Church Grammar
Let me go ahead and kick this thing off with an understatement: President Barack Obama is a polarizing figure.
Depending on who you ask (or whose Facebook post you’re reading), he’s either a Muslim or a Christian or the Antichrist himself (has anyone let Nicolae Carpathia know yet? He is still doing his occasional Antichrist thing on basic cable, and he could probably use a vacation). Obama professes the Christian faith, which might be genuine or might not. But I’m convinced that beyond all that, he’s just a (relatively common) politician who (not surprisingly) uses religion when it benefits him.
For example, we all remember when Obama said he supported gay civil unions but would leave the definition of marriage to religious groups, then later saying he’d evolved on the issue, only to now read reports that claim he was lying in the first place. In the first case, he punted to religious leaders, taking a non-religious stance as to not offend anyone; in the flip-flop, he semi-quoted the Bible.
Still other times, he quotes Jesus, the Torah, and hadith in one speech or stumbles through religious history lessons. Faith is the hero or the antihero for Obama, depending on the point he’s trying to make. Again, it’s not surprising, nor should it lead to outrage. It’s a little thing called “politics,” and he’s been President of the United States since 2008 because he plays the game well.
Obama exacerbates Christians’ biggest political problem: we clamor for a Christian president who fits our particular theological and political agendas. You might even get the impression that some of us want our president to be Jesus himself. But no one will ever be Jesus himself, and let’s face it, a Christian president will never be good enough anyway. George W. Bush’s public faith is lauded by many, and yet Christians were still on the front lines to bash him. We will give him a pass at times since we know for sure he loves Jesus, but he still is only as good as the opinions he shares with us. Politics never fully satisfy us, and yet we idolize it and think the perfect Christian president is going to change that.
The point is this: we don’t really need a Christian president. A Christian president isn’t going to make our country a utopia. He isn’t going to do his job perfectly or sinlessly. He’s not Jesus, remember?
I am fully behind the notion of electing a president who holds the values I think the Bible values. My ideal president is one who protects religious liberty and is concerned with human flourishing (e.g., someone who is concerned with the lives of the unborn and the preservation of the traditional family, who doesn’t think immigration is solved by mass imprisonment or mass deportation, who cares about the impoverished, unemployed, and underemployed, etc.). Obama has made some major, major concessions on these issues. And I’m not happy about it.
I mourn for the lives lost to abortion. I yearn for traditional marriage to remain the cultural norm. As one who grew up on welfare in a broken home, I hurt for those who struggle to eat and pay bills, or who lay awake at night sobbing because mommy and daddy couldn’t make it work.
But I don’t need a Christian in office in order to see these values upheld, protected, or restored, and I’m willing to vote for anyone willing to fight for them. As my friend (I think biblically) notes on this point, “Common grace allows me to want the best possible leader. There are some Christians I wouldn’t want near that office. There are some non-Christians who would be excellent.”
Obama claims to be a Christian. Whether he is or not doesn’t change the fact that I am severely disappointed with his presidency. Using “Muslim” as a derogatory term for Obama isn’t helpful. Saying he supports ISIS because he doesn’t handle the conflict like you want him to isn’t helpful. Wishing Obama were a Christian (if you think he isn’t) for political purposes isn’t helpful.
If you think Obama is a lost man, you should pray that Obama (and any other person we think is lost) would know Christ only because you believe that an eternal soul is at stake. If you think he’s a Christian but seriously misguided, pray that God would convict him and give him wisdom. All of us should trust that God is in control, and remember that no ruler is outside of his authority (Ex. 9:12; Prov. 21:1; Rom. 13:1). We should all pray that God would place in office a leader who supports the biblical values of life, family, and human dignity.
Then, we should repent of the ways we’ve idolized politics or our own self-interests. Rinse. Repeat.
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