Donald Trump calls himself a non-denominational Christian, and his policies as President of the United States were friendly towards Christians, but if we compare Trump’s life and words to the Bible, it is clear that he is not in fact a true, regenerated, saved Christian. How do we know this?
We Can Judge People by Their Fruit
Some say that nobody can truly know the heart of another person, and so nobody should say that another person is not truly Christian. It is certainly true that only God fully knows the heart of any human.
At the same time, the Bible teaches what distinguishes a true Christian from a false Christian. At the very least, true Christians will exhibit these two things:
- True Christians have faith in Jesus Christ alone for their salvation, and do not trust in their own good works for their salvation. In Romans 3:28, Paul writes, “For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.”
- True Christians are repentant, which means they have turned away from sin towards obedience to God. Their obedience is not perfect, but their desire is to obey God and His teachings. In Acts 17:30, Luke writes, “The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.”
If a person claims to be a Christian, it makes sense to ask, “Has that person repented of sin? Does that person trust in Jesus alone for salvation? Is that person pursuing obedience to God?”
Donald Trump’s Relationship with Christianity
“I don’t like to have to ask for forgiveness. And I am good.”
Most significantly, Trump said this during an interview with CNN, and there is no evidence that anything has changed since then:
I like to be good. I don’t like to have to ask for forgiveness. And I am good. I don’t do a lot of things that are bad. I try to do nothing that is bad.
Donald Trump
This, in itself, demonstrates that Trump is not a true Christian because all true Christians recognize their need for forgiveness and their need for a savior. That Trump believes he does not need to ask for forgiveness demonstrates that he does not at all understand the most basic aspects of sin and the gospel.
Paula White – A False Prosperity Gospel Teacher
In an interview with Religion News Service, Trump referred to “Faith Advisor Paula White.” Although White says that she rejects the prosperity gospel, her teachings are in fact the teachings of the prosperity gospel, which is a false gospel.
Donald Trump, Christianity, and Politics: It’s Complicated
Even though Trump is clearly not a regenerated Christian, this does not necessarily mean that Christians should reject him as a politician. Despite Trump’s immorality and pride, many Christians voted for Trump to be the President of the United States with legitimate reasons because politics is full of complicating factors.
Trump’s policies while he was President were very friendly towards Christians, and he vigorously defended religious freedom, in contrast with the policies of the Democratic Party. In this way, and in many other ways, Trump was on the same side as Christians in much of the culture war.
However, it is important for Christians to distinguish between people who are fighting for similar conservative values, yet are not Christian—for example, Trump—and people who are truly Christian. Without true faith in Jesus, Trump is just as lost as any pro-abortion, anti-Christian leftist.
