Thursday, April 12, 2012

President Obama, my brother in Christ?


***UPDATE:***


I have no idea whether or not Obama is a Christian. I was using the controversy concerning his Easter speech (which I thought was a step in the right direction) to discuss what a Christian actually believes. Inserting Obama's name was supposed to be ironic. People that know me well (which usually are the only ones who read my posts) would have understood this.

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Many people are raving over President Obama's address he gave the day before Easter. I rejoice that he spoke plainly of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ as he addressed our nation. His Christianity is often called into question, and I know I have friends who believe he is as evangelical as anyone else, and others who place him on the level of Satan himself. Because of his position, he is forced to choose his words carefully when he speaks about his faith, so there are times when he can seem a bit cryptic.

To honor our president, I would like to explain exactly what it is he believes. I'm hoping this will clear up any confusion concerning our president's faith. I don't intend to comment on his policies, nor do I intend to analyze them as potential "fruit." I only want to articulate the Christian faith of our president. President Obama, as a Christian, believes the following:

1. The Bible is true.

That means all of Scripture is inspired by God, and inerrant (1 Cor 2:7-14; 2 Pt 1:20-21; 2 Tim 3:16). He believes it is the Word of God, the Bible, that is the only source of divine truth. This means he believes every other alleged divine source, including the Koran, is patently false.


2. There is only one God.


That means he believes the only God that has existed, and will exist, is the God of the Bible (Deut 6:4; Is 45:5-7). All other gods, including Allah, Buddha, Krishna, and whomever else are not only false gods, but to worship them as god is to disobey the true God, and bring judgment upon yourself (Ex 20:3).


3. God is the only Creator.


Evolutionists who demand that the universe came from nothing do not fool President Obama. He knows that God and God alone created the whole world (Gen 1:1; Ps 33:6)


4. God created the world for His own glory.


The president also understands that this is God’s world, and He is free to run it how He chooses. He knows that God has expectations and standards His creation is to adhere to, and the deviation from those standards has resulted in grave consequences (Ps 24:1; 1 Cor 10:26; Ps 89:11; Gen 2:17; Ac 17:30-31).


5. Human beings have sinned against God, and deserve His judgment.


I know, when he talks, he seems to believe in the good of mankind, but trust me: President Obama knows that every man, woman, and child is born a sinner, and as a sinner, they are completely incapable of helping themselves or each other apart from God’s divine intervention (Ps 14:1-3; Rom 3:9-18, 23; Rom 5:10-12). The president understands that it may seem to some at times that we do not need God, nor do we need Jesus Christ to help us, but he knows this belief stems from the deception that exists in our own hearts (Jer 17:9).


6. Because of our disobedience, all of mankind is cursed, and in need of a Savior.


This is at the heart of what the president holds dear. He understands that everyone, including himself, is incapable of change, and that only a divine act of grace from God is capable of restoring us. President Obama understands how grave our position is. He knows that every person apart from Jesus Christ will be judged by God and spend eternity in hell, separated from God (Eph 5:6; Acts 17:30, 31; Rev 20:11-15; 21:8; Matt 25:41-46). He knows, all too well, that God’s wrath will be poured out on everyone who does not know God (2 Thess 1:7-9)


7. God provided what we need through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.


The president rejoices in the remedy God has provided through the person and work of Jesus Christ. He knows, that as helpless sinners, we needed a perfect Savior that would be willing to take upon Himself the wrath that we deserve (2 Cor 5:21; Rom 5:8). He knows mankind is cursed because of sin, and that Jesus Christ became cursed for us, in our stead, so that we could have fellowship with God (Heb 10:19-25; Gal 3:13). He knows this salvation is not something we can earn, nor is it something that we can add to (Eph 2:8-10; 1:7; 1 Pet 1:18-19).


8. True faith in Jesus Christ will demonstrate itself through our actions.


The president is hopeful that people who profess to believe in Jesus Christ will demonstrate their faith in their lives because he knows this is what the Word of God teaches (Tit 2:11, 12; Eph 2:10; Jn 3:36). He knows, as His Lord said, that to love Jesus, is to obey Him (Jn 14:15).


9. The “actions” true saving faith produces is brought about through the Spirit of God, and not our own efforts.


The president understands that God regenerates us by giving us His Holy Spirit (Jn 3:3-7; Tit 3:5; Ez 36:26, 27). He knows that what true saving faith produces is not a result of our own efforts, but produced in us by the Spirit of God (Gal 5:16-26; Rom 8:1-8). He understands, however, that this still requires effort on our part, but a divinely enabled effort (Phil 2:12).


10. Jesus Christ is coming back to judge the world, and redeem His people.


I confess, I don’t know everything about President Obama’s faith (like whether he is premil, pretrib, postmil, ect…) but I can tell you with certainty, that President Obama knows that Jesus Christ is coming back to judge the world (Rev 20, 21). It is in the return of Jesus Christ that he, like the rest of us, fixes his hope (Tit 2:13-15; Heb 10:37-39; 2 Pet 3:10-13). The president knows that it is in Jesus Christ and Christ alone is where true salvation can be found (I Jn 3:3).


So there you have it. In case you were curious, I present to you the faith of our president. There may be some associations he keeps that make you uncomfortable, and certainly his stances on abortion and other policies are appalling, but keep praying. Perhaps he is still a “work in progress.” You may ask me how I know he believes this, and the answer is simple: He is a Christian, and this is what Christians believe. If this is not what he believes, than he is not a Christian. I hope this is what he believes, and I hope this is what you believe, also.



2 comments:

  1. I agree with you that Pres Obama represents himself as a Christian, and I have no reason to doubt that he means it. I'm not sure how you derived these points, however. There are plenty of Christians who are shakey on some of these points. Do you have "footnotes"?

    ReplyDelete