As we race toward election day, both parties are touting their brand of economic theories.  Trump keeps pointing back to lower taxes, deregulation, and tariffs on China. Kamala sings the praises of Bidenomics which seems to be tax, spend and print.  

The truth is that neither will work long-term without the blessings of heaven on this nation.  In Deuteronomy 28, God declares that the nation that forsakes him will experience devastating curses: economic disaster, famine, runaway inflation, war on their borders, madness, and pandemics.  No nation can endure those things and thrive economically.

On the other hand, God promises the nation that honors him and keeps his commands will experience  unprecedented peace on its borders, health across the board…people, livestock and crops and there will be a marked absence of natural disasters.  In other words, the economic climate and the nation will thrive. 

The economics we are looking for come from heaven and are a biproduct of honoring God and keeping his commands. I believe additional CO2 in the atmosphere is not the driving force behind natural disasters.  It is sin in the hearts of men.  The earth was initially cursed because of sin. Previous to sin, the earth cooperated with man and man had God-given dominion over this planet.  But sin reversed the divine order of things.  

In addition, when Cain killed Abel, God said Abel’s blood cried out to him from the ground.  It was if the earth responded to the violence of men and the outcome echoed the garden curse.  God declared to Cain, “Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops to you” (Gen. 4:10-11).

As you read Deuteronomy 28, it is clear that the hearts and actions of men either release blessings on a person or a nation or release curses.  The economics of heaven declare that the key to a thriving nation is righteousness, not political policies.  I’m not saying those policies don’t matter at all, but I am saying that even the soundest economic policies cannot overcome the damaging effects of sin. 

The encouraging side of the coin is that God will provide for his sheep even in tough economic times.  In the famous story of Jesus feeding the five thousand, the difference in earthly economics and heavenly economics is made abundantly clear.  At the end of a long day of preaching to large crowds, Jesus instructed his disciples to feed the people.  They quickly took an inventory of their resources (five loaves and two fish) and did the math.  Remember, Matthew was an accountant and several others had run their own fishing businesses.  The conclusion was “No Way Jose Economics.”  The disciples were confronted with the limitations of the natural realm. They didn’t have the food nor the money to buy the food so for them, it was game over. 

Jesus, however, was plugged into heavenly economics and knew there were no food shortages or supply chain problems in heaven. He prayed for the Father to multiply what they had and gave thanks for the abundance that was available to them.  In a while, everyone sitting on the hill had enough to eat with twelve basketfuls left over…a basket for each apostle to contemplate.  We need to contemplate those extra baskets as well.

Now…I am not saying we have no need to vote.  We have a stewardship of this nation to exercise at the ballot box.  Vote for righteousness.  Vote for the better economic policies. But remember, our hope is in heaven, not in Washington D.C. A national righteousness is the solution, not convoluted economic programs. And if we can’t vote out the wicked or the incompetent, we must pray them out.