“The concerns we face in the United States are great, but they are not greater than God. In creation, God called humans to just and compassionate governance. In reverence to God and with love for others, evangelical Christians engage in the public square — not for our own sake but for the health of the nation and world.”

(Read the full document below.)

For the Health of the Nation

An Evangelical Call to Civic Responsibility

Introduction

The concerns we face in the United States are great, but they are not greater than God. Read more.

The Basis for Christian Civic Engagement

We engage in public life because God created our first parents in his image and gave them dominion over the earth (Genesis 1:27–28). Read more.

The Method for Christian Civic Engagement

Every political judgment requires both a normative vision and factual analysis. Read more.

The Structures of Public Life

In the beginning, God invited human beings to partner with him in the governing and care of creation (Genesis 1:28–30). Read more.

PRINCIPLES OF CHRISTIAN POLITICAL ENGAGEMENT
1. Protecting Religious Freedom and Liberty of Conscience

God has ordained the two coexisting institutions of church and state as distinct from the other with each occupying its own center of authority under a sovereign God. Read more.

2. Safeguarding the Nature and Sanctity of Human Life

Because God created human beings in his image, every human life from conception to death bears the image of God and has inestimable worth. Read more.

3. Strengthening Marriages, Families and Children

Throughout the Bible the family is central to God’s vision for human beings and human society. Read more.

4. Seeking Justice and Compassion for the Poor and Vulnerable

Jesus summed up God’s law by commanding us to love God with all that we are and to love our neighbors as ourselves (Matthew 22:35–40). Read more.

5. Preserving Human Rights

Because God created males and females in his image, we are endowed with rights and responsibilities. Read more.

6. Pursuing Racial Justice and Reconciliation

The Bible uniformly teaches the essential dignity of all humans and the shared desire to belong in community. Read more.

7. Promoting Just Peace and Restraining Violence

Jesus and the prophets looked forward to the time when God’s reign would bring about just and peaceful societies in which people would enjoy the fruits of their labor without interference from foreign oppressors or unjust rulers. Read more.

8. Caring for God’s Creation

We are called as followers of Jesus to embrace and act responsibly to care for God’s earth while we reaffirm the important truth that we worship only the Creator and not the creation. Read more.

Following the God Who Transforms

Following the God Who Transforms is a 10-day digital devotional that draws from the principles of “For the Health of the Nation” and imagines a public discipleship that is oriented towards God’s character.

Available in English and Spanish, this devotional is designed to encourage and refresh believers in who God is and his heart for our nation and world.

Get Your Free Devotional

RightNow Media + NAE Video Series

This FREE 8-session small group video curriculum, produced by RightNow Media, brings the content of “For the Health of the Nation” to life through dynamic biblical teaching!

Each teaching session (about 10-15 minutes) is complemented by a discussion guide that will enable small groups to have rich conversations as they go deeper into God’s Word. NAE President Walter Kim hosts the series with teaching from Nicole Martin, Ed Stetzer, Gabriel and Jeanette Salguero, and Eugene Cho.

Sign Up for Free Access

Christian Student Leadership Conference

Each year Christian college students who want to make a difference in healing our nation come to Washington, D.C., for a week-long event that equips and trains them to be part of the solution. Students explore public policy issues, careers in government or public service, what it means to be engaged citizens, and how to bring the light of Christ into the public square. They consider topics covered in “For the Health of the Nation” and learn to apply biblical principles to complex issues.

Learn More

Sign-On Statement

Along with World Relief, we developed a short statement that highlights the principles found in our long-standing “For the Health of the Nation” document and champions a biblically balanced agenda. We invite all followers of Jesus — whether Democrats, Republicans or Independents — to join us in seeking the health of the nation for the good of all people.

Read & Sign the Statement

First Principles Project

In partnership with Christianity Today and American Awakening, the First Principles Project provides in one location the thinking of the best Christian minds of this generation on how we can reground our approach to political life — and renew our witness to America.

Discover Sermons