POLITICS   Ever since Nixon made his ‘silent majority’ speech decades ago, the drive to find those eligible voters has been intense.  Regardless of the latest book that has been published on the present administration’s perspective of the religious, many will not leave a party for it is close to what they believe. Yet this is not a new attitude nor is the viewpoint news.  The cultivating of the religious has its roots all the way back to Constantine’s day because it is a good strategy and makes one’s goal easier to obtain. How does this relate to the believer and the men who are called to lead them?  There really is nothing wrong with politics or an involvement in such in its basic form.  The act of governing needs men who are of solid character, wise, hold to truth and have the ability to shed light on the issues and not be afraid to actually solve the problems governments face. But once you get beyond that basic involvement then the problems arise that can threaten any politician’s beliefs and life, along with damaging the cause of Christ.  This is an important consideration that must be taken into account for the believer does not represent just the people who elected him but he also represents the one they believe in.  Thus what they do and how they respond to issues reflect on Christ’s goals and objectives causing many people to be turned off to His message. A politician who is also a believer cannot afford to make statements and promises he cannot or has no intention of keeping.  There is more at stake than a career in office. There are souls at risk.  So the politician must be careful how he proceeds for he has many constituents who do not accept his ways and they are watching closely to see what the politician will do. But this is not an article solely about being a religious politician, for there are other involvements in politics that affect the Christian life and testimony.  It is summed up in the question, ‘Can a believer be a part of the kingdom of God and a earthly political party at the same time?’  Even though scriptures does not talk directly about political participation, there are enough indirect references which provide direction and help answer that question. First there is what scripture says:  13Now for a recompence in the same, (I speak as unto my children,) be ye also enlarged.  14Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness?  15And what concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?  This does not apply solely to marriage but to all aspects of life and politics is no exception.  The believer must realize that the agenda of the political parties is not the same as the agenda for the kingdom of God.  One is striving for power and control over a city, state or country while the other is seeking to save men and women for eternity.  The two just aren’t compatible. Secondly, this type of union opens the door for confusion to enter.  If a believer says they believe in God but acts in the interest of the party then those observing will receive a mixed message and wonder how a person could do what they did in the name of the party while saying they believe something else. Thirdly, there is the issue of compromise. While trying to do the right thing a person in politics must make deals with those who do not believe the same as they do and must grant concessions which go against one’s own beliefs if they expect to receive support for their own projects.  Thus they are back at doing what the verse above says not to do. Things are not as cut and dried in politics as one would like and God does not compromise.  It is either His way or the wrong way.  Now this may sound simplistic and idealistic but throughout scripture there is not one instance where God compromised with evil.  He made concessions with those who followed Him, {i.e. Abraham and his prayers for Sodom and Gomorrah}. But at no time did He compromise with those who did not follow His commands. Some time ago the following statement was made when a person was questioned about his political membership in a certain political party; “I belong to this party because it is close to what I believe.”  This statement has many problems contained in its simple form  and they need to be examined even though there really is nothing wrong with being involved in politics  in its basic form.  What are those problems: First, such a statement indicates that the person is looking to be involved in secular activities in a secular manner. They think that to achieve anything for the cause of Christ, it must come through secular channels and not God’s.  A good example of this is the issue of ‘family values’.  That concept really has no roots in any particular scripture verse, it just sounds nice and is used as a rallying cry to gather people, who like the idea. To vote for the politician who makes it an issue of their campaign.  Secondly, such a statement implies that to be accepted as a good Christian, one must belong to the right political party even though its practices are not rooted in scripture but in its own desires for power and control over others.  It opens the door to dismissing those who do not belong to that particular party as liberal, backsliders or not even Christian at all.  Such thinking leads only to contention in the family of God and that is not the purpose of God or His kingdom. Thirdly, it indicates that the person is unwilling or unable to take a stand in Christ alone and diminishes the position of whom the believer is supposed to be.  Jesus said that His followers are called to be the light of the world, yet that cannot be done when a believer’s actions are compromised by the beliefs of the political party. Is it okay for people to be involved in politics?  The answer is yes but with qualifications.  It is important that the believer remember that they cannot serve two masters and being a member of a political party and the kingdom of God tries to do just that.  Either the believer is for the objective of the cause of Christ or they are for the agenda of the political party. The two are not the same nor are they compatible. Beliefs cannot be sacrificed for the common good, for the common good has very little to do with the kingdom of God and to sacrifice ones beliefs means they have turned God’s will aside for little gain in a temporary world. Once a believer has compromised what they have believed in, they have lost.  They have taken all that they have previously stated and thrown it out and have undermined any good they have done or will attempt to do. In looking at the example of Christ you will notice He never once compromised His message and the believer can do no less no matter how attractive the offer sounds or how much the believer will obtain for his constituents. The kingdom of God is not about temporal gains but eternal ones and once that compromise has been struck then those eternal goals are moot as people can dismiss him without impunity.  What you believe can no longer be respected nor listened to as they have been sold out for a bowl of porridge. That person who does that has become useless in the ways of eternal matters and has stated that what they believe is not important at all and it means very little. Another detracting factor about belonging to a political party and the proclaiming the message of the kingdom of God is --confusion.  One cannot proclaim that Jesus is the answer then turn around and use the law to implement the solution.  The observer only wonders what that politician really believes. Again,. To look at the example of Christ, not once did He say to use the law as the means to promote the kingdom of God or put in place His principles.  If He had then His sacrifice on the cross would not have been needed and His 3 years of instructions to His disciples could have been avoided, only to be replaced by the instruction on how to use the political system. The problem with using a political system to further the kingdom of God is that the government is different in each country and what is in place now is far different than what was in place 2000 years ago.  Such instruction would have been useless once the Roman Empire collapsed Thus, God and Jesus instituted a timeless method, which avoids many pitfalls that using the law provokes.  Being the light of the world does not mean that one has the authority to invoke his chosen morality upon another person.  It means that those who have chosen Christ’s ways must respect the God given ability granted to all men whether saved or unsaved—which is ‘freedom of choice’. If one wants to be in politics then they must remember that their options are limited to what the Bible says on how to conduct themselves.  They must adhere to the principle of right and wrong in the eyes of God and not man.