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Christians need to force our leaders to enact policies that are pleasing to Him.

Smells like a good ol' fashioned theocracy. Those have worked so well in the past....say, wasn't Ashcanistan one until recently?

Sounds like democracy to me, and makes plenty of sense, provided that by "force", the speaker means "withhold political support, donations, and votes from politicians who solicit our votes and then stuff our issues in the bottom 'forget it until next election cycle' drawer."

There is no warrant for Christians to form rebellious cabals to seek violent subversion of the existing political order, and plenty of severe warnings against them, e.g., Romans 13 (unlike the Quran, which effectively obligates a serious Muslim to carry on a relentless war against non-Muslims, and gives holy approval to killing, robbing, and terrorizing all who resist the extension of Islam).

However, Christians need not invest their resources in lending legitimacy to political leadership that either is actively hostile to or cynically manipulative of Christian citizens.

Mr. Bush may or may not be sincere in his Christian commitment. His administration is, from a Christian perspective, scarcely an improvement over the last several administrations. His personal rectitude is appreciated, to the extent it is real and not spin. Bottom line, however, BUSH II is merely the latest in a growing line of emperor-like chief magistrates, maintaining the facade of republican rule, while continuing to extend the defacto rule of a rebellious class of public and quasi-public nomenclatura. Far from being "one nation under God", America is well along the way of becoming "one nation subordinating many gods" to its rebellious, messianic pretensions. God saves, not the state, the institutional church, corporations, or any other institution or ideology created by humans individually or collectively. Watch the performance of the courts and the functioning of Congress (voting on bills and converting them into laws without even being familiar with their content, for God's sake!). They are increasingly appendages, not co-equal branches. And the states are increasingly provinces of an imperial order with headquarters at our Rome-on-the-Potomac. With the repeal of the Posse Commitatus law, the defacto use of the federal military establishment to police the "homeland" will cease to have even a formal obstacle, and the conversion of "the land of the free and the home of the brave" into yet another absolutist perpetual warfare state will advance another step towards completion.

Christians are commanded to pray for those in positions of leadership, and to encourage them by all legitimate means to govern with equity and righteousness. We need not stroke their messianic pretensions, however, or invariably reward one of the candidates for each position with our votes, if none of them present a convincing case for their election. We have a duty to promote policies, laws, and principles that are consistent with God's direction for those who trust Him.

To the extent that we participate in the civil sacrement of voting, by supporting or opposing candidates with funds, leg work, and our own ballots, we lend legitimacy to those we support. We should grant such recognition with care, and sparingly, while strongly supporting those who honor their commitments and ruthlessly discarding those who renege on them. In the most recent election, I voted for candidates for all county and most state offices, and for a few federal offices. I left my ballot blank in the spaces for presidential electors, since none of the candidates were worthy of support. For the forseeable future, I will be more interested in the activities of local government. That is where the real opportunity for renewal of godly rule exists. If we can't win at that level, there is no point to playing "the Great Game" of empire politics. As we demonstrate competence and trustworthiness at the local level, we will earn support at higher levels (or higher levels will be "transformed" by non-revolutionary, non-subversive means, as our God applies the promise of Psalm 2 to rulers who stubbornly resist). Frequently, God has used one pack of rebellious conspirators to polish off another, and then squashed the "victors". Christians can afford to be patient, planning and working for extending their influence to promote righteous rule by a redeemed, and sanctified electorate, truly under God. We literally have "all the time in the world", although the fruits of our individual efforts may not mature until well after our earthly journey is complete.