In the months leading up to last week’s Presidential election, the objective of our Drop The Stone campaign was to encourage Christians to take the high road, choosing acts of kindness over condemnation when confronted by those across the political aisle.  Our implicit assumption was that Christians were on the defensive, lashing out on social media because they’d been backed into a corner by America’s increasingly progressive (i.e. post-Christian) culture.  So, what happens with the Drop The Stone movement when the election results appear to put Christians back on offense?  Ironically, that’s exactly the position the Pharisees were in when they brought the woman caught in adultery to Jesus.  They had a conservative, church-friendly “President” willing to protect their interests in exchange for their allegiance.  To their surprise, Jesus put the offensive “team” on the defensive, inviting anyone without sin to cast the first stone.

Just as Christians feared a Kamala Harris presidency would severely limit freedom of religion and speech, progressives and many minorities worry MAGA will severely restrict their rights.  MAGA and Christian Nationalism became conflated during the prior Trump presidency.  So to Drop The Stone we must first distinguish between the political and spiritual, clarifying that Jesus alone is our Savior.  Whatever policies Trump and a Republican Congress enact are not necessarily reflective of biblical principles.  Next, we should Drop The Stone the same way we did before the election – by loving our neighbors no matter how they voted.  Unconditional love expresses itself in relationship, compassion, humility, prayers, and evangelism.  Love compels us not to withhold the truth but also not to wield it as a hammer when in a position of (political) power.  Christians must take a stand for biblical principles while allaying fears that we’ll use (or abuse) an assumed ability to impose them on non-believers.

2016 to 2020…

Their concerns aren’t unfounded – there’s a long history of the Church freely exercising its moral authority.  During Trump’s first term in office, a time of relative peace and prosperity without “persecution”, Christians felt more empowered to express their views on political issues.  Yet most weren’t vocal in sharing about Jesus, content to criticize culture from a distance.  Encouraging that detachment were churches who took advantage of their four year “reprieve” to focus on growth, sparking a spectacular rise in multi-site megachurches.  Contemporary church growth strategies emphasized facilities, programs, and services designed to attract and retain “consumers”.  “Church” became increasingly seen as a place, pastor, and performance.  Leadership was the theme of most books, articles, and conferences for pastors, featuring “celebrities” sharing their churches’ “success” stories.  Few questioned “Church As We Know It” – affirming the current model by attributing the Church’s overall decline (in number, size, impact, influence, and public perception) to leadership failures.

The intended “customer” of church – those in the community who don’t know Jesus – felt increasingly ignored.  Churches weren’t equipping and deploying enough Kingdom “employees”, charged with pursuing those “customers”.  Mistrust and antagonism toward believers reached unprecedented levels.  Much of that resentment stemmed from guilt by association with Trump’s policies and opinions.  Universities became less tolerant of Christian perspectives and values.  Attacks on the “traditional”, biblical family intensified – marriage, gender, abortion, fatherhood, and parental involvement.  Government assumed the role of medical and financial “savior” with the advent of vaccines and bailouts.  Selfism became the nation’s fastest growing religion, with rallying cries of “living my truth” and “my authentic self”.  During Trump’s presidency, the sacred-secular divide grew as alienated Nones and Dones looked elsewhere for help and hope.

2020 to 2024…

Complacency and division helped fuel progressivism during Trump’s last term, which contributed to the outcome of the 2020 election.  Over the past four years, churches and Christians felt forced to “drop the stone”.  The threat of job loss or social ostracization loomed for Americans courageous enough to confess faith in Christ, presuming adherence to countercultural (biblical) values.  Unwavering support for progressive viewpoints became prerequisites for engagement at schools, companies, and social media.  Mentions of biblical values could be considered hate speak, worthy of “cancellation”.  Even within the confines of church buildings, addressing “sins” was discouraged by church growth consultants to avoid offending attenders they hoped would return next Sunday.  Government recategorized hot-button issues as “political” – bringing them up from the pulpit or mobilizing activists risked censure for crossing (often imaginary) church-state lines.

Churches and Christians who “dropped the stone” during Biden’s presidency generally did so out of self-centered fear rather than self-sacrificial love.  We conformed to stir less controversy and avoid consequences.  We adopted “winsome” as our preferred approach for reaching the lost, expecting our churches to be equally welcoming.  Growth models stressed the importance of inviting friends to church, which most were happy to do (entrusting evangelistic responsibilities to “professionals”) but only if pastors followed our lead by not surfacing topics deemed socially unacceptable.

Poor motives for dropping stones, walking on eggshells for self-preservation, silenced our voices and numbed our senses as biblical rugs were pulled out from underneath us.  For example, few Christians notice how dramatically the conversation has shifted around abortion.  No longer is the discussion about its immorality but the number of weeks it should be permitted.  We celebrate a 15 week “ban” when 96% of all abortions take place before then.  What about Imago Dei and the sanctity of human life?

2024 to 2028…

If churches and Christians see Trump’s reelection as another reprieve, repeating mistakes we made during his last term, we should expect the same outcome – resumption of a progressive political agenda in 2028, but with renewed vigor.  We can break the cycle by abandoning church growth paradigms and making disciples who understand that Jesus calls us to “drop the stone”.  Otherwise, that vicious cycle may be broken for us if aging “boomers” and Gen Z indoctrination reduce the number of conservative and Christian votes needed to elect a “church-friendly” President in 2032.

This is not the time, nor is it appropriate, to celebrate or breathe a sigh of relief.  The 2024 election was not God’s endorsement or proof of His blessing.  In fact, it could be a “curse” if churches and Christians respond poorly to the “victory”.  Now is the time for repentance, lest we succumb to the temptation to believe Trump’s “mandate” is ours.  Trump won the popular vote – not Christians.  Our mandate is the Great Commandment and Great Commission.  We’re dual citizens of a Kingdom and a democracy – Jesus is our King.  “America’s new golden age” that Trump promised could become a “golden calf” if we idolize politicians, positions, or policies.

Unfortunately, complacency is more common than repentance during (perceived) “good times”.  There’s less impetus to change course now if churches and Christians feel validated or vindicated by the election.  America is not necessarily going to be a more “Christian” nation under Trump, particularly if we remain defensive or become offensive.  The election may have removed some incentive to practice the alternative Jesus modeled – unconditionally loving those who persecute us.  A Kamala Harris victory may have been a “wake up call”.  Had she won, it may have encouraged repentance and reform.  Jesus preached His most challenging sermon at the height of His popularity to reveal His true followers – further restrictions on freedoms of religion and speech would have tested our authenticity.  Churches may have needed to decentralize out of necessity – training and sending disciples into mission fields within their families, neighborhoods, and workplaces.

It’s Your Turn…

In the weeks immediately following the 2024 election, as we approach the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, surprise those expecting Christians to gloat or “throw stones”.  Instead, invite them to sit at the “table” with you – to build relationships, open dialogue, and share about Jesus.  Challenge your church to resist the urge to resume the internally-focused strategies that helped propel progressivism to new heights in America.