The question is often asked, “Do rulers in a nation need any other qualification for filling positions of honor and trust than their mental ability and fitness?” . . . Civil government had its birth and origin in God. He is the creator of nations as well of individuals. He is the source of all power and authority; Jesus Christ has been appointed by him as the King of kings and Lord of lords; and the Bible is the foundation of all law, civil and ecclesiastical, and it is the standard by which the conduct of men is to be governed. When we admit these facts, as every Christian must, we see that other qualifications than that of mental ability are necessary in the aspirant for office. “He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of the Lord [2 Sam. 23:3].”

“Necessary Qualifications of Civil Rulers” by J. A. Burnett in Christian Nation, Vol. I, 2. (September 10, 1884), 25.