Anointed of God?

. . . and give us this day our morning muffin, cheese and coffee . . .

“Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” (John 4:23-24, NIV; Jesus speaking to the Samaritan woman at Jacob's Well.)

I've been commissioned (not anointed, definitely not anointed) to say something in a post about—as I understand it—the contention south of the border among some American citizens that their current president is anointed by God to lead America to greatness once again. In his book, God and Donald Trump, Stephen Strang “attempts to explain evangelical fervor for Trump and provides a window into the world of charismatics, a subset of evangelical Christians who believe God still speaks to people through prophesies and is still actively involved in arranging the world of human affairs.” (I read a review, of Strang's book, haven't read the book.) Some (me included) would wonder why the president's philandering and demeaning personal attacks on people wouldn't tarnish this perception, but that reality can be subsumed under “well look at David, anointed servant of God who had to repent of his many transgressions!”

I won't print out a definition of Biblical anointing here; you'll find a comprehensive explanation along with Bible references here. In short, the rise of the current president against all odds, first through the GOP, then through his election suggests to a certain mindset that God must have chosen him to lead the American people at a critical time, and being anointed (set aside) brings with it both privilege and responsibility that can't be set aside by man. Secularly, we in Canada anoint people to govern us and in so doing, we also grant to them privileges and demand of them the burdens of responsibility. But to assume that not us, but God, is the anointer puts everything in a much different light; resistance directed at the God-anointed can be construed as rebellion against God himself.

Furthermore, the “truth” spoken by God's anointed is easily assumed, ipso facto, to be God's truth,

There exists a theological stream called “predestination” that sees world events as part of a master-plan created and directed by the invisible, all-powerful God. Alongside this—and supported by the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Ephesian church, for instance—is the doctrine of choseness, i.e. that God first chose the children of Israel to be his special vessel and later, that this choosing was transferred by Christ to believers in a redemptive transaction on the cross. That the current president rose miraculously to power in a “predestination” world falls neatly into some Christian understandings.

Ironically, if we're to take the anointing of ancient kings as a template for the rise of a current leader, we ought also to take to heart the clear indication in the Old Testament that God repeatedly burdened his people with cruel, self-serving leaders, with exile and loss, with hardship and plagues in order to “smarten them up,” to drive them back to repentance and renewal. The possibility—even for predestination streams—that America's current president was anointed by God to “smarten them up” is not a frivolous suggestion; you can't pick and choose from scripture the parts that support your pet theory and ignore those that don't. America—including it's Christians—has a spotty record when it comes to being self-serving or God-serving, to put it generously. A repentant attitude may be long overdue.

Most Christians (and probably most Jews and Muslims) think of God as a person, having attributes of and behaving similarly to what we know of persons. Certainly, Biblical writers spoke of God as a person, using the he adjective when speaking of him. To embrace the spirit-god-that-dwells-within-us may be forever more than our imaginations can accept. It is—and always has been—human goodness that has raised our hopes and human perfidy that has threatened peace and well-being. Off-loading responsibility to person-God or person-Satan provides a convenient exit from the burden of following the spirit-god-that-dwells-within-us, those better angels that guide us to embrace and practice the powers of love, justice and mercy.

So was America's current president anointed by God? Do we see behind what he says and does an invisible hand that guides us toward love, justice and mercy in our time and world? Does Micah's summary of what spirit-God desires of us shine through (Do justice, love mercy, walk humbly with your God, Micah 6:8)? Does be clearly possess the “gifts of the spirit?”

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.(I Corinthians 13:4-7, NIV)”

“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. (I Corinthians 13:13, NIV)”