did Jesus vote?

Jesus didn't live in a democracy so no he really didn't vote. Doesn't mean that we shouldn't and it doesn't mean he didn't have something to say about politics.

I suffer from what I like to call the Reagan/ Clinton effect when it comes to politics. In my formative years Reagan was president and I learned that presidents are figure heads (like actors on TV) and their is a world of people behind them pulling the strings. Clinton was president in my college years and from him I learned that the figure head gets to define the world pretty much the way he sees fit and it is mostly about benefiting himself. This left me jaded.

I love being jaded, because it helps me understand the GenXer side of myself. It allows me to understand how this world is not completely for me and how I am really stuck in between two realities. There is the physical world in which I must work through politics and their is the spiritual world that has the greatest political solution of all time.

Three Things I Learn from Matt. 22:15-22

I. Jesus cares about Politics and I need to as well.

Jesus says his famous line, "Render Unto Caesar the things that are Caesar". Notice he doesn't say, "It's no big deal do what you want" or "Don't bother me I just care about me" or "Run, flee from all things political." Instead he is saying pay attention. Examine the currency, look at the issue, think through it, and determine the best way to handle it. Don't put me in a box and don't put yourself in a box either. You are not a Democrat, Republican or Tea Party Member. You are a free thinker who needs to understand the gospel implications of the issues before you. Don't run and hide like the Essenes, don't wage war like the Zealots, and don't conform like the Pharisees and Herodians. Think Gospel-mindedness!

2. Jesus wants our politics to focus on driving us towards the gospel.

Jesus talks about image (not politics), people are God's coin. God doesn't need silver, gold, or platinum to reveal his likeness because we are his likeness. For Jesus, politics is just another distraction that can rip us away from the Gospel. Instead he wants politics to drive us towards the gospel as we seek him to meet our needs, and the needs of the community.

Questions I think about:

What does it look like for us to be involved in politics (voting, running for office, getting involved), not so much the way Jesus wants us to vote, or the way that will benefit us the most, but in a way that will make us lean more on His understanding? What does it look like for us to move away from our familial political background and shift a little bit in one direction or another? What does it look like to experience someone else's politic and see how Christ might work through it? Everyone's politic has brokenness mixed in with goodness, if you can't agree with this then their is a hardness in your heart that might need to be moved.