Guest post by retired US Army officer Paul S. Gardiner
(Author’s Note: After the recent presidential debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, the voting guide offered here should help you decide which candidate to vote for.)
On September 8, 2024, Pastor Gary Hamrick of Cornerstone Chapel, Leesburg, Virginia, preached 2024 Election Sermon which is highly recommended to see in full here.
In his message, Pastor Hamrick stressed that Americans should vote for political candidates who are closest to biblical values in their policies and will promote them if elected to public office. Wisdom that conforms to biblical values promotes righteousness, is good for the nation, and honors God.
Before starting the main election message, Pastor Hamrick gave a brief historical lesson on how until relatively recently, Christianity and the Christian church have been intricately involved in the nation’s political process and governance before and after the establishment of the American constitutional republic.
There is no mention of “separation of church and state” in the US Constitution or other founding documents. Regarding religious freedom, the purpose of the First Amendment is to keep the government out of the business of the church, not the church out of the business of the government. **
Pastor Hamrick stated that Americans, especially Christians, must vote to help protect the freedoms that God has entrusted to the nation so that they are not lost. If many Christians decide not to vote, then evil will rush into this vacuum.
Pastor Hamrick presents three important voting factors that Americans should consider in the upcoming election:
1) God uses guilty and sinful people as public servants to carry out God’s plan for mankind. A quote from the Reverend, “The nation will not progress because of the righteousness of the leader, but it will progress because of the righteousness of the policies proposed by the leader”.
2 People should vote for policies, not personalities; the likeability of a particular candidate should not overshadow his/her wisdom that will live long after the candidate’s political service.
3) Voting is not just a right; it is a duty. Of the approximately 90 million Christians living in America, approximately 55 million do not vote or are not registered to vote! It is very important that this situation changes for the November 2024 elections.
Regarding choosing a policy based on personality, Pastor Hamrick stated that no political candidate is perfect. A candidate’s likability should not be the deciding factor in choosing him-what matters is that the candidate promotes the right policies for the good of the nation.
Pastor Hamrick listed seven important policy areas where voters should determine whether a particular candidate best aligns with the biblical values of the area:
1) judge. Because the true judge is the Bible (Isaiah 1:26), voters should ask the candidates who will choose the best judge who will make decisions based on biblical values such as the sanctity of life, parental rights, etc., and also respect guaranteed freedom in the US. Constitution?
2) national borders. Because national borders are biblical (Acts 17:26), voters should ask who is the best candidate to protect America’s national borders and national security?
3) Support for Israel. Because the support of Israel is biblical (Genesis 12:3), the voters must ask the best candidate to support the nation of Israel?
4) Biological type. Because biological sex is designed by God in the womb, voters should ask which candidate will best protect God’s design of biological sex verses the candidate who supports and encourages transgenderism and other alternative lifestyles?
5) Freedom of religion. Because freedom of religion and freedom of conscience are enshrined in the First Amendment, voters must ask which candidate will best protect America’s freedom of religion and conscience?
6) family. As parents’ rights are severely challenged in many countries and children are targeted by progressive nefarious agendas, voters should ask which candidate best supports the rights of parents to teach, train, and raise their children without interference hands of government officials?
7) alive. The question to ask is which candidate will best protect the life of the unborn? The current policy of the Democratic Party is to support abortion up to the moment of birth, while the policy of the emerging Republican Party is to support abortion up to 15 weeks of pregnancy in limited circumstances such as rape and incest.
Pastor Hamrick challenged America “- to stem the tide of evil in our country until Jesus returns.” He urged Americans to vote for the candidate who most closely represents biblical values in the policies they will support and have supported in the past. It’s the policies and actions that matter most, not what the candidate likes. In closing, Pastor Hamrick quoted Frederick Douglass: “I will join with anyone to do right and no one to do wrong.”
** See article here for additional background on early Christian involvement in America and here for a short 15-minute video by Kirk Cameron and historian Dr. Marshall Foster on the important historical message of the American National Monument to the Ancestors dedicated in 1889 in Plymouth, Massachusetts.
Paul S. Gardiner is a retired US Army officer, Vietnam veteran, and passionate about America. He is a graduate of the University of North Carolina, the University of Alabama, and the US Army War College.