Citizens of Two Kingdoms: Heading to the Polls as Followers of Christ
Oct 21, 2026 · @Brent
A Restless Nation Heads to the Polls
On Tuesday, November 3, Americans will go to the polls for the midterm elections. All 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 seats in the Senate are on the ballot, along with governors, state legislators, and local offices across the country.¹ The mood of the nation is anything but calm. A recent AP-NORC poll found that one-third of voters want "a complete and total upheaval" in the results, and nearly half more want "substantial change."² Frustration is not limited to one party. As one voter put it, "I don't care if you're a Democrat or Republican, we're all catching hell."²
Election seasons have a way of revealing what is really in our hearts. Our yard signs, our social media posts, town hall meetings, and our conversations at the coffee shop often say more about where we place our hope than our Sunday morning confessions do. So before believers head to the polls, it is worth asking a deeper question than "Who should I vote for?" The better question is this: "How does a citizen of heaven live as a citizen of earth?"
Our True Citizenship
The Apostle Paul wrote to the church at Philippi, a Roman colony whose residents were fiercely proud of their Roman citizenship. Yet he reminded those believers, "But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ" (Phil 3:20). Paul himself was a Roman citizen and was not afraid to use that status when it served the gospel (cf. Acts 22:25–29). But he never confused the two. His earthly citizenship was a tool; his heavenly citizenship was his identity.
The Apostle Peter makes the same point when he addresses believers as "sojourners and exiles" (1 Pet 2:11). The heroes of faith in Hebrews 11 "acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth" because "they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one" (Heb 11:13, 16). This does not mean Christians should be indifferent to what happens in America. It means that America is not our ultimate home, and no election can give us what only Christ's kingdom can.
That truth should bring a deep sense of peace to believers this fall. Whatever happens on November 3, Jesus Christ will still be on His throne on November 4.
Seeking the Welfare of the City
If heaven is our home, should believers simply stay out of politics altogether? Scripture says no. When the people of Judah were carried away to Babylon, a pagan nation that had destroyed their temple, the Lord did not tell them to withdraw. Through the prophet Jeremiah, He said, "But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare" (Jer 29:7). If God's people were called to seek the good of Babylon, how much more should we seek the good of the communities where He has placed us?
Paul teaches that governing authorities have been "instituted by God" and serve as "God's servant for your good" (Rom 13:1, 4). In ancient Rome, believers had no vote. In America, by God's providence, we do. That vote is a stewardship. Like every other gift God entrusts to us, we will give an account for how we use it (cf. Luke 12:48). Voting thoughtfully is one practical way to love our neighbors and seek the welfare of the city.
That means preparing to vote the way we would prepare for any other act of stewardship: with prayer, with study, and with Scripture open. Before you cast your ballot, ask which candidates and measures best uphold what God's Word clearly values, such as the sanctity of human life (Gen 1:27; Ps 139:13–16), justice for the poor and vulnerable (Prov 31:8–9; Mic 6:8), and the freedom to worship and proclaim the gospel (Acts 4:19–20). Few candidates will line up perfectly, and believers in good conscience may weigh these things differently. But the question for a follower of Christ is not "What does my party want?" It is "What does my Lord require?"
Put Not Your Trust in Princes
There is a danger on the other side, too. It is possible to care so much about an election that we begin to treat it as our salvation. The psalmist warns, "Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation. When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish" (Ps 146:3–4). He then points us to where our trust belongs: "Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God" (Ps 146:5).
When Daniel praised God for revealing the king's dream, he declared that God "changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings" (Dan 2:21). Nebuchadnezzar, the most powerful man in the world in his day, learned this the hard way, and he finally confessed that "the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will" (Dan 4:32). No candidate, party, or majority in Congress will ever be outside of God's sovereign rule. Proverbs puts it simply: "The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the LORD; he turns it wherever he will" (Prov 21:1).
If our peace rises and falls with poll numbers, it may be a sign that we have put our trust in princes. Believers should vote as people who care deeply about the outcome and rest completely in the One who governs the outcome.
Loving Your Neighbor Across Party Lines
Perhaps the greatest test for believers this election season is not the ballot itself, but how we treat people who mark theirs differently. Paul wrote to Timothy, "First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way" (1 Tim 2:1–2). Notice that Paul does not say "pray for the leaders you voted for." He says pray for all of them. And he wrote this under Nero, who was hardly a friend of the church.
James adds a word every believer with a smartphone needs to hear: "Let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God" (Jas 1:19–20). Angry posts and heated arguments rarely change a single mind, but they can easily damage a witness. The neighbor across the street with the other candidate's yard sign is still an image bearer of God (cf. Gen 1:27), and still someone for whom Christ died.
The church should be the one place in America where people who disagree on politics can still sit side by side in the pew, open the same Bible, and sing to the same Savior. That kind of unity is not weakness; it is a testimony. As Jesus said, "By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another" (John 13:35).
Heading to the Polls as Followers of Christ
So what does this look like between now and Election Day?
Pray before you vote. Ask the Lord for wisdom, and He has promised to give it generously (Jas 1:5). Pray for every candidate on your ballot by name, including the ones you will not vote for.
Prepare before you vote. Look up your sample ballot, read up on the candidates and any ballot measures, and weigh them against what Scripture values rather than what a campaign ad says.
Speak with grace. Let your speech "always be gracious, seasoned with salt" (Col 4:6), online and in person.
Rest after you vote. When the results come in, whether you are celebrating or disappointed, remember that your hope was never on the ballot.
So...where is your hope this election season? Is it in a party, a candidate, or a majority in Congress? Or is it in the King whose kingdom "shall never be destroyed" (Dan 2:44)? May we go to the polls as faithful citizens of this nation and, above all, as grateful citizens of heaven, seeking the welfare of our communities, praying for our leaders, and loving our neighbors, to the glory of God.
~Brent
Endnotes
Bipartisan Policy Center, "The 2026 Midterms: Key Dates and Events," 2026, bipartisanpolicy.org.
Associated Press, "Voters on Both Sides of the Aisle Want Change, New Poll on Eve of 2026 Midterm Finds," October 15, 2026, reporting an AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll, via FOX 4 News.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Comments