Evangelical Christians, please vote: The future of the US-Israel alliance is on the line

Israelis went to the polls in extraordinary numbers last week. Turnout reached 77.7% – a historic high by Israeli standards and a figure that would be almost unimaginable by recent American standards.

Now, as Americans prepare to vote in the midterm elections, I have a question for my fellow Evangelical Christians: Will we show up?

The stakes are enormous.

The future of the U.S.-Israel alliance is being debated in ways that would have been difficult to imagine only a few years ago.

Political voices openly hostile to Israel are growing louder. Some are calling for Washington to reduce or end its support for the Jewish state.

For Christians who take the Bible seriously, this matters. Genesis 12 teaches us that God takes seriously how nations treat Israel and the Jewish people.

That does not mean supporting every decision made by the Israeli government.

It does mean that our attitude toward Israel should be rooted in love, blessing and a recognition of God's enduring purposes for the Jewish people.

But Israel is hardly the only issue at stake.

Questions involving the sanctity of human life, marriage and family, religious freedom, sexuality, parental rights, economic freedom and the proper role of government are being debated throughout American society.

Christians will not agree on every policy or every candidate. Nor should we pretend that any politician is perfect. I have never met one who is.

But disagreement and disappointment are not reasons to disengage.

Lynn and I recently traveled back to the United States, where, as American citizens, we cast our ballots in Virginia. We consider voting a tremendous privilege.

Throughout most of human history, ordinary people have lacked the freedom to choose their leaders or peacefully influence the direction of their country

Why would we take that freedom for granted?

Scripture teaches that God is sovereign. Daniel 2 reminds us that it is ultimately God who raises up kings and removes them.

Yet God's sovereignty does not eliminate human responsibility.

We have been given a voice. We should use it.

I am not telling you whom to vote for. I am asking you to prayerfully examine the candidates, understand what they actually believe, compare their positions with the biblical convictions you hold dear, and vote according to your conscience.

The future of America's relationship with Israel matters. So do the many profound moral and cultural questions confronting the country.

Christians should be praying for America, praying for Israel, praying for those seeking public office and praying for wisdom.

But prayer should not become an excuse for passivity.

If you are an American Christian eligible to vote on Nov. 3, study the issues.

Study the candidates.

Pray for wisdom.

And then exercise the remarkable freedom you have been given.