The Ambiguity of President Donald Trump

Richard Hollerman

We all know that Donald Trump is the present president of the United States of America. In fact, he is the forty-fifth president. We may know further that he assumed office on January 20, 2017 and that the vice president is Mike Pence. Trump was preceded by a two-term president named Barack Obama and he was running against Hillary Clinton, the wife of a former president, Bill Clinton.

Writing from a Christian standpoint, we appreciate some of the stands that this president has made. Think of the two supreme court justices that he appointed. Think of the way he has defended religious freedom in America. Think of the way he has defended religiously persecuted peoples in the world. Think of the way he has been negative toward sexual perversion in the country. We could go on but all of this would be positive aspects of his presidency.

What else do we know about Trump? He was born on June 14, 1946, thus he is now 73 years old. He was a Democrat until 1987 and again in 2001-2009. His children’s names are Donald Jr., Ivanka, Eric, Tiffany, and Barron. Perhaps his net worth would be about 3.1 billion dollars (as of March 2019). Trump was a businessman and television personality. He became “the oldest first-term president, and the first without prior military or government service” (Wikipedia).

It may be that we also realize that President Trump has many moral and spiritual flaws. It is true that there are millions of people who seem to adore and support him, however many of these also are aware of his failures and wish that they would go away. Sadly, some people are so undiscerning that they seem to be oblivious to his many flaws.

Just a day or two ago I was noticing some of the moral and spiritual failings of this noteworthy president of America. He does have a year more in his career and it may be that he will seek reelection that would allow him to continue in office for another four years.  Personally, I have had unsettled views on this man since before he was elected. Please don’t understand me incorrectly here. I would have been totally opposed to President Obama—from a Christian standpoint.

And, of course, Hillary Clinton would have been a horrible choice—from a Christian standpoint (regardless of any positives from other viewpoints). Scripture says that a woman is not to exercise authority over a man (cf. 1 Corinthians 11:3; cf. 1 Timothy 2:11-15) and this would have been inevitable if she had been elected. But at the same time, I saw serious flaws in Donald Trump as well. As a Christian, I did not vote for either of the leading persons for the presidency, but apparently millions of Americans did vote for either Trump or Clinton.

But it is only fair for me to share some of the concerns that I had (and continue to have) regarding President Trump. Let’s consult Wikipedia, although I realize that there are limitations that this study could have. As we all know, this Internet venue is presented from a very humanistic and worldly perspective. But it seems to be one way to receive minimal facts about this president. We might keep in mind that, as Christians, we may not agree with many aspects of Trump’s past and present life, but this would come from his unawareness of the ways of Christ.

First, President Trump has lived a very worldly life. For instance, he owned the “Miss Universe” and “Miss USA” beauty pageants from 1996 to 2015. He hosted a reality TV show named “The Apprentice,” from 2003 to 2015. Those of our readers who are devoted and professing “Christians” will see the incompatibility of such things with the ways of God. As Scripture affirms, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2).

Second, it appears that Trump is exceedingly materialistic and money-hungry. This greed is displayed in the fact that his net worth is about $3.1 billion! This is far, far more than nearly all of us have ever imagined. This would be 3.1 thousand million!  He is known for his Florida residence, “Mar-a-Lago,” in Florida. His company “built or renovated skyscrapers, hotels, casinos, and goft courses” (Wikipedia). Let’s remember the warning of our Lord, “How hard it will be for thosue who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God!” (Mark 10:23). Further, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” (v. 25).

Third, we know that our Lord said, “Whoever divorces his wife, except for immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery” (Matthew 19:9; see also Matthew 5:29-30; Mark 10:11-12; Luke 16:18). To repeat, if someone divorces his wife and marries another person, that person commits adultery. Even though divorce and remarriage has become common and even popular in America and Europe (as well as most other countries), we know that those who do so commit the sin of adultery. Along with this, we know that if one is an adulterer, that person will be forbidden from entering the kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 6:9-10; cf. Galatians 5:19-21; Ephesians 5:3-7; Revelation 21:8).

Those who know Trump’s life are aware of the many marriages he has had. “In 1977, Trump married Czeck model Ivana Zelnickova. . . . The couple divorced in 1992, following Trump’s adulterous affair with actress Marla Maples. Maples and Trump married in 1993. They were divorced in 1999. . . . in 2005, Trump married Slovenian model Melania Knauss. . . . Melania gained U.S. citizenship in 2006” (Wikipedia).

Although the article did not explicitly say that Trump deliberately divorced his wives on the grounds of their unrepentant adultery or that they divorced Trump on the grounds of his unrepentant adultery, we assume that there was immorality involved—perhaps on both sides. Since he now lives with his third wife, we also assume that he is living in adultery thus cannot enter the kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 6:9-10).

Fourth, we can also see that Trump is involved in false religion. It is said that he is a Presbyterian and attended First Presbyterian Church in Jamaica, Queens, New York. He then was “mentored” by the false teacher, Norman Vincent Peale (similar to Joel Osteen of today) at Marble Collegiate Church in Manhattan. Years ago I corresponded with Peale and he defended his association with the Masonic organization.

The president says he is “not sure” whether “he ever asked God for forgiveness: ‘If I do something wrong, I just try to make it right. I don’t bring God into that picture’” (Wikipedia).

He has been associated with an arch–false teacher from Florida by the name of Paula White whom Trump says is his “closest spiritual confidant” (Ibid.). Other false teachers are also involved.

Fifth, perhaps some might wish to overlook this further point, but Trump says that he likes “fast food”—something that has greatly affected the health of this nation. He says that golfing is his “primary form of exercise”—although he generally doesn’t walk the golf course, thus it is hardly exercise at all. “He considers exercise a waste of energy, because he believes the body is ‘like a battery, with a finite amount of energy’” (Wikipedia).

Various cardiologists say that Trump’s LDL cholesterol level of 143 “did not indicate excellent health” and he is “clinically obese” (Ibid.). Obviously, from a Christian viewpoint, a person is to consider his body a temple of the Holy Spirit and must carefully nurture it (cf. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20).

Many Other Factors

These are only five different factors that the Christian should keep in mind when they think of President Trump. We know that many others have criticized him for his views on immigration, on the so-called “border wall” to keep illegal immigrants out, his economic policies, his commitments to the nation above spiritual concerns, and much more. We won’t comment on all of this at present. We also know that some of his opponents are seriously unscriptural or have wildly non-Christian stances of numerous matters!

We don’t mean to suggest that this president has not done good along with the bad, that he hasn’t been fruitful along with his corruption. We must keep this in mind. But, as a discerning follower of Christ, we must remember the negatives as well as the positives.

We know that Trump’s language is atrocious, his manners are despicable, his pride seems to know no bounds, his hypocrisy is abounding, and his materialism is excessive! In short, he is not a  Christian and he promotes much, much that is not at all Christian. On the other hand, we must remember that perhaps Hillary Clinton was even worse. And the Democratic contenders presently are all anti-Christian and not worthy of consideration. We do know that most people don’t really evaluate such things rightly—with the reason being that they are not God-centered or Biblical at all.

This shows that, as Christians, we must remain neutral. It is good to remember that the “kingdom” of Jesus transcends party boundaries and is not subject to human standards. Our Lord declared, “My kingdom is not of this world. . . My kingdom is not of this realm” (John 18:36; cf. Philippians 3:20-21).

Perhaps some of our readers will want to read our article on Christianity as it relates to the presidency. You will find this article on our website, www.Truediscipleship.com. Simply click the following:

A Christian as President?