Since 2020 observing the world has been like watching a street artist sling paint onto a canvas. Each color and line is important, but the pattern is unclear. At some point the artist will rotate the canvas and the audience will suddenly recognize what he has been creating. A pastor friend of mine often quotes a slogan that encapsulates the feeling of both the street painter’s audience and those observing the world today: things aren’t falling apart; they’re falling into place.
This past weekend a would-be assassin shot at President Trump several times at a Pennsylvania rally, grazing his ear and wounding or killing three attendees. The incident itself, and the photo of Trump being hustled away—which is surely to become iconic—was unexpected but also unsurprising. We live in days where evil often shows its face. In such times is perfectly normal for Christians to muse aloud about how a literal assassination is a logical next step from the political assassinations that the former President has been subjected to. Distrusting the legitimacy of the FBI’s forthcoming investigation into the incident is simply understanding the times we live in. Believers can rightly attribute most of the guilt for creating this specific cultural moment to the godless political left, and speculate without guilt why Secret Service allowed a shooter to worm his way along a rooftop with a rifle in tow in full view of dozens of people. The attempt on the former president’s life is simply another instance of how bold evil has become, and we wonder what it all means.
The wrong response is to see Saturday’s incident as anything other than damaging to the good of our nation. Clearly God in His providence did not plan for Trump to die by that shooter’s bullet, although He allowed an innocent bystander to lose his life. While this incident should positively affect the 2024 presidential election, this moment is objectively bad. It is a symptom of our nation’s decline for a presidential candidate to be shot at. Proverbs 28:28 reminds us that “when the wicked rise men hide themselves.” America is clearly reaping the consequence of her sin, with leaders and political wickedness to match. This is not the kind of situation believers are instructed to ask God for. In 1 Timothy 2:2, Paul writes that believers are instead to pray “that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.” The ideal society is one where believers can obey God fully without concern for our lives, our property, the well-being of our families, or our freedom of religion. To this end we pray “for kings, and for all that are in authority.” Praying this way is “good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior” (1 Timothy 2:3).
According to verse 4, the reason God instructs His people to pray for peace in their land is because tranquility is the best environment for the gospel to flourish. We pray for our leaders, as we pray for “all men,” so they might use their political power to help create this environment. Proverbs 28:28 not only says that “when the wicked rise men hide themselves,” but goes on to say that “when [the wicked] perish, the righteous increase.” How then do we pray about this incident over the past weekend? We pray that God “who desires all men to be saved and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” will lead the former president to salvation in Christ through his ordeal. We pray also that the evil, and specifically the evil leaders, that this incident represents would be born again or defeated and lose power. Third, we pray that God will show mercy and give to the United States leaders who will promote an environment friendly to the gospel and Christian faithfulness.
As we pray, we remember that the reelection of President Trump is not a guarantee that these biblical ends will be achieved. We are grateful to the Lord for any respite from the oppression of wicked men, we ask the Lord to destroy their devices, and we vote and use our influence to that end, but we trust the Lord’s mercy in it all. On the other hand, it may be that the disintegration of our society signals the conclusion of this age, and that the Lord’s return is at hand. The continued unveiling of evil conspiracies certainly makes us feel as if we are being ushered toward a crisis point. But just as we do not trust elections, we do not trust our ability to read the signs of the times. Instead, we follow the clear commands of Scripture and do what we know our Lord requires of us. We also promote the good of our nation, praising what is good and condemning what is evil. This includes asking the necessary questions about the attempted assassination to pursue the truth.
To conclude, here is a prayer from the 1600s that seems especially appropriate for this time.
Almighty God, who has given us this good land for our heritage, we humbly beseech thee that we may always prove ourselves a people mindful of thy favor and glad to do thy will. Bless our land with honorable industry, sound learning, and pure manners. Save us from violence, discord, and confusion; from pride and arrogancy and from every evil way defend our liberties and fashion into one united people all our many kindreds and tongues. Endue with the spirit of wisdom those to whom in thy name we entrust the authority of government, that there may be justice and peace at home, and that through obedience to thy law we may show forth thy praise among the nations of the earth. In the time of prosperity fill our hearts with thankfulness, and in the day of trouble suffer not our trust in thee to fail, all which we ask through Jesus Christ Our Lord, Amen.
The above article was written by Jonathan Kyser. He is a pastoral assistant at NorthStone Baptist Church in Pensacola, FL. To offer him your feedback, comment below or email us at strengthforlife461@gmail.com.
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