𝗪𝗔𝗥𝗠-𝗨𝗣
• Who is the most competitive person you know? Recall an instance explaining this.
• Tell us about a time when your sports team or group lost. How did you respond?
• What is the biggest contest or activity you have been involved in? What did it entail, and what was your part in it?


𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗗
“𝘉𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳, 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘮 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘥𝘰𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵. 𝘏𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘴; 𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘦𝘵𝘴 𝘶𝘱 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴; 𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘥𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸𝘭𝘦𝘥𝘨𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 . . .” 𝗗𝗔𝗡𝗜𝗘𝗟 𝟮:𝟮𝟬–𝟮𝟭

What would you do if and when the candidate you support loses the elections?

That is a fair question. By having democratic elections, we already know that part of the whole election process is the winning of one and the losing of others. This means that when the official election results come out a few days after the polls, many of us will be disappointed.

Nobody likes to lose. But if we ever want to maintain our democratic way of life, we all need to learn to be good losers. And Christians of all people should be the ones to model how to lose well. Our faith, after all, began with what looked like a big loss for Jesus’ followers. Crucifixion is not a typical way to start a new religion.

Because our ultimate allegiance belongs to King Jesus, Christians can be heavily involved in the elections and still not be shattered when their candidate loses. When Daniel saw and understood the dream of king Nebuchadnezzar, he praised God because he finally understood that the shuffling of kings and kingdoms are all guided by the providential hand of God. He may not have liked the politics of his day, but he knew that God’s purposes would remain.

This is the Christian posture we need to develop when we participate in elections. We pray for wisdom, we try to know the candidates’ platforms and track records, we campaign for our advocacies, we cast our vote with a clear conscience, and we leave the results to the sovereign will of God. When our candidate wins, we celebrate and get on with our lives. When our candidate loses, we feel the pain and move on as well. Today, let’s look at how we can do this.

𝟭. 𝗥𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗚𝗼𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘀𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝘂𝗽 𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀.
“𝘉𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳, 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘮 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘥𝘰𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵. 1𝘏𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘴; 𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘦𝘵𝘴 𝘶𝘱 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴; 𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘥𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸𝘭𝘦𝘥𝘨𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 . . .” 𝗗𝗔𝗡𝗜𝗘𝗟 𝟮:𝟮𝟬–𝟮𝟭

One good thing about the elections is that we have the privilege to be involved in something that God sovereignly does in our nation. While we participate by casting our votes, it is God who determines the final outcome, according to His designs and purposes. This is what Daniel understood when the Lord revealed to him Nebuchadnezzar’s dream.

Behind the human actions and political power plays is the God who sovereignly works His plans and purposes for our nation. This means that no election result is random. No one gets seated in a position of power by chance. God has a hand in the placement of people in the executive and legislative branches of our government. Even if we don’t exactly understand how the plan of God will play out, we can be sure that His plan is good and benevolent for all. As believers, why should we look to and trust God, not people? Why can we respond to events in our nation with assurance and peace?

𝟮. 𝗪𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀.
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. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘚𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘰𝘳 . . . 𝟭 𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗢𝗧𝗛𝗬 𝟮:𝟭–𝟯

Regardless of the election results, whether our candidates win or lose, the Bible still calls Christians to make all kinds of prayers for kings and other lesser rulers (1 Timothy 2:1–4). This admonition is shocking if you remember that Paul wrote this letter when Nero was the emperor of Rome. Though Nero was tyrannical, immoral, and a persecutor of the church, Paul still called Christians to pray for him and other rulers like him.

Our obligation to pray is not based on whether we like the president of our nation, but on the eternal word of God. What is your commitment to prayer for our national leaders? How do you pray for them?

𝟯. 𝗪𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗲𝘁𝘆.
𝘏𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮, 𝘴𝘢𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨, “𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘥𝘰𝘮 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘥. 𝘐𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘢 𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦, 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘪𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘪𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘴.” 𝗠𝗔𝗧𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗪 𝟭𝟯:𝟯𝟭–𝟯𝟮

If your candidate loses in the elections, it is tempting to be so frustrated, quit your civic involvement, and not care about politics anymore. But, our calling to be salt and light to the world is not dependent on politics. The Christian call to bear witness to Christ and the gospel has nothing to do with whoever is in power. History shows over and over again that the church continued to flourish even in evil regimes where the preaching of the gospel has been officially banned. While elections are important, how do the years between these elections matter? As followers of Christ, what do you think our involvement should be in nation building?


𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗟𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡
• How will you respond if things don’t go your way in your community and nation? What do you think will enable you to trust God’s sovereignty?
• What is your commitment in praying for our national leaders and building a good society?
• Think of a few friends who may need to hear this message. How can you encourage them to trust God this week?


𝗣𝗥𝗔𝗬𝗘𝗥
• Thank God for His sovereignty, that He is in control no matter what happens and no matter who leads your nation. Declare your trust in Him.
• Pray for wisdom, righteous leadership, and humility for your national leaders. Pray that they would know God and make Him known.
• Pray that the citizens of your nation will work towards building a good society, representing Christ, and making disciples.