Does God Pick Presidents?

The short answer is NO. These institutions or platforms, which includes [leaders/subjects(world) - leaders/members(church) - employers/employees (work) - parents/children(home)- husbands/wife(marriage)] MUST be respected regardless of who is in the position. The individuals in these positions are to be OBEYED ONLY in the Lord. Meaning in accordance with His will. What is the point of voting if God is manipulating the office with His hands, well at least this is what some are suggesting. What criteria do you use to vote in or vote out someone that was put in office by God? If God needs evil to help accomplish His plan, He would have asked the devil to die on the cross instead of CHOOSING His one and only son. When God choose, we have no say in it but when we set the criteria and choose, we need to stop bringing God's name into it to justify our choices.

It is very easy to take the bible out of context when we don't use the bible as its own commentary and/or dictionary. An example is Mark 9:23 - "...Everything is possible for one who believes." Some people also misinterpret Philippians 4:13 - "I can do all things." I have a 'friend' who is a professional weight lifter and body builder. He loves this verses so much that he made a t-shirt to support his claim. His claim was anyone can look as buff as he is as long as they believe. Yet, he adamantly refused to acknowledge the simple fact that we all have different physical and metabolic make up, which practically makes his claim impossible. Not to mention all the "PEDs" he uses to "stir up" those artificial muscles. When talking about food, 1 Timothy 4:4 called "EVERYTHING" God created "GOOD" and "not to be REJECTED." Should we now start eating EVERYTHING regardless of what we are allergic to? Nope.

Speaking of context and before addressing the book of Romans, here is an example of an institution. Jesus said: "I will build my CHURCH." We can say for sure with scriptural references that the Church was instituted by God as a platform for salvation from earth to heaven - like the ark. Those that are being saved are added to the Church. However, can we now say that those who became members of the Church were handpicked by God and those who did not were not "picked" by God? Being the chosen ones doesn't mean we were actually handpicked. It just means that we choose to enter into the spiritual ark. Creating an institution of governing doesn't mean that God hand picked anyone to fill the seats. I dislike the fact that my Republican colleagues deeply believe that Donald Trump was put in the oval office by God. Most people actually believe that government officials are put in office by God; well, unless the government official is named Barack Obama or belongs to a different party. This is one of the major reason people can't stand Christianity anymore and this is why it's getting harder and tougher to preach the gospel.

I'm scratching my head about those corrupt leaders that assassinate their current bible believing leader to take office by force, did God force them to commit murder so He can put them in office? God did not force David to have a man killed, commit adultery with the man's wife so something good called "King Solomon" can come out of the relationship. If He did, then David does not deserve to be punished for it and repentance is meaningless. There are government officials in places like Sudan and Iraq that we call evil for killing their subjects; did God put them there to kill Christians and burn down Church buildings with faithful members in it so He can teach us a lesson? Kids forced into incest, then abusive and arranged marriages - did God pick their spouses for them too? The answer is NO.

He created a platform or institution of government, marriage etc., which we must respect, then gave us the freedom to fill those positions. Freedom for a man to leave his parents to go join with his wife and become one flesh. Freedom for us to accept grace, which is the gift of the Holy Spirit and become a child of God. The freedom to have our physical leaders with ZERO criteria from God as to their qualifications. We know the leaders that matters more to Him because He made sure to give us the criteria for the selection process in 1 Timothy 3. Now, let's review the popular Romans 13.

Romans 13:2 - "Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted...."

• This is the verse I hear the most from my Republican friends. So did Peter and the other apostles break this command in Acts 5 when they kindly told the government officials that they would keep preaching the truth about Jesus and not obey their command?

Matthew 19:5-6 - "...Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate."

• This is a similar verse that I counter with. Does this mean any 45 years old man that unites with a 7 years old child to become one flesh, were brought together by God and no one should separate or put apart?

The two verses cited above are practically saying the same thing in terms of an institution or platform being recognized by God as valid or necessary to humanity. This doesn't mean anyone involved in these institution was approved or hand-picked by God Himself. And it doesn't mean that the thoughts, ideas, and behaviors of the people involved in these institutions were approved by God. The individuals do no speak for God. The ONLY Ambassadors for God are everyday Christians (2 Corinthians 5:20). Regardless of where these Christians may find themselves in life, their primary responsibility is God's kingdom. If the devil himself say tomorrow that God is good, this doesn't mean he automatically becomes "God's Ambassador" or speaks for God. Yes, God does mysterious things like helping you survive an accident that should have killed you but God is not a liar concerning His promises, hence cannot be mocked; nor put Himself in a position to be mocked - Galatians 6:7.

Allowing Job to be tempted by satan and knowing Job will be able to handle such temptation is not the same as God tempting Job. The scripture is clear like daylight. The problem is not with those willing and open to learning, rather, the big problem is with those who know or should know the truth but find a way to dance around it for the sake of personal or political gains. God created and approved the system of governing; not a particular government (Colossians 3:18-25). This includes:

• Parents and Kids
• Husband and Wife
• Employer and Employee
• Leaders and Followers, etc..

Romans 13 says that God established governing authorities. He instituted the platform just like he did for the institution of marriage. Are we now going to say any two people in a relationship regardless of age or sexual preference were put together by God? Why not? Oh, I thought the Bible says what God has joined together....? Didn't Proverb say a good woman is from God? What's wrong with genocide? I thought the Bible says to obey the government and the laws they put in place? I'm sure you get the picture. Also, let's not get confused with Proverbs 19:14; it simply shows that it is better to marry a godly woman because all good things come from God. Their godliness becomes a benefit to you and God is not a manipulator (James 1:16-17). And no gift is bigger or could be more perfect than Jesus. So with a godly woman, the husband automatically becomes a beneficiary of the good or godly life she poses. The reverse is the case if she is ungodly.

It is biblical to pray for all worldly leaders. It is not biblical to excuse or glorify their evil deeds simply because of party affiliation. The worldly leaders who choose to give their people the freedom to worship are not compensated with a "pass" to evil deeds. They are all humans like us in need of a savior and no, they don't "have to" be Christians. Christians use the Bible as their constitution (2 Timothy 3:16). God gave guidelines for Christians to select their own spiritual leaders (1 Timothy 3) just like He gave guidelines to the physical Israelite on selecting their leaders (1 Samuel 16). The Israelite didn't have votes or elections when God picked their leaders. All He did was send the prophets to go pick them. As Christians with no boundary in a physical world (Galatians 3:26-29) and pilgrims on earth, we have to recognize our presence on this foreign soil called earth, while marching on to Zion. You either believe that God hand picked ALL the good and the abusive leaders of the world or you don't.

We (Christians) should have respected and talked more about respecting the office when Obama was in there. We should have supported Obama's non-biblical policies and actions, the same way people are rolling over to support any and everything about president Trump. All women with abusive husbands should blame God for the partner He "choose" for them to abuse them. If God "puppet picked" them all, then He is a partial God. Thank goodness we do not serve a partial God who did not deprive us of the freedom to choose a path - narrow or wide.

• As people of a society, we must obey the government
• As employees, we must obey our employers
• As children, we must obey our parents

However, all of these obedience has to be in accordance with the scriptures, which is where "in the Lord" comes in. In the Lord meaning in accordance with God's will (Acts 5:29). Not all Democrats are going to hell and not all Republicans are going to heaven. Again, your party affiliation will not save you or send you to heaven. Enough of these unnecessary rhetoric that is dividing people because some people think their political party is the "christian party."