Christians: Voting without Judging

It has been nearly a week since my last post and I left you all with a difficult question to ponder: "How can I reconcile my voting record with my faith and my treatment of others?" In other words, if I think homosexuality is a sin, would it not be wrong for me to vote to allow gay marriage at the polls. But if I vote to ban gay marriage, how can I look my gay friend in the face again? How can I treat him or her with compassion when it seems I have voted in such a judgmental way? I think the answer is simpler than it might first appear. I want to look at 3 things mentioned in another blog I came across by Tom Davis called Where do I vote? Election Day 2010:

The first thing to understand is that as a Christian one of our responsibilities is to vote according to our heart. If you do not feel right voting against gay marriage, then do not vote against it. If you do not feel right voting for gay marriage, do not vote for it. No one can judge you for voting according to what feels right to you. That does not mean that if it is a difficult issue, that you should not wrestle with it. Wrestling with difficult issues just shows how much you really want to do the right thing. But ultimately a country's laws are guided by its individual's personal beliefs and values which are largely shaped by their religious beliefs (see: Jim Daly's Voting an American right, a Christian responsibility)

The second thing is that you should pray about how you should vote. As a Christian we are not led purely by rational thinking (which is finite) or by our feelings (which can be faulty), but by God. Let the Spirit guide you in the right direction as far as your vote goes.

Finally, whatever the results of the election, know that God is in charge and that regardless of whether you won or lost, God is still watching over our country and ultimately will guide in the right direction.

The other issue is how can you remain non-judgmental when your vote seems judgmental. Forgive me for quoting this oft too used cliche, but it is true, "Love the sinner, not the sin." You can be loving toward homosexuals, you can be loving toward pro-choicers without giving up your beliefs. In this blog, we are talking about how we treat these individuals regardless of whether or not we think their behavior is a sin. What too often has happened is that Christians believe homosexuality is a sin and end up treating the homosexual like the spawn of satan; we want nothing to do with them. Jesus taught that regardless of the wrongfulness or rightfulness of a person's behavior, they should be treated with love and compassion. So do not be afraid to vote according to what your heart is telling you. But we should be cognizant of our behavior towards individuals we perceive as sinful and make sure we are not treating them judgmentally or with any sort of condemnation.
God bless.
-Brandon