The world is divided about Donald Trump. That’s true across many parts of the world, though I would guess that the largest block of his supporters live in the USA. Here in the UK, many people don’t really get what other people in the USA see in him. Many leaders in Europe, it would appear, are very cautious of him – especially with his threats of tariffs on imported goods. Perhaps the thing that many of us don’t get is his appeal to evangelical Christians in the US. After all, here is a man who publicly boasted about his poor treatment of women, his unfaithfulness to his wife, his questionable tax affairs, and so the list could go on. Yet they think that God has raised him up for such a time as this.
So what are we as Christians to make of all of this? I know there will be some who think that he is wonderful. Or at least, that he is making some right choices. Others see him as a self-serving bully who should never have been considered worthy to hold the front door keys to the White House. What does God say? What do we learn when we look into the Bible?
Before the US elections Donald Trump referred to the assassination attempt saying that “God has saved me so that I can save America.” That’s a grand boast, but after the election he toned it down somewhat by saying that “God saved me so that I can make America great again.” The difference is important: – salvation is God’s business alone, but bringing prosperity is something that can come from wise political decisions. But yet I think we have to agree with the first part; – God did save the life of Donald Trump and God has put him into the place of power in the White House.
It is interesting as we have been going through the book of Ezra. God raised up Cyrus – an ungodly, pagan king – to bring about the restoration and rebuilding of the Jewish temple. Isaiah tell us that he did not know the Lord; he wasn’t a true believer in the Lord, although he had a sensible reverence of the Lord. Yet God used him to bring about his plans and purposes in the life of His people, Israel. I think that we can probably say the same of Donald Trump. He may know Jesus? Only the Lord knows. But from what I see of him, I would suggest that he has a healthy respect for God but may not have a personal relationship with him. That’s my opinion and I may be wrong. But whoever is in power, whether that’s Donald Trump in the USA, Kier Starmer in the UK, Emanuel Macron in France or Vladimir Putin in Russia, they have all been placed there by the Lord. The fact that the Lord has placed them in those positions should not be confused with God approving of them – He may not, we don’t know. But He will work out His plans and purposes through them in these days. The Lord reigns!
Therefore, our response should be to pray for our leaders, and indeed the leaders across the world. We should desire peace that we may live peaceful, godly and fruitful lives where the gospel is released into the public arena, where we might freely speak about Jesus and His salvation. God has said that he desires us to act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with Him. I guess that ought to be our plumb line of whether a leader is worth following or not. Justice, kindness and humility are much better qualities than brashness, bullying and boasting. I leave you to decide which of our world leaders display more of the first list and which display more of the second.