should Jesus-followers not entertain some of the following questions in the ballot box?

Which candidates seem motivated by love for neighbors and opponents alike?

Which candidate is more full of joy? 

Which candidates are more capable of making peace more than getting revenge? 

Which candidates demonstrate patience with those they differ with? 

Which candidates show more kindness, goodness and faithfulness? 

Which candidates display more gentleness toward others—supporters and those on the other side?

Which candidates show more self-control under pressure, and which candidates seem to lack self-control? 

Jesus came down his own golden escalator from Heaven 2,000 years ago and gave his most comprehensive campaign rally speech in his Sermon the Mount in Matthew 5-7. This continues to be his Kingdom Agenda for Kingdom disciples. He wants his followers to vote everyday for people, movements, causes and candidates that most align with the values and spirit of His Kingdom. Jesus’ rousing closing speech should be so deeply engrained in our hearts and spirit that we can’t help but ask questions such as these in the ballot box:

Which candidates will prioritize the meek, the poor, the marginalized (Matt 5:3-4)? Which candidates will cater to the  most powerful and most benefit the wealthy? 

Which candidates seem more merciful, pure in heart (i.e., shows integrity) and capable of peacemaking (Matt 5:7-9)?

Which candidate will be most hospitable and compassionate toward the stranger and foreigners in our land (Matt 25)? According to Jesus, our treatment of the “stranger” could partly determine our eternal fate (see Matt 25:43).

Which candidates are more likely to take the higher road and “turn the other cheek” when crossed (Matt 5:39) and leave vengeance to God (Rom 12:19)? Which candidates are driven by and promising vengeance and retribution? 

Which candidates’ speech is more “full of grace, seasoned with salt” (Col. 4:6) knowing that “Death and life are in the power of the tongue” (Prov. 18:31)?

Which candidates are more committed to “laying aside falsehood and speaking truth” (Eph 4:25) knowing that “on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak” (Matt 12:36)? 

Sadly, this election cycle has focused far too little on policy and has given us poor choices in candidates. We can vigorously debate (and disagree on) which candidate and which party’s policies will be best for this temporary, earthly nation we inhabit. But Christians have a higher calling and a higher allegiance. As we live as “strangers and exiles” in this earthly kingdom, our primary calling as the Church—Christ’s Body on earth—is to put on display the character and ethics of Jesus’ upside-down Kingdom that will someday come in full. 

On Judgment Day, God will not ask us, “Did you try to make America great again by voting for this or that candidate?” Rather, He will look us up and down and with burning fire in his eyes ask, “Did you imitate my Son Jesus well and put on display my Kingdom values during your temporary sojourn on earth?” Put more pointedly: Did we embrace a Jesus-shaped kingdom and bow our knee to a crucified King, or did we get coopted by a Caesar-styled politics and clamor for another Barabbas to do our dirty work?

Paraphrasing Jesus’ words, my mantra and challenge to fellow Christians has been and continues to be: What does it profit the church if its gains all the political power in the world, but forfeits the soul of it’s witness in the process? I’m called to put Jesus on display in this nation; I must at all costs avoid setting Jesus aside for the sake of political gain.

I encourage everyone to go and vote. Vote your conscience. Don’t be motivated by fear. Be motivated by love for your neighbors (and remember Jesus defined ‘neighbor’ as the “other” you are tempted to loathe and dismiss). This election I decided to place character on the ballot, and while I know none of the candidates I voted for have love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness and self-control in spades, I could not vote for anyone who seems incapable or unwilling to display any of these virtues. And I am even more hesitant to make someone who checks off nearly all of the vices in the Galatians 5 list the next leader of the free world.

“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8).