Discussion Jumpstarter
Study leader reference - not a definitive answer
Question 1
The speaker says voting isn’t “necessarily a sin,” but that political involvement is often “a symptom of something much deeper…that we’re missing”; what deeper spiritual loss does he think political enthusiasm is revealing in the church, and how does Jeremiah 2:13 (“broken cisterns”) sharpen that diagnosis?
Another way to ask: If voting isn’t always a sin, what deeper spiritual problem does the speaker think our political excitement shows in the church? How does Jeremiah 2:13’s picture of “broken cisterns” explain what we’re really turning to?
Discussion Jumpstarter
Direct Answer
Based on the speaker’s teaching, political excitement reveals that the church is losing its “essence”—its deep loyalty to Jesus’ kingdom—and is looking to politics as a substitute source of security and change. Jeremiah 2:13 sharpens this by naming that substitute a “broken cistern”: a manmade solution that cannot actually give the “living water” the church is meant to draw from.
- He says voting isn’t “necessarily a sin,” but is often “a symptom of something much deeper and much bigger that we’re missing.”
- When he sees political flags in Anabaptist settings, he says, “We’ve lost something…still plain, but we’ve lost the very essence of what’s deep inside.”
- He warns that losing this “edge…essence…why you’re there” can lead to “potentially losing your lampstand.”
- He quotes Jeremiah 2:13: “forsaken… the fountain of living waters” and “hewn… broken cisterns that can hold no water.”
- He interprets Christendom (church-state mixing) as “this cistern,” implying political allegiance replaces dependence on Jesus’ ways.