There is a story in the Christian Bible which talks about the temptation of Jesus by Satan: Matthew 4:1-11. Included in those temptations is the one from Matthew 4:8-11. From the King James Version
“8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and only God shalt thou serve.
11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.”
This is not how Donald Trump responded to that call from Evil. He bowed down to worship and thanked Satan for his largess. We are all suffering the consequences because we elected, lived with and served a man who called himself president and who clearly serves evil.
The verse that most directly speaks to what is happening today in United States politics is the one following:
Matthew 12:34 34 You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.
I have wondered for years why there is so much evil in the world. I used to think we were actually reincarnated into hell and had to experience what was evil in each and every one of us until we reached the point of excoriating it and rededicating our lives to goodness.
That thought went away because I came across too many good people who used their lives to help others. And who lived lives of greatness no matter how small their part of the world.
After going through many such iterations I have finally come out on the other side to understand that for generations, in many cultures, no matter the name we gave to it, we have all been subjected to the anti-Christ. The one who was called by Satan – as Jesus was – and offered the world all of the glitz and glory the world could produce and the rest of us had to live out our lives closer to or further away from those who responded to Satan’s call as did Jesus. While we don’t have an answer to all of that and we don’t really know how it all ends we do have an example of how we can live a life which does not produce hell fires and damnation.
Donald Trump is clearly one of those called by Satan who ran as fast as he could towards the gifts and glories Satan offered to whoever would take up Satan’s world, becoming the anti-Christ. With disciples sent out to convert as many as possible to Satan’s Gospel – speaking with forked tongues, trying to trip others into glorifying evil, blaming others for our own faults and so much more.
Trump is not the first, nor will he be the last to make such a whole hearted and complete acceptance of the world Satan offered him. And so, in Christianity we have had to suffer such people and make our own decisions accordingly. We have had to suffer the special ignominy of others taking our name and claiming to be a part of our religion and hold our faith beliefs. But there is a difference – Matthew 7:16 “by your fruits you shall be known.”
In spite of that and in spite of the evil we see so clearly today, we were not always able to see such evil. It was hidden in different packages which our eyes did not perceive as evil. Today, in this moment, however, there is no hiding, or obfuscating, or making excuses for, or throwing smoke in others eyes so we they would be temporarily blinded and we could experience this world of evil. It is right out there. You can’t choose a middle path. It is time to choose goodness and walk away from evil.
The anti-Christ has been with us for generations. In these United States it goes back to the beginnings of the American experiment. Some Europeans ran away from what they considered hard times in their country looking for something better – only to arrive and give an even harder time to those who had been living in this country for thousands of years. Looking for what they considered as “good” while destroying everything around them in which there was actual goodness. We have always had an anti-Christ leading the charge. Someone Satan convinced that the world belonged to him and he should ride it accordingly. Trump didn’t seem to need much convincing. His henchmen are still trying to follow evil although at the moment camouflaging themselves with the story of goodness given an exotic and evil twist.
Every day now, evil is exposed. Question is – what comes after? Have we finally learned enough lessons to be able to walk that straight and narrow path? Or will we still make a way and a place for those who will now shrink into the shadows and wait for the next time they can emerge wrecking such havoc in this world. Christians are very vocal and pushy about their religious beliefs and the fact that they claim it is far superior to other religions and their god is the only real god. Is Christianity the only religion that so clearly maps out the path of the anti-Christ warning its adherents to be careful they fall into its sway or are there others? Certainly, the talk given by Pompeo shows clearly how Christianity can be twisted to attract those with a weakness of spirit to follow the christianity of the anti-Christ instead. What’s interesting is the leaders of this movement led by the anti-Christ tend to be the sons and daughters of those who led many into the wilderness of sin in their generation. Led by the sons and daughters of those who were, at one point in their lives, guilty of sexual abuse, sexual assault and then loudly proclaimed their guilt and repentance after they were caught. The insecure generation which grew up in their parents shadows with all of the feelings of insecurity they now have turned into keeping their parents evil going into the second and third generations.
Many such christians have done such and claimed such for generations. Today they call themselves the white evangelical christians; the christian nationalists; the KKK wearing their pure white robes and taking the cross as their symbol and so many more such names. In fact, they are the followers of those who make it possible for the anti-Christ to take hold and destroy even the religion these claim to be following.
Trump is now history. He and his followers will take a few more moments to burn the fires of hell before leaving the stage, but their moment of glory is gone and their judgment is now upon them. Those who experienced their evil will now see them experience their payment for having delivered that evil. Question is what next? How can we move forward without all of this time taken to fight back the fires of hell and damnation. Is there something in all of us that flashes out and delivers hurt, promoting and holding up the anti-Christ for what we perceive as our own good or can we use the end of this horror to attempt once again to see and exclaim the breaking into this world of God’s kingdom on earth. Is there such a possibility? Is there such a happening? Are we a people who can do such a thing without recoiling into the need to be better than – more powerful than – wealthier than – of a higher class than – stronger than ———
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