No, I Won’t Be Voting for Romney…

Posted by Susan On April 18, 2012 ADD COMMENTS

If my doctor were to tell me that peanut butter will give me anaphylactic shock, and that shrimp will likely cause me to asphyxiate, wouldn’t I be a fool to have lunch with a friend who asked, “What’ll it be: PBJ, or shrimp salad?”

It isn’t that hard to figure out– yet that’s exactly what’s going on in the politcal climate today. I find it stunning that there are currently so many voters urging the rest of us to throw in the towel and vote the “lesser of two evils” because the highest priority in this presidential election is “anybody but Obama.” We’re scoffed at, criticized for “throwing away your vote” if we hold out for a candidate we truly believe is the right choice– even when the media keeps telling us that candidate “doesn’t have a chance.” Romney may be bad, they say, but he’s not nearly as bad as Obama– so we’re pressured to support “the most likely candidate who can beat Obama,” even if it’s somebody we don’t like or believe is even a viable candidate! Like in our food choice, apparently our option is death… or slower death. The “lesser of two evils” is something we’re supposed to roll over and be satisfied with.

Well, I’m sorry guys, I’m not rolling over. I want far better than that for my grandkids.

To compromise like that would be to compromise obedience to God. No where is a Christian ever commanded to second-guess God and act on His behalf in order to try to manipulate the outcome of a great big political chess game. As Christians, we are commanded to be obedient to the dictates of our conscience under the authority of God’s Word. Period. In the civil sphere, that means our responsibility as American citizens is to vote into office the “representatives” that we believe will best “represent” God’s authority over civil issues. Those representatives must adhere to a proper understanding of the role of civil government.

Believe it or not, the cross-section of an egg gives me the simplest, clearest understanding of how government ought to properly function. The center of the egg–the yolk– represents to me the very first sphere of government, the “home.” In reality, that’s the greatest area of governmental responsibility. It’s where the most fundamental ideas of “government”– defined by Webster as “direction, control, regulation, restraint”– are taught and learned. That’s where the individual learns and practices the primary art of “self-government” (or “self-control”) so that all the other forms of government can work properly.

All the basic skills of interrelationships are learned in the home. Under the watchful eye and correction of the parent, the character of the individual is formed– whether it’s the self-controlled character that will properly sustain a republic, or by neglect producing a character that is self-absorbed, greedy and dependent, bankrupting the system. The home ought to be the very first place of “government” where harmful behavior is punished and stopped.

The “white” of the egg represents to me the government of the church. The church is a proper and legitimate governmental sphere, and it carries a great responsibility as the place where moral and spiritual instruction is given in the development of self-governing character that can properly sustain a republic. This is the place where God’s Law ought to be taught as the highest authority to which all others conform. (After all, wouldn’t our nation be so much healthier if we lived by “…Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not commit adultery…”)

Finally, the last sphere of government is civil government– the “shell” of the egg. Like the thinness of the shell, civil government ought to have the very smallest amount of responsibility of all the governmental spheres. Yet like the hardness of the shell, the primary role of civil government ought to be “protection”– protecting the individual liberties and the rights of the individual to govern himself. It ought to be praising those who do well and, of course, punishing those who refuse to exercise self-government (i.e. self-control) and therefore violate the rights of others.

Unfortunately, only one presidential candidate– Ron Paul– has the proper understanding of the role of civil government, predicated upon what has historically made America great: protecting the art and the practice of individual self-government.

Quite frankly, the “front-runner” Romney’s ideology is just not that much different from Obama’s. They both propogate the idea of Big Government, and they both actively pursue the idea of civil government “control.” They both adhere to a warped idea of the executive office as that of “king.” And they both have a consistent record of inconsistency: of flip-flopping on a vast number of issues. Therefore, I won’t vote for either of them.

If in this election Obama wins a second term, it won’t be because I “threw away my vote” by insisting on voting for (or “writing in,” if necessary) the candidate I believe is the most qualified– the only one who understands the role of civil government. If Obama wins a second term, it will be because God has not finished judging this nation for its lack of self-government (i.e. self-control) and the subsequent sin and immorality– and for dishonoring Him and breaking His commands. If Obama wins a second term, it will be clear evidence that the heart of the American people is still far, far from where it needs to be. As a nation, we’ll get what we deserve. It’s not a time for us to try to manipulate voting strategy. Clearly, it’s time to repent. Turn around. Change.

Yes, America needs change. But the right kind of “change” won’t come from a top-down, power-hungry “messiah.” It’ll only come from the bottom up. It’s time for a change in the hearts and minds of individuals, and a turn away from Big Government to individual self-government under God. Maybe then we’ll deserve more than the “likely front-runners” being offered. We don’t have to settle for peanut butter and jelly or shrimp salad.

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