I believe that all of you know my views on the two candidates that were vying for the job as the President of the United States of America. Arguably the most important job and person in the world. Well, obviously things didn’t go the way I had hoped and I do have reservations as to where our great nation is headed. However, all of my concerns aside, I cannot deny the amazing significance of what has just happened.

It’s very easy to forget – especially for those of us who are on the younger side – that it was only a little over 40 years ago that there were Jim Crow laws in the United States. Just a generation ago, many African-Americans were segregated from whites in public schools, transportation, restrooms, and restaurants.

Yesterday, the United States elected a biracial man to serve as its leader.

It would be an understatement to call this a watershed cultural moment in our country’s history.

No matter who you voted for – or whether you voted at all – it’s important to remember that, as President, Barack Obama will have God-given authority to govern us, and that we should view him as a servant of God (Rom. 13:1, 4) to whom we should be subject (Rom. 13:1, 5; 1 Pet. 2:13-14).

• We are to pray for Barack Obama (1 Tim. 2:1-2).
• We are to thank God for Barack Obama (1 Tim. 2:1-2).
• We are to respect Barack Obama (Rom. 13:7).
• We are to honor Barack Obama (Rom. 13:7; 1 Pet. 2:17).

There are many qualifications to add to these exhortations – for example, see this excellent post by John Piper - but it’s still important to remember that these are requirements for all Bible-believing Christians.