The following post was written by Wes T. Titus, or perhaps a resident of West Titus, or even a "status wit," which is an anagram...
Although I can appreciate why any Christian would have trouble
supporting Trump, it is encouraging that so many sincere and mature
Christians would support him in spite of the negatives. How many of us
would have chosen the ones Jesus picked to be His leaders? Why didn't He
go to the religious conservatives to find the future leaders of His
church? Like it or not, the ones He chose were more like Trump than
those we tend to esteem. Even the apostle John, who is now known as the
great messenger of love, was so reactionary that he wanted to call down
fire from heaven to consume those who disagreed with them. On the night
before Jesus was crucified, the disciples argued over who was the
greatest. Sounds like Trump to me.
How many of us would continue to support a leader who, after many years of serving and walking with God as a righteous and just leader, had an affair, and even worse, had the husband killed to cover it up? Yet it is said that Israel went astray by following Absalom, who sought to displace David because of his sin.
In contrast, God commended Zadok the priest and gave an eternal blessing over his family for being faithful to David in this situation. The Lord knew when He called David that he would fall like this, but He called him anyway. And how could God love Jacob like He did? Jacob's name means "usurper" and he was a devious liar and cheat, but "God loved Jacob."
This should not excuse character flaws in leaders, but there will only be One perfect leader. Character is important, but an unrealistic perfectionism can make us incapable of ever choosing a Washington, a Benjamin Franklin, a Lincoln or a Churchill. Some character traits crucial for church leadership could be a hindrance for civil government leaders. The last person you want in a civil leadership position is one who "turns the other cheek." As we see in Romans 13, those in civil authority are given the sword "to avenge evil"—they would be disobedient to not use their weapons for this purpose.
The Pharisees were resolutely devoted to character, and Paul, the "Pharisee of Pharisees," called himself "blameless." However, he was the worst enemy of the church and truth until the Lord struck him blind. The Pharisees were the most devout religious conservatives of the time, yet they were the worst enemies of the Messiah. Consider how they criticized everything He said and did and ultimately were responsible for having Him crucified. Think about how much grace and mercy the Lord had for sinners and how little tolerance He had for the self-righteous.
That being said, even some of the great prophets in Scripture, like Samuel, had a hard time judging people after their heart rather than their appearance. It is hard even for prophets to see people as they are called to be rather than as they are, but that is what we must seek to do. Many Christians voted for Jimmy Carter because of his boldness about his faith, but how did that work out? I'm not saying that Trump is another Reagan, but almost all of the things now said about Trump were said about Reagan. Like Trump, Reagan seemed to be a nominal Christian when elected, but it turned out pretty good.
Even so, I admit that Trump is still a challenge. I can see sound biblical reasons for supporting him and for not supporting him. I think this is a good thing. It forces many to examine their convictions about many important things, which can only strengthen us if we refuse to let it divide us.
How many of us would continue to support a leader who, after many years of serving and walking with God as a righteous and just leader, had an affair, and even worse, had the husband killed to cover it up? Yet it is said that Israel went astray by following Absalom, who sought to displace David because of his sin.
In contrast, God commended Zadok the priest and gave an eternal blessing over his family for being faithful to David in this situation. The Lord knew when He called David that he would fall like this, but He called him anyway. And how could God love Jacob like He did? Jacob's name means "usurper" and he was a devious liar and cheat, but "God loved Jacob."
This should not excuse character flaws in leaders, but there will only be One perfect leader. Character is important, but an unrealistic perfectionism can make us incapable of ever choosing a Washington, a Benjamin Franklin, a Lincoln or a Churchill. Some character traits crucial for church leadership could be a hindrance for civil government leaders. The last person you want in a civil leadership position is one who "turns the other cheek." As we see in Romans 13, those in civil authority are given the sword "to avenge evil"—they would be disobedient to not use their weapons for this purpose.
The Pharisees were resolutely devoted to character, and Paul, the "Pharisee of Pharisees," called himself "blameless." However, he was the worst enemy of the church and truth until the Lord struck him blind. The Pharisees were the most devout religious conservatives of the time, yet they were the worst enemies of the Messiah. Consider how they criticized everything He said and did and ultimately were responsible for having Him crucified. Think about how much grace and mercy the Lord had for sinners and how little tolerance He had for the self-righteous.
That being said, even some of the great prophets in Scripture, like Samuel, had a hard time judging people after their heart rather than their appearance. It is hard even for prophets to see people as they are called to be rather than as they are, but that is what we must seek to do. Many Christians voted for Jimmy Carter because of his boldness about his faith, but how did that work out? I'm not saying that Trump is another Reagan, but almost all of the things now said about Trump were said about Reagan. Like Trump, Reagan seemed to be a nominal Christian when elected, but it turned out pretty good.
Even so, I admit that Trump is still a challenge. I can see sound biblical reasons for supporting him and for not supporting him. I think this is a good thing. It forces many to examine their convictions about many important things, which can only strengthen us if we refuse to let it divide us.
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