Inauguration day is right around the corner, and I wanted to offer some thoughts as it seems that all have given their opinion and many more are protesting the inauguration of President Donald Trump. Upon hearing the news that Donald Trump was the president elect, many started sobbing. Many churches had a day of grieving. Others celebrated the triumph and touted Mr. Trump as the one to truly make America great again. Many have asked me what I thought and what the church’s stance on the president elect is or should be.
Whether the President’s name is Barack Obama or Donald Trump, the reality is that for Christians our king hasn’t changed. Jesus still reigns from heaven. Not only that, but Proverbs 21 puts the political process and our involvement in proper perspective.
Proverbs 21:1: The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; he turns it wherever he will.
First thing to keep in mind. God is in charge, not Donald Trump. God has always been in charge. Tyrants rise and tyrants fall. Great leaders live and die. None of them are infallible. But God still uses fallible people to accomplish his agenda on Earth. So no matter what you think of Trump, God put him there for the season of his earthly power. Just as God put Barack Obama in place while he was president.
1. Remember: God is on the throne.
Proverbs 21:2 Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the heart. Here is the bizarre twist, men and women are still responsible to God for their actions. That includes the president. That includes you and me. But isn’t it true we all think our own way is right. We all approach people, information, and life with our own set of biases from our own background and upbringing. And we tend to look at people who view the world different than us as the enemy. But every way of a man is right in his own eyes. However, only God knows the intention. Before we send words across cyberspace, let’s check our hearts and see if we are assuming the best of others as opposed to assuming the worst.
2. Remember: Don’t assume the worst of those who have a different view.
Proverbs 21:3:To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.
3. Remember: God measures all by righteousness.
God wants men and women to live lives of righteousness. In fact he requires perfection. Matthew 5:48 Jesus says, You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
That’s the standard. That’s how you can tell who is in and who is out. That is who is able to stand before God. The perfect ones. Everyone reading this is ruled out. You have said things in anger and haste. You have done things in revenge. You have done things to get ahead. You have thought about hurting someone. You have thought about quitting your marriage. You have thought about murder. You have gone down that road in your head—leaving you guilty before God.
God did something that doesn’t make sense. For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
You were guilty, deserving of eternal separation from God which would be horrific, hellish even. And God made the relationship between you and him right by having his son die in your place for your sins. If you believe that to the core of who you are that Jesus is King, and that he rose from the dead after dying for you, you will be saved and then have the capacity to do righteousness. I think we forget that. We get arguing and get so wrapped up in trying to prove a point, that we forget why we are arguing. And in the end it won’t matter. Your argument will get archived in cyberspace, and maybe 100 years from now, someone will look on your words, and then move on.
I guess that’s why I have hope in the wake of this election regardless of who is inaugurated. This life is so short. Soon we will all be archived and those who have relationship with God will go home, and those who don’t will experience long lasting pain and misery. That makes me sad. And my prayer is that Christians who are Trump supporters or Trump opposers wouldn’t use this election as a mandate for hate. That this election wouldn’t split us apart further, but would rather help us see that we are all in need of some godly perspective, because we all see everything right by the bias in our own eyes.
