Election Day is tomorrow and our once great United States is facing civil unrest unseen since the 1960s Civil Rights era. 75% of Americans believe there will be violence in the streets tomorrow night, regardless of who wins.
These are troubling times. It appears as though we have forgotten how to treat one another.
Zechariah 8:16-17 says, “These are the things that ye shall do; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates: And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord.”
1. Speak truth to your neighbor.
Does it seems like this is common place anymore? Certainly not from politicians, media, “scholars,” and celebrities. Social media represents the “new neighborhood,” yet misinformation spreads like wildfire. I probably spend far too much time fact checking good, decent, Christian people who read a headline and share without context. Stop it. Speak truth.
2. Execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates.
When you tell the truth, peace follows. You can be trusted, and the confidence that you are not misleading people can be a port in the storm out there.
3. Do not think evil things about your neighbor.
This has been almost totally eradicated in our current climate. We stereotype and dehumanize one another based political affiliation. When we see a yard sign or bumper sticker, we assume the worst. We too often forget that we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against powers, principalities, and the rulers of the darkness of this world. It is not our neighbor, but the ideology that we disagree with. By conflating the two, we think evil things about the person.
4. Love no false oath.
We are a slogan society. Entire philosophies and world views are summed up in a meme or oath. “Make America Great Again,” “Hope and Change,” and “Build Back Better” are all false oaths. The talking point you read on Twitter or heard on CNN that gets repeated 100 times is a “false oath.” Our oath; our allegiance belongs to God. Not this country or a political party.
5. God hates points 3 and 4.
He hates when we think evil of our neighbors. He hates when we love a false oath. This should send chills down your spine. I know it does mine. We all get swept up in election fever, but GOD is the only one we should follow. His oath is the only one that matters.
“Love thy neighbor” is so fundamental in God’s kingdom that the Lord Jesus Christ called it the second great commandment in Mark 12:31.
Regardless of what happens tomorrow, Satan is our enemy. The Lord is our God. Nothing else matters.
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