Over 300 Christian leaders sign 'Confession of Evangelical Conviction' ahead of 2024 election

By Ryan Foley, Christian Post Reporter Tuesday, September 10, 2024

The Church's role in public engagement

The confession also highlights the Church's obligation to engage in "public life with humility, integrity, and a commitment to the common good as defined by our faith in Christ (Romans 12:18)."

"We reject both the call for the Church to withdraw from societal issues out of fear of political contamination, as well as any attempt to distort the Church into a mere vehicle of political or social power," the statement adds.

The sixth conviction indirectly signals support for the pro-life cause: "We value every person as created in God's image."

The signatories agreed that "Our faith in Christ, therefore, compels us to act with love and mercy toward all from the very beginning of life to the very end, and honor everyone as an image-bearer of God regardless of age, ability, identity, political beliefs, or affiliations (John 13:34-35)."

Salguero shared his belief that Christians should speak into policy and politics, "but we should stay clear of hyperpartisanship or political idolatry." He doesn't believe that pastors should say to parishioners, "This is God's candidate."

"So I think from issues of pro-life to religious liberty to ... how we treat the poor, how we treat children, to how we look at education ... the list is long. I think Scripture has something to say about that, and I think it should be Gospel-informed. So the Gospel informs how we see policy and how we see platforms from all the candidates, but I think the Gospel is clear that God ... does not endorse candidates."

Recognized 'by their character'

The final pillar included in the confession maintains that "godly leaders" will be recognized "by their character."

Affirming that "the character of both our political and spiritual leaders matter," the signatories said that the faithful had an obligation to "evaluate leaders based on their actions and the fruit of their character and not merely their promises or political success (Matthew 7:15-20)."

"When any leader claims to have God's approval, whether in the Church or in politics, we will not confuse effectiveness for faithfulness, but carefully discern who is truly from God (1 John 4:1). We reject the lie that a leader's power, popularity, or political effectiveness is confirmation of God's power, or that Christians are permitted to ignore the teachings of Christ to protect themselves with worldly power."

Salguero asserted, "You can vote for someone who's flawed; everyone is flawed." At the same time, he believes, "We can't defend things that are wrong in the name of hyperpartisanship."

"Whether you're a Democrat or a Republican, if the candidate does something contrary to Scripture, we need to hold that candidate accountable. We cannot have blind allegiance to political candidates. ... We vote, we are scripturally informed, but not blind allegiance."

The leaders' declaration comes as some faith leaders have voiced their support or opposition to a political candidate or party.

For example, in a video shared on social media last week, Pastor Jack Hibbs of the California-based Calvary Chapel Chino Hills urged Christians not to support Democrats in the 2024 presidential election, referring to the party as a "death cult" because of its support for legal abortion.

In 2022, Pastor Jamal Bryant of the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta criticized Republican Senate candidate Herschel Walker from the pulpit and encouraged his congregation to vote for Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock. Bryant claimed "white men" have been telling Walker what to do and that Georgia needs a "runner," not a "walker." Bryant chastised rapper Kanye West in 2019 from the pulpit for endorsing Trump.