Dear Mr. President
Dear Mr. President
The people of this nation look to you for earthly leadership, to represent the nation with dignity, humility before God, and reverent exercise of authority in all matters of governance. You are prayed for regularly, lifted up before the great Creator God who sent His one and only begotten son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to be the savior and redeemer of the world. The role of President that God has called you to is a burden that God alone is sufficient to equip you to bear.
I write to you as a citizen of our beloved United States, whom the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Trinity in unity, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, Holy, Almighty name above all names has sovereignly placed you as president. And I write to you as a servant of almighty God, called to study the scriptures and rightly divide the Word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15), while also representing Christ Jesus as a minister of His gospel. As you have taken oaths before the nation, I, and all other faithful ministers, have taken oaths before God to serve the Lord faithfully in presenting His Word.
Just as our governance in the United States establishes your role as commander-in-chief, with the duty and authority to command armies and administrators. So too, the Lord Jesus Christ presides with ultimate authority over the entirety of humanity (John 5:22-23). Every ruler throughout history governs under the ultimate authority of the preeminent judge of heaven and earth, namely, the Lord Jesus Christ. It is Christ who will give a verdict regarding every person, from every tribe, tongue, and people, regardless of status, position, or earthly prominence. As commander-in-chief, you know what it means to wield the responsibility and might of enacting justice.
The Belgic Confession of Faith, a historic Christian document that many in our country consider to be a faithful summary of the Christian faith, states that you, as a civil ruler “have the task, subject to God’s law, of removing every obstacle to the preaching of the gospel and to every aspect of divine worship.” (Belgic Article 36). Recently, through the use of a social media account under your authority, a serious and grave offense against God has transpired.
Recently, someone has presented images on your behalf as though you were a member of the Divine Trinity. While this may have been a mistaken approach to showcase the good you are seeking to accomplish in your office, this is something your spiritual counselors ought to give you sound biblical guidance to avoid and correct. This act, someone has taken of portraying yourself as a member of the Godhead, is a disruption to the divine worship of God and a disturbance relating to matters of the Christian faith.
The Lord God forbids the making of any image that would in any way represent any member of the Trinity (Exodus 20:4), or would be used as a conduit or visual representation for worship (Exodus 32:1-6). Many in your administration are familiar with this historic document of faithful Christian witness, along with the Heidelberg Catechism.
In section Lord’s Day 35, question and answer 96 summarizes the 2nd commandment “that we in no way make any image of God nor worship him in any other way than has been commanded in God’s Word.”
For someone to post an image of themselves in a representative way as being a member of the Trinity, is to follow in the folly of Nebuchadnezzar who considered all the greatness of his empire and attributed his success to his own glory, power, and majesty (Daniel 4:30). The Lord humbled Nebuchadnezzar in a very effective, but awful manner (Daniel 4:31-34). To claim divine status is a practice that the ancient Pharaohs of Egypt engaged in, and were ultimately judged for by God in the 10 plagues (Exodus 7-11). Ancient Roman Caesars claimed divinity, yet their empire shrank and went by the wayside even as the gospel of Jesus Christ spread throughout their lands and beyond.
I pray to God that you are able to swiftly deal with this matter in an effective, efficient, and God-honoring manner. The Lord Jesus delights to raise up the humble and exalt the lowly (Matthew 23:12). In giving to God the glory and correcting this divine offense, you will honor the Lord who has placed you with the joy and the weight of leadership.
You are being prayed for, Mr. President, by so many faithful Christians. Your role and work is of great substantive importance. I trust that God will make clear the best course of action to take in correcting these horrendously false depictions that have been shared. May the Lord Almighty strengthen your hand to the task of governance, and continue to grant you a wisdom that surpasses the enemies of our nation.
With humble prayer and sincere conviction,
A fellow citizen and pastor,
Jacob Toman
Our Response
After reading this letter, we might be wondering what we can do in such a situation where a leader openly and grievously profanes God. Prayer and loyal service are two excellent starting spots for us as Christians as a whole. Proclamation of God’s Word, particularly on the reverence due to God, is an excellent next step for us as faithful ministers of God’s Word.
For all of us as Christians, we are called to prayer and faithful service under the rulers God has placed over us.
We are instructed to pray for our leaders. Whether they are good and godly leaders, utter tyrants, or somewhere in between. Paul wrote to Timothy during a time of immense ungodliness from the pagan tyrant Roman Caesars. And yet, despite these rulers being utterly ungodly, Paul still wrote to Timothy under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to pray for these exact civil leaders:
I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior. 1 Timothy 2:1-3
In moments like this, we are instructed in God’s Word to pray for our civil leaders.
In conjunction with our prayers for civil leaders, we are to conduct ourselves in such a way that we are amiable to the jurisdictions that have been given authority above us. We are instructed to be people who live by taking actions that are in step with our prayers for our governing officials. The Apostle Paul, who on more than one occasion was arrested and suffered both at the hands of Jewish religious leaders and Roman civil leaders, wrote to the church in Rome that was at the epicenter of an ungodly government, that the people should still be subject to their rulers. Our loyal and faithful citizenship and response to civil authorities go to show as a witness that we are not revolutionaries, we are not anarchists, we are not enemies of the state, but in fact seek the blessing and peace of the regions, towns, and governments where God has called us to live:
Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Romans 13:1
In moments like this, we are instructed in God’s Word to be submissive to civil authorities.
Our prayers for leaders extend beyond the realm of civil leadership and into the sphere of the church. We also ought to remember our local pastors, elders, and deacons in prayer. It is our pastors, elders, and deacons who equip us for the work of ministry as the local church. It is our pastors, elders, and deacons who have decisions to make on how best to respond to civil authorities regarding the Word of God. It is our pastors, elders, and deacons who serve God as they serve us, teaching us and setting an example for us of Godly instruction. The Apostle Paul sought the prayers of the church in Ephesus that he would use the opportunities available to be faithful in his spoken ministry of the Word:
Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should. Ephesians 6:19-20
In moments like this, we are instructed in God’s Word to pray for our church leaders.
Those in the church who are our leaders have one person they are ultimately accountable to - that is not the biggest financial supporter, the loudest person, the most persuasive presenter, or the most effective diplomat. The leaders of the church are ultimately accountable to the Lord Jesus Christ. It is the Word of the Lord that these leaders are called to deliver in keeping watch over our souls as members, parishioners, and congregants. It is a weighty thing and difficult thing to correct, instruct, rebuke, equip, build up, and call to repentance. The early church in the first century was taught through the inspired Word of God that the people under leadership have an important role in submitting to leaders, and this submission was of benefit both for the leaders and for the people. Our leaders do not merely present their opinions, as our church leaders are faithful, they are the very mechanism God chooses to bring His instruction to us for daily living (including matters relating to our governments):
Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever....Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account. Do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you. Hebrews 13:7-8 & 17
In moments like this, we are instructed in God’s Word to submit to the shepherds of our souls.
For us as Christians, we should in this moment:
Pray for our civil leaders
Live subject to the authorities of civil government
Pray for our church leaders
Submit to our church leaders
For us as pastors, elders, and deacons, we need to declare God’s Word pointedly with every opportunity God allows. As the Heidelberg Catechism (Q&A 115) faithfully summarizes regarding the pointed preaching of the law of God:
Q. Since no one in this life can obey the Ten Commandments perfectly, why does God want them preached so pointedly?
A. First, so that the longer we live the more we may come to know our sinfulness
and the more eagerly look to Christ for forgiveness of sins and righteousness. Second, so that we may never stop striving, and never stop praying to God for the grace of the Holy Spirit, to be renewed more and more after God’s image, until after this life we reach our goal: perfection.
We have a very unique and special service to the Lord that God has called us to carry out. To deliver that which we have received in the Word of God with humble reverence, we are to call our people and our civil magistrates to account before God. We do this not with accusatory precision of prosecutors, but with sufficient persuasion and humility that denotes our own privileged position as sinners saved by the grace of God through faith in the redeeming work and person of Jesus Christ.
Our preaching, particularly before and regarding civil leaders, must follow the Apostolic example of Paul before King Agrippa:
Then Agrippa said to Paul, “Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?” Paul replied, “Short time or long—I pray to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.” Acts 26:28-29
This doesn’t mean we as preachers need to stop our current sermon series, or subject our preaching to a political rubric of daily world events. It does mean we need to faithfully bring the Word of God to bear for our people, such that the people of God can be equipped by the Spirit to discern good from evil in the public square and live with thanksgiving the life of Christ.
Lastly, there is no need for us to share the grotesque depictions that were posted originally via social media under the ownership of the president. There is a little children’s song that says, “Oh, be careful little eyes what you see”. What a beautiful bit of wisdom. As believers, and especially as leaders called to ordained ministry, we ought to know better than to spread these images that ought never to have been propagated to begin with. Let’s reference the reality that this has happened, as God’s Word often does. Let us pattern our behavior after God’s behavior. We should reference the real events of sin and the consequences therein, and also offer to sinners, be they of low position or world leaders, the hope of forgiveness of sin found in the Lord Jesus Christ.