#ActuallyHeIsYourPresident

by Tad Lindley

During the Obama years I saw a bumper sticker that read, Pray for President Obama, Psalm 109:8: Let his days be few; and let another take his office. Recently I saw a new bumper sticker. It must have been in Anchorage and it read, “#notmypresident” (pronounced “hashtag not my president”). Perhaps they are leftover from the Obama years, but I suspect they are related to the same folks that used to have a bumper sticker that said, #nevertrump. And I don’t really comprehend all of the “hashtag” business (in my day, we called it the “pound sign”). All I know is that it has something to do with Twitter, where maybe if you put #notmypresident it connects you with other people who are also living in denial about who their president is.
Rewriting reality
Actually, if you are citizen of the United States, whether you want him to be or not, Donald J. Trump is your president. The only people who are able to honestly claim #notmypresident, are citizens of other countries. Try as hard as you might, this is a reality that you cannot rewrite without renouncing your US citizenship and becoming joined to some other nation. The sooner you come to grips with the facts the better.
He’s your Pres and you’ve got to love him
I have been a citizen of the United States under a variety of presidents. Some of them I agreed with, and others I didn’t. Whether we like the president or not is irrelevant, we’ve got to love him. If we can’t love Donald Trump, we can’t be saved. Look at what the Bible says, If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. (I John 4:20)
Don’t be a liar
The Bible is being pretty in your face here: if you claim to love God, but hate your president, you are a liar. Now some of you are saying, “Bro. Lindley, those aren’t the words of Jesus, that was written by John.” Guess where John got that idea, from God. And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother. (I John 4:21) So don’t try to tell me that you love God if you hate Donald Trump.
…but you don’t have to like him
We have to love the people around us. If we don’t, then hell is our trajectory, that is plain and simple. We do not have to like them, we do not have to find them funny, we do not have to agree with them, but we have to love them.
Respecting your president
Because Donald J. Trump is a fellow human being, we have to love him. Because he is the President of the United States, we have to respect him. Romans 13 speaks to this in great detail. It closes that discussion with these words, Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor. (Romans 13:7)
Again in I Peter 2:13-14, Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. And finally, And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus… (Colossians 3:17)
Make Jesus happy, pray for your president
If you hate your president, then you need help. God can deliver you from the hate in your heart. But whether you love him or hate him, please pray for him. I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity. This is good and pleases God our Savior… (I Timothy 2:1-3 NLT). If you are not sure how to pray for your president start here: 1) Pray for his salvation, 2) pray that he would surround himself with godly counsel, 3) pray that he would be sensitive to the guidance of God, 4) pray that the Lord would give him the gift of wisdom in all situations. When you do this, you bless God, you bless the man in the office of the President, and you strengthen our nation. Please pray for our president.
Tad Lindley is a minister at the United Pentecostal Church in Bethel, Alaska.