The Gospel According to Donald Trump! -By Ugochukwu Ugwuanyi

The caption seems so antithetical that yours truly risks being accused of blasphemy for assigning to the United States President the classic introduction of Bible reading in an Orthodox service. It should, however, be placatory that ‘Saint’ wasn’t added to the man’s first name for a complementary effect. But then, what else is the gospel if not the truth and the good news? When someone utters what is utterly true and reassuring, they’ve spoken the gospel even if their tongue is wont to lie.

In a video extract making the rounds on X this week, Donald Trump, President of the United States (POTUS), preached Jesus and advertised the potency of prayers. Coming in the heat of campaigns for the midterm election in the US, the virality of the video may have been to rally the President’s evangelical base. While the sincerity of Trump’s whistle-stop oratory is being subjected to scrutiny, the truth in his trending remarks about the Christian faith can’t be denied. A supernatural force seems to be propelling Trump (as Nicki Minaj pointed out yesterday). This played out in his inadvertent highlight of what only the Holy Spirit guarantees. We shall get to that presently.

Martin Thielen, former megachurch pastor and bestselling author, has a strong opinion about Trump. In an opinion piece published on Tuesday, he cited several contradictions to buttress “that one absolute truth is that Donald Trump and Jesus Christ are incompatible”. An aspect of his piece reads, “Jesus Christ lived a life of love. Donald Trump lives a life of animosity. Jesus Christ practiced forgiveness. Donald Trump practices revenge. Jesus Christ told the truth. Donald Trump is a pathological liar. Jesus Christ respected women. Donald Trump expresses contempt for women. Jesus Christ commanded marital fidelity. Donald Trump is a serial adulterer…”

Thielen has many co-travellers right within Christian corridors who think the name of Jesus shouldn’t proceed from a “flawed character” like Donald Trump. Yet, Jesus identifies as The Truth, and the American President is so enamored of the truth that he would call his coy Truth Social. Traducers who wouldn’t cut man some slack for trying should prove that the following homily isn’t truthful:

“Jesus wants to be Lord of your life… Prayer changes hearts. Prayer changes hearts and transforms lives. It uplifts the soul, inspires action and unites us all as one nation under God. Our nation was founded on prayer. Our communities are sustained by prayer. And our nation will be renewed by hard work, a lot of intelligence and prayer.” Naysayers could be seen all over the comment section of this Trump video, as posted on social media. There were talks about wolves in sheep’s clothing, while some cited Matthew 15:8, where Jesus said, “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.”

Well, if bewildered children of Israel could ask, “Is Saul also among the prophets?” upon seeing him prophesying in their company, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the holier-than-thou are doubting and debating Donald Trump’s Christian posturing. It is lost on these judges of character that, like Saul (1 Samuel 10:10-11), the Anointing that singled out Trump must have turned him into another man! You can imagine their response to the Christian entertainment legend, Pat Boone, who insists that Donald Trump is a priest!

Boone is an American singer and television personality, reputed for his wholesome pop hits in the 1950s and for hosting evangelical radio and television programmes later in life. He knew President Ronald Reagan whose biopic he played a role in. Recalling Trump’s narrow escape from assassination while on the stump, Boone explains, “Since that time – when he got the calling to a priesthood, the same as Moses and his priests who were commanded to take blood (on) their right ear as part of their (call) into the priesthood – that happened to Trump on that day in Pennsylvania. That bullet should have hit him in the brain but instead it cut his ear, his right ear. He didn’t know it at the time but it was making him a called priest of God.

“Now, those priests were human beings. They all had their own failings as does Trump, of course, but he came to a realization. He’ll say now that “I believe God spared me.” Like Reagan, after he was shot, he said “I think God spared me for Hispurpose and I’m gonna devote the rest of my life to doing what I can tell is His purpose for me and for the country.” Yet, second-guessers won’t rest from being suspicious of POTUS’s devotion to God and calling. Given the wider American society’s irritation with Jesus and revulsion to Christianity, those who believe Trump doesn’t qualify to identify with Christ should be wary of the Antichrist agenda, unless they are a part of it.

They need to answer what the messenger matters when the message is cardinal. Can they point to any aspect of the above presidential quote that is a lie? It’s common to see Presidents lie through their teeth while addressing their countrymen on the rostrum. Where the most powerful President in the world speaks the truth, such a statement deserves amplification and buy-in, not throwing away the baby with the bathwater.

Like a theory, the Trump statement under discussion is true because of its universal relevance, even in Nigeria. Nigerians often deride those in positions of authority when they call for prayers to tackle national challenges. I dissected the issue in an article captioned: “Are you among the prayer warriors President Tinubu referenced?” We don’t have to remain pessimistic or dismissive after learning from POTUS that communities are sustained by prayer. That’s a pointer to the panacea for the orgy of banditry tearing rural communities apart in Nigeria. It can also be gleaned that the national unity which the country sorely needs is a prayer away!

Meanwhile, notice that when it came to the heavy lifting – national renewal – the American strongman didn’t prioritise or solely propose prayer. He showed candour by first committing to hard work. The next factor he mentioned was his unpremeditated revelation of a major truth. Indeed, a nation can do so much with “lots of intelligence”. This begs the question: intelligence from what source? The answer is in Job 32:8, “There is a spirit within people, the breath of the Almighty within them, that makes them intelligent.” With intelligence within the wheelhouse of the Holy Spirit, Trump has truthfully linked Him with nation-building. His sentences are so closely knit that they reveal that this sort of intelligence comes from the place of prayer. While praying intensely in the spirit, mysteries get unravelled, with discernment decoded. It’s what the psalmist describes as the deep calling unto deep in the roars of God’s waterfalls.

We are in the era of the Being about whom John 16:13 says, “the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.” Therefore, political leaders will do themselves and their people a world of good by seeking and relying on the Holy Ghost. As weird as it sounds, they should be tongue-talking. That’s how to access the high intelligence highlighted by Trump as essential to the renewal of a nation. Heartwarmingly, there’s no subject matter that this Spirit lacks an expert knowledge of. That is why John 14:26 says He can teach all things and bring all truths to remembrance. However, the opening statement in Trump’s quote is what can make your access to this Intelligence-personified possible.

By virtue of the New Birth that comes with accepting and confessing the resurrected Jesus as lord and personal saviour, the Holy Spirit inhabits you – enabling a panoramic understanding of issues. Advantageously, the doing part (hard work) will also be taken care of because when Jesus is the lord over your life, He enables you to effortlessly carry out all things relying on His strength. (Philippians 4:13).

For saying what has scriptural bases, you can now see that Trump spoke the gospel in this instance. However, the point must be made that the inherent principles in this truth aren’t just for nation-building but equally suffice for personal development.

VIS Ugochukwu, a Sage, Storyteller, and Media Trainer, welcomes feedback via X @sylvesugwuanyi