For better or worse, the 2024 Presidential Election Day is just hours away.  We are told that this election is the most consequential election in the history of the nation.  We are told that this election season has polarized the citizens of the United States more than any other election in the history of our nation.  We have been told that this election, regardless of the consequences, the losing candidate and supporters will not likely accept the results and that violence, even civil war, may ensue.  Do you believe what we are being told?  Pontius Pilate once asked Jesus, “What is truth?” (John 18:38). Unfortunately, Pilate never waited for Jesus to answer that question.

          What is truth in this election season is that social media influencers, political pundits, pollsters, and the news media have sought to slice and dice the American voters into every imaginable category possible.  Projected voters have been divided by gender, race, ethnicity, age, income, red states, blue states, purple states, education, marital status, religious affiliations, and there are probably some additional categories that have escaped my notice.  What is important here is not how many ways Americans have been divided.  What is important here is that there is a massive effort to divide us.  The effort to divide us has been so pervasive and so unrelenting that people who support Candidate A speak of those who support Candidate B as “they” or “them,” and vice versa.  In the process, there becomes a tendency to passionately and sometimes breathlessly ascribe malicious motive to “them,” those who may oppose a candidate.  I have even heard some pastors speak not only glowing in favor about the candidate of their choice but also critically about the candidate they did not favor.  Why is all this division and divisiveness been accepted by so many Americans, including so many Christians?  I believe the answer is found in the response question of Pontius Pilate, “What is truth?” that Pilate never waited to hear.

          Let’s consider the answer to Pilate’s question about truth applied to today’s circumstances and work our way back to what Jesus’ answer to Pilate likely would have been.  The truth today is that neither Candidate A nor Candidate B in the 2024 Presidential Election represents the truth.  The truth is that neither Candidate A nor Candidate B in the 2024 Presidential Election can put or keep you or me on the proper path of life.  The truth is that neither Candidate A nor Candidate B in the 2024 Presidential Election will ever cause you or me to become and continue to be a person of love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  And that, my fellow citizens, is the truth applied to today’s circumstances.  These thoughts are not my thoughts.  These thoughts come from the man to whom Pontius Pilate asked, “What is truth?”  That man, Jesus, had spoken the truth and likely would have said something like this to Pilate.  “I am the way and the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). “I and the Father are one“ (John 10:30). “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9b).  “15 “If you love me, keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth” (John 14:15-17a).  God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit is undivided.  Neither Candidate A nor Candidate B is Jesus Christ and therefore, neither one of them represents the truth.  Neither Candidate A nor Candidate B is Jesus Christ, and they are not the way to the Father and are not the pathway to life.  Neither Candidate A nor Candidate B is Jesus Christ who sent the Holy Spirit to guide those who would follow Him by transforming their lives to produce the fruit of the spirit which includes love, peace, and joy.

          “What is truth?”  The truth is our salvation, our indivisible identity, is found in the undivided God who is comprised of three persons Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  That is the truth.  And the blessing the indivisible identity of God is given to every person who believes in the Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.  It does not matter by gender, race, ethnicity, age, income, red states, blue states, purple states, education, marital status, and any other categories of division others seek to try and impose upon Christians.  If we hold firmly to the truth, then differing choices we may make between Candidate A or Candidate B, does not reflect a division in our identity as Christians.  Differing choices between Candidate A or Candidate B should not cause us to speak of another Christian as a “they” or a “them.”

          We know this is the truth because Jesus asked and answered an important question that speaks to our identity.  Jesus asked aloud, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” 49 Pointing to his disciples, he [Jesus] said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. 50 For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother” (Matthew 12:48b-50).  Our identity is that we are brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who seeks to do the will of the Father.  That is the truth.  If this is the image we hold, that Christians are united by Christ to do God’s will, then we will not allow space between us for others to divide us into groups of “them” and “they.”

          The goodness found when God’s people claim their identity was also expressed in our Scripture reading today, Psalm 133.  We read, “1 How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!” (Psalm 133:1).  Some translations use “brothers” in place of God’s people.  Either of the translations points to the coming together of people who hold fast to their belief in God their highest held belief. And that any other beliefs that they may not share are unimportant.  The historical setting of this psalm also points to it as being a song that worshippers sang as they ascended the steps together into the Temple in Jerusalem. It is a piece of Scripture intended to have motion, drawing people from different corners of the Temple complex into a single group to worship the same God.  The psalm is believed to have been written when there were two kingdoms of the Jewish people, and the psalm reminded both camps how pleasant it is when they were all together before God.  The psalm is not an invitation, like many invitations we receive from the world, to believe that it is good and pleasant to come together with everyone who shares a particular political belief or admiration for Candidate A or Candidate B. The psalm is an invitation for believers to come together and participate in a setting that is completely different from what they are experiencing in the world.  And once the worshippers come together, once they come out of the world of division, they discover that being united with brothers and sisters of faith is the reality of life with God.  It is the truth of what God desires for each of us to discover. The psalm reminds us that pleasantness and goodness begin with worship of God.  We are here today, in part, to keep the pleasantness and goodness in our lives because we are beginning the week with the collective worship of God.

          The psalmist, acting as a poet, described the sensation, the feeling, of goodness and pleasantness with terms that were very meaningful to the ancient Jewish worshippers.  The psalmist wrote, “2 It [that is the good and pleasant sensation] is like precious oil poured on the head, running down on the beard, running down on Aaron’s beard, down on the collar of his robe.  3 It [the good and pleasant sensation] is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on Mount Zion” (Psalm 133:2-3).  These references do not immediately translate to our lives.  But to the original listeners, to those who sang these words together on the steps of the Temple as they walked into worship, there was great meaning.  A precious oil being poured out was an anointing, was a symbol of being blessed by God.  Here that precious oil is so abundant that it is flowing from the top of the head down the face and into the neck of the outer garment.  But the image of the person being anointed is Aaron, the first priest of the Hebrew people, the brother of Moses.  There would be joy for the singers because they would remember that God brought the Hebrew people out of the slavery of Egypt to be His people learning and worshipping under the guidance of Moses, Aaron, and their sister, Miriam. The dews landing upon Mount Zion of the southern kingdom coming from the snow-capped Mount Hermon in the northern kingdom would remind the worshippers that God had blessed the Jewish people as one and that he was calling them to be united by their worship.  The people would have felt good and pleasant singing these words as they entered worship.

          I have little doubt that there are people here today that support Presidential Candidate A and some who support Presidential Candidate B.  And yet the psalm reminds us that it is good and pleasant here today because we worship the same God.  We sing songs of praise to God together.  We prayed for each other.  We would willingly support the spiritual, physical, and emotional needs of one another. Why do we do that?  How could we do that?  The simple answer is we cannot or would not do so one our own expect for Christ.  It is Christ who takes away the tension that might exist over candidate selections and makes us a single body.  The Apostle Paul put it this way, “12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:12-13).  27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it (1 Corinthians 12:27).  When we ascended the steps and entered this sanctuary we are reminded of the precious blessing of oil God has poured out onto us and the refreshment we receive from being in the presence of those who love us because we are all part of the same body, the body of Christ.  I always feel refreshed after worship.  I always feel I have been reminded of the blessings of God after worshipping with you. This comes about because of the sensation of how good and pleasant it is when brothers and sisters, God’s people, worship together.

          Finally, the psalmist wrote, “For there the Lord bestows his blessing, even life forevermore” (Psalm 133:3b).  It is in worship, not in Washington, that we come to realize that God has blessed us with eternal life.  Knowing that we have eternal life removes from us the anxiousness about the next 4 years, 8 years, or longer.  Knowing that we are united in the present and are forever united with God makes our living in a world that is often conflicted and anxious not only possible but makes it good and pleasant.

          What then should we take away from God’s Word today?  I think there are two things we should keep in mind.

          First, the world does not understand the God’s people.  The truth is for God’s people the ultimate authority for our lives is not found in a political party or at the White House or in any political candidate.  The truth is found in Jesus Christ, his commands, and the acceptance of his death and resurrection for the forgiveness of our sins. That is reality.  Everything else that we may be hit with is just snapshots and sound bites designed to make us like the people of this world anxious about their future.  Hold fast to Christ.  Vote or do not vote as you feel led but do not allow your action or the action of another believer in their choice to separate you into “them” and “they.” Join with each other in worship of the one true God and be reminded of the truth.  That Christ has made your life good and pleasant and that nothing can change that unless you waiver in your stand with Christ.

          Second, the world will try everything possible to divide us, to discourage us, and to make us not want to worship together.  Why is that? Jesus explained it this way, “19 This is the verdict [This is the truth]: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God” (John 3:19-21).  Jesus then said, “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12).  The world dearly wants to put out the light.  The world believes that if the light can be extinguished, then truth can be redefined.  We must hold fast to the truth.  The Apostle Paul put it this way, “14 Keep reminding God’s people of these things. Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen. 15 Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. 16 Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly. 17 Their teaching will spread like gangrene” (2 Timothy 2:14-18).  Let’s stay with the truth found in God’s Word.

          Adapting some words from a wedding ceremony, I want to close with these thoughts.  If you wish your life to be touched with lasting goodness and pleasantness, cherish those gracious visions which made spring within your hearts during the days of your first acceptance of Christ.  You must never forget nor deny the vision you once saw in Jesus; you must resolve that it be not blotted out nor blurred by the commonplace experiences of life or the efforts of others to divide your thinking. Be unmoved in your devotion and your worship.  Still remain confident and hopeful. Amid the reality of present imperfections, believe in the ideal of goodness and pleasantness in Christ with your brothers and sisters.  You saw it once. It still exists. It is the final truth.  Amen and Amen.