Christianity Today, Donald Trump, Evangelicals and Christmas

I find it ironic that Christians of differing stripes are doing battle over President Trump and the impeachment proceedings during Christmas week. That in a moment.

Here is what I suspect. I suspect readers of this blog fall on both sides of the fence. That is good since God does not carry a card for any political party. I suspect that there is plenty of hypocrisy in Washington by those who want to impeach the President and those who are defending him.  Hypocrisy in Washington is not limited to either party and anything seems to go in the political arena. For those who know American history this is nothing new. The fact that this process is almost entirely along political lines should indicate that it is a political process.

Here is what I am glad for. At least CT has started a conversation about issues that matter to many. It is right to be unhappy with the public statements, tweets, attitudes and behaviors of our President. We are the laughing stock of the world over his behavior. Most of which we would not permit in any evangelical church or any sane place of business. So to say this doesn't matter is not possible. 

For those who believe that a national leader should be a general role model for those they lead, the behaviors of our current President are deeply problematic. Yes, our President is not our national pastor but there are standards of decency that we have in society that are not remotely followed by our President.

For those who focus on issues such as the judges appointed to our courts, religious liberty, abortion and freedom of religion, Mr. Trump has been a Godsend. Those matters are as important as that of his behaviors - so there is no way to insist that the former views are more important than the latter views. Both are true and we live in a fallen world.

I suspect that neither side has the option of being smug regarding their views (as many are) as there is plenty to be said on both sides of the equation. And it might just be that we need to find another source of our hope for the present and the future.

Many evangelicals have not been willing to speak out regarding issues they have with this administration because of how polarizing those opinions are. I tweeted this a few days ago:

Regarding #ChristianityToday it is clear that politics is just as divisive among evangelicals as it is elsewhere. What we lack is the ability to have conversations around our national leader and still stay connected to one another. It is why so many choose to say nothing. Peace!

We have good leaders and bad leaders who end up in power. And their policies do matter. Look for instance at the policies of President Xi of China where the government is causing all kinds of difficulty for the church. So, policies and laws and appointments have real life consequences.

The irony is that no political figure can be the savior of a nation, a society or a man or woman. That role belongs to Jesus, whose birth we celebrate this week. My confidence, hope and faith is not in any party or any person but in the sovereign God who chose to invade this universe surreptitiously to redeem men from their sin.

"He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God - children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.

"The word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only, who came from the father, full of grace and truth." John 1:10-15.

Christmas gives me great hope because Jesus is the only hope of the world. The two pictures at the top show the difference between the two sources of hope. One is that of power. The other is that of God becoming man. Too often we believe power is the answer when in reality the humble baby born two millennia is the answer.