Citizenship Matters
"Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work..." (Titus 3:1)
Once upon a time, citizenship was widely taught and celebrated in schools, homes, churches, and extracurricular activities. As an Eagle Scout, I worked through my teen years to earn several complementary merit badges regarding citizenship in the community, nation, and world. These were valuable, enlightening, and enjoyable experiences, especially because they were led by church-going and God-honoring mentors in my life.
Actively valuing citizenship is not only important for a functioning society, but it is also biblical. Paul's words to Titus exhort the congregations on Crete to be submissive to rulers and authorities. This passage does not require that we must always like it, but this command certainly dove-tails with many other passages that exhort us to be peaceable people within the community and within our relationships (Mark 9:50, Rom. 12:18, Titus 3:2, 1 Peter 3:11).
Among the list of commands, Paul tells Titus to be ready for every good work. Within the context of citizenship, here are a few questions to consider about our individual and congregational readiness "for every good work"...
How and when are you taking time to teach a biblical perspective of citizenship in your community, in our nation, and in the world?
How are we biblically addressing the moral issues that arise in our nation, communities, and on our ballots?
How are we readying ourselves for good works in our communities?
What does it look like to leave time and resource margins to encourage voting and community involvement?
Part of being ready for "every good work" in our community and state context is to schedule time to vote on Tuesday, November 8. Or perhaps you are like me and have set aside time to vote early. Many of our district churches provide a great service to their congregations and communities by serving as a voting site. Please be sure practice good citizenship by exercising your right to vote.
I am so thankful for individuals in our district who serve in public service, invest in our communities, serve on school boards or city councils, and bless their communities through a host of church outreaches and nonprofit efforts!
To God's glory, let's seek the good of our communities, together! (Jer. 29:7)
He is worthy!
