Christian author and radio host Michael Brown offered up some stirring and convicting words for evangelicals in the age of Trump, warning that “our first calling is not to defend the president” but that it is to “stand as consistent witnesses for our Lord.”
In short, Brown’s message to Christians? Stand for truth.
In an opinion piece titled, “As Evangelicals Our Ultimate Allegiance Is to the Lord, Not the President,” Brown said he doesn’t understand why people can’t simply praise and encourage President Donald Trump when he does something right — and express differences when he does something wrong.
“As followers of Jesus, our ultimate allegiance should be to the Lord, to the truth, to righteousness, to justice, not to a party or a man,” Brown wrote.
The commentator said that, at the end of the day, Christians are called to be ambassadors for God and simply Republicans, Democrats or Independents. Truth and integrity, he argued, should always win out.
“We are followers of Jesus. And so, when it comes to speaking the truth to power, we are ‘equal opportunity offenders,'” Brown wrote. “We don’t need to parse his words, let alone defend them. We need to show integrity.”
Rather than blanket defenses, he said it is important to point out the places where Trump might have a point, while also admitting the areas in which he’s flat-out wrong.
“Our first calling is not to defend the president, a man whom I love, pray for, and honor, and a man whose positive actions I deeply appreciate,” Brown continued. “Our first calling is to stand as consistent witnesses for our Lord, to be ambassadors of righteousness and truth, and to be jealous for the reputation of Jesus.”
Read the entire piece here for some truly fascinating food for thought.