a call to prayer for our politicians

For those of you who have read my recent series of blogs you will know that I have been meditating upon and animated by the theme of spiritual sojourning. Our faith and hope should not be misplaced in the ability of men (or lack thereof), but in our Lord and saviour Jesus Christ.

Nevertheless, our sojourn in the world does not automatically entail our abandonment of it. Yet, how do we reconcile our sojourn with following the affairs of the world? Paul speaks metaphorically in 2 Corinthians 5 of living in our earthly "tent" (i.e. body) and yet longing to put off the earthly in favour of the heavenly (2 Cor 5:1-2). Here we see another example of Paul's holy discontentment that we saw in Philippians 3:10-11. What is Paul's resolution to this frustration of our eager anticipation of the resurrection body and eternal life? In v.9 Paul says;

So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. 

2 Corinthians 5:9

Our aim as Christians should be to please God. How do we please God in our sojourn? One way to please God relevant to the theme of this blog is by making intercessory prayers and supplications for our leaders (1 Tim 2:1-3). Paul says our prayers for all people, including those who rule over us are "good" and "pleasing" in the sight of our Lord (1 Tim 2:3). So if it pleases God to pray for our leaders, and the aim of our Christian walk is to please the Lord then we should pray for those in government.

Therefore, I am exhorting my fellow Christian brothers and sisters in the UK (and elsewhere) to heed the call to intercede for our government and politicians.

Pray with me for the Conservative Party leadership contest. Pray for the Labour Party that is in crisis following the result of the referendum. And pray for the general election that will inevitably take place once the new leader of the Conservative Party has been chosen.

How then should we pray for our government and politicians? We may be jaded or disillusioned with our politicians. We may even resent them and feel bitter towards them. When we feel so negatively towards our politicians it dampens our zeal to pray. Our instinct is not to pray but rather to complain and protest.

Yet, the Christians of the first century whom the New Testament was originally written to had no say or power in choosing their political leaders. And in fact historically, the early church came under enormous pressure and persecution under the Roman Empire. And still, despite such severe treatment - even to the point of shedding blood (Heb 12:4) and martyrdom - the church was still commanded to be in subjection to the ruling government (Rom 13:1).

That command to be in subjection to our rulers is still in effect today. Peter commands the church to be subject to rulers and governors (1 Peter 2:13-14) for this is the will of God (1 Peter 2:15). Peter goes so far as to say that as Christians we should honour everyone, including the emperor (1 Peter 2:17).

We don't have to agree with every policy, decision or belief of our politicians. But we must respect them. And that means praying for all our politicians not just for the political party we vote for.

So, are there any biblical principles we can use to guide us in how to pray and what to pray for? I have been giving this some thought, and I think that we can draw inspiration in our prayers from the qualifications for church elders in 1 Timothy 3:2-7. Now I know that we should not judge the moral character of those outside the church by the same standards for those inside the church (1 Cor 5:9-10); but nevertheless when it comes to appointing or electing leaders and prime ministers of our country, then I think many of these same qualifications apply.

Paul says elders should be the husband of one wife (1 Tim 3:2). Boris Johnson has been married twice, had three affairs and has fathered a love child with one of his mistresses. Therefore, even before Johnson pulled out of the leadership contest, his moral character made him a highly dubious candidate for such a position.

Speaking of the qualifications for deacons later in the same chapter, Paul says deacons should not be greedy for dishonest gain (1 Tim 3:8). While I wouldn't go so far as to say Michael Gove's leadership bid was entirely machiavellian as the conspiracy theory claims, it did reveal that he is a callous and utterly ruthless politician with his own political ambition and agenda. Gove has lost the trust of many Conservative MPs for his last minute sabotage of Johnson's campaign to be prime minister. Therefore, is Gove of the right moral character to be the next prime minister?

My point is not to character-assassinate every candidate for prime minister. My point is that we can use the qualifications for elders and deacons as principles for what to pray for in our leaders. We not only want, but need men and women of integrity, honesty, humility and valour. We need leaders who are qualified, experienced in government and the art of statecraft as well as moral character.

I am a meritocrat. I believe in meritocracy. I believe those who are most qualified for the position should be given the responsibility. My desire is to see every leader of every major political party in Britain be equally qualified to lead our country as potential prime ministers. This is how I will be interceding for our politicians and government in the days, weeks and months ahead.

Join with me in making prayers of supplication and intercession for our leaders. These are disturbing times and dark days. Our leaders need our prayers. Whether they recognize it or not, let alone publicly acknowledge it, our leaders need the Church to intercede for them. Let us not fail them, nor displease our Lord and God for whom we live to please.