In the days after the assassination attempt on President Trump, a whole cavalcade of B and C level Christian and political personalities and a few A listers have asserted that God has anointed President Trump to lead the United States. The argument runs something like this: “Because President Trump survived the assassination attempt on his life, God has called him to be the next U.S. president.” In other words, God has made his choice and by implication so should you.
Given the theological implications of this claim (No Christian wants to vote down God’s candidate), Christians would do well to pause and consider the merits of this statement before embracing it. Does surviving an assassination attempt prove the righteousness of one’s cause?
Does Survival=Anointing?
A quick scan of history and the Scriptures reveals that the answer to the above question must be a “No.” Though God can and does destroy the wicked and deliver the righteous, some of the most vilified men in world history have survived assassination attempts. Survival and the assumption of political power do not prove to be a sign of God’s special intervention and endorsement but a manifestation of his common grace. As Jesus noted in Matthew 5:45, God, “makes his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” Survival and even political victory are not inherently signs of God’s divine favor or special blessing. To quote the prophet Daniel, “He changes the times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings (Den 2:21).” And as the righteous Job lamented during the midst of his suffering, “Why do the wicked live, reach old, age, and grow mighty in power (21:7)?” Christians should thank the Lord for sparing President Trump’s life and should acknowledged that God sovereignly determines the length of every life and the course of every election. But they should not equate President Trump’s survival with God’s divine endorsement. Nor should they equate the assassination attempt with God’s divine rejection of President Trump. Both the just and the unjust can endure great hardships.
What About?
Moreover, Christians have no other means by which they can discern whether a modern political candidate has been specially anointed by God. With Christ fulfilling the Old Testament law and establishing the church, the people of God have ceased to be defined by national boundaries and earthly political systems. Today, the church consists of all nations, and it is ruled by Christ alone. As Jesus told Pilate, “My kingdom is not of this world (Jn 18:36).” In other words, God no longer sends prophets to anoint kings who point to the coming reign of the Messiah and the establishment of the kingdom of God. Jesus has come. The kingdom is here!
Consequently, the New Testament contains no instructions regarding the installation of political rulers. Any loose correlation between modern political happenings and the Bible such as having blood on one’s right ear is just that – a loose correlation. It does not prove divine blessing. Consequently, the question facing Christians this election cycle (and every election cycle) is not who has been specially ordained by God but who has the character and abilities needed to rule with biblical justice.
The Importance of Principles
To determine whether one is just or unjust (i.e. who one should vote for), Christians must not look to happenstance but to the Scriptures which define justice in accordance with God’s character. Divine justice calls rulers to protect human life (Gen 9:7; Rom 13) and to promote human flourishing by providing essential services and rendering truthful judgements that produce a sense of safety from which Christians can build the kingdom of God (1 Tim 2:1-4). As the Reformer John Calvin noted, “No government can be happily established unless piety is the first concern (Institutes 1495).” In other words, those most qualified to serve are those who most align their platform, policies, and actions with the divine ethic as revealed in the Scriptures irrespective of party.
Voting By Principle
When entering the voter’s booth, Christians should seek to support the most just candidate on the ballot, prioritizing scriptural commands especially with regards to matters of life and death. For example, Christians should prefer a prolife candidate with bad tax policy over a prochoice politician with good tax policy. The rate at which one pays his or her taxes and the government’s ability to maintain roads matters little when one is dead.
At times, Christians will arrive at elections where all the candidates advocate for platforms that run counter to Scripture. They will have to choose between the lesser of two evils (I recommend Andrew Walker’s article at the American Reformer on this subject). But even when faced which such unfortunate choices, Christians should still cling to their Scriptural principles, preferring the candidate who places some limits on abortion as opposed to one who advocates for infanticide. In short, one’s anointing – or perhaps better stated, qualifications – for political leadership can (for the Christian) never be divorced from the scriptural principles of righteousness and justice.
The Danger of Identity Politics
The question of whether a Christian should vote for President Trump is ultimately a question of biblical principles: does his candidacy best align with the ethic of Scripture in comparison to his opponents? Any attempt to circumvent that question and its resulting answer with supernatural claims of divine endorsement derived from sovereign happenstance should be rejected. Such appeals prove to be little more than repacked identity politics – a scheme in which candidates are selected not upon their merits but upon their existence: black, white, homosexual, cisgender, survived an assassination attempt, etc. Christians should not embrace such unverifiable supernatural claims nor fall prey to the cult of personality. Rather, the followers of Jesus should build their political theology upon the certain revelation of the Scriptures.
May God give us the grace and wisdom needed to faithfully engage this election and every election with the biblical truth.
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