Stephen McDowell
President, Providence Foundation
November 2014 – We have the privilege in America to choose those who govern us. As Christians, it is also our duty to do so. Civil government is a divine institution of God. It exists to protect the life, liberty and property of citizens, enabling them to more effectively advance the kingdom of God. Civil leaders are servants of the people and of God, and are to govern under His higher authority. (See Romans 13:1-7; 1 Peter 2:13-14; Luke 22:25-26.)
For government to fulfill its divine mission, Christians must be involved in selecting good men and women to office. When Moses told the Israelites to select from among them those who would govern, he set forth a number of qualifications: “You shall select out of all the people, able men who fear God, men of truth, those who hate dishonest gain” (Exodus 18:21).
Fear God
The fear of God is an essential qualification for a godly official. What are such people like? Matthias Burnet explained in an election sermon in 1803 that they are “men acting under the belief and awe of God as their inspector and judge, to whom they consider themselves accountable for their conduct and whom they fear to offend.”
A man who fears God is not someone who simply professes faith, attends church or culturally embraces Christianity, but someone who has a reverential fear of the Almighty. “When the righteous rule, the people rejoice” (Prov. 29:2). The righteous have right standing with God; they fear the true and living God.
Christian character
A second qualification is morality. Corrupt and unprincipled rulers (e.g., Stalin, Hitler and Mao) have brought great misery to mankind, including loss of liberty and the downfall of nations. Socialist and progressive leaders of the 20th century (e.g., Wilson, FDR and Johnson) did much to steal the liberty and property of many. While the actions of these leaders flowed from a wrong worldview, they often displayed dishonest and immoral behavior.
A vital quality for leaders is honesty. Proverbs 29:12 says, “If a ruler pays attention to falsehood, all his ministers become wicked.” If one cannot keep personal vows or oaths, we cannot expect him to keep national vows.
Knowledge or intelligence (as man sees it) without honesty — a good genius with a bad heart — is worse than an ignorant, honest man because the evil genius could find more subtle ways to rob the people of their rights. Humility is a second great quality needed in leaders. Jesus taught that leaders are to be servants (Matthew 20:25-28).
Biblical worldview
Thinking biblically is of first importance because a leader will act and vote based upon how he thinks (Prov. 23:7). The best leaders will have a biblical worldview.
The tendency of fallen man is to assume too much power for himself, often justified for benevolent reasons. Jesus taught we are to render to Caesar (civil government) things under his jurisdiction (which are very limited) and to God the things that are God’s (Matthew 22:15-21).
Socialism is the golden calf of modern America and is a great threat to liberty and prosperity.
Discerning whether a candidate adheres to a biblical or socialistic philosophy of government comes down to the question, “Who controls the property and children in the nation?” Whoever controls the property controls the present; whoever controls the children controls the future. God has given this responsibility to the family, not the state.
Godly leaders begin with godly citizens. Reform begins in our house, but it will eventually be reflected in the state house and the White House. America needs godly transformation. Those who are transformed need to be eternally vigilant to have this reflected in our civil leaders.
The election of unprincipled men produces misery and tyranny, but godly rulers bring peace, prosperity, justice and rejoicing. If we fulfill our duty and place godly men in office, our future will be bright. 
Stephen McDowell is president and co-founder of Providence Foundation. He has trained people from 100 countries to apply biblical truth in all spheres of life. McDowell has authored and co-authored over 30 books and training courses including Liberating the Nations and America’s Providential History. To learn more visit providencefoundation.com.
Condensed from Stephen McDowell’s commentary at afa.net.
