The Room Where It Happens: Is Real Power Found in the Oval Office, Executive Boardroom, or Voting Booth?

Hamilton and the Room Where It Happens

Over two hundred years ago the sitting Vice President, Aaron Burr, shot to death in a duel former Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton. The two men had known each other personally, professionally, and politically for several years leading up to this episode.
Although the duel is a curious part of early American history and Hamilton’s face still graces our ten-dollar bills, most people forgot about this historic event shortly after history class in high school. That is, until a Broadway musical about Hamilton made this duel its climax.
In the musical Burr envies Hamilton at every turn. Whatever Burr sets out to do, Hamilton somehow does it first…and better. Even becoming Vice President wasn’t good enough for Burr. He concluded that Hamilton was the one thing keeping him away from what he wanted most: to be “in the room where it happens.”
In the musical Burr sings about the backroom deal struck between Hamilton, Jefferson, and Madison, placing the financial capital of America New York and its political capital in Washington. Burr was, as always, left on the outside looking in. He vows he will someday be in the room where it happens, no matter what it takes to get in there--even if it means drawing blood.
Burr’s plan failed. The duel, while taking Hamilton out of the picture, didn’t get Burr what he always wanted. He ended up retiring as a relatively obscure lawyer in New York.
Was his greed for power worth Hamilton’s blood? Certainly not, especially when you consider Burr had no idea where to look for the room where it really happens.
Politics and the Room Where It Happens
Every election year, a lot of my American neighbors reveal they don’t know where that room is either. But that doesn’t stop them from sacrificing much to gain a little influence. There won’t be blood this time, but there will be plenty of broken promises, false hopes, and shameful pandering spilling out from our nation’s veins.
As God’s people and followers of Jesus, we are citizens of another kingdom. Our allegiance is primarily to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Our political identity belongs to that which best promotes proclaiming the good news of God’s kingdom. Our values are kingdom values, which includes the sanctity of human life along with being generous to the least among us, especially foreigners, widows, and orphans.
While reasonable arguments can be made as to which individual policies and candidates best promote kingdom values, American partisan politics isn’t satisfied settling for second-best in anyone’s life. People on both the political left and right seem to stuff their Christian faith quite easily into one or the other major party platforms, seemingly without remainder. But shouldn't there be a remainder? Does either major party promote only kingdom values?

My fellow American Christians know that the answer to such questions is a resounding no. But I’ve heard countless times that if you want to gain access to the room where it happens you must:
Settle for the lesser of two evilsRealize no one is electing a pastor-in-chiefDiscover the sexual revolution really is pro-life once you look at it a certain convoluted way, apparently even Jesus would’ve agreed.In the name of gaining access to the room where it happens, Christians on the left succumb to the sexual revolution, keeping quiet about abortion and happily redefining marriage, as if such a thing were subject to human definitions in the first place. The foundational Christian doctrine of creation becomes rather flexible as long as bending it means the other tribe won’t gain access to the White House.
Christians on the right are no different. Hospitality to the foreigner might be a kingdom value, but national security better come first. The Old Testament prophets are quite clear that national security at the expense of caring for the poor and foreigner among us is no kingdom value in God's economy. Moreover, character in a political candidate now matters far less than their promises of certain Supreme Court nominees, so if getting behind a once-bankrupt playboy gains access to the room where it happens, then by all means promote him, because the alternative has to be worse—the other tribe winning.
Like Burr, we have no idea where to look for the room where it really happens. The irony is, it’s been right here with us all along, regardless of what tribe we support behind closed voting booths.
The Room Where It Really Happens
Long ago the Apostle John received a vision of what the room where it happens looks like: “At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it. And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and ruby. A rainbow that shone like an emerald encircled the throne” (Rev 4:2-3).
Centuries before John, the Israelite prophet Isaiah glimpsed the room where it happens: “I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphim [angels], each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.’ At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke” (Isa 6:1b-3).
A couple hundred years after Isaiah, Daniel had a vision of that very room: “As I looked, thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took his seat. His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of his head was white like wool. His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze. A river of fire was flowing, coming out from before him. Thousands upon thousands attended him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him” (Dan 7:9b-10a).
The culmination of John’s vision above was that the room where it happens in heaven eventually descends upon earth when God’s kingdom arrives in full. The wealth of the nations will pour into that room and from there God’s people will live the abundant lives Jesus promises them.
Until then, how do we gain access to this room? It’s not by envy, like Burr thought. It’s not by throwing away kingdom values to support the red or blue tribe either. It’s only by Christ. He came down from the room where it happens to take on our nature, pay the penalty for our sins, and join our life to God’s life. As Paul says in Philippians 2, Jesus emptied himself to become a servant on earth and die on a cross. As a result, God has lifted him up and seated him at his right hand in his throne room.
Jesus, our priest, has opened up access to the room where it really happens: “Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Heb 4:14-16).
The room where it happens might be frightening and astonishing to strangers, but because of Christ we can enter it confidently as God’s children. We have access to it through worship as a church, through the Holy Scriptures, through prayer, and through receiving baptism and the Lord’s Supper. They are means of God’s grace. They are means of getting access and in prayer even influence to the room where it really happens, but so many people forego these means of grace day after day and week after week, while living in hyped-up fear of what might happen if their blue or red tribe fails to garner earthly power. Maybe less tv and twitter and more prayer and Scripture would bring our heart rates down this fall.
Politics, But Not At Any Price
There are surely times and places to get involved in politics while on earth, because a lot of good and evil can be done through such means. All I ask is that before getting involved you become familiar with the platform of God's kingdom values. Read the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7. Thumb through the middle chapters of the Gospel of Luke. Read one of those obscure Old Testament prophets whose name isn't easy to pronounce; I'd recommend starting with Amos (granted, that one is an easy name). Too many people unknowingly set aside kingdom principles while getting caught up in all the tribalism of partisan politics. We can surely do better. At least take the time to discover how kingdom values either do or do not align with the candidates and policies you support. After that, feel free to support whichever candidates and whatever policies you like on election day as your conscience allows. Yes, that still includes either major party candidate this year. I'm not your conscience.


I can agree with Aaron Burr about one thing, though: I too have got to be in the room where it happens. Thanks be to God that I can enter it confidently because of Jesus Christ our Prophet, Priest, and King. Our Lamb has conquered, him let us follow!