If John Kasich had hoped to escape the watchful eyes of newspaper reporters, he has failed abysmally. Since his inauguration Kasich has been a magnet for the media. Stories about Kasich and his policies get a lot of attention because the governor is initiating significant change in our state. Whether he is initiating good change in our state is a question for blogs other than this one.
It is no secret that Kasich’s political views differ markedly from those of our president, Barack Obama. I’m sure that there have been politicians who differed more on the issues, but one could never accuse Kasich and Obama of being political carbon copies. If you voted for one, there is a very good chance you didn’t vote for the other.
God says we should respect all our leaders, even if we don’t agree with them on issues of policy. As a result, whether we are “blue,” “red,” or neither, we are to respect both John Kasich and Barack Obama. Respecting our governor and our president entails submitting to their authority (Romans 13:1). It also entails honoring them—unconditionally (1 Peter 2:17).
We can easily respect the leaders we like, but we can also respect the leaders we don’t like if we recognize that “there is no authority except that which God has established” (Romans 13:1 NIV). According to the Bible, God has given authority to Barack Obama and to John Kasich. In the plan of God, “who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will” (Ephesians 1:11 NIV), He has ordained that men with very different perspectives would lead our nation and our state simultaneously.
Would I line up more with President Obama or with Governor Kasich on political issues? I won’t tell you—at least not in this forum. What I will tell you in this forum, however, is that I respect them both. I hope you do also.
—Beau Stanley
(EDITOR’S NOTE: This post was originally published on The Frontier at Grace on March 24, 2011.)
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