Why Is Donald Trump Leading the Pack of GOP Candidates?

Donald Trump has been leading the pack of GOP candidates, and an immediate change is not likely following last night's debate. If you haven’t asked yourself why, you certainly should.

Is it because of his reasoned approach to the issues our nations face?

Absolutely not. Deeply considered reasoned approaches are not what Donald Trump brings to the table. Please understand – I like many of the bombastic statements he makes. I completely agree with many of them. And I’m glad he is making them because he has forced discussions that many politicians want to avoid. As he said in last night’s debate, “If it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t even be talking about illegal immigration.” But Trump’s comments, though they elicit a visceral response of agreement, have no substance. They are the same superficial responses that most of us make when confronted with something disagreeable. Perhaps true, but made with no thought to how the desired goal could be accomplished.

If one or more other GOP candidates would stand up and speak out unambiguously about issues like the threat of illegal immigration, the absolute need for border security, and the threat to our very culture posed by political correctness – and do so while convincing the voters that we can actually count on them to fight to force action on those issues – Trump’s popularity would soon wane. He only holds the spotlight while he is the only one clearly speaking to these issues that resonate so well with conservative voters.

You have to ask yourself, does Donald Trump really have the character and the temperament that we need to see in the President of the United States?

I came away from the debates last night with a greater level of hope for the outcome of the 2016 election than I’ve had for years. I won’t bother to name my choices, because my personal choice really doesn’t matter in this conversation, but from the field of 17 hopefuls, there are at least a half dozen that present real hope for the 2016 election and for the future of America.

Donald Trump is not among them.

Thoughts on Obergefell v Hodges

“If I profess with loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the truth of God except that little point which the world and the Devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ, however boldly I may be professing Christ. Where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved, and to be steady on all the battlefield besides, is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point.”
― Martin Luther

This statement by Martin Luther is not at all comforting. It would be so much easier to pick topics on which there is little or no conflict as the areas where I will stand up and fight for God’s truth – but that would certainly be akin to desertion. If you’re not fighting where you’re needed, you’re not fighting at all.

We Americans are significantly divided on almost any topic. Even the idea of “God, home and apple pie” being definitively American would bring plenty of conflict today. So, it should be no surprise to anyone that marriage, and specifically same-sex marriage is the most divisive issue in our country today. Since I am writing this on June 26, 2015, I literally mean today because this is the day that the Supreme Court issued their decision in the case of Obergefell et al, v. Hodges, Director, Ohio Department of Health, et al that same sex marriages must be recognized throughout the United States.

I recognize that there is an element to this issue that makes it one on which there was never really any possibility of compromise. To change sides on the issue means one has abandoned one’s underlying world view and accepted an opposing world view. That underlying element is the issue of whether one’s world view embraces the Word of God as the appropriate basis for all decisions, or one holds to a world view that places little or no value on the Word of God. If the Word of God is of little or no value to you, you wind up in the “If it feels good, do it” camp. If the Word of God is precious to you, you wind up in the camp that says “If God says no, He means no.”

Another facet of my feelings on the issue is that I never condemn non-believers for ignoring the Word of God. If they truly don’t believe, that is between them and God. I can grieve for them, and I can pray for them. I might fault them if their behavior is illegal and harmful to others, but that is about their behavior, not their belief. When a pagan ignores God they are just being who they are. Frankly, I have deeper concerns for those who claim to believe in God and trust Jesus Christ as their only hope of salvation – but continue to ignore God’s Word.

To bring this post to a finish, I have to say that if you do not believe in God, I cannot expect you to stand against same-sex marriage. We disagree and we will continue to do so, but I will not waste our time trying to change your mind. If you believe in God and hold His Word as a precious gift, I would expect you to stand up and speak the truth that same-sex marriage (any same-sex sexual relationship, for that matter) is wrong and should not be condoned. From a legal point of view, all of the arguments are moot now, anyway. But the divide between legal and illegal is not the same as the divide between right and wrong.