Brothers, we are not partisan cheerleaders.

I know many faithful brothers and sisters who believe voting for the candidate better than Hillary is a good practical strategy. Now, I think they're wrong and history shows this. Every generation of political "conservatives" is less conservative. Every lesser evil is more evil than the last lesser evil. Supreme Court nominations from "prolife" presidents haven't done anything and have even increased statism. What objective evidence do we have that voting for the lesser evil works out in the long term? We need to stop thinking in four-year increments and begin to think generationally. What looks practical is often detrimental and a long term vision requires long term strategies.

With that said, although I believe these brothers are wrong, I think they're generally well-intentioned and haven't necessarily bought into statism. I'm very close friends with some of them, respect them, and love them. I am, today, not speaking to the discerning hesitant Trump voter. I am speaking to the cheerleader.

There is a huge ethical and theological difference between holding our nose and reluctantly voting for an adulterous New York Democrat turned Republican and gleefully championing the cause of the impeached Republican president. I understand and I truly sympathize if some Christians are trying to be practical (though I don’t buy that it is actually practical), but we should be on guard against buying into the statist system so much that we turn into undiscerning fans of amoral politicians. Are we unwilling to call evil evil because some other candidates might be a moderately darker shade of evil?

One fine example of this is seen by observing the loyal lapdogs of Trump during the impeachment scandal. Yes, the charges are weak and the Democrats are being, well, Democrats. Obviously this is a political move and obviously the Democrats’ case is weak. But to claim to be a theonomist (especially a published spokesperson of theonomy) while at the same time claiming that Trump has not committed any crimes is astonishing and disgusting.

How many nations who have never attacked the USA must we occupy and bomb before these so-called "theonomists" think that Trump has committed a crime according to the Law Word of God (Exodus 20:13)? How many untried Image Bearers of God must be tortured (Matthew 18:34, Acts 16, Jeremiah 20:2; 38:6)? How many charities must be defrauded (Micah 2:1-3, Proverbs 22:16-17)? How many billions of dollars must be plundered from citizens (Jeremiah 30:16, Matthew 11:18-20)? How much of our hard-earned money will be watered down by unjust weights and measures (Deuteronomy 25:15, Proverbs 11:1)? How many people must be kidnapped and placed into cages like animals (Exodus 21:16, Deuteronomy 10:19)? How many abortions does our nation need to fund and allow (Psalm 139:13-16, Jeremiah 1:5, Job 31:15)? For those opposed to the Cherem principle, how many adulterous affairs and unrighteous divorces must there be before we see his actions as criminal (Leviticus 20:10)? Or are those laws only good for homosexuals?

And these are but a few examples. Again, the Democrats’ case is weak, but it is only weak according to the sham that is our current political system. Trump may not be guilty of the Democrat’s charges, but he is guilty of far worse.

And yet some theonomists judge Trump not only according to man's law, but they judge him according to the Hillary Clinton Standard or the Bernie Sanders Standard. We judge by a worldly political metric, and not by God’s Law. Never God's standard. As long as he's not the most evil, we cheer him on and parade about like a bunch of mindless sycophantic fanboys. I pray, brothers, let us not grade on a Hillary curve. He is guilty of capital crimes according to the Law Word of God. Not just Trump, but many politicians, military leaders, and yes, even former presidents. Yet, Trump does not become less guilty because others are also guilty. That is not a game Christians play. The Democrats are hypocrites, but that doesn’t mean we get to be too.  

In short, there's a big difference between reluctantly trying to be strategic and prostituting out the name of Christ and Reconstructionist ideals to whoremongering and warmongering reprobates in high office. We can judge the wicked Godlessness of the left without becoming passive cheerleaders of a slightly less Godless right. God's standards do not change when the Democrats become worse than usual and the Republicans fill the gap and become like the Democrats of ten years ago. We are not called to play political games; we are called to tell the truth, no matter which side of the aisle someone is on. Brothers, we are not called to be partisan cheerleaders. Put down the pom-poms.

So Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking for a king from him. He said, “These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen and to run before his chariots. And he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his servants. He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his servants. He will take your male servants and female servants and the best of your young men and your donkeys, and put them to his work. He will take the tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves. And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the Lord will not answer you in that day.” - 1 Samuel 8:10-18