How should Christian teens vote in elections?

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How should Christian teens vote in elections?

When teens approach the age at which they can vote, many become confused or, worse, unconcerned about whom to vote for.

This article cannot tell you who to vote for, and no one should tell you that anyway. But it gives you guidelines that Christians should follow when voting in free elections.

Voting practices are different in different countries. They allow voting rights at different ages, and many countries do not allow free elections. This article is more for Christian teens in countries that allow free choice of more than one political candidate.

Why vote?

People have been formally voting in one way or another for 400 years. But freedom to vote as a right for all adults (one vote for each person, as in the USA, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Great Britain) is recent. In Great Britain, for example, university graduates and some business owners had two votes until 1948, which was unfair.

It is important for Christians to vote. It is just as important that they vote for candidates who will uphold God's teachings as given in the Bible. Blindly voting a certain way because your family has always voted that way should not guide your voting rights (unless they always vote for strong Christians).

Check what the candidates stand for

Some political groups (called political parties) attract more Christians than others do. The Republican Party in the US and the National Party in Australia probably fall into this category. But it is important to look at what the party stands for and what the individual candidate stands for before you vote. We will show you how to find out their beliefs in a moment.

It is foolish to vote for a party or candidate without checking what they believe about Christian values. You may be voting for an irresponsible drunk or an atheist who wants to impose huge taxes on churches or who wants to close Christian schools or other institutions.

A new party that started up in one country said it was going to protect the environment. Many Christians voted for it without checking the party's other beliefs (a party's beliefs are called its platform). If people had checked before voting for candidates in this party, they would have found the party's platform supported anti-Christian values such as abortion on demand, legalized drugs, and other social evils. Don't let this happen to your vote.

How to find out the beliefs of those who want your vote

When it gets near to the time for you to vote, try to discover the beliefs of the people who want your vote. You may be able to find this out in several ways (get a few of your friends together if you want to, and each take a different task from those below):

• Ask your church pastor if he knows the beliefs of the candidates, and who he thinks might be a good Christian choice, and why.
• Contact your local Right to Life association (check your phone directory or the internet for address and phone number) and ask for their advice. (They may not recommend a Christian, but their opposition to abortion means the people they recommend are usually morally good people.)
• If you have a local anti-pornography group, ask them for the names of candidates they recommend. (Again, they will only support morally sound people.)
• Ring a few of the strongest Bible-believing churches you can find in your area and ask if they have opinions on the candidates, or if they know which candidates support Christian and family values. (Some independent Baptist pastors and other strong Bible-believing pastors have long memories on what the candidates have done or not done to support Christian values. You may pick up some good voting tips from them.)
• Find out what each candidate's party stands for. If it supports legalized prostitution, abortion, drug-taking, and so on, don't vote for it. Contact the party's headquarters or look at its website to get a copy of its platform (its beliefs) so you know whether it opposes your own values.
• Write or ring each candidate's office to see if they will tell you the candidate's beliefs on abortion, pornography, creation science, and euthanasia. (You could also ask whether the candidate is a Christian.) Say you intend to vote only for a candidate who responds to your question (some anti-Christians may try to be sneaky by not responding). All the candidate has to tell you is “I am against abortion, pornography, and euthanasia, and I support creation science” for them to be a good possible candidate for you to vote for. It takes only a few seconds of their time.

What does the Bible say?

The Bible says Christians are to obey the government (Romans 13). But we must obey God first if there is an anti-Christ government. (Acts 5:29.) We are to pray for our political leaders and for those in authority (1 Timothy 2:1-3), and pay taxes. (Matthew 22:18-21.) Christians should also occupy positions in government, if we follow the Bible's example of Joseph becoming governor of Egypt (Genesis 42:6).

When the Apostles chose seven deacons in the early church they looked for men who were honest, filled with the Holy Spirit, and who had wisdom. (Acts 6:3-5.) How wonderful it would be if all our politicians had the same qualities. When you vote, try to get as close to this ideal as possible.

Top photo by River Bissonnette

Related topics:

• Teens who go to church get into less trouble.
• Peer pressure: Is it easier for Christians to resist?
• How to persuade and influence people!
• How Christian teens can find employment.
• Alcohol and Christian teens don't mix.

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