Excitement and anticipation are building among members of many evangelical churches at this very moment as never before. Christians are eagerly awaiting the new year. They are posting more than ever on social media, spreading good news. But what is it that they are so preoccupied about? Is it the Second Coming of Jesus Christ or the second coming of Donald Trump? Is it praise of the Blameless One, or praise of the one with ninety-one criminal indictments against him and counting? Is it He who promises forgiveness and deliverance or he who promises vengeance and retribution? This is an essay on politicians and prophets
A word of caution before anyone reads futher. This essay contains accurate but offensive language NSFW.
Originally, I wanted to call this essay “Herod and John.” Herod Antipas was a ruling tetrarch and a politician, playing two roles just like his contemporary Caiaphas who was the high priest of the Jews and also a politician (e.g., what was his comment about whether it was better that one man die than the nation perish if not a calculated political decision?) If Caiaphas could explain himself today, he might say that consigning one innocent person to his death was the less of two evils. And this is exactly what I’ve heard from evangelicals who justify their undying support and future vote for Donald Trump—that he is the less of two evils when pitted against Hillary Clinton, or Joe Biden, or any other Democrat. Deciding who gets your vote as an American citizen is a political decision. Don’t try to use Scripture to prop up a narcissistic personality who delights in degrading and debasing other people while bragging about grabbing women by their pussies (Yes! I’ve said it. Someone had to) and who then has the audacity to say he has done nothing to ask forgiveness for. We were warned in Scripture about people who saw themselves as messiahs, or claimed to be the chosen one. We were also warned to have nothing to do with them (Matthew 24:5; 24:24, 26.)
Back to Herod and John. So, long-story-short, Herod was sleeping with his sister-in-law Herodias. She wanted a divorce from her husband at the time and Herod was about to divorce his wife for her. A win-win situation to some It was the remarriage of Herod Antipas to his brother’s wife that John the Baptist objected to. But Herod really liked John the Baptist in some sort of way. Obviously, however, he liked his brother’s wife even more. John called Herod out, because John was a prophet and that’s what prophets do. Prophecy can be foretelling future events. But it can also be applying God’s Law unambiguously to a particular, dicey situation or what another modern day politician (Al Gore) might call an “inconvenient truth.” John wasn’t concerned about hurting Herod’s feelings, or the political blowback or fallout from what he said. Wrong is wrong. But, suppose John did not have the convictions he had. Suppose Herod had called in John for a tête-à-tête. Herod might have said something like “John, I really like you, but you’re beating me down. You need to shut it. Why don’t we work out a mutually beneficial accommodation. You tell me five things that I as ruler can do for you or your people and I’ll do three of them. In return, you back off, stay in your lane and out of my private affairs.” Herod might have promised that if John supported him, Herod would end abortions in Judea and Samaria. Or, maybe he’d support a tax cut for the rich. Or, he’d close the borders in the Holy Land to keep out hungry, frightened foreigners looking for a better life? How does that sound?
Suppose John agreed? Wouldn’t his followers be better off from a deal like this? John might have seen the handwriting on the wall if he had continued to “out” Herod, and John likely did not have a martyr complex. They might have called such an arrangement a “deal with the devil” back then in that case, but today, when you surrender your spiritual integrity for a something in return, it’s called “voting by holding your nose.” Or, as Caiaphas might have put it when closing the book on Jesus, choosing the less of two evils.
If you are an evangelical as I once called myself, you are probably angry after reading this. You should be. Donald J. Trump may be elected president next November, but he will do great harm to the Church as well as the country. A man who is totally transactional has no convictions. He will toss evangelicals under the bus the moment he doesn’t need them anymore, and woe to you if you criticize him for it. Slowly but surely, evangelicals are starting to awaken to this understanding. Tim Alberta, Cal Thomas, Mike Pence and others have reevaluated their relationship with Donald J. Trump and are starting to distance themselves from this man. I pray that you might reconsider as well.