How Spiritualism Has Affected Your Life
“The Spirit of God says, I have chosen this man Donald Trump for such a time as this. For as Benjamin Netanyahu is to Israel so shall this man be to the United States of America. For I will use this man to bring honor, respect, and restoration to America.”
As Mark Taylor watched a television program on which Donald Trump was being interviewed, a distinct voice said the above words in his mind. Hardly worth mentioning perhaps, except for the date it happened. Not 2016 or later, when Trump’s name was on every pundit’s lips, but early 2011, when no one was talking about Trump as president. The voice continued for a lengthy description of the restoration of American power under Trump and the glorification of Israel that would result.
Taylor wondered what to do about this vision. Indeed, what would you do if you heard a voice from nowhere on something so unexpected? He eventually put it out on the internet and was mostly ignored as just another soap box chatterer. His vision would come to be known only later as the most important of a new phenomenon in the evangelical world: modern prophecy. But who are the evangelicals and how do they influence the world at large?
The evangelical subset of the Christian world has become increasingly prominent in United States politics over the last forty years. It is no single denomination but instead a generic term for several conservative churches that believe in the full inspiration of the Bible and the literal second coming of Christ.
Always a prominent force in Christian thought, evangelicals got into politics in the 1960’s onward. But only in the 1970’s and early 1980’s did they get coordinated. Several forward thinkers from various churches organized the Moral Majority around several basic ideas. They pushed mandatory school prayer, anti-homosexual laws, pro-creation teaching in schools, and a pro-Zionism.
They also took an anti-abortion stance, co-opting this issue from progressive liberals who had failed to convince the Democratic Party to embrace this issue. (As we examined in “The Trojan Horse.”)[1] For an important issue that has been pushed vocally for decades by many politicians, little progress has been made in actually saving babies from being killed. A cynical viewpoint could easily conclude that very few politicians from either party really care about saving babies, but only care about persuading caring people to vote for them.
Regardless, the evangelical political movement scored increasingly powerful victories, starting during the Reagan era. They experienced ups and downs over the decades but things came to a head during the Obama administration. Obama gave preferential treatment to gay rights and pro-abortion activists which strongly motivated the conservative base against Obama. But Republicans needed a candidate to vote for and the Evangelical world was determined to provide one.
But something incredible happened first. A drastic changed occurred in the evangelical religious world. For the first time ever, they accepted modern prophets as valid messengers of God’s will. This is as dramatic a change as if they would have stopped believing in the Catholic teaching of the immortal soul. For over one hundred fifty years, the evangelical churches rejected the gift of prophecy.
They claimed that prophecy ended with the Apostles and would only possibly come back at the end of time. They condemned any church with a prophet as a cult. The Mormons had Joseph Smith and the Seventh-day Adventists had Ellen White. All were rejected automatically as false churches because they claimed to have a prophet receiving messages from God. Evangelicals were firm and unwavering in their stand on this issue: NO MODERN PROPHETS!
Then the Event happened. A retired firefighter, Mark Taylor, claimed he heard a voice saying, "The Spirit of God says, I have chosen this man Donald Trump for such a time as this." Taylor had been struggling with depression, insomnia, symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, and suicidal thoughts. During this troubled personal time of his life, he claims to have received visitations from demons, angels and even God himself. But this new voice went on extensively about the future presidency of Donald Trump. Taylor wrote it down in what has become known as the Commander-in-Chief Prophecy.[2]
This event would probably have passed into history unnoted and forgotten. Most people who read it would likely have dismissed it as delusional thoughts of a traumatized psychology. But one person who read it thought differently. Mary Colbert was an important player in the evangelical political machine. She had connections with key activists in the Republican evangelical movement and she used them. She spread the Commander-in-Chief Prophecy everywhere, telling everyone that this was truth and they needed to listen.
When the 2016 election campaign began to pick up steam, the evangelical leadership was tentatively backing Ted Cruz, as he had vocally supported their agenda on several social issues. But then this Prophecy intruded and began to have an impact. The leadership decided that perhaps Donald Trump was the better choice, if this was truly the voice of God.[3] Subtly, almost silently, the evangelical world embraced prophecy as truth. After fighting the gift of prophecy in modern times as virtual heresy, suddenly they accepted it as a valid conduit from God. Wow. Just wow.
Why the change? Did studying of Scripture lead them to a new understanding of the modern gift of prophecy? They have been presented with the truth in this area ever since James and Ellen White published Spiritual Gifts in 1859.[4] They have rejected these truths categorially ever since. Unfortunately, very little Bible study takes place among those focused on power politics. How to take advantage of the next guy is much more relevant than reexamining Biblical truths.
So this wasn’t likely to be a profound reawakening to a lost truth. Much more likely is simple expediency. This Commander-in-Chief Prophecy said something that they wanted to hear, specifically that the coming President of the United States would make America strong and join with Israel to bring about the coming era of God’s rule on Earth.
And make no mistake, Israel is key to all of this. Dispensationalism is a key tenet of the evangelical movement and has been since the 1800’s. ALL the prophecies of the Old Testament regarding the reestablishment of Israel MUST come true before the Second Coming can occur. Dispensationalists don’t understand the Biblical principle of conditional prophecy. Conditional prophecy means that God always has a Plan A that He asks His followers to accept. If they do, all is well. If they refuse to accept His will, He then moves to Plan B.
The prophecies for Israel were Plan A, but the Jews refused to follow God’s plan for them and failed in their mission. This left a lot of prophecies hanging with no fulfillment then or ever. But dispensationalist evangelicals maintain they WILL all be fulfilled and then all will be well. Israel must destroy its enemies, rebuild the Temple in its proper place in Jerusalem, resume the sacrificial system of slaughtering animals, and welcome the coming Messiah.
How to achieve these goals? No president had done enough to bring Israel to its rightful place in world affairs or defend the Jews from their enemies. Who would be the champion of Israel? The 2011 Prophecy gave a direct answer. Donald Trump would be the champion of Israel and with America’s support the two nations would unite to lead the world to God’s Dominion on Earth. This seems to be the turning point in acceptance of the Prophecy, since it directly pointed to a unification with Israel.
And here the flaw in the reasoning of humans throughout history regarding true or false prophecy is revealed. If a prophet tells you what you want to hear, you accept it. If a prophet tells you what you don’t want to hear, you reject it. It is very simple. If you agree with me, I will support you, otherwise you are the enemy. “They hate him that rebuketh in the gate, and they abhor him that speaketh uprightly.”[5]
The Bible is replete with a plethora of such examples: Jeremiah vs. the many who said to fight Babylon,[6] Elijah vs. the prophets of Baal,[7] Micaiah vs. the prophets of Samaria.[8] All of these “prophets” claimed that God spoke to them, but the proof of truth was when the message conformed to previous revelations from God, NOT if the message agreed with a personal agenda.
We know for a fact that these modern prophetic messages do not come from God. How? Because the revelations have not made any effort to correct the falsehoods that evangelicals believe. None of these prophecies have corrected the false day of worship that was instituted by the Catholic Church and adopted by Protestantism. They haven’t corrected the false understanding about the state of humans after death or a never-ending hell. They haven’t rebuked the doctrine of the immortal soul. They haven’t restored the Biblical mandate of only eating clean meats and never eating ANY blood in those clean meats. And not a single prophecy has shown that God can give humans the power to overcome sin. So we must conclude that these prophecies are not only false but are supportive of error, since they sanction the continued error held by its recipients.
But now we come to the key point. Are these prophecies the product of a sincere but delusional human mind or are they supernatural? They can’t be from God, because they do not correct error, which God’s messages always do. But are they from Satan? How can we tell? The most obvious way to tell if they are supernatural in origin is if they come true. A made-up prophecy has only a random chance of coming true, based on statistical probability analysis. The more detailed the prophecy, the less likely chance will fulfill its predictions.
Prediction: “It will rain next Tuesday.” No matter if you are good at weather predicting, if it rains you will get credit for being right, but not much credit. Prediction: “It will rain next Tuesday at 12:42 for 12 minutes and then an earthquake will hammer New York City right before a Blue Whale is stranded near Houston.” If you get this prediction right, you are officially receiving supernatural help, as no one could predict such a complicated series of events. So the more complex the prophecy, the greater the chance of failure without supernatural aid.
Now make no mistake. Satan cannot foresee future events. He is a created being with all the limitations of anyone not God. But he can make events unfold as he predicts, if God allows him to. This has happened many times with spiritualistic rituals and predictions, as Satan works to convince the gullible that his way works. A vision sent from Satan can be fulfilled in perfect detail, as long as God does not intervene. So let’s look at the predictions of the 2011 prophecy to see how accurate they were.
- Donald Trump will be president. Obviously, this came true. Some could say they saw it coming, as a Simpson’s cartoon predicted back in 2000. But really, no one serious would have made a claim like this. Trump was both a success and a failure at many things, but politics was definitely one of his failures. By 2011, Trump had switched parties about three times and failed to get any traction as a political candidate. Not only was he not running for anything in 2011, but showed no signs of doing so.
- Trump’s election will be a shock and will overrule the efforts of his enemies. This was the amazing event of the 2016 election season. First the “experts” said that Trump had no chance of winning more than a primary or two. Then he had no chance of winning the Republican nomination. Then he had no chance of winning the national election against Hillary Clinton. Then two weeks before the election, Trump was exposed by his own words as having no respect for women. Now for sure the die was cast. Even his inner circle virtually gave up. The “Never Trump” forces rejoiced; the election was a lock for Hillary. I personally remember sitting in front of the TV on election Tuesday as the “experts” detailed the many ways Clinton could win and the one near-impossible way Trump could win. And then the “miracle” happened. The key states that had to fall to Trump did so and history was made. The details of the prophecy came true.
- Trump’s enemies would fail to destroy him as he would be protected by Providence. The last three years have been some of the most amazing political years in memory. Unrelenting scandals in Trump’s White House. A constant turnover of staff and government officials as Trump either forced them out or they left of their own volition. Endless reports of misdeeds and conflict and chaos at the highest levels. A list of lies told by Trump and his representatives that stretches into the thousands. A two-year investigation by the Department of Justice. Nearly every action taken by Trump and his allies has been challenged in court. Many of Trump’s closest advisors and election allies are either in prison or heading that direction. Yet despite all of this, Donald Trump continues to be president and is likely to be so for the foreseeable future. He seems protected from harm and no attack on him seems to succeed. The prophecy continues to be fulfilled accurately.
- Trump will uphold Israel and protect it from its enemies. This part could be seen as the most self-fulfilling aspect of the prophecy, as the people supporting Trump continue to push this issue relentlessly. Much of this administration’s foreign policy can be seen to be centered on the uplifting of Israel and antagonism toward Israel’s enemies. The day the United States Embassy was moved from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem was viewed by the evangelical world as one of the greatest days in history. They gave it wall-to-wall coverage on their TV broadcast networks, with celebrations and speeches praising the move and the president who made it happen. Why should they be so happy? What has really been gained other than a change of address of the diplomatic core? It certainly has not made the diplomatic process easier, as the rest of the world’s embassies were still located in Tel Aviv and it is now more difficult to coordinate between agencies located in different cities. It unquestionably did not bring peace closer, since the reaction from the forces opposed to Israel became even more aggressive because of the move. So what was gained? The only tangible effect gained is the perception that Israel is slightly closer to regaining full control of the “Shining City on the Hill,” and that its enemies are one step closer to being forced out. This must happen according to the Dispensationalists before the Temple is rebuilt. Of course, several more steps have been taken along these lines since then, as Israel is given preeminent treatment in every decision made by America. As to Israel’s chief enemies, we see a steady pressure from the U.S. against Iran and others that could easily lead to another shooting war soon. In view of this we should remember Ellen White’s clear warning against focusing on Israel.[9]
- During his time in office, Trump will replace five Supreme Court justices. Now this particular prophecy was not in the original 2011 vision. This prediction was first articulated by Mark Taylor in 2015 with clarifications since then. This could easily be viewed as the most incredible prediction of the entire story, because of its specific make-or-break predictions. The first replacement would be made when a Supreme Court judge unexpectedly died while in office. That took place on February 13, 2016 when Antonia Scalia died while on a sport-hunting trip. (Scalia regularly amused himself by killing innocent animals for fun, often with his good friend Dick Chaney.) His eventual replacement was Neil Gorsuch. The second replacement would be made when a judge stepped down voluntarily from the High Court. That took place in July of 2018 when Anthony Kennedy retired and made way for the next replacement, which ended up being Brett Kavanaugh. The final three justices that will step down are predicted to be forced to resign all at one time due to unspecified scandals. This has yet to occur. Stay tuned!
It is a point of some interest that both Kavanaugh and Gorsuch attended Georgetown Preparatory School, a Jesuit college prep school. Kavanaugh is a devout conservative Catholic and joined the three Jewish judges and the other five Catholic or quasi-Catholic judges that now dominate the Court. Why are there no Protestants on a Supreme Court supposedly representing America as the Protestant Christian Nation?
Regardless, here is where we are. A detailed prophecy made in 2011 has been fulfilled in almost every particular. This forces us to conclude that it was sent from a supernatural source and we have already ruled out a true message from God. We are left with a message from Satan, and the evidence is clear. This means that the evangelical movement that has embraced these messages is following a broken cistern of Satan’s design. The movement is claiming responsibility for getting Trump elected by prayer and voting, and so we are left with a satanic source for Trump’s presidency.
But is this such a shock? Ellen White predicted a long time ago that the Protestant movement in America would become contaminated by Spiritualism as it joined forces with the Papacy and set up the Image to the Beast in America. “The Protestants of the United States will be foremost in stretching their hands across the gulf to grasp the hand of Spiritualism; they will reach over the abyss to clasp hands with the Roman power.”[10] Note she says specifically that the Protestants will be foremost in this union, not innocent dupes. We should not be surprised by current events, because God told us it would happen over a century ago.
Spiritualism comes in many forms. We often think of the crudest, most demonic forms of spiritualism, as displayed in many corrupt and vile Hollywood productions. Or we think of the “sanitized” spiritualism that many people swallow routinely from such popular sources as Harry Potter and Star Wars. But these are not the most likely areas to corrupt devout Evangelical Protestantism. These people may read The Chronicles of Narnia, but they mostly steer clear of “witchcraft” and vampire stories.
Where they are vulnerable to Spiritualism is in the false view of life after death and the false dreams/visions that tell of a happy afterlife in heaven or dead relatives making contact from the grave. This has cropped up among them for years and is almost routine these days. Just recently, a major series on life after death was produced by the John Ankerberg Show.[11] Now that prophecy has been added to this, we have full blown Spiritualism taking deep root among these churches.[12]
And make no mistake, they are proud of their prophecy/spiritualism. Mark Taylor and Mary Colbert have written a book detailing his prophecies and her role in spreading them to the political evangelical movement. The Trump Prophecies was published in 2017. Then Liberty University made a 2018 movie called “The Trump Prophecy” for around two million dollars.[13]
Both are fearlessly bold in promoting the role these prophecies played in getting Trump elected, and they defend the visions as the voice of God. The movie portrays Mark Taylor as a mild-mannered sad guy with PTSD. Whether the real Taylor is such a sympathetic character is subject to debate, as he pushes conspiracy theories and gets angry a lot. But this is not really about him anyway, it is about the voice talking to him.
For we find that prophecy has spread far beyond a single “messenger from God.” Many evangelicals have claimed the prophetic gift besides Taylor. Some operate independently, creating their own ministries, and claiming the prophetic gift including faith-healing and tongue-speaking.[14]
Some evangelicals claiming the prophetic gift have formed their own organization called “The POTUS Shield.” What is this about? “POTUS” in the group’s name refers not only to the “President of the United States,” but also to a new “prophetic order of the United States” that God is supposedly establishing.[15]
They are anti-denominational but also favor Pentecostal methods of worship and tongue-speaking. They are vocally pro-Trump and pro-Israel and give various messages to convince Trump to comply with their agenda. And it seems to be working. This administration has backed almost everything they back and is thankful of the support they provide for Trump’s agendas.
Trump must love their core message. God will protect Trump from his enemies since he is God’s chosen instrument for America and Israel. How comforting that must be for someone who is attacked every single day of his administration. Nothing seems to stick to him legally or politically. His future is secure! Does this explain his apparent total indifference to criticism or political assault? Why worry when God is on your side?
And since secular media views prophets as crazy people, they tend to ignore them. Mainstream media propaganda machines such as FOX and CNN never talk about these prophets and so most Americans have no idea how influential the POTUS Shield actually is. This serves the Shield very well, as they are able to glide beneath the radar of all but the “faithful.” They are all over the evangelical TV stations and the internet but have you ever heard of them? Trump sure knows they exist and we are all the worse for it.[16]
So what can we learn from this tale of woe? How should this information impact our choices? Well, it would be obvious to most that we steer clear of support for Spiritualism, even indirectly. Let’s be clear. Support for Trump is support for his power structure and that officially includes Satanic Spiritualism. You can’t hold your nose and be waived of complicity. I can already hear those who support Trump saying that whatever Democrat opposes him will be just as tainted with evil in a different form, be it atheism or new age mysticism. You will get no argument from me. Evil has infiltrated nearly every aspect of politics and Satan uses all roads that further his agenda. Since there are evil aspects among Democratic candidates, does that mean we should support the Republican candidates, which now includes Spiritualism?
A remarkable story emerged after the last election. Starting in 2017, a group of witches began holding group “cursing” rituals against Trump’s presidency. In response, evangelicals began counter-meetings to pray for Trump’s protection against this attack.[17] As Ellen White pointed out, those in Babylon’s false churches who are praying in the wrong compartment of the Sanctuary will have their prayers answered by Satan.[18] How Satan must laugh to have two opposite groups both praying to him, but calling him by different names.
We also know that those who lie are servants of Satan. “Truth is of God; deception in all its myriad forms is of Satan, and whoever in any way departs from the straight line of truth is betraying himself into the power of the wicked one. Those who have learned of Christ will ‘have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness.’”[19] Is there anyone left who pretends that Trump doesn’t lie, and lie spectacularly? People hardly care anymore that what he says on any given day contradicts what he said last year, last month, or last week. We have become a society that accepts flagrant lying. Again, many will say that all politicians lie. Yes indeed…. What should that tell you?
In fact, I could (but won’t, due to the nastiness and slime that I would be forced to repeat) go through the 10 Commandments and see where Donald Trump lives up to them. Yikes! Is there any of the 10 that he hasn’t broken? For the first time ever, we have a President that must have his public, televised speeches bleeped when he uses four letter words. This is our moral leader that will bring about God’s will?
To defend politicians in general and presidents in particular means stepping in the Mud of Shame and walking through the very narrow Rationalization Gate underneath the Bar of Decency. For many years this meant getting your feet muddy, but it was possible to tiptoe through without too much personal contamination. But as the standards of decency have been consistently lowered by modern presidents, the attempt to defend their actions has required an increasingly lower and lower defense. Trump has lowered the Bar of Decency so low that to defend him requires a complete crawl through the mud. Is he really worth it? Is that the mission of God’s followers?
The evangelicals recognize this and claim that Trump is a modern day Cyrus that is not spiritual himself but is used by God to accomplish His earthly goals.[20] So even his supporters compare him to a pagan king of a worldly power. Faint praise indeed! But is this a true comparison? God has often used worldly leaders throughout history to accomplish His goals. But He never gets involved in promoting them or urging His followers to do so. God always urges a distance from worldly systems, in order to spare His followers from the corruption that political involvement brings. Render unto Caesar….
Ellen White was very clear about what our participation in politics should be. The promotion of righteous causes is an acceptable activity for those wanting to better humanity. Temperance and religious liberty are the two causes that she personally involved herself in. She even urged people to vote for these issues when voting took place on Sabbath.[21] She opposed unjust laws such as the Fugitive Slave Act, an aggressive political statement by her![22] And she joined most other Adventist pioneers in the progressive/liberal cause of abolition.
But there were other causes where she did not get involved, such as women’s rights, even when she agreed with many of the sentiments promoted. The groups involved promoted issues besides the main pure cause. The women’s voting party became involved in Spiritualism itself and is a perfect example of why we should steer clear of Trump’s evangelical Spiritualism.[23]
Because of the baggage politics gathers around it, she clearly stated that we should avoid the muck of political parties. She even recommended that SDA pastors and employees who promote political questions be fired. And she gave a devastating warning for those considering voting for people. If we place in office by our vote those who attack religious liberty, we become responsible for the sins they commit while in office.[24] The horror! Show of hands: who wants to be responsible for the sins Trump has and will commit while in office? Anyone?
But don’t we have the duty to vote in every election? Are we Americans or not? There is always a difference in voting for issues and voting for people. Ballot measures are a clear example of the former; presidents are examples of the latter. It might be wise to reflect on James White’s thoughts regarding voting. When Abraham Lincoln first ran for President, James White concluded there was nothing in the Bible prohibiting an Adventist from casting his vote. He neither recommended nor opposed voting. He would not condemn those who voted, and trusted that they would not condemn him if he did not vote.[25]
Some say we must vote for the Lesser of Two Evils. Voting for the Lesser of Two Evils is still voting for Evil. There is always a third choice. A} Voting for the Greater Evil. B} Voting for the Lesser Evil. C} Not voting for either Evil. Which Evil would you like to be responsible for? Atheism or Spiritualism? Which is really the Lesser Evil anyway? Great American men and women died throughout our history to give each one of us the right to vote or not to vote. Exercise that right proudly! Be a thinking American, not a mindless dittohead.
Every single one of us has been impacted by the prophecies of Mark Taylor and the POTUS Shield. We have a president that in all probability was elected by evangelicals who believed the Commander-in-Chief Prophecy. This spiritualistic voice continues unabated to this day, and is having real-world political and governing impacts. Everything that has happened in America since Trump took over can be laid at the feet of the Spiritualism of these many modern prophets. This isn’t the first time that spiritualistic influences have invaded the precincts of the White House.
Any positive effects of our era must be weighed against the evil from which they were born. Strong economy? Border security? Moral judges? A president who keeps his promises? All irrelevant. God cannot bless a system poisoned by Satan’s voice and control. It makes no difference if a society is based on anti-God atheism or quasi-Christian Spiritualism. Both are Satan’s methods of controlling minds and making truth subordinate to power.
If we support a system or a politician that destroys religious liberty, we are guilty with them of their sins. We must step back from anything that does so, whether it is to promote a twisted version of equal rights or a religiously backed effort to place one religion preeminent to all others. We have seen both efforts in America and elsewhere over the last twenty years. God cannot bless either movement, and to pick either tribe as our own is to be dragged down to the abyss with them. Only a stand for truth as revealed in Scripture is safe in these dangerous times. All else is a quagmire of man’s whims and Satan’s schemes.
We have a perfect example of this danger from the time of Ezra and Nehemiah. Ellen White describes this danger very precisely. “It is not the open and avowed enemies of the cause of God that are most to be feared. Those who, like the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin, come with smooth words and fair speeches, apparently seeking for friendly alliance with God’s children, have greater power to deceive.”[26] “But it is his [Satan’s] secret working through those who avow themselves the friends of God’s work, that is most to be feared. Open opposition may be fierce and cruel, but it is fraught with far less peril to God’s cause than is the secret enmity of those who, while professing to serve God, are at heart the servants of Satan.”[27]
Often our attention is drawn to open defiance of God’s truths, such as evolution or atheism. But here God is directing our attention to those who profess moral values while deliberately trampling upon God’s laws such as the Sabbath. “Against such every soul should be on the alert, lest some carefully concealed and masterly snare take him unaware. And especially today, while earth’s history is closing, the Lord requires of His children a vigilance that knows no relaxation.”[28]
[1] See “The Trojan Horse” by Dennis and Matthew Priebe: http://advindicate.com/articles/2019/5/20/the-trojan-horse
[2] The Commander-in-Chief Prophecy can be found in its entirety on several websites. Mark Taylor has compiled all of his prophecies in one place: https://www.bibleconcepts.com/erics-library/books-and-studies-by-others/prophetic-words-by-mark-taylor/ See also: http://www.angelfire.com/ks/landzastanza/messages.html#01
[3] There was much questioning as to why Ted Cruz was losing Evangelical voters during the 2016 primaries. For example: http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/why-ted-cruz-losing-evangelicals-donald-trump. After the national election it was clear that Evangelicals, Catholics, and Mormons were instrumental in electing Trump. See: https://religionnews.com/2016/11/09/white-evangelicals-white-catholics-and-mormons-voted-decisively-for-trump/
[4] The introduction to Spiritual Gifts is a detailed and well-reasoned Bible study on the gift of prophecy in modern times. See: Spiritual Gifts, Volume 1, pp. 5-16
[5] Amos 5:10
[6] Jeremiah 21 & 26
[7] 1 Kings 18
[8] 1 Kings 22
[9] See: The Paulson Collection of Ellen G. White Letters, pp. 137-138. See also: Review and Herald, February 25, 1896
[10] Great Controversy, p. 588
[11] See: https://www.jashow.org/articles/life-after-death/
[12] See: Signs of the Times, May 28, 1894
[13] For movie details, see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Trump_Prophecy
[14] See: https://www.google.com/amp/s/m.jpost.com/Israel-News/Nigerian-exorcist-TB-Joshua-holds-gathering-for-thousands-in-Israel-593621/amp
[15] See: https://www.potusshield.com/
[16] A YouTube video is available which shows clips from various evangelical TV programs featuring Mark Taylor and some of the other prophets. In fact, this video was my first introduction to these issues and I want to thank Leonard Tucker for putting his presentation together. See: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoVmiQ2q28M
[17] See: https://stream.org/witches-seek-to-curse-president-trump-christians-plan-spiritual-warfare-prayer-against-it/
[18] See: The Day-Star, March 14, 1846
[19] Prophets and Kings, pp. 249-250
[20] See: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/mar/23/cyrus-prophecy-evangelical-support-donald-trump
[21] See: Arthur White, Ellen White Biography, Volume 3, p. 160
[22] See: Testimonies, Volume 1, p. 264
[23] For a brief historical overview of the early connection between the founders of the women’s voting movement and Spiritualism, see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amy_and_Isaac_Post
[24] The definitive statement by Ellen White on our political involvement is found in Fundamentals of Christian Education, pp. 475-484. The entire chapter is powerful and well worth reading for those wanting to understand God’s revealed will on this issue.
[25] See: Review and Herald, August 21, 1860
[26] Prophets and Kings, pp. 570-571
[27] Prophets and Kings, pp. 658
[28] Prophets and Kings, pp. 571
DISTRACTIONS
Driving while intoxicated is a serious offense because the driver is incapable of operating a vehicle safely, thus endangering themselves and other motorists. The story is told of a police officer who was staking out a bar to catch potential DUI offenders. It was past midnight when an extremely drunk man stumbled out of the bar. He went to the parking lot fumbling for his keys, trying to unlock five or six cars before locating his. Meanwhile, several patrons left the bar and drove away. Once inside his car, he rummaged around the switches, trying out the brakes, lights, and windshield wipers. More patrons left the bar, until finally his was the only car left in the parking lot. He started his car and departed. As soon as he pulled away, the officer went after him, pulled him over, and gave him the breathalyzer test. When it came up negative, the officer was puzzled and muttered to himself, “How could this be? The breathalyzer must be broken.” The driver grinned and said, “No, the breathalyzer is OK. Tonight I’m the designated decoy!”
What is a decoy? A decoy is someone or something used to draw attention away from another. A decoy is specifically designed to distract and deceive. In the story, the “designated decoy” is a person who remains sober but acts drunk. His joy is to divert the attention of the police officer so that his drinking buddies can escape unnoticed. In our spiritual journey we are prone to be distracted. We may be preoccupied with many good things at the expense of the most important thing. A decoy is meant to obscure the essentials from the peripherals and the eternal from the temporal.
Jesus commented that “Martha was distracted with much serving.” Martha had been distracted by things that were of secondary importance. More important, the church is mandated with a marching order of winning the world for Christ and preparing to receive the seal of God. We should be about our Father’s business and refuse to be sidetracked. I would like to focus on two distractions which are pulling the attention of Seventh-day Adventists from preparing the way for Jesus to return.
CONSPIRACIES
Recently I received a catalogue on how to improve your health. It consisted of 88 pages, 27 of which dealt with secret conspiracies. There were 188 separate DVD’s, each one to two hours long, about secret things which affect us in one way or another. Conspiracy theories are bombarding us from every direction. They seem to be high on the popularity scale in our DVD and Internet age.
Unfortunately, we are not immune to the desire to know what is going on behind the scenes. We want to know what nefarious groups are plotting our destruction, how many Jesuits have infiltrated our church, how many secret prisons are being constructed underground, how the government is manipulating the weather, or what hidden asteroid is going to strike earth any minute.
Now the reality is that some of these theories may be fact-based and a real threat to us, but the beauty of conspiracy theories is that there is no way to separate fact from fiction, so we can choose the ones we like best and make these our present truth message. Conspiracy theories are no part of our mission or message. By definition, they are unprovable, or they would be called conspiracy facts. When we share unprovable theories our credibility about Bible truths is diminished.
But the real problem is that they are distractions. When our energy and time are devoted to searching out and sharing the latest theory, we have taken that much time away from our real mission, which is to overcome our character defects like temper or pride or selfishness, so that we will be ready for the seal of God and the latter rain. In addition, we have blunted our real message, which is God’s power to change a practicing sinner into a holy, sinless reflector of Christ through the everlasting gospel.
POLITICS
This distraction may be more sensitive, but it needs to be addressed. But first a little history. During the Presidential campaign preceding the election of 1884, Review and Herald editor Uriah Smith lamented that “there is nothing in either nomination to excite enthusiasm in the mind of any person who regards purity and principle above party success and political spoils… .The triumph of the principles involved in the election of either candidate will be a disgrace and misfortune.” (RH July 15,, 1884)
Such pessimism regarding national elections was nothing new. Back in 1856 Roswell F. Cottrell wrote that it would be of no use to vote, since the United States was soon to form an image to the beast anyway. One would not vote for a bad man, and politics was so crooked that to put a good man in office would only corrupt him. (RH Oct. 30,1856) When President U.S. Grant ran for reelection, Uriah Smith editorialized that to engage in the spirit of the campaign would be “sure death of spirituality. Seventh-day Adventists can spend their time to better advantage. Let the dead bury their dead. Keep out of it.” (RH Aug. 13, 1872) Yet in the next week’s issue the editor conceded, “If a person wishes, when the time comes, to go and deposit his vote, he can quietly do so, and then go about his business, without plunging into the spirit, and heat, and strife, of the canvass [campaign].” (RH Aug. 20, 1872)
When Abraham Lincoln first ran for President, James White concluded there was nothing in the Bible prohibiting an Adventist from casting his vote. He neither recommended nor opposed voting. He would not condemn those who voted, and trusted that they would not condemn him if he did not vote. (RH Aug. 21, 1860) Adventists felt an obligation to vote for temperance and against Sunday laws. The third General Conference session resolved that “the act of voting when exercised in behalf of justice, humanity and right, is in itself blameless, and may be at some times highly proper.” (RH May 23, 1865)
Political agitation must be ruled out because of its tendency to set church members one against another. In addition, campaigning would inhibit our witness by placing barriers between us and those of a different political persuasion whom we seek to reach with God’s message. “Keep your voting to yourself. Do not feel it your duty to urge everyone to do as you do.” (2SM 337) Adventists and others face another problem: knowing for whom to vote. While the positions of Presidential candidates may be rather clear owing to media publicity, the strengths and weaknesses of a myriad of lesser office-seekers remain largely unknown. So what are we today going to do?
INSPIRED COUNSEL
There is an entire chapter in Fundamentals of Christian Education (pp. 475-484) dealing with our relation to political involvement. Following are some selections from this chapter.
Those who teach the Bible in our churches and in our schools are not at liberty to unite in making apparent their prejudices for or against political men or measures, because by so doing they stir up the minds of others, leading each to advocate his favorite theory. There are among those professing to believe present truth some who will thus be stirred up to express their sentiments and political preferences, so that division will be brought into the church. The Lord would have His people bury political questions. On these themes silence is eloquence… We cannot with safety vote for political parties; for we do not know whom we are voting for.
A major problem here is our current political parties. A little background may be helpful. The United States started out with several parties, but eventually settled into a two party system, the Whigs and the Democrats. The Whigs disintegrated before the Civil War, and were replaced by the Republicans. However, the positions held by each party have changed with time so that our modern parties have no similarity to what they were one hundred or even fifty years ago. Our political parties today have become an either/or situation. If you don’t agree with everything the current party stands for you are an enemy to be opposed. Labeling becomes the norm and demonizing anything not part of your tribe. Today our country is in verbal warfare. Let us look at several issues of principle based on Scripture.
- Do you oppose the restriction of religious liberty?
- Do you oppose abortion on demand?
- Do you oppose torturing prisoners?
- Do you oppose cruelty to animals?
- Do you oppose the massive destruction of nature for profit?
- Do you oppose the threat of gay rights destroying religious liberty?
- Do you oppose the invasion of privacy in our electronic age?
- Do you oppose the oppression of minorities by the rich and powerful?
- Do you oppose the decay of moral values in an increasingly secular society?
- Do you oppose the proliferation of legalized drugs?
Here we have a major problem. The Republican party opposes five of these issues, while the Democratic party opposes five of these issues. Whatever party you vote for, you will vote against five issues of principle. Neither party has the whole truth. Voting for one party requires choosing which principles you will set aside. This is especially dangerous if we pick one or two of these issues and vote for whomever supports those issues. However, all the other baggage comes with that person or party. Do you see why Ellen White asked us to bury political questions? But there were two issues Ellen White strongly urged Adventists to vote for—temperance and religious liberty—and here she gave her strongest warning.
We cannot labor to please men who will use their influence to repress religious liberty… The people of God are not to vote to place such men in office; for when they do this, they are partakers with them of the sins which they commit while in office… Those who are Christians indeed…will not wear political badges, but the badge of Christ. What are we to do, then?—Let political questions alone.
The following is very serious counsel for teachers and leaders in the Adventist Church.
Those teachers in the church or in the school who distinguish themselves by their zeal in politics, should be relieved of their work and responsibilities without delay… The tithe should not be used to pay any one for speechifying on political questions. Every teacher, minister, or leader in our ranks who is stirred with a desire to ventilate his opinions on political questions, should be converted by a belief in the truth, or give up his work… If he does not change, he will do harm, and only harm… As a people we are to stand under the banner of Jesus Christ… It is a mistake for you to link your interests with any political party, to cast your vote with them or for them. Those who stand as educators, as ministers, as laborers together with God in any line, have no battles to fight in the political world. Their citizenship is in heaven. The Lord calls upon them to stand as a separate and peculiar people. He would have no schisms in the body of believers… Is it their work to make enemies in the political world?—No, no… The questions at issue in the world are not to be the theme of our conversation. We are to call upon the world to behold an uplifted Savior… Then let there be no shade of strife among Seventh-day Adventists.
I wonder, could it be any clearer. Do we really believe that we are citizens of the heavenly kingdom, which is not based on earthly values and methods? Yes, we are fortunate to live in a land of freedom and we should work to keep that freedom as long as possible, but our focus and energy cannot be given to feuding politicians and parties. The unique United States is not our real home. But there is one thing that we are counseled to vote for.
On the temperance question take your position without wavering. Be as firm as a rock.
The counsel is really quite clear. Do not entangle yourself in political issues. Keep your focus on our mission and our personal preparation to receive the seal of God.
The following is a confession of faith from a group of Christian leaders, which is very relevant to our situation today.
It is time to be followers of Jesus before anything else—nationality, political party, race, ethnicity, gender, geography. Our identity in Christ precedes every other identity… When politics undermines our theology, we must examine that politics. The church’s role is to change the world through the life and love of Jesus Christ. The government’s role is to serve the common good by protecting justice and peace, rewarding good behavior. When that role is undermined by political leadership, faith leaders must stand up and speak out… It is often the duty of Christian leaders, especially elders, to speak the truth in love to our churches and to name and warn against temptations, racial and cultural captivities, false doctrines, and political idolatries—and even our complicity in them… If Jesus is Lord, then Caesar is not—nor any other political ruler since. If Jesus is Lord, no other authority is absolute. Jesus Christ, and the kingdom of God He announced, is the Christian’s first loyalty, above all others.
There are many things that are interesting and not sinful in themselves, but they are distractions. Satan does not have to snare us in apostasy. He just has to distract us enough so that we lose our focus and go off on tangents until we actually delay rather than hasten Christ’s coming.