Posted on 11/29/2015 6:12:20 AM PST by Kaslin
I understand the tremendous popularity of Donald Trump in America in 2015.
He is a larger than life reality TV star; he is incredibly rich and not beholden to anyone; he is fearless and speaks his mind; he articulates the frustrations and anger of millions of his countrymen; he gives the impression that he can fix our economy and will put an end to illegal immigration; he is not a Washington insider; he could be a strong leader who could face down our global enemies; he can even be winsome and self-effacing at times.
Yes, I do understand all this to the point that, for some weeks, I wondered to myself if I could get behind Trump as a candidate. And the question still remains, if the presidential race was between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, could I cast a vote for Trump? (I could not possibly vote for Hillary Clinton.)
But let's not deal in hypotheticals now. The immediate question is: Should evangelical Christians support Donald Trump as the Republican candidate? I do not see how we can if the Word of God is to be our guide and if it's important to us that a candidate have a solid moral compass and a biblically based worldview and I mean to be our president, not our spiritual leader, since we are electing a president, not a pastor or priest.
The Scriptures teach that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks (Luke 6:45), and so Trump's consistent pattern of reckless speech points to deeper issues which could make him unfit for the office of the presidency.
I'm not just talking about his silly attacks on Megyn Kelly (blood), Carly Fiorina (face), and Marco Rubio (sweat) or his more serious attacks on Mexican immigrants (accusing the many of what the few do) and others. I'm talking about his character assault on Ben Carson, comparing him to a child molester who has pathological problems and, most recently, his apparent mocking of the disability of New York Times reporter Serge Kovaleski.
Worse still, rather than apologizing for his most recent remarks, he claims he is being unfairly attacked for his comments and alleges that he doesn't even know what Kovaleski looks like. Is he lying?
Notice that he referred to Kovaleski, who suffers from arthrogryposis, which visibly limits flexibility in his arms, as a "nice reporter," before saying, "Now the poor guy, you've got to see this guy," flailing his arms as he pretended to be Kovaleski.
Is this the man you want to be our president? The warnings in Proverbs are strong: "Do you see a man who is hasty in his words? There is more hope for a fool than for him" (Proverbs 29:20). And, "A fool gives full vent to his spirit, but a wise man quietly holds it back" (Proverbs 29:11).
We need a statesman, not an irresponsible flame thrower, and one can be a strong political leader who is cutting and fearless with words think of Winston Churchill without making a fool of oneself.
What of Trump's claim that, "I have no idea who this reporter, Serge Kovalski is, what he looks like or his level of intelligence," and, "Despite having one of the all-time great memories, I certainly do not remember him"?
If this is true, why did he refer to him as a "nice reporter" and what did he mean when he said, "Now the poor guy, you've got to see this guy"? And did he merely flail his arms mocking someone who, he claimed, couldn't quite remember things correctly this was Trump's defense or was he making fun of Kovaleski's arms? (Watch for yourself and you be the judge as to whether he is telling the truth.)
Kovaleski, for his part, states that, "Donald and I were on a first-name basis for years. I've interviewed him in his office. I've talked to him at press conferences. All in all, I would say around a dozen times, I've interacted with him as a reporter while I was at the Daily News."
How could Trump have forgotten someone with Kovaleski's condition?
Trump pointed to the large sums he has given to help people with disabilities, and I don't doubt that he has, nor do I doubt that he cares about the disabled and handicapped.
But what is undeniable is that he is often irresponsible and reckless in his speech, something that could be utterly disastrous for the president of the United States of America. As noted by Jay Ruderman, an advocate for the disabled, "It is unacceptable for a child to mock another child's disability on the playground, never mind a presidential candidate mocking someone's disability as part of a national political discourse."
Yet there's something that concerns me even more when it comes to evangelicals supporting Donald Trump and that is the issue of pride, the sin that is often at the root of a host of other sins (Isaiah 14:11-15), the sin which God resists (James 4:6), the sin which leads to destruction (Proverbs 16:18).
Trump seems to have little understanding of what it means to ask God for forgiveness, while his very open, unashamed boastfulness is part and parcel of his persona. Trump and pride seem to walk hand in hand, quite comfortably at that.
So, while I do understand why many Americans are behind Donald Trump and while I do believe he could do some things well as president, I cannot understand how evangelicals can back him, especially when we have a number of solid, God-fearing, capable alternatives.
(For my video commentary on this, with the relevant clips from Trump, click here. The ugly comments from Trump supporters are quite telling.)
>>God chooses any man, regardless of his flaws to further His Will as He sees fit.
IIRC from Sunday school, Saul of Tarsus.
Yes! GREAT example! Thanks for your post!
I keep hearing claims like this - about how Trump is going to defeat or destroy certain people. And I've never understood - what exactly is he going to do? Sue them? Arrest them? Pass a law? Insult them? Trump makes a lot of loud noise, but how does it translate into action?
Rather it would be better for Mr. Brown to let even coservative Christians decide for themselves.
.....Except at church and at home.
Is he afraid of real leadership?
Mr. Brown tends to forget that people CAN and DO CHANGE for the better.
How about arrest them when warranted, enforce all existing laws, insult them as needed, sue them if possible. :)
Sadly, there is not much alternate canidiates out there.
In other words, go with the strong horse in the race.
They may be rude, but you are clueless...and some lack skills in dealing with those such as you.
>>They know Donald Trump is on to their scam, and will have no reservations about “dealing†with them employing all his God-given talents!
I keep hearing claims like this - about how Trump is going to defeat or destroy certain people. And I’ve never understood - what exactly is he going to do? Sue them? Arrest them? Pass a law? Insult them? Trump makes a lot of loud noise, but how does it translate into action?
If one listens carefully to Trump, one learns that he does not announce specifics for a reason: He WANTS it that way. He WANTS to be unpredictable. That is the mark of a genius strategist. He’d make an amazing military General himself.
He loves America, he is a brillant, ACCOMPLISHED genius, out of love in his heart, Americans will benefit from his God-given talents.
I’ll leave the specifics to him with full confidence.
“I do not see how we can if the Word of God is to be our guide”
Indeed. I think I remember that the Bible specifically says: “Thou shalt not support Trump.” Fortunately though for evangelicals, the Bible is silent about the matter of supporting Hillary, Jeb, or Sanders, so they still have some choices available. Just not Trump.
Guess God was wrong to use Cyrus to take Babylon.
What tripe this article is.
“The problem with Trump is that he doesn’t engage his brain before he opens his mouth.”
Actually, to people like myself that’s a virtue, not a problem, because it gives us confidence that Trump is probably telling use what he really believes.
The REAL problem is that almost all politicians practice hours every day in front of a mirror making sure they never say anything that might offend anyone and NEVER saying what they really believe or what they will really do if elected. Therefore we have no idea whatsoever these people are really all about.
“Trump admits he’s not a Christian”
please post link to said admission.
here’s what i found at christianpost.com:
Many political experts will not take Donald Trump’s quest for the Republican presidential nomination seriously, possibly for good reason. Trump, most notable for his vast real estate empire, wealth, bankruptcies, reality TV show, high profile divorces, and of late, his brash political statements, professes to be a Christian. As The Christian Post reported Tuesday, he even claims he would be “the greatest jobs president God ever created.”
While Trump might not be popular with a large segment of the Republican Party, many voters no longer feel connected to Washington or what they see as a professional and entrenched political class. With his populist streak, Trump may appeal to these voters. Below are six facts about Donald Trump and his professed Christian faith.
1. Speaking to CBN News in May, Donald Trump declared: “I will be the greatest representative of the Christians they’ve had in a long time.”
Specifically, Trump was talking about the Christians being slaughtered in the Middle East, especially in Syria, and according to him, Christians around the globe do not have anybody representing them. Trump also claimed it was easier for Muslims to come to the U.S. than persecuted Christians.
2. Trump says he’s Presbyterian and previously attended services with the Reformed Church of America denomination.
Trump told Human Events and other news outlets that he is “a believer.” In 2011, he told CBN he attended First Presbyterian Church in Jamaica Queens, which is part of the Presbyterian U.S.A. denomination. Some past articles and interviews have listed Trump as a member of the Reformed Church of America, but more recently he has said he is Presbyterian. He says he goes to church on Sunday when he can and always on Christmas, Easter, and on special occasions.
3. After previously making statements favorable toward the right to abortion, Trump now claims to be pro-life.
While Trump has a long track record of making statements and supporting candidates who were pro-abortion, he credits a friend’s experience with not wanting a baby and then adoring that baby as a big reason for his shift on abortion. In January, Trump explained his position on abortion, where he allowed for limited exceptions to terminate a pregnancy and talked about his traditional views on same-sex marriage, which he said at the moment “is a state’s rights’ issue.” In the past, Trump has said he “took a lot of heat” for being opposed to same-sex marriage.
4. When asked by Bill O’Reilly if there was a “Muslim problem in the world,” Trump answered “yes.”
In a 2011 interview, Trump added, “absolutely, absolutely, I don’t notice Swedish people knocking down the World Trade Center.” Trump backed up his statement later saying, “We have to speak the truth, this country is so politically correct, and it’s falling apart.”
5. Donald Trump has called the Bible “The Book, it is the thing.”
In fact, he collects Bibles because he claims so many people send him Bibles. Trump says he saves and stores them because, “There’s no way I would do anything negative to a Bible.”
6. Trump has praised evangelical leaders Tony Perkins and Ralph Reed, saying “they have great reputations.”
In 2011 Trump declared, “I recently spoke to Ralph Reed and Tony Perkins and I was really impressed, they have great reputations and I have been hearing about them for years.” He added that they were “smart people.”
“In my book, all NY jerks talk tough, so talk is cheap, and trash talkers are foolish.”
Though somehow NY cheap, trash talking jerk Trump managed to build a multi-billion dollar real estate empire in one of the toughest venues on the planet.
Go figure, hey?
Cruz doesn’t even make your list??
After six months, I am amazed that some of you thinkers out there are under the impression you’re the only ones who do.
Get over it!
Cruz will not win the nomination. Trump will.
Get help if you need it. Try not to focus on it.
Think!
I think he’s mixing our religious with their candidate.
He’s not listing the top people.
If he can admit we have a problem with Islam, he’s doing better then 95% of our leaders are.
Oh please
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