The prominent evangelical magazine Christianity Today published an editorial Thursday arguing that President Trump's actions in Ukraine are both "a violation of the Constitution" and "profoundly immoral." That "Trump should be removed from office," wrote editor-in-chief Mark Galli, "is not a matter of partisan loyalties but loyalty to the Creator of the Ten Commandments." Trump reacted about about as you'd expect....
On Friday's New Day, CNN's John Berman read Trump's tweet to Galli and asked for his reaction. Most people consider Christianity Today "a pretty centrist magazine in the evangelical world," he said. "We're certainly not far-right, and I suppose anyone who's not far-right, he would consider far-left." Galli seemed surprised that Berman found his judgment of Trump's moral behavior more notable than his call for Trump's ouster. Trump's immoral behavior is broadly acknowledged, he said. "The question is, when does his behavior — which is described as immoral, accurately — rise to the level where he's no longer fit to serve office? And to me, we crossed that line with the impeachment hearings." Read More
Also See:
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Why the Editor of Christianity Today Decided to Rebuke Trump NEW
'Christianity Today' Editor-In-Chief On Calling For Trump's Removal NEW
What It Means That A Christian Publication Is Calling For Trump's Removal From Office NEW
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Christianity Today Called for Trump’s Removal. Here’s Why That Doesn’t Matter. NEW
CT Calls Out Trump in ‘Surprising Act of Dissension’
A Response to Christianity Today’s Call for President Trump's Removal from Office
Michael Brown in his response to Mark Galli's recent CT editorial calling for the removal of President Trump argues that Trump has been a "Godsend" for evangelical Christians. He is not alone in taking this view. Romans 13:1-5 is often cited in support of the same view.
While Paul does maintain in this passage that those in authority are chosen by God, he does not comment on God's reasons for choosing particular individuals for a particular time or place. God may choose a individual to show favor to a particular nation or group. He may also choose an individual to test the faith of Christians. As Isaiah 55:8 tells us, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD." We should not forget that God chose the pharaoh who refused to free the people of Israel and ordered the slaughter of their first born. He also chose the Babylonian rulers who besieged Jerusalem and took its inhabitants into captivity.
"Those in authority" it must also be borne in mind include legislators and judges, not just princes, presidents, and prime ministers. The warning in Psalm 146, which I have italicized, is particularly apt for our time.
"Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul! I will praise the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.
Put not your trust in princes,
in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.
When his breath departs, he returns to the earth;
on that very day his plans perish.
Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord his God
who made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them,
who keeps faith forever;
who executes justice for the oppressed,
who gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets the prisoners free;
the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down;
the Lord loves the righteous.
The Lord watches over the sojourners;
he upholds the widow and the fatherless,
but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
The Lord will reign forever,
your God, O Zion, to all generations.
Praise the Lord!"
Sadly the people of Israel repeatedly chose to trust princes rather than God and suffered over and over again the consequences of not putting their trust in the One who was their true King. They repeated what was the original sin of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden: They listened to the serpent and not to God.
Princes, presidents, and prime ministers are also politicians. To win support or maintain their popularity, they may cater to worst tendencies in ourselves. The Roman emperors sponsored games in which large numbers of animals and people, including Christians, were tortured and killed to satisfy the blood lust of the Roman population. Politicians are quite capable of pretending to hold the values that we hold dear, only to abandon those values when it suits them. For this reason the character and conduct of a politician, like that of a pastor, is so important.
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