"What Is it That Jesus Would Have Us Do?" by Andrea Huffman

There is a certain sentiment that I've heard lately (more and more often as the election approaches). Although the particular wording is a bit different each time, the general sentiment is this: No matter who wins the election, Jesus is Lord, and that's all that really matters.

Now, on the one hand, my response to this quote is a resounding yes. Our Savior is neither a Republican nor a Democrat, nor is he even an American. Our Triune God is so much bigger than our partisan politics. Jesus is the one by whom "all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible…he is before all things, and in him all things hold together." In the end, and in the now, Jesus is Lord of all.

That is truth. Full stop.

However, I must also confess that though I wholeheartedly agree with the concept's accuracy, I wholeheartedly dis-agree with the sentiment.

At its most shallow level, this sentiment suggests that the outcome of the Presidential election does not matter. If we follow this logic even further, it implies that nothing here on this earth matters. Our actions, our decisions, the way world events play out—taken to its full conclusion, this sentiment claims that none of these things matter because, in the end, Jesus is Lord.

That may sound holy and transcendent, but I think it is actually incredibly dangerous.

First, it separates the spirituality of Jesus from people's physical realities. Suggesting that "nothing else matters because Jesus is Lord" opposes the very way that Jesus lived: offering healing for the sick, food for the hungry, and acceptance of the outcast. Jesus treated our earthly realities with care, not with nonchalance.

It also shows a massive lack of compassion for our neighbors—those across the street or across the ocean who may be starving, unemployed, oppressed, exploited, or ravaged by war or disease. I don't think any of us would argue that because Jesus is Lord, their realities don't matter.

So I'd say this sentiment opposes our Savior and ignores our neighbor, but what makes it so incredibly dangerous is that it absolves Christians of all responsibility. If "Jesus is Lord, so nothing else matters," then we're saying that our actions don't matter. Our choices don't matter. We're saying that we do not have a role to play in the fulfillment of God's Kingdom, in God's will being done "on earth, as it is in heaven."

But scripture is clear that we do have a role to play. Micah tells us to act justly and love mercy. Matthew reminds us to feed the hungry and visit the sick and imprisoned. Paul urges the Gentile churches to remember the poor. Our faith says that the realities of this world do matter and that we have a role to play in helping others experience God while on this earth.

So our decisions matter. Our reactions matter. How we love our enemies matters. How we live each day matters.

With that being said, I would like to offer an alternative that we can carry with us to the voting booths. Rather than saying, "Jesus is Lord, so nothing else matters," let's say, "Jesus is Lord," and "What we do matters."

This sentiment is more important than any campaign slogan, will last longer than any president, and will serve as a guide for our living, whether it is days before, or any day after, the election.

Jesus is Lord, and what we do matters.

So: what is it that Jesus would have us do?