The Blessing of the Pope vs. Trump

“The only thing of our very own which we contribute to our salvation is the sin which makes it necessary.” William Temple

  I can’t think of many things I am truly thankful for in the current adversarial political arena, but I was truly thankful for the Pope Francis’ recent suggestion that Donald Trump is not Christian. The Pope said, “a person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian.” I was very thankful he said it. I probably should have sent him a “thank you” note. Yet, what I’m thankful for is probably not what you are thinking. As soon as I heard the story, I thought “what a great opportunity to clearly explain the Gospel!”

  In all honesty, I don’t have a solution for the immigration issue. While I believe a country must protect its borders and has a right to protect its sovereignty, at the same time, the United States has had an open door policy for immigrants since its conception. It’s why our Statue of Liberty has this poem inscribed on it:

“Give me your tired, your poor, 

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed, to me:
I lift my lamp beside the golden door.”

 

  Our long term national care for the disenfranchised and suffering goes back to our Judeo-Christian history and heritage. It’s because of our “Christian” heritage that immigrants desire to come here. There’s not a long list of people trying to immigrate to China or Cuba.

  The Bible has much to say about immigrants in our midst. For example, “You shall not wrong a sojourner or oppress him, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt” (Exodus 22:21). It does not though give us a clear policy or even suggestions of how to legislate about immigration. Personally, I feel, while many have come here illegally, unless they’re criminals and not desiring to become citizens and/or better themselves, it’s cruel to send them back. It’s also unacceptable to tear apart families. Yet, it seems to me both parties use suffering people groups as a political football to incite emotion to gain mileage with their constituency. If they were primarily concerned about what’s best for America and immigrants, a reasonable solution could be worked out…please don’t hold your breath.

  Yet, my real point is that the Pope suggested someone was NOT Christian because of something they DO. That’s not what the Bible teaches or the Gospel says. It does point up the polarization of two completely different religious or worldviews. Essentially, there are only two religions or belief systems…and they’re quite simple – DO and DONE.

  In his comments, the Pope is suggesting one must DO something to be a Christian. Yet, the Bible clearly says: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). What does one do for a gift? Nothing. For once you must “DO” something to obtain that gift, it ceases to be a one. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” God’s grace is absolutely free. Once you DO something or work for it, it ceases to be grace. More than that, you can’t DO anything – nothing, zilch, nada “not a result of works.”

  Building a wall, not building a wall, being moral, going to church, giving lots of money, being nice – none of it has anything to do with being a Christian. Doing something, doing anything will no more make you a Christian, than climbing over a wall will make you a citizen.

  God gave His only Son, Jesus, to die on the Cross to pay our huge debt for our sins. It’s a free gift. It’s all DONE. The only thing that remains is to accept it. In fact, to think one can DO something to somehow pay God back for the gift of the life of His precious Son is an insult to the Father. As George Whitfield said, “What! Get to heaven on your own strength? Why, you might as well try to climb to the moon on a rope of sand!”  

  The Bible also teaches I don’t know who is a Christian, neither do you and neither does the Pope. 1 Samuel 16:7 says, “Man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” Only God knows who is truly a Christian. While if someone is a Christian, there should be indicators or what Scripture calls fruit (Matthew 7:16), only God knows who has truly accepted His free gift of salvation and is truly a Christian.

  One cannot DO anything to become a Christian, other than accept God’s free gift of salvation because Jesus has DONE it all. One can also not DO anything to keep their salvation. The Bible calls salvation “eternal life.”

  How long is eternal? How then can someone lose what is eternal? As Romans 8:35, 38-39 says, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Wow! You can’t DO anything to earn it and you can’t DO anything to lose it! It’s all DONE.

  That’s because when Jesus died on the Cross for our sins, the sin debt as huge and as unfathomable as that huge debt is, it’s still a finite amount. Yet, when the Son of God died, His sacrifice was an infinite death – every sin, past (all the way back to Adam,) present and future (all the way to infinity and beyond) was paid for. It’s all DONE.

  Is Donald Trump a Christian? I don’t know. I do know that according to the Bible, it has nothing to do with what he will DO or not DO. If he is a Christian, it’s only because of what Jesus has DONE and that Donald Trump has accepted God’s free gift of salvation. Jesus death has DONE it all. No sin is too great. Even the most heinous sin is paid for, even my sin…and I’m truly the worst sinner I know. It’s DONE. Have you accepted God’s free gift of salvation? Is it a DONE deal for you?

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