Aug. 18, 2024

Responsible. 2 (Voting) BTS, 18 August 24

Introduction -  This short lesson is an exhortation to vote in the upcoming general election.  In this country, the general populace is given a real amount of authority to select its civic leaders.  This authority carries, as authority always does, the responsibility to use it wisely.  Not every country in the world has this authority.  The Roman Empire of Jesus’ time had no such privilege extended to foreigners, so the  Bible has little to say about what we know as a popular election. The real responsibility for voting comes from this authority granted to every person in the country.  A father, elder, statesman, policeman, pastor, etc., has God-given authority and he must use it. God holds the Christian accountable to vote on the basis of this Scripture:

James 4:17 So for one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, for him it is sin.  

Secondly, who we vote for really matters to Him.  Here’s a phrase worth memorizing:  “God takes note for whom you vote”. The Bible record clearly indicates that when a righteous king was in place, the people prospered.  When the unrighteous ruled, the people groaned. One particular sin which caused God to resist, expel, and destroy individuals, cities, and nations was the killing of children.  In the Scripture, this is referred to as “causing your son or daughter to pass through the fire.”  It described the practice of killing children by burning them to death or purging them with fire before a ritual killing.  This was done for a selfish reason for the survivors, that being to gain the favor of the gods they believed in.  The Lord never required this, and called it an abomination.  King Ahaz did this horrible sin:

    2 Chronicles 28:3 Furthermore, he burned incense in the Valley of Ben-hinnom, and burned his sons             in fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom the LORD had driven out from the sons of             Israel. NAS

    Deuteronomy 18:10-12 There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his                 daughter pass through the fire, one who uses divination, a soothsayer, one who interprets omens, or a             sorcerer, 11or one who casts a spell, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who consults the dead. 12For             whoever does these things is detestable to the LORD; and because of these detestable things the             LORD your God is going to drive them out before you. NAS

There are at least 12 examples in the Bible of people, cities, and nations which committed this sin.  The Lord drove out them house, their lands, or destroyed the parties altogether.  This sin was the ancient equivalent of today’s abortion on demand.  Apart from the usual compassionate exceptions (life of the mother, rape, and incest) most abortions are done for selfish motives, that is, to avoid embarrassment, or the burden of raising a child.  The current day killing of children is no different in this regard than the ancient child-killing practices. If we elect leaders who support righteousness, things will go well for the United States. 

Proverbs 29:2 When the righteous flourish, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people groan.

One more dose of reality today comes from a Christian prophet, William Marrion Branham.  In 1933, Branham, who was the father of the charismatic movement and had conducted worldwide healing crusades, had a 7-part vision of events which would  be coming to pass in the United States before the 2nd Coming of Christ:

Vision One:
He saw in a vision that the dictator of Italy, Benito Mussolini, would invade Ethiopia and according to the voice speaking to him, Ethiopia “would fall at his (Mussolini’s) steps”. However, the voice continued and prophesied a dread end of the dictator, for he would have a horrible death and his own people would literally spit on him.

Vision Two:
The next vision indicated America would be drawn into a world war against Germany which would be headed up by the Austrian, Adolph Hitler. The voice predicted that this terrible war would overthrow Hitler and he would come to a mysterious “end”. In this vision he was shown the Siegfried line where  a great toll of American lives would be exacted, but Hitler would be defeated. 

Vision Three:
The third part of the vision showed that though there were three ISMS, Fascism, Nazism, Communism in the world: that the first two would come to nothing but that Communism would flourish. The voice admonished him to keep his eyes on “Russia” concerning future involvements, for Fascism and Nazism would end up in Communism.

Vision Four:
The fourth vision that appeared to him was one in which there was predicted to be tremendous technological advances right after the war. This was symbolized by an egg shaped car with a plastic bubble roof, going down beautiful highways completely under perfect remote control. There was no steering wheel in the car and the occupants of the car appeared to be playing a game like checkers.

Vision Five:
The fifth scene that appeared involved the womanhood of the world. In this scene there appeared the fast moral decay of women. Starting back when she received her so-called liberty to enter into worldly affairs by means of the vote, she soon began to wear clothes that were too revealing. she bobbed her hair and adopted the clothing of men. Finally the vision showed her all but stripped naked and she merely covered herself with a tiny apron about the size and shape of a fig leaf. With her womanhood so little valued a terrible decay of all flesh came upon the earth and with it perversion even as set forth by the Word of God.

Vision Six:
Then there arose in the United States a most beautiful woman clothed in splendor, and great power was given to her. She was lovely of feature but there was a hardness about her that defied description. Beautiful as she was, she was yet cruel, wicked and cunning. She dominated the land with her authority, she had complete power over the people. The vision indicated that either such a woman would literally arise or that this woman of the vision was merely a type of an organization which is scripturally characterized by a female. Though the voice did not speak out and reveal who she was, he felt in his heart that this woman represented the rising Roman Catholic Church, and he inserted in parenthesis beside at the end of this vision which he had written out, (perhaps the Catholic church).

Vision Seven:
The voice bade him look once more. As he turned and beheld, a great explosion rent the entire land, and left the land of America a smoldering, chaotic ruin. As far as the eye could see there was naught but craters, smoking piles of debris, and no humanity in sight.
The vision then faded away.

Conclusion - Brother Branham was a controversial figure, as is anyone who enters the prophetic ministry. He was not a theologian and had some questionable teachings about some of the peripheral doctrines accepted by present day Christians.  His prophetic visions, however, have had an impressive record of fulfillment.  He prophesied concerning the demise of Mussolini and Hitler 12 years before the two men died in the manner he had predicted just two days apart.  We would do well to accept the ministry of this prophet and use our authority for righteousness in the upcoming election.

Our elders clearly steer away from the endorsement of a party or candidate in this exhortation.  Politics is not the Christians’ business;  righteousness is!