Did God Intervene to Save Trump’s Life?
This is not a political question, but a theological one. And if you are looking for solid answers, this short article will disappoint. All I can do is raise more questions to help you draw your own conclusions. Those who speak with certainty here are acting foolishly (or dishonestly), because we cannot know such things with certainty.
What does it even mean for the Creator of the universe to “intervene”? Is God not involved in the world at all times? Does it make sense to think that God intervenes only when we see the improbable happen? The sun rises every day. That’s the most probable thing possible. Is God behind that? I would say so. If you want to talk about the improbable, how likely is it that a kid could get past local police and the Secret Service with a rifle in the first place? Was God behind that too?
If God did intervene to save Donald Trump, why? Was it to accomplish something good? Adolf Hitler survived at least six assassination attempts. Did God intervene to save Hitler? That seems hard to fathom. I’d like to ask that question to people who are so certain God spared Trump. Or how about the opposite situation. Abraham Lincoln is often considered our best President, and Patton our best general, yet both had their lives cut short. Why did God fail to save them?
Are the waters sufficiently muddied? If Trump was saved, why not the fire fighter behind him who died protecting his family with his own body? What a hero. Think of the good such a man was likely to do for his family and community if he had continued to live.
We must draw a distinction between what God directly causes (the Flood, the conquest of the Canaanites, the birth, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus) and what He allows (the Great Depression, World War II, Covid, etc.). If we don’t draw a distinction, then God is the author of all evil in the world. We know that cannot be. Yet nothing is beyond God’s power. He is bringing history to its joyous conclusion, as we see in the last two chapters of Revelation. However, there is very little we can say with certainty is a result of God’s direct intervention, but even if we could, we as finite beings cannot even begin to answer the question why?
When it comes to the activity of God, we must maintain humility. God causes some things, and allows others. Trying to guess why is an exercise in arrogance and foolishness. God has already revealed to us what He wants us to know in His Word. I suggest we spend less time speculating about our mysterious God, and more time getting to know Him through His Word.
