Hey, I voted for Donald Trump. And I'm still happy with that. Now some might say to this, "Well, that's your problem." My answer? Well now it's your problem too because he's President. He's my president.
And some might say back "Well, he's not my president!" Okay, now I know what they mean by that. It means that they disown him and won't acknowledge him as President of the United States. But if he has the power to start war or declare martial law due to some domestic situation he doesn't like, I guarantee you that his decision will do more than mess up your day. You'll find out quickly enough that he's your president, like it or not.
A lot of those who voted for Trump saw that there were two choices in a close race. Choice "A" was Donald Trump. Choice "B" was unthinkable. So we voted Choice "A". It was a simple choice, and we made it gladly.
Which brings me to the point: "Are you praying for Donald Trump?" Criticize him; find fault with him if you must, but are you praying for him?
I'm talking mainly to born-again Christians here. So for the rest of you, go take a siesta for 20 minutes. But for the born-again Christians, its your job to pray for the welfare and conduct of the President of the United States, whoever he is. Whether it's Trump or "Never Trump", whether it's Obama or Hillary or whoever, it is part of your job description as a believer to pray for whosoever is in that office. There are some big reason for this. But I'll just give you one: self-interest. This man has the power, either through acts of omission or commission, whether intentionally or not, to seriously mess up your way of life by the decisions he makes. His decisions impact 325,000,000 Americans, regardless of whether they say he's "their" president or not. Notice I Timothy 2:2:
"Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may live a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence ..."
Notice that phrase "first of all". It means, well ... "first of all". Obviously St. Paul believed this was of primary importance to do. And he told his young protege pastor Timothy to make sure his church was praying this way. Notice also, that he uses this phrase " for all who are in authority". Does that include bad people? Well ... are there bad people who are in authority too? Yes. So that includes bad people too. Notice also these words "supplications" and "intercessions" and this phrase "giving of thanks". If you don't know what the first two words mean, then for heaven's sake look them up, because rest assured, what Paul is talking about is not the kind of brief, perfunctory prayers you make right before you eat dinner with your family. He's clearly talking about something else: another kind of praying.
There are three objections people have for not praying for the current president. They have no trouble with the criticism part They have a big problem with the other part. Three objections: here they are:
Objection #1: "I Just Can't Stand the Man."
Really? Do you like him more than Nero? See, when St. Paul said to pray for those in authority, the ruler of Rome was Nero Caesar. Nero made Trump look like a choirboy. We best know Nero from the terrible things he did near the end of his life: played his fiddle at culturally insensitive times of national disaster, put on anti-Christian half-time shows during the arena games, and rumor has it he tried to make his horse a member of the Roman senate to show the senate what he thought of politicians. (Or was that Caligula?) Well anyway, Caligula, equally evil, lived at the time of Paul too.
Consider Romans 13: 1-7 and I Timothy 2:1-3 Here, St. Paul, writing by the Holy Spirit's inspiration, lived at the time of two of the most perverted, wicked emperors ever to rule Rome. His entire adult life spanned the reigns of Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius and Nero. When you read in the Scriptures that he "appealed to Caesar" for redress of injustices (Acts 25:11) done to him, he meant Nero Caesar, who reigned during the last 10 years of his life. But regardless, Nero or not, under the Caesars were various appointed kings, governors and other servants of Rome; King Herod's sons Agrippa, Archelaus and Phillip; as well as Felix, Festus and Pontius Pilate being key examples. Scripture does not white-wash the sins of these pagan rulers, yet these are the rulers Paul spoke of in Romans 13. Needless to say, they were not sterling examples of Christian virtue. But what they did was uphold Roman law. And in the First Century that law protected the people of God and maintained, in a rough and imperfect way, the restraint of evil in the world.
"Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do what is good, and you will have praise of the same. For he is God's minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God's minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil."
Notice again Romans 13. The appointees of Caesar were called "God's ministers"; not ministers in a church sense, but "ministers" in a political sense. Yet most of them were pagan, often dishonest, cruel, manipulative and self-serving. But the Scriptures boldly and unequivocally call them God's servants and ministers. Now for what purpose are they called this? Look again at I Tim. 2:1-3 ...
"Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may live a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is acceptable in the sight of God our Savior ..."
Notice two things here: first, the ruler rules by God's choosing for the purpose of blessing and protecting God people through good government. And second, this blessing is conditional, not automatic. In other words if God's people are not consistently praying for God's restraint of the ruler and for wisdom given to him to rule well, then they will not reap the benefits. Notice how the text itself brings this out. Also notice the kinds of prayer God's word says to offer. And if your wondering what "supplications" means, it implies you're praying with your whole heart as if this was one of the most important things in the world to you; and probably on your knees. The times we live in require such prayer. Let's move on to Objection Number Two:
Objection 2: "We don't deserve God's grace as a country anymore. So how can I pray for him with any confidence?"
We never did deserve God's grace as a country. The very definition of "grace" rules out any such possibility of "deservability". At various times in the past, America was certainly more biblically-based, but never did she deserve the unmerited favor of God, which is what "grace" is. The reason Christians are told to pray for their rulers in I Tim. 2:2 is so that God would, despite our "undeservability", would show favor through the rulers to those they ruled. And to take it a step further, even the good conduct of obedient Christians does not merit the unmerited favor of God. What merits the favor of God to Christians is the "deserveability" of the One that they are putting their trust in. Theologically speaking, that's why God shows us grace through the governing authorities, and ultimately, that's Donald Trump today. The "Nero" comparison is helpful: not everything Nero did was insane or wicked. He often acted out of his character to protect the early church. St. Paul personally appealed to him in Acts 25:12 and 25:25 for redress of wrongs done to him by the Jewish authorities. The honorific title "Augustus" was used for Nero, and is in most translations. ["Augustus: lit: "worthy of honor"] This "Augustus" was not the original Augustus Caesar who decreed at the birth of Christ "that all the world should be taxed." (Luke 2:1) and who died when Jesus was 14. No, this "Augustus" of Acts 25 was Nero Caesar who reigned from AD 37 until AD 68. Under God's restraining hand, the Emperor heard Paul's appeal, and allowed him to live and minister as a captive "guest" of Rome for two years, unmolested, "in his own hired house, no man forbidding him." (Acts 28:30,31) Here's the point: despite the wickedness of Rome and its emperor, God restrained Nero's evil for a long time in order to answer the prayers of the saints for the welfare of the church and for Paul's protection. Only towards the end of his life did Nero's madness make him the monster that history knows him to be. Final objection for not praying for Trump:
Objection #3: "It's hard enough to stay faithful to prayer in general; for myself and my family, let alone praying for a US President!"
Okay. Now if that's the case, you don't have a problem with Trump; you have a problem with prayer. Making time for intercessory prayer is usually a sacrifice. If it's not a priority, it won't get done. But people are always making sacrifices anyway: parents make time sacrifices for their kids, for example. And again, a lot of people don't know how to pray for their leaders. They think they have to pray for their salvation or it doesn't count. But that's not primarily in view with I Tim. 2:2. Rather, it's that the leader, despite himself, would make wise choices. Nero probably didn't become a Christian before he died, but those of his "household" did! (Phil. 4:22). That word "household" here, used in most translations can either mean those who were his immediate relatives or those close to him in his palace, who had the ear of the Emperor and could, if they wanted, exercise a certain restraining influence.
Prayer for your country's leaders whoever they are, is not something people are naturally "good" at doing. But like anything: parenting, riding a bicycle, anything; you get better at it by doing it!
And some might say back "Well, he's not my president!" Okay, now I know what they mean by that. It means that they disown him and won't acknowledge him as President of the United States. But if he has the power to start war or declare martial law due to some domestic situation he doesn't like, I guarantee you that his decision will do more than mess up your day. You'll find out quickly enough that he's your president, like it or not.
A lot of those who voted for Trump saw that there were two choices in a close race. Choice "A" was Donald Trump. Choice "B" was unthinkable. So we voted Choice "A". It was a simple choice, and we made it gladly.
Which brings me to the point: "Are you praying for Donald Trump?" Criticize him; find fault with him if you must, but are you praying for him?
I'm talking mainly to born-again Christians here. So for the rest of you, go take a siesta for 20 minutes. But for the born-again Christians, its your job to pray for the welfare and conduct of the President of the United States, whoever he is. Whether it's Trump or "Never Trump", whether it's Obama or Hillary or whoever, it is part of your job description as a believer to pray for whosoever is in that office. There are some big reason for this. But I'll just give you one: self-interest. This man has the power, either through acts of omission or commission, whether intentionally or not, to seriously mess up your way of life by the decisions he makes. His decisions impact 325,000,000 Americans, regardless of whether they say he's "their" president or not. Notice I Timothy 2:2:
"Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may live a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence ..."
Notice that phrase "first of all". It means, well ... "first of all". Obviously St. Paul believed this was of primary importance to do. And he told his young protege pastor Timothy to make sure his church was praying this way. Notice also, that he uses this phrase " for all who are in authority". Does that include bad people? Well ... are there bad people who are in authority too? Yes. So that includes bad people too. Notice also these words "supplications" and "intercessions" and this phrase "giving of thanks". If you don't know what the first two words mean, then for heaven's sake look them up, because rest assured, what Paul is talking about is not the kind of brief, perfunctory prayers you make right before you eat dinner with your family. He's clearly talking about something else: another kind of praying.
There are three objections people have for not praying for the current president. They have no trouble with the criticism part They have a big problem with the other part. Three objections: here they are:
Objection #1: "I Just Can't Stand the Man."
Really? Do you like him more than Nero? See, when St. Paul said to pray for those in authority, the ruler of Rome was Nero Caesar. Nero made Trump look like a choirboy. We best know Nero from the terrible things he did near the end of his life: played his fiddle at culturally insensitive times of national disaster, put on anti-Christian half-time shows during the arena games, and rumor has it he tried to make his horse a member of the Roman senate to show the senate what he thought of politicians. (Or was that Caligula?) Well anyway, Caligula, equally evil, lived at the time of Paul too.
Consider Romans 13: 1-7 and I Timothy 2:1-3 Here, St. Paul, writing by the Holy Spirit's inspiration, lived at the time of two of the most perverted, wicked emperors ever to rule Rome. His entire adult life spanned the reigns of Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius and Nero. When you read in the Scriptures that he "appealed to Caesar" for redress of injustices (Acts 25:11) done to him, he meant Nero Caesar, who reigned during the last 10 years of his life. But regardless, Nero or not, under the Caesars were various appointed kings, governors and other servants of Rome; King Herod's sons Agrippa, Archelaus and Phillip; as well as Felix, Festus and Pontius Pilate being key examples. Scripture does not white-wash the sins of these pagan rulers, yet these are the rulers Paul spoke of in Romans 13. Needless to say, they were not sterling examples of Christian virtue. But what they did was uphold Roman law. And in the First Century that law protected the people of God and maintained, in a rough and imperfect way, the restraint of evil in the world.
"Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do what is good, and you will have praise of the same. For he is God's minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God's minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil."
Notice again Romans 13. The appointees of Caesar were called "God's ministers"; not ministers in a church sense, but "ministers" in a political sense. Yet most of them were pagan, often dishonest, cruel, manipulative and self-serving. But the Scriptures boldly and unequivocally call them God's servants and ministers. Now for what purpose are they called this? Look again at I Tim. 2:1-3 ...
"Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may live a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is acceptable in the sight of God our Savior ..."
Notice two things here: first, the ruler rules by God's choosing for the purpose of blessing and protecting God people through good government. And second, this blessing is conditional, not automatic. In other words if God's people are not consistently praying for God's restraint of the ruler and for wisdom given to him to rule well, then they will not reap the benefits. Notice how the text itself brings this out. Also notice the kinds of prayer God's word says to offer. And if your wondering what "supplications" means, it implies you're praying with your whole heart as if this was one of the most important things in the world to you; and probably on your knees. The times we live in require such prayer. Let's move on to Objection Number Two:
Objection 2: "We don't deserve God's grace as a country anymore. So how can I pray for him with any confidence?"
We never did deserve God's grace as a country. The very definition of "grace" rules out any such possibility of "deservability". At various times in the past, America was certainly more biblically-based, but never did she deserve the unmerited favor of God, which is what "grace" is. The reason Christians are told to pray for their rulers in I Tim. 2:2 is so that God would, despite our "undeservability", would show favor through the rulers to those they ruled. And to take it a step further, even the good conduct of obedient Christians does not merit the unmerited favor of God. What merits the favor of God to Christians is the "deserveability" of the One that they are putting their trust in. Theologically speaking, that's why God shows us grace through the governing authorities, and ultimately, that's Donald Trump today. The "Nero" comparison is helpful: not everything Nero did was insane or wicked. He often acted out of his character to protect the early church. St. Paul personally appealed to him in Acts 25:12 and 25:25 for redress of wrongs done to him by the Jewish authorities. The honorific title "Augustus" was used for Nero, and is in most translations. ["Augustus: lit: "worthy of honor"] This "Augustus" was not the original Augustus Caesar who decreed at the birth of Christ "that all the world should be taxed." (Luke 2:1) and who died when Jesus was 14. No, this "Augustus" of Acts 25 was Nero Caesar who reigned from AD 37 until AD 68. Under God's restraining hand, the Emperor heard Paul's appeal, and allowed him to live and minister as a captive "guest" of Rome for two years, unmolested, "in his own hired house, no man forbidding him." (Acts 28:30,31) Here's the point: despite the wickedness of Rome and its emperor, God restrained Nero's evil for a long time in order to answer the prayers of the saints for the welfare of the church and for Paul's protection. Only towards the end of his life did Nero's madness make him the monster that history knows him to be. Final objection for not praying for Trump:
Objection #3: "It's hard enough to stay faithful to prayer in general; for myself and my family, let alone praying for a US President!"
Okay. Now if that's the case, you don't have a problem with Trump; you have a problem with prayer. Making time for intercessory prayer is usually a sacrifice. If it's not a priority, it won't get done. But people are always making sacrifices anyway: parents make time sacrifices for their kids, for example. And again, a lot of people don't know how to pray for their leaders. They think they have to pray for their salvation or it doesn't count. But that's not primarily in view with I Tim. 2:2. Rather, it's that the leader, despite himself, would make wise choices. Nero probably didn't become a Christian before he died, but those of his "household" did! (Phil. 4:22). That word "household" here, used in most translations can either mean those who were his immediate relatives or those close to him in his palace, who had the ear of the Emperor and could, if they wanted, exercise a certain restraining influence.
Prayer for your country's leaders whoever they are, is not something people are naturally "good" at doing. But like anything: parenting, riding a bicycle, anything; you get better at it by doing it!
