Trump, Salvation and Heaven

What Trump needs to know about getting into heaven:

Many would have heard of the brief exchange President Trump had with a friendly reporter while on the Air Force One, heading to Israel. He made the brief remarks just before helping to secure the release of the hostages in Gaza and signing a peace deal in Egypt.

The reporter asked: “You had talked a couple weeks ago. You were doing an interview and you talked about how you hope to end the war in Ukraine because it might help you get into heaven. How does, How does this help? Does this help?” Trump replied:

I mean, you know, I’m being a little cute. I don’t think there’s anything going to get me in heaven. Okay. I’m really I think, I think I’m not maybe heaven bound. I may be in heaven right now as we fly on Air Force One. I’m not sure I I’m going to be able to make heaven, but I’ve made life a lot better for a lot of people. And you know, as an example, had the had the election of 2020 not been rigged, you would have millions of people living just in Russia, Ukraine alone. That would have never happened. And it didn’t happen for four years.

This was a typical sort of remark by Trump. But despite his army of critics, I think it was good that he is thinking and talking about heaven – even if just a little. He is 79, and he has mentioned the afterlife at various times of late. Back in July 2024 when he was nearly assassinated, he said: “I was saved by God to make America great again.”

Many believers see him as at least a sort of Cyrus figure. You recall that he was the pagan Persian king who was used by God to help deliver Israel from Babylonian captivity and return them to their homeland. In Isaiah 45:1-4 we read this about him:

Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus,
    whose right hand I have grasped,
to subdue nations before him
    and to loose the belts of kings,
to open doors before him
    that gates may not be closed:
“I will go before you
    and level the exalted places,
I will break in pieces the doors of bronze
    and cut through the bars of iron,
I will give you the treasures of darkness
    and the hoards in secret places,
that you may know that it is I, the Lord,
    the God of Israel, who call you by your name.
For the sake of my servant Jacob,
    and Israel my chosen,
I call you by your name,
    I name you, though you do not know me.

Two quick things can be said about all this. One, whether or not Trump is a Cyrus-like figure is a moot point. But it seems that a case can be made that he may well have been providentially raised up for such a time as this. Two, I pray daily for Trump, and I hope you are doing that as well.

Douglas Wilson on Trump and heaven

The American Christian writer and commentator Doug Wilson has just penned a 3200-word open letter to Trump on this issue. It is worth sharing parts of it here:

I write because I am a minister of the kingdom of Heaven, and when I hear someone talking about Heaven as you have been doing, the only thing that comes to my mind is how I might possibly set out the message of Christ to you in a way that fits. How might I faithfully address the questions that you have been raising about this issue? We should want to do more than just insert the buckle into the seat belt . . . we also need to hear the click.

Wilson also thinks it is a good thing that Trump is thinking about heaven: “The fact that this is on your mind is a very good thing. If you look back over the last twenty years, one of the things we who are in our seventies notice is how fast that twenty years flew by. It was not that long ago. Now turn and look in the other direction. The next twenty years will be just as fast.”

He then writes:

An anecdote is told about an exchange between Alexander the Great and Diogenes the Cynic. Alexander was yet another man who spent some time sitting on the top of the world. The king came across the philosopher rummaging through a pile of human bones. He asked Diogenes what he was doing, and the reply was, “I am looking for the bones of your father [Philip II of Macedon], but I cannot distinguish them from the bones of a slave.”

 

A point to the same effect is made in Shelley’s great poem, Ozymandias. The poem is about Ramesses the Great, a pharaoh of renown. The poem begins with a traveler who had come across the wreck of a great memorial in the desert, one that marked the accomplishments of a mighty king indeed. But that conveyor belt was operational back in ancient Egypt, and not just today, which is why the poem ends with such a punch in the mouth.

 

My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;
Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.

Ozymandias

 

Kipling noted the same stark truth:

 

“Lo, all our pomp of yesterday
Is one with Nineveh and Tyre!”

Recessional

 

Scripture teaches these truths with a plain finality. There is real glory in being a king, but like all earthly glories, it goes away. And it goes away forever.

 

When the day of the Lord arrives, we must all appear before Him. If we are unprepared, we must appear before Him naked. We can bring no props, we can bring no advisors, we can bring no notes. We will stand before Him, and the books will be opened. And the contents of those books will not be welcome news for us. This is what will necessarily happen to all men outside of Christ, and there will be no distinction made between historic kings, lowly serfs, consequential presidents, acclaimed novelists, sexy movie stars, or influential podcasters.

Wilson goes on to say this:

The fundamental temptation for people, and especially for accomplished people like yourself, is to think that there is something they can do to earn or merit God’s forgiveness. And it is here that the uniqueness of the Christian message stands out. Salvation is nothing but sheer gift. It is grace, all grace. It is grace from top to bottom, side to side, and front to back. It is grace with no bottom, and grace with no ceiling. Nothing but gift. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23 (KJV)

 

Notice that salvation and damnation are in no way symmetrical. Damnation is a paycheck, accurately calculated down to the last penny. Salvation is the gift of God. Death and life are certainly not the same thing, but we also need to remember that wages and gifts are not the same thing either. Hell is earned, and Heaven is given. Hell is only earned, and Heaven is only given.

He concludes:

Coming to Christ is nothing less than a resurrection from the dead, and the only thing you are allowed to contribute is the corpse. When Jesus summoned Lazarus from the grave, Lazarus wasn’t helping Him. Not at all. It was not a matter of Jesus pulling and Lazarus pushing. Jesus just spoke the word, and Lazarus came alive. He did a number of things after he came alive, but he did not do anything to prove that he was worthy of resurrection. He did not contribute beforehand….

 

In sum, you are wise to be addressing this question head on. You and I and everyone else reading this will be stone cold dead some day, and perhaps someday soon. Second, there is no worldly accomplishment that a man can achieve that will settle his accounts with God. You seem to me to be aware of all this; you seem to know this. And last, if there is any saving to be done, it will all have to be done by Christ and Christ alone. If you want Him to do this for you . . . just ask Him. And do this knowing that even the ability and desire to ask is a gift from Him. All of is grace, and absolutely none of it is earned.

 

He has this gift for you. Just extend your hand, and He will give it. And later on, you will discover that He even gave you that extended hand. Nothing but grace.

Cordially in Christ,

Douglas Wilson

Good words Doug. As I say, I pray for Trump every single day. You should too.

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