Posted January 21, 2025
Yesterday was a busy day. Ohio State withstood a second-half comeback by Notre Dame last night to win the NCAA football championship. Nearly three thousand of the world’s wealthiest people gathered in Davos for the World Economic Forum. And retrospectives and remembrances related to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. were shared widely as the nation remembered the great civil rights leader. But, of course, the inauguration of Donald J. Trump as our forty-seventh president occupied center stage.
A New York Times analysis of the 2024 election concluded that voters “were itching for change” and “wanted someone to acknowledge that the status quo was not working for them.” Accordingly, the Times reported that the incoming president “wants to seize momentum” as he begins his administration.
That he did.
Mr. Trump began his inaugural address by declaring, “The golden age of America begins right now.” He announced, “We are at the start of a thrilling new era of national success. A tide of change is sweeping the country.” As part of that change, he signed a large number of executive actions described by Fox News as “a massive, first wave of policy priorities” on a variety of issues. Among them was renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America.”
Unsurprisingly, criticism of his leadership has already begun. One commentator bemoaned “the takeover of the United States by a base mentality of greed and corruption.” Our politics may seem chaotic and divisive, but consider this: over the last decade, the UK has seen six prime ministers, four general elections, two referendums, and the death of the world’s longest-serving monarch. South Korea’s president has been impeached, formally arrested, and faces possible imprisonment.
By contrast, Mr. Trump began his Inauguration Day with a worship service at St. John’s Episcopal Church, followed by a cup of tea with the departing Bidens. Mr. Biden and Mr. Trump then shared a ride to the Capitol, where all four former presidents attended the inauguration. For the first time in US history, foreign leaders attended the event as well.
The day ended with inaugural balls representing “the peaceful transfer of power, a fundamental principle of American democracy.”
Mr. Trump was blunt about the challenges and problems he believes we are facing as a nation. But he also stated, “My proudest legacy will be that of a peacemaker and unifier.”
To this end, consider a simple fact proclaimed by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in a 1957 sermon:
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”
Let’s reflect on the logic of his observation: A room is dark precisely because it lacks light. More darkness will not remedy the situation. Only light can defeat the dark. But the good news is that light always defeats the dark. Every time you turn on a light switch, the darkness is banished.
Similarly, “Hate cannot drive out hate.” If you have hatred in your heart for a person, more animosity will only make things worse. Tolerating the person may prevent hurtful actions, but it does not banish feelings of hatred or ameliorate their cause. As Dr. King noted, “Only love can do that.”
Here’s the problem: Unconditional love that puts the other person first, choosing to pardon their sins and seeking to restore what is broken, is a “fruit” of God’s Spirit (Galatians 5:22), not human effort. No matter how hard you try, you cannot manufacture it.
This is why “wars and rumors of wars” will continue to the end of human history (Matthew 24:6). It is why past ceasefires in the Middle East have not brought lasting peace to the Middle East. And it is why America’s greatest need is for Americans to experience and share the transforming love of God in Christ.
Daniel Webster observed, “Whatever makes men good Christians, makes them good citizens.” And what “makes men good Christians” is imitating Christ as he “came not to be served but to serve” (Matthew 20:28). We do this by loving God in response to his love for us (Matthew 22:37; 1 John 4:19) so fully that we are then empowered to love our neighbor as ourselves (Matthew 22:39).
Imagine a nation filled with “citizens” who loved their Lord and their neighbor like that.
Henri Nouwen wrote:
The great message that we have to carry, as ministers of God’s word and followers of Jesus, is that God loves us not because of what we do or accomplish, but because God has created and redeemed us in love and has chosen us to proclaim that love as the true source of all human love (my emphasis).
Here’s an example: Betty and Elton Denner recently celebrated their eighty-second wedding anniversary. A video of the couple went viral, amassing more than eight million views. In it, Elton bought a dancing walker so he could dance with his wife on her one-hundredth birthday. The couple dressed up as Cinderella and Prince Charming for the celebration.
Their daughter explained the longevity of her parents’ marriage: “They credit their faith in Jesus as the strength in their marriage, guiding them each and every day. The love of their Lord has blessed and sustained them through these eighty-two years together.”
What Jesus is doing for them, he will do for you.
Why do you need his sustaining love today?
“Seek unity and you will find neither unity nor truth. Seek the light of truth, and you will find unity and truth.” —C. S. Lewis
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