Monroe Dispatch - No Struggle, No Progress

One of the reasons the early settlers came to North America was to get away from the tyranny of European kings. Freedom under kings was limited, as one’s loyalty was to the king and any kind of opposition was met with a swift, sometimes deadly rebuke. English speaking settlers wanted to be “the masters of their own fate”, as they would travel over the vast expanse of an ocean to come to a land that they had only heard. Yes, there would be other people already inhabiting the land, it was their hope that it would be better than where they were. One would also wonder if the first Africans felt the same way when they were forced onto ships heading to a land to an uncertain future. That’s another story to write. But the last thing that the early settlers (and present day settlers) wanted to have, was another king to rule over them. That was until Donald Trump became president of the United States. Lately, conservatives such as Sarah Sanders and Rick Perry, had been filling people’s heads that President Trump “is the chosen one” of God to lead the U.S., and has even compared him to King Cyrus from the Old Testament of the bible. Sanders and Perry are part of the denomination of white evangelical Christians who steadfastly believe that no matter what Trump does as president, he has God’s consent. They believe that God has “stirred up” Trump’s spirit, and that the president is “doing the will” of God. But they don’t explain just what it is God wants him to do. The only time President Trump mentioned God is when he is offering “thoughts and prayers”, or at the end of a campaign speech. Has anyone seen God mentioned lately in the hundreds of tweets that the president has sent out since the first of the year? But his supporters believe that he is the “chosen” one. Perry said that King Saul and King David were chosen by God which is true. God chose Saul to teach Israel a lesson, while he chose David to show the difference between Who He wanted (David), and one who was not suited to be king over His people. David and Saul were anointed with oil by Samuel. But David had a relationship with God that is preached even today. King Cyrus had a relationship with God, in that he did things that God wanted him to do. We have not heard of such a relationship with President Trump.

When evangelicals gave candidate Trump their support, they did so in the hopes of Mr. Trump not being a religious man (which they knew) would do what they wanted once he became president. It all started back with Ronald Reagan who hitched onto the wagon of the religious leaders like Jerry Falwell, Sr. who helped form a religion organization that recruited Republican politicians to pass legislation that suited their version of biblical teachings. Christians are now categorized in different groups to the point that compete against each other as to which is more moral than the other. But for conservative Christians who call themselves “fundamentalists”, they want to change things through secular law. But it is not time for disciples of Christ to rule over the world. When Jesus was on the earth, many thought that he was going to free the Jews from their oppressors. Yes, Jesus could have done that, it just wasn’t his time. He was sent into the world to preach salvation and to die. He is not coming back until it is a time appointed by God. True disciples of Christ are supposed to know this. Some of his disciples want to have that power now.

A man as powerful as President Trump, will be powerless in 2020 if he does not get the overwhelmingly voter support from evangelicals as he did in 2016. Some evangelical leaders are saying that if Trump is not re-elected, the nation will be thrown into chaos. Perhaps, they know that if Democrats control the Legislative and Executive Branches, the influence that they now wield in Washington will be diminished greatly. The stakes are exceedingly high not only for President Trump, but for the conservative agenda for the U.S., because the next Democratic president will be able to appoint federal judges to the bench. Therein is where the power to change people’s lives. Power that conservatives would use to control, not liberate. The kind of things that a king does not have a relationship with God would do. We know what King Cyrus did. We are seeing what President Trump would do if he were king. Remember, the world is watching. So is God.