That Donald Trump might win the 2024 presidential election was possible, but the magnitude of the victory surprised many in my circles. Of greater interest to me than the election results, however, were the reactions, in Christian quarters. Listening to Evangelical religious broadcasts, and engaging in personal conversations with some members of my own church since the election, have yielded the following reflections.
Some of the Chatter
Many Evangelical and charismatic Christians interpret Bible prophecies from a premillennial dispensationalist perspective. Dispensationalism typically asserts that ethnic Israel remains significant in God’s purposes and will be so in the future, teaching that Israel will have a functional role when Jesus rules the nations at His return to earth (cf. Isa. 2:2-4; Matt. 25:31).
So when Trump relocated the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem during his first term, many Evangelicals rejoiced, in spite of strong opposition from different quarters.1 Then when a bullet barely missed President Trump’s head, some Evangelicals saw it as divine protection of the man chosen by God to play a crucial role in the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies concerning the restoration of Israel as a nation-state.2 It would make sense, then, why such a significant portion of the Evangelical3 and Protestant charismatic base would vote so heavily for Trump,4 in addition to other ethical and economic factors.
The conversations I have had with Adventists in my circles since the election indicate two dominant anecdotal perspectives. There are those who express concern (indignation, even) at the decline of moral standards in a nation that would vote for a man they deem morally unprincipled. They would not vote for him regardless of his platform.
The righteous live by God’s faithfulness to the covenant in which He promised to intervene in unexpected ways in His time.
Some expressed support for the ideologies that Trump’s campaign advanced based on their anticipated social and economic impact. Others, surprisingly, found a reason, in Bible prophecy, to vote for Trump—albeit not in the same way as dispensationalist Evangelicals. Pointing to the beast from the earth (Rev. 13:11-17), which we understand to be the United States of America, they saw Trump as one who could usher in the eschatological events of Revelation 13. Could Trump lead the United States to one day, in league with Roman Catholicism and apostate Protestantism, use its power to impose Sunday observance? Given the overwhelming support Trump enjoys in both the legislative and judicial branches of government, he would be well positioned to do so. Voting for him, they reasoned, would simply advance the eschatological time line to hasten the Second Coming.
Pastoral Counsel
In Romans 13:1-7 Paul outlines the imperatives of Christian moral behavior as citizens. Whether Adventists voted for or against Trump for president, Paul’s instructions to act in love and obedience toward the established authority are based on three spiritual foundations.
For the Sake of Conscience. While God may not hand-pick every political authority (see Hosea 8:4), Jesus’ words to Pilate remain true: “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above” (John 19:11, NIV). It is God who “deposes kings and sets up kings” (Dan. 2:21, NRSV; cf. verse 37). “The Most High has sovereignty over the kingdoms of mortals, and gives it to whom he will” (Dan. 4:25, NRSV; see also verse 32). A Christian conscience is shaped by such biblical teachings as “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matt. 5:44, NRSV).
To Habakkuk the prophet, who questioned God about raising the evil and cruel Babylonian Empire to chastise wayward Israel, God said: “The righteous [the faithful believers] shall live by his faith” (Hab. 2:4, ESV). The transliteration from Hebrew is closer to “The righteous one shall live by My faithfulness.” The righteous live by God’s faithfulness to the covenant in which He promised to intervene in unexpected ways in His time.
This does not proscribe the reality that a genuine God-shaped conscience must also courageously stand up against any abuse carried out by the authority/power in place. Genuine Christians have historically done so at the cost of their lives.
Paul advises against behavior that would bring the church into disrepute, thereby making the fulfillment of its mission difficult, if not impossible.
For the Mission of the Church. The manner in which we conduct ourselves as Christians should never prove legitimate grounds for the established power to legislate against the presence and mission of the church. In Romans 16:17 Paul urges the church to be aware of those who create dissension and difficulties in opposition to the doctrines that have been taught (read teachings, practices, and behavior). Such individuals should be avoided, i.e., their activities shunned and opposed.
Paul advises against behavior that would bring the church into disrepute, thereby making the fulfillment of its mission difficult, if not impossible. The advice would prove very pertinent when the Jews in Rome began to rise up against the authorities, and the church, against its own volition, was drawn into the conflict because of its links to Judaism. The advice is indeed timely for the Adventist Church in today’s polarized nation of America.
Considering the Advent. “Besides this, you know what time it is. . . . The night is far gone, the day is near” (Rom. 13:11, NRSV). Paul wrote the Epistle to the Romans around 56 C.E. The world today is almost 2,000 years closer to the twilight of history and the dawn of God’s new creation. Paul’s advice should be taken even more seriously in matters of everyday conduct by contemporary believers, and specifically in their attitudes relating to the established political power.
As F. J. Leenhardt states in his commentary on the book of Romans: “Paul’s ethics offered the Roman Empire a better citizen than the empire could hope to raise by other means, whether by fear or flattery. On the flip side, however, the last thing a totalitarian regime wants is a population with a conscience: conscience gets in the way of unquestioning obedience; conscience submits to the authority of God rather than of the state.”5 This, in my view, should be the stance of Adventists in response to America’s political realities.
1 The following articles establish this perspective: Tom Gjelten, “Religious Leaders Divided Over Trump’s Jerusalem Decision,” Dec. 7, 2017,
https://www.npr.org/2017/12/07/569011845/trumps-jerusalem-decision-engenders-breadth-of-reaction-from-religious-leaders; Tara Isabella Burton, “Pastor at US Embassy Opening in Jerusalem Says Trump Is ‘on the Right Side’ of God,” May 14, 2018, https://www.vox.com/2018/5/14/17352676/robert-jeffress- jerusalem-embassy-israel-prayer/, accessed Jan. 9, 2025.
2 See, for example: Jason DeRose, “Trump Assassination Attempt Lays Bare Deep Religious Divisions in the U.S.,” July 18, 2024, https://www.npr.org/2024/07/15/nx-s1-5040606/trumps-assassination-shooting-god- religion; Drew Harwell, Michelle Boorstein, and Josh Dawsey, “Trump’s Close Call in Assassination Attempt Fuels Talk He Was ‘Chosen’ by God,” July 16, 2024, https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2024/07/16/trump- religion-messiah/, accessed Jan. 9, 2025.
3 The year 2024 continued the trend seen in prior years: Justin Nortey, “Most White Americans Who Regularly Attend Worship Services Voted for Trump in 2020,” Aug. 30, 2021, https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2021/08/30/most-white-americans-who-regularly-attend-worship-services-voted-for-trump-in-2020/.
4 A survey conducted by the Associated Press estimated that eight in 10 White Evangelical Christians voted for Trump in 2024 (Peter Smith, “White Evangelical Voters Show Steadfast Support for Donald Trump’s Presidency,” Nov. 7, 2024, https://apnews.com/article/white-evangelical-voters-support-donald-trump- president-dbfd2b4fe5b2ea27968876f19ee20c84, accessed Jan. 9, 2025).
5 F. J. Leenhardt, The Epistle to the Romans (London: Lutterworth Press, 1961), p. 335.
