Many evangelicals believe that a person becomes a Christian by making a “decision for Christ,” an act of the will, usually involving saying some version of “the sinner’s prayer,” in which the person “accepts Christ.” We Lutherans certainly believe in conversion, though not construing that as an act of the will, as such, but rather as the Holy Spirit’s creation of faith by means of Baptism and the Word of God. But some evangelicals treat the “decision for Christ” like Catholics treat Baptism, as being effective ex opere operato, apart from actual faith.
Anyway, lots of conservative Christians of every stripe have problems with Donald Trump. But James Dobson, who once opposed Trump but now serves on his evangelical advisory board, said that he was told that Trump was “led to Christ” by the controversial prosperity gospel TV preacher Paula White. That means that the presumptive Republican presidential candidate is a “baby Christian,” who doesn’t understand the language and practices of mature Christians, but who is a Christian nonetheless. The implication is that Evangelicals should cut him some slack while still being able to vote for him in good conscience.
Read about this after the jump. What do you think about it?
From James Dobson Says Paula White Led Donald Trump to Jesus Christ, Christian Post:
After making headlines last week for saying Donald Trump is a “baby Christian” who has accepted a relationship with Jesus, evangelical leader James Dobson has emphasized that even though the Republican nominee is still maturing in his Christian walk, that is no reason to not vote for him and give Hillary Clinton the power to “run the world.”
After the presumptive Republican presidential nominee met with over 900 evangelical leaders in New York City last Tuesday, Dobson, the founder of Focus on the Family and Family Talk radio, said during an interview with Pastor Michael Anthony of GodFactor.com that Trump “did accept a relationship with Christ.”
The 80-year-old Dobson said during the interview that he knows the person “who led him to Christ” and he believes that Trump “really made a commitment.”
After Dobson’s comments were published by numerous news organizations, he released a statement on his website, Dr. James Dobson’s Family Talk on Monday, in which he said he heard that televangelist Paula White had led Trump to Christ, but “Only the Lord knows the condition of a person’s heart.”
“First, Trump appears to be tender to things of the Spirit,” added Dobson, who’s a member of Trump’s evangelical executive advisory board. “I also hear that Paula White has known Trump for years and that she personally led him to Christ. Do I know that for sure? No. Do I know the details of that alleged conversion? I can’t say that I do. …
“If anything, this man is a baby Christian who doesn’t have a clue about how believers think, talk and act.
[Keep reading. . .]
James Dobson is now walking back what he said before, to a certain extent, saying that he doesn’t really know if Trump has become a Christian or not. And Paula White, an early supporter of Trump’s, is not necessarily a reliable evangelist.
But still. . . .Does this change your perception of Trump or his qualifications to be President? If this were a genuine conversion, would that matter?
