A Look At The Facts

I had two episodes recently involving faith and Donald Trump.  The first one involves a sermon I preached about three weeks ago.  The second one was an email I received from a friend asking me the following question.

“Is there a biblically based argument to demonstrate that according to the teachings of Christ one cannot concurrently follow the ideology of Christ and Trump?”

Because both are related to each other I will address the together in this post.  I will start with the sermon.  I used as my text Matthew 5:33 which reads:  "Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.' But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.”

            I used these words of Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount to show that as a Christian our words are important and we need to be truthful in all our interactions.  At one point I said that our speech has consequences and if we are not honest and speak with integrity those consequences will not be favorable for us.  I went on to explain how the Jews of the first century would split hairs over how they swore an oath.  If an oath was made using the Name of the Lord it was considered binding and irreversible.  If, however, the oath was made in the name of anything other than God’s name it was not considered binding.  This is the motivation for Jesus’ teaching in this passage.  Our Lord says we should not need to reinforce our words with additional conditions.  Just say what you mean and mean what you say.  That is the only recipe for integrity.

            I then used the illustration of the 34 people indicted or who pled guilty during the Robert Mueller investigation.  Many of those 34 people spent time in jail because they were caught lying under oath.  Their “yes” did not mean “yes”, in other words.  I then added that we have a President whose documented lies while in office now number over 10,800.  This is not my opinion.  It is documented in numerous fact-checking sources, especially Politi-fact.

            I knew it was questionable to mention that from the pulpit but I felt justified with the facts.  I did not offer any commentary on policies or ideologies.  Jesus did not address those things in this passage.  You see, I try to be true to the scriptures when I preach.  Nevertheless, after the service I was reprimanded by a lady who told me she did not appreciate me saying that the President was a liar.  I should show more respect for the President.  She then said, “It is obvious where you are coming from.”

            I do not apologize for speaking the truth.  In fact, the Bible is clear that we need to speak the truth – even to power, if need be.  The scriptures are filled with examples:  Moses; Elijah; Elisha; Amos; Jeremiah; John the Baptist.  Even Jesus spoke truth to power, rebuking Herod and, to some degree, Pilate.  God told the prophet Ezekiel that if he does not warn the people of their sin, he will be responsible for their fate (Ez. 33:7-9).

            Then, out of the blue, I received an email from my friend Jason.  It came about 2 weeks after my sermon.  Jason did not hear that sermon as he lives some 200 miles away from where I was preaching.  Jason asked: “Is there a biblically based argument to demonstrate that according to the teachings of Christ one cannot concurrently follow the ideology of Christ and Trump?”  He was looking for specific references from the Bible.  I am not sure why he asked.  I did not bother to seek the details.  I figured that if he wanted to fill me in, he would.

            Here is my response to him.



Yes I think there certainly is biblical evidence.  But its hard to simply point to a verse or two.  What one needs to do is take into consideration the full teachings of the Bible and, more importantly, the person of Jesus Christ.  Still, I have compiled a list of scriptures to address just a couple of topics that are prevalent today.  For the most part I just listed verses of the Bible without commentary.  Let God’s Word speak to you and see what you think. 



No matter what I say a true Trumpist will not accept it, I am sure.  They will call it “Fake News” or “Alternative Facts”.  It is sad that we have become so incredibly divided and entrenched in our ideology that we no longer are willing to LISTEN to other views and, as Jesus said, “Count the cost” of discipleship (Luke 14:28-33).

The real problem lies with hermeneutics - - that is, with how we interpret the Bible.  For example, do we place equal authority on the New Testament and the Old Testament?  Does the New outweigh the Old?  As Christians should we look only to the New?  Do the words of Jesus take priority over the words of Paul or Moses?



Most people will pick and choose what works best for them based on what they want the outcome to be.  The problem with that is WE tell the Bible what it should teach, rather than letting the Bible teach us.



ON IMMIGRATION:



Exodus 22:21 (NIV)
²¹  "Do not mistreat an alien or oppress him, for you were aliens in Egypt.

---

Exodus 23:9 (NIV)
⁹  "Do not oppress an alien; you yourselves know how it feels to be aliens, because you were aliens in Egypt.

---

Leviticus 19:34 (NIV)
³⁴  The alien living with you must be treated as one of your native-born. Love him as yourself, for you were aliens in Egypt. I am the LORD your God.

---

Numbers 35:15 (NIV) This one also supports “sanctuary cities”
¹⁵  These six towns will be a place of refuge for Israelites, aliens and any other people living among them, so that anyone who has killed another accidentally can flee there.

---

Deuteronomy 10:19 (NIV)
¹⁹  And you are to love those who are aliens, for you yourselves were aliens in Egypt.

---

Deuteronomy 14:29 (NIV)
²⁹  so that the Levites (who have no allotment or inheritance of their own) and the aliens, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns may come and eat and be satisfied, and so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.

---

Malachi 3:5 (NIV)
⁵  "So I will come near to you for judgment. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive aliens of justice, but do not fear me," says the LORD Almighty.

---

Ephesians 2:19 (NIV)
¹⁹  Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household,

---

Hebrews 11:13 (NIV)
¹³  All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth.





ON HATING OTHERS AND INSULTING PEOPLE:



Leviticus 19:17 (NIV)
¹⁷  "'Do not hate your brother in your heart. Rebuke your neighbor frankly so you will not share in his guilt.

---

1 Samuel 2:3 (NIV)
³  "Do not keep talking so proudly or let your mouth speak such arrogance, for the LORD is a God who knows, and by him deeds are weighed.

---

1 Samuel 15:23 (NIV) This verse speaks directly to rulers & leaders, in this case, King Saul.
²³  For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, he has rejected you as king."

---

Isaiah 13:11 (NIV)
¹¹  I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins. I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless.

---

2 Corinthians 12:20 (NIV)
²⁰  For I am afraid that when I come I may not find you as I want you to be, and you may not find me as you want me to be. I fear that there may be quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, factions, slander, gossip, arrogance and disorder.

---

Matthew 5:43-44 (NIV)
⁴³  "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'  
⁴⁴  But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
⁴⁵  that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

---

REGARDING ARROGANCE & PRIDE



Psalm 5:5 (NIV)
⁵  The arrogant cannot stand in your presence; you hate all who do wrong.

---

Psalm 36:2 (NIV)
²  For in his own eyes he flatters himself too much to detect or hate his sin.

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Psalm 10:2 (NIV)
²  In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak, who are caught in the schemes he devises.

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Proverbs 8:13 (NIV)
¹³  To fear the LORD is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech.

---

Mark 7:20-23 (NIV) This one covers many topics!
²⁰  He went on: "What comes out of a man is what makes him 'unclean.'
²¹  For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery,
²²  greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly.
²³  All these evils come from inside and make a man 'unclean.'"

Psalm 31:18 (NIV)
¹⁸  Let their lying lips be silenced, for with pride and contempt they speak arrogantly against the righteous.

---

Psalm 59:12 (NIV)
¹²  For the sins of their mouths, for the words of their lips, let them be caught in their pride. For the curses and lies they utter,

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Proverbs 11:2 (NIV)
²  When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.

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Proverbs 13:10 (NIV)
¹⁰  Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice.

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Proverbs 16:18 (NIV)
¹⁸  Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.

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Proverbs 21:24 (NIV)
²⁴  The proud and arrogant man--"Mocker" is his name; he behaves with overweening pride.

---

Jeremiah 49:16 (NIV) This one also speaks of the violence and hatred we are now seeing from the alt-right & Neo-Nazis.  They are clearly inspired by the words of our President and have credited him for their recent demonstrations.
¹⁶  The terror you inspire and the pride of your heart have deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rocks, who occupy the heights of the hill. Though you build your nest as high as the eagle's, from there I will bring you down," declares the LORD.

---

Ezekiel 28:2 (NIV)
²  "Son of man, say to the ruler of Tyre, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: "'In the pride of your heart you say, "I am a god; I sit on the throne of a god in the heart of the seas." But you are a man and not a god, though you think you are as wise as a god.

---

Amos 6:8 (NIV)
⁸  The Sovereign LORD has sworn by himself--the LORD God Almighty declares: "I abhor the pride of Jacob and detest his fortresses; I will deliver up the city and everything in it."

---

Zephaniah 2:10 (NIV)
¹⁰  This is what they will get in return for their pride, for insulting and mocking the people of the LORD Almighty.





AGAINST CATERING TO THE RICH (AS THE TAX CUTS DID, AND MANY OF HIS POLICIES ARE DOING)



Proverbs 22:16 (NIV)
¹⁶  He who oppresses the poor to increase his wealth and he who gives gifts to the rich--both come to poverty.

---

Matthew 19:23 (NIV)
²³  Then Jesus said to his disciples, "I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.

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Matthew 19:24 (NIV)
²⁴  Again I tell you, 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."

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Luke 6:24 (NIV)
²⁴  "But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort.

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Luke 16:21 (NIV)
²¹  and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.

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Luke 16:22 (NIV)
²²  "The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried.

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1 Timothy 6:9 (NIV)
⁹  People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.

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James 2:6 (NIV)
⁶  But you have insulted the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court?

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James 5:1 (NIV)
¹  Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you.

---

Revelation 3:17 (NIV)
¹⁷  You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.



I did not even begin to address his racism and anti-Muslim comments and policies.  Those behaviors are also condemned in the Bible but I would need to study that in greater detail.



For me, the best thing is to put an image in your mind of Jesus, and then one of Donald Trump or whoever you want to consider.  It may be helpful to take a sheet of paper and draw a line down the middle.  At the top write JESUS on one side and TRUMP on the other.  Then just think of traits, character issues, attitudes, statements made by both, and anything else you can use for comparative purposes.  Make a list.  I am pretty confident you will find that Donald Trump and Jesus Christ are nearly the complete opposite of each other.  Understand that the Bible clearly teaches that we are to imitate Jesus.  We are called to model our life after his.  Others are to look at us and see Jesus.  I don’t think you will find that in Donald Trump.



For me personally, the biggest thing I have trouble with concerning Trump is his arrogance and his lies.  He is deceitful.  He mocks others.  He cheats. And he is deeply prejudiced.  And yet he has a way of mesmerizing people who in turn follow him to their own peril.



But do not take my word for it.  Look at the evidence.  Read the scriptures.  Decide for yourself.

----------------

Looking back on my response to Jason I know he will look at the evidence and make his own decision.  That is the kind of person he is.  It is easy to feel so strongly about an issue that we want to seek something in the Bible that will justify our position.  But that is essentially telling God what to say and do.  It’s getting the cart before the horse, and it just does not work.  We must let the Word of God speak to us and pray for the faith to accept what it says.



G. D. Gehr
August 20, 2019

Comments welcome.

Further Thoughts On Domestic Terrorism

In response to my last post on August7, 2019 (The Current War of Domestic Terrorism) a good friend of mine wrote the following.



I propose that if these military style weapons are to be constitutionally made available to the citizenry to protect them from their own government  ( which is ridiculous but is at the crux of the NRAs  2nd amendment argument) that a $50000 annual permit must be purchased in order to legally own one .  Are people allowed to legally own RPGs and Tanks ? Maybe it should be legal for people to own sidewinder missiles and F16 fighter jets?  Where does it end.  These last couple of weeks I was thinking about the moon landing . I have to think that one of Kennedy’s greatest achievements as President was inspiring a generation of people to believe they could with hard work and positivity ,do anything  even  put a man on the moon -and they did it!  What our leaders say matters!  And when those leaders inspire hate and discord we get what we have seen at the Tree of a  Life synagogue  and  El Paso the list goes on and sadly is getting longer everyday.   John Lennon said War is over - if you want it - and the only way these things will change is if people want it and make it into reality. I am hopeful that love will prevail. 

-          JK

He makes a great point.  Where does it end?  If the Second Amendment to the Constitution is intended to allow citizens unlimited ownership of arms, then what is to stop a deranged person from stockpiling tanks, missiles, or even nuclear weapons?  Such thinking sounds absurd, of course, but only because we recognize that there are limits and reasonable minds must decide where those limits are placed.



I heard this morning on NPR that until the Supreme Court heard the case of The District of Columbia vs. Heller in 2008 the Second Amendment was understood to apply to State militias rather than individuals.  In Heller, however, the Court ruled 5-4 that individuals also should have the right to bear arms.  However, even in saying this, the Court admonished that there were limitations to this right.  Specifically, the Court ruled that its opinion should not be taken to cast doubt on longstanding prohibitions on the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill, or laws forbidding the carrying of firearms in sensitive places such as schools and government buildings, or laws imposing conditions and qualifications on the commercial sale of arms.



And so the debate continues.  Where are the boundary lines to be established?  It seems to me that current conditions demand stricter regulations.  Above all else the role of government is to protect its citizens at all costs.  We know that unrestricted speed on the highway causes death, so we regulate how fast drivers are allowed to drive.  We know that safety belts in cars saves lives, so we have made their use mandatory.  We know that heroin, methamphetamines, cocaine and certain other drugs cause deaths when misused, so we regulate their availability.   These are common sense regulations that are accepted and undisputed.  Can anyone tell me why on earth this nation is so ignorant to think that something as dangerous and lethal as an assault weapon should be less restricted than a seat belt?  Let’s get real.  Any reasonable analysis of the facts will reveal that assault weapons have consistently been used to terrorize this nation.   Our government must step up and protect the public by banning these horrendous killers.

-George Douglas Gehr
August 9, 2019

The Current War of Domestic Terrorism

NOTE:  Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA) announced yesterday (August 5, 2019) that he and Senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va) are reintroducing bipartisan legislation to expand background checks on gun purchases.  Then, today (August 6, 2019) he announced on Fox News that he refuses to support a ban on assault weapons.  This announcement prompted me to write the following letter to Senator Toomey.



Dear Sen. Toomey,



I was encouraged when I heard that you and Sen. Manchin were renewing your effort to create background checks on weapons purchases.  But now I just read an article that claims you refuse to support a ban on assault-style weapons.  You claim that to do so would infringe on the rights of citizens to purchase arms.  You use the very weak and incorrect excuse of the Second Amendment to hide behind on this issue.  So please tell me where in the Second Amendment assault-style weapons are mentioned!



You are a smart man.  I encourage you to consider the rights of gun violence victims who are massacred by people who own and use assault style weapons indiscriminately.  We have a war raging in this nation right now.  Its called Domestic Terrorism.  Thanks to you and your comrades who are owned by the NRA you are supplying weapons to the enemy.  In any other war this would be considered TREASON!



I know you love this country and want the best for it.  Please come to your senses and introduce a bill in Congress to ban assault style weapons.  STOP ARMING THE TERRORISTS!  Instead, let's support the rights of the victims and all law-abiding citizens who want to live!



Sincerely

George Douglas Gehr

---------------

I doubt very seriously if I will get any response from the good senator other than a form letter sent to me from one of his aides.  I have written numerous letters to Toomey and every time I end up receiving a form letter in response that does little to address the issue that I raised with him.  Instead, it typically regurgitates worn out talking points that vaguely responds to my concern but mostly reminds me what a good guy the Senator is.



I have nothing against Pat Toomey.  He is not a bad Senator, even if I do not totally agree with his positions.  We have had worse.  But I do feel strongly about this point I raised in the letter above.  We have a war raging within the United States of America.  It is not a conventional war, like WWI or WWII.  Domestic terrorism resembles guerilla warfare more than conventional war.  The enemy is not obvious.  He or she does not wear a uniform that clearly identifies who they are.  Neither do they march in line under a unique flag with rifles on their shoulders.  In almost every case they are U. S. citizens who have become disillusioned by the way things are or they have spent far too much time on the dark web or listening to mindless talking heads from the alt-right.  Some of the talking heads are heard on the radio, a few on television, and some are elected officials.  But the message is always the same:  they are against immigration; they are strongly in favor of unrestricted gun laws; they spew forth hatred and prejudice towards anyone different than themselves.



My point is simple.  If we see this as a war – and I believe that is accurate – then we must revisit the whole question of the legality of assault-style weapons.  We cannot continue to allow people unhindered access to these killing machines.  Background checks are good but not nearly good enough.  Far too many mass killings have occurred at the hands of people who had legally obtained these assault-style weapons.  They passed the background checks.  In nearly every case they would have passed the “red flag” test as well.  The sad truth is if these weapons are legally available the “enemy” will find a way to obtain them.  Some will argue that the bad guys will get their hands on these weapons even if they are illegal, and that may be true.  But without a doubt many will not.  And do we not owe it to our law-abiding citizens to make it as difficult as possible for these people to kill others?



To me this is a no brainer.  If this were any other war we would never consider selling arms to the enemy so they could use them against us.  As I wrote to Senator Toomey, that would be a slam dunk case of treason.  We might as well place an ad in the local newspaper inviting terrorists to kill us.  We could even tell them where they can find the best deal on an AK47 or whatever they want.

-          This is not a position against hunting.

-          This is not a liberal or conservative issue.

-          This is not an infringement on anyone’s reasonable rights.  I say “reasonable” because I have yet to hear an argument that justifies why anyone needs a semiautomatic weapon.

-          And this is most certainly not unconstitutional.  As proof, we once had a ban on assault style guns from 1994 until 2004.  The ban was endorsed by former Republican Presidents Ronald Reagan & Gerald Ford, and Democratic President Jimmy Carter.  All three sent written endorsements to Congress urging approval for the ban.  However, when the 10 year term of the original ban expired in 2004 President George W. Bush did nothing to renew it and the Republican Party, which controlled both Houses of Congress, refused to bring it up for a vote.

Thus, the argument that the Second Amendment prohibits a ban on assault-style weapons is refuted.  It does not.  The only thing preventing it today is the National Rifle Association and their nearly unlimited financial backing of the Republican Party’s Congressional members.  That’s it.  Let’s call it what it is.



I wish somehow the question of gun control and assault weapons ban could be put to a binding referendum in a national election.  Let the people decide.  Since Congress will not even make a decision on it, other than for one or two persons to decide that it will just die in some back room without ever coming to the floor, let the American public take control.  If Congress will not do their job and represent the safety of American citizens, then let us forget about them and do it ourselves.



We need some serious changes in how this country operates.  The present system has failed.  People are dying and the Republicans who control the U. S. Senate have given their approval to the terrorists.  More specifically, Mitch McConnell, the Senate majority Leader, has renounced his role as a public servant.  This is true on so many levels.  Why should one person be allowed to decide what can be voted on or even debated and what cannot?  McConnell is the ultimate example of failed politics.  His refusal to even consider any form of regulation on guns is his legacy, and I hope he pays the political price for his betrayal of the rights of American citizens.  That is to say, I hope he is either voted out of office altogether or at a minimum, voted out as Majority Leader.



Our nation will not survive these mass shootings.  Dayton, Ohio and El Paso, Texas are only the most recent.  They certainly will not be the last.  This is going to escalate and destroy us if we do not stop it now.


by George Douglas Gehr
August 7, 2019
Comments encouraged!