I am not going to spend much time here on a history lesson. Every time the Republican Party claims they are the party of Lincoln, Honest Abe rolls over in his grave. Demographics change over the course of a hundred years. Shane can try splitting the bill all day long but people with an ounce of discernment know that he is again wrong. Anything to defend your idol.
"5. Many believe that whatever good President Trump has done for the church, he has done more damage in the long run. The argument goes something like this: "Because evangelicals are so closely associated with Trump, it makes the gospel look bad." They would add, "We have always been the 'character counts' people. What has changed?" Nothing has changed. We are not voting for people based on a Christ-like character (though that would be a huge plus); we are voting for the future direction of America. And how do we know that President Trump is not slowly changing for the better being around so many godly influences--from James Robison to Jentezen Franklin to Franklin Graham to Robert Morris? I think that those Christian leaders closest to him would be the ones to best assess the spiritual climate of the White House rather than arm-chair quarterbacks. -- Shane Idleman
Franklin Graham who has accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations from Trump and recently sold out the memory of his dead father by pretending he had voted for Trump in 2016? Jentzen and Robison who are voracious wolves or Morris who abuses and beats sheep with an ungodly tithing paradigm? These are the people you hope influence him? I am sure they have. The reason why Trump was drawn to the Paula White wing of the NAR is they worship the same god -- mammon. The hypocritical point about character is that when the immoral shoe was on President Clinton's foot the same church leaders did not just say it would be a huge plus if the president had Christ-like character. They said it was a requirement. Now that the immoral shoe is on the foot of their idol, they are all talking about how we don't elect a pastor. Pure, unadulterated hypocrisy. Our witness for the Gospel counts Shane.
"My concern for the group under this point is that they worry too much about his personal character. Yes, character counts, but President Trump doesn't set the spiritual climate of our nation, we do. God doesn't let a spiritual awakening hinge on the character of one person. America's first Great Awakening happened under the difficult reign of the king of England. Granted, he wasn't elected by the people, but the principle still stands: Let God deal with President Trump, and let us be concerned about personal revival and renewal. God's call of repentance is not to Hollywood, Washington or the media (though that would be great to see); His call is to us. "If My people ... turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and will heal their land" (2 Chr. 7:14). The silent majority needs to wake from their spiritual slumber. Here is an analogy that will bring this point home. The head of a neighborhood watch program, who took the late-night watches, had previously had an affair. He was occasionally gruff and impulsive, and sometimes his words were crass and offensive, but he watched over the neighborhood diligently each night. Each week he invited church leaders into his home to pray for him and his family and to seek their advice. He often stood against others on the committee who wanted to enact policies harmful to the neighborhood and to the children, such as advocating an open-door policy where residents were required to allow anyone into their homes at all hours of the day for handouts. Is this not the kind of person you would want leading your neighborhood watch? Does his past or demeanor matter more than the results he is seeking? If you are intellectually honest, the answer is not difficult. In the same way, the answer is simple for America. Again, we are not voting for people based on how godly they are; we are voting for the future direction of America: the right to life, the elevation of God's Word back to its proper place, the appointment of conservative judges, securing America and her borders, creating jobs and improving the quality of life for all Americans." -- Shane Idleman
Excuses excuses excuses. Idol worship on full display. Shane is right that spiritual awakening resides within the purview of the church but the church has been compromised by idol worshipping a man of beyond questionable character. That combined with the myopia blinds Idleman from seeing the stupidity of his analogy. I am unsure I would want someone heading up my neighborhood watch who did not share my faith but putting that aside, the issue is if you start lying about this man. If you start making excuses for all of his behavioral issues. If you start twisting the bible to claim that he is King Cyrus or Elijah. This is the trade off that the NAR desires. Forget that godliness stuff. We aren't electing a pastor! If he gives us all of the carnal political stuff we want then who cares if he is moral at all?
"6. Some feel that many pro-Trumpers place patriotism before the kingdom of God. But is being a proud American wrong? Not necessarily. Yes, for some pro-Trumpers, "MAGA" seems to be more important than the Great Commission. It is wrong to put man's kingdom before God's kingdom. But we have dual citizenship. We have a responsibility to both, with God's kingdom as the priority. We cannot overlook our civic responsibility as Christians--we can no longer hide behind the excuse, "I don't want to get involved." As citizens, we have the privilege (for now) to place people in positions of leadership. God blessed us with this privilege. Whether we like it or not, we are involved. Millions are not registered to vote, and millions of registered voters stay at home. We'll stand in line to see a movie, but we won't stand in line to vote and elect leaders who will affect the direction of our country. While nationalism can include a self-righteous attitude, it doesn't have to--it's all about how we define it and how we live. Watch my short clip on nationalism here and my clip titled "What You Must Know About America" here." -- Shane Idleman
Yes Shane. Pride is wrong. Read your bible. We most certainly DO NOT have dual citizenship! The bible says that our citizenship is now in heaven. It is not split. We are supposed to be but pilgrims and sojourners through this land. God's kingdom is not just the priority! It is first second and last. Our only involvement with this world is to bring the Gospel into it so that some might be saved out from it. Period. Full stop. It is not patriotism that you place before God Shane. It is a love for this fallen world and the sin and excess you enjoy because of it. As for staying home, that just might be the righteous choice. Spurgeon said that when confronted with choosing between two evils he chooses to not choose. This example should hit home. In 2012 God gave the church an unthinkable choice between the uber-liberal Obama and the member of the Mormon Satanic cult in Mitt Romney. I would bet dollars to donuts Shane Idleman not only voted for Romney but claimed he was the godly choice. This is what happens when you fall into idol worship and myopia. Your ends start to justify your means but God does not ascribe to Machiavellian philosophy. There was no way that His choice was the Satanic cult member.
"7. Christians are divided because many who claim to be "Christians" are not genuinely saved. As a result, their perception of truth is skewed. Having interacted with people about President Trump since 2016, I have noticed that many no-Trumpers shared pro-LGBTQ statements and rainbow flags on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Most of them also had a low view of Scripture and avoided words such as repentance, holiness and sin, but they willingly flaunted their favorite R-rated sexually charged movie and saw no problem with sharing profanity-laced memes and "jokes." This was very telling. Many are led by Hollywood, not the Holy Spirit. If Hollywood and the national media are on your side, there's a problem." -- Shane Idleman
