Is Barack Obama a Christian? 'Jesus Christ is the LORD,' He

[JudasMaccabaeus]

+ GOD'S SKIN COLOR, PART I. +
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IMPORTANT NOTE: This series of posts intends to deal with ethnicity as it pertains to the Biblical tradition, whether it be the past, present, or future. Therefore, even though some posts will center upon President Barack Obama, this is NOT intended as a political endorsement of the Democratic Party- a somewhat Pagan institution to say the least. The future may seem dark to some, but the abiding light of Christian faith can and will carry on. Come join all your fellow brothers and sisters of faith around the world for the next 1,000 years of Christianity!



/-- 'How Dare a Black man be Christian!' She cried out.
'Frankly, my dear, this time I give a damn...' He responded --/
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Jesus Christ is the LORD. I believe in that.

- President Barack Obama, September 26, 2011

Here is a absolute gem of a story that, considering the spontaneous nature of the event, truly reveals President Barack Obama's gut instincts, his true Christian nature so to speak. Anyway, on September 26, 2011, President Obama was speaking at a scheduled campaign fund-raiser being hosted at the House of Blues in Los Angeles, California. While still at the podium finishing off his prepared words to the audience, Barack Obama noticed a deranged man, later identified as David Serrano, yelling repeatedly that 'Jesus is God'. Now even though the Secret Service personnel assigned to protect the President had gotten there first and was already attempting to forcibly remove the man, the President proceeded to immediately halt his campaign speech in order to give 'the man his full attention'. To everyone's surprise, Obama made every effort to listen to what this disturbed individual as he was being dragged away, even nodding his head as if to show that he could hear and understand what the man was screaming about. As it was reported in the media, the man's final agitated screams consisted of a direct accusation that Barack Obama was the anti-Christ. Sadly, this exact statement has been all too frequent since he became the first black President in the history of the United States of America, an occurrence long yearned for, and deeply cherished, throughout the entire African-American Christian community. Over the past 3-4 years. the constant, and indeed racist, accusation that Obama is NOT a Christian has caused more than enough discomfort and heart-ache among the black Christians of this country. Here are some typical attitudes coming from three blatantly hostile, white, Republican, evangelical Protestants:
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I'VE NO REASON TO THINK HE IS A CHRISTIAN... Anyone can say he’s a Christian...Some people will say whatever they think the politically helpful thing would be. I say, ‘Where is the evidence that he is a Christian?'

- Bob Jones III, Chancellor of Bob Jones University

The President, he says he is Christian but yet he’s exercises a lot of Muslim faith too...I just believe that he needs to come forward with his views a little bit clearer....I don’t know if he is or isn’t, but I DON'T BELIEVE HE'S A CHRISTIAN.

- Scott D’Amboise, Republican Candidate for U.S. Senator from Maine 2012

Pointing to the Sermon on the Mount where Jesus says, 'you will know them by their fruits,' [Steven Andrew] the ministry president explains that by looking at Obama's fruits, JESUS SAYS OBAMA IS NOT A CHRISTIAN...'We now see Obama is anti-God,' he adds.

- Pastor Steven Andrew, President of USA Christian Ministries as reported by Christiannewswire.com

1) A SIMPLE GAME OF BASEBALL: Batter up! Let's see here- I'VE NO REASON TO THINK HE IS A CHRISTIAN = Strike One and one letter 'K'! I DON'T BELIEVE HE'S A CHRISTIAN = Strike Two and a second letter 'K'!, JESUS SAYS OBAMA IS NOT A CHRISTIAN = Strike Three and a third letter 'K'! You sure sound like a racist to me and that spells 'KKK'!
2) A SIMPLE QUESTION: What if these statements above were ever pointed at a white politician like Bill or Hillary Clinton, Albert Gore, or perhaps even Jimmy Carter? NO-ONE has ever questioned their Christianity, not even once.
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Getting back to the incident of the maniacal Christian protester, one can now ascertain quite clearly who's fomenting such hostility and paranoia among the common people of this nation- the white 'Christian' right. Now, as everyone already knows, famous and important individuals, most especially the President of the United States, tend to nearly always completely ignore a heckler or protester when they are in the process of interrupting any sort of speaking engagement, waiting silently for the disturbance to end before continuing on as if nothing had actually happened. Lo' and behold, President Barack Obama did not react this way for some reason, which he has done in the past on many different occasions. For whatever reason, the man's repeated shrieks that 'Jesus in God' actually managed to gain both the interest and the sympathy of President Obama, if only for a few minutes. Indeed, before returning to the topic he had been discussing previous to the incident (which was not about religion at all), President Obama made a deliberate point to answer the man's loud ramblings personally, by stating the following answer:
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First of all...I agree, Jesus Christ is the LORD. I believe in that.

- President Barack Obama, September 26, 2011
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Keep in mind, this was never meant to be a speech about religion or Christianity, but was a pre-planned Democratic campaign event designed to rally the liberal troops and garner more political donations in his bid for re-election. Barack Obama did not say these specific words in front of a bunch of Republican, born-again, fundamentalist, Christian Right-wingers. Instead, in front of his own, so-called 'anti-Christian' party, President Obama openly, spontaneously, and quite publicly espoused the key phrase that the New Testament has always identified as the basic doctrine of Christian faith- simple acknowledgement that Jesus Christ is LORD.
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Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus...For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is LORD, to the glory of God the Father.

- 2 Phillipians 3-11
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Think about it for a minute, please! The leader of the free world, ruler of the most powerful nation on Earth, made a conscious and deliberate effort to LISTEN to the words of an obviously disturbed Christian mad-man and immediately responded with the simple words: 'Jesus Christ is the LORD. I believe in that.' All things considered, this mostly untold story concerning President Barack Obama does more to prove his Christian faith than anything else he has done so far. Why? First and foremost, Obama obviously saw the man causing the disturbance, David Serrano, not as just another anonymous nuisance and right-wing wacko needing restraint, but actually viewed him as a fellow Christian, a fellow child of God who deserved some kind of response or answer from those in power. Indeed, on that day at least, one very important and powerful tongue did 'confess that Jesus Christ is LORD' and nothing could be more genuine and true. As one very astute observer remarks:
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President Barack Obama passed a key test Monday night in case anybody is worried that he might be the Antichrist. Speaking at a campaign fundraiser at the House of Blues in Los Angeles, Obama was interrupted by a man identified as David Serrano who...accused Obama of being the Antichrist. That figure in Christian “last days” theology is believed to be a leader who, toward the end of time, will be an adversary of good while resembling Christ. The Antichrist will provide for the needs of the people but deny them eternal salvation.

He is named in the New Testament books 1 John, 2 John and described by the Apostle Paul in 2 Thessalonians. John’s account advises that the Antichrist will deny that Jesus is the Christ and will “not confess Jesus.” In I Corinthians 12:3, Paul writes: “Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.”

“First of all,” Obama began, “I agree, Jesus Christ is the Lord. I believe in that.” And with those words, it would appear that Obama just eliminated himself from possible candidates for Antichrist. Serrano was not arrested. Local officials said he is known to them and has made similar appearances at other government meetings.

- Is Obama the Antichrist? Apparently not, by Rob Kerby, blog.beliefnet.com
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One should also remember that, back in the day, during the relentless polytheistic culture of the Pagan Roman Empire, circa 33-313 A.D., such authentically Christian proclamations could sometimes result in imprisonment, torture, and even execution. Even more astonishing is the fact that, instead of simply lying to please the Pagan religious and government officials, many of the early Christians would stubbornly refuse to do even this, preferring death to denial of Jesus Christ even it may have been only once to save their lives. Not that Obama's life was at risk, but just the sheer fact that he not only gave a mentally-ill Christian believer (who screamed he was the anti-Christ) his undivided attention, he also gave him a personal, unequivocal response- 'Jesus Christ is the LORD.' Remember one thing, this was said in front of hundreds of rich, influential, Los Angeles Democrats, many of whom do not believe in Jesus Christ at all. To conclude this post, here are a few examples of Obama's very public, and much denied and defamed, Christianity:
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As somebody who relies heavily on MY CHRISTIAN FAITH in my job, I understand the passions that religious faith can raise.

- President Barack Obama (2008-2011)

(The story of Jesus' birth) that we are called to love each other as we love ourselves, that we are our brother's keeper and our sister's keeper, and our destinies are linked...It's a message that guides MY CHRISTIAN FAITH.

- President Barack Obama (2008-2011)

(We can) see God in other people and do our best to help them find their, you know, their own grace...So that's what I strive to do...That's what I pray to do everyday. I think my public service is part of that effort to express MY CHRISTIAN FAITH.

- President Barack Obama (2008-2011)

I am a Christian by choice...I came to MY CHRISTIAN FAITH later in life, and it was because the precepts of Jesus Christ spoke to me in terms of the kind of life that I would want to lead.

- President Barack Obama (2008-2011)
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May the LORD God bless you in the name of St. Judas Maccabaeus.

[RedBaron]

Just a friendly note: Newbie Nook is for new posters to introduce themselves.

I have also moved this to the appropriate forum, which is Theology.

We have had some fall out in the past with political topics, so please, everyone, tread carefully.

[JD]

Wow.... what a loaded question. I am sure there are many different opinions for and against his Christianity. I will answer by quoting 1 Samuel 16:7

....The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

What we are asked to do is stated in 1 Timothy 2:1-2

I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— 2 for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.

I am discouraged by the hostile nature of this election season from both sides. There is no place for name calling. The only thing I find myself doing is not listening to anyone. The harshness from both sides shuts me down more than convinces me to their way of thinking.

But my hope and trust is in God. Romans 13:1 states

Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.

I trust God knows what He is doing. I trust that the outcome of this election will be governed by His hand.

One last thing, 2 Chronicles 7:14

if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

[Carole L]

I have no idea if Obama is a Christian or not, but your statement that he is because he recognized who Christ is does not make him a Christian.

Even the demons know WHO and WHAT He is

NKJV© Luke 4:41 And demons also came out of many, crying out and saying, "You are the Christ, the Son of God!" And He, rebuking them , did not allow them to speak, for they knew that He was the Christ.

More important than knowing WHO and WHAT Christ is would be saying "He is MY God."

A personal relationship is required, not knowledge of His identity.

[Accord64]

President Obama has many times stated he is a Christian. This was an issue he addressed back in the 2008 election (in numerous interviews).

Now, I obviously don't know him well enough to make a determination as to how serious he is about his faith, or what exactly he believes. Many people in this world call themselves "Christians", but their theology can be dicey.

Then there is Mitt Romney, who is clearly a Mormon. That obviously comes with its own set of concerns.

But is this the ultimate litmus test for a politician?

To me, the bottom line is what these candidates are trying to do for the country, and where they stand on issues that I consider important. When considering the importance of a politician's faith, I often remember a quote that is attributed to Martin Luther (although not confirmed he said it): "I'd rather be ruled by a wise Turk than a foolish Christian."

[vasquezsavage]

This is a difficult subject to discuss w/out getting political. I hope that I can do it. First, anyone who claims they know whether or not our president is a Christian or not; doesn't understand scripture. I understand "fruit on the tree" arguements as well as stating he is a Christian. His fruits are what make people question. His stance on some basic Christian values are the reason; not the color of his skin. I grow a little weary every time i'm called a racist when I disagree w/our president who I support. Whether or not he is a Christian, to me, is a pointless argument. To me the question is: Is His actions & decisions that He makes appear to be Christ-like. We all do things that are not Christ-Like. That does not make us not a Christian. I can't answer whether he is a Christian or not. No one can! I can ask the question however "does he act Christ-like" in what he might decide to do. We are all looked at in that manner as Christians. We should pray for him, and all politicians, to make more Christ-like decisions; just as we pray for our friends & loved ones to do so. But if I question his Christ-likeness, it is not because of his race. We need to leave race out of it. I'm sure there are those that will question him only because he's black. I raised an African American son. He has the same questions. Pray for our president, and for Romney, & quit asking whether either is a Christian or not. Only ask the question; are they making decisions that agree with your Christian values and then make your vote accordingly. God will take care of the rest; He is big enough! vs

[Enad]

I guess I am responding to this thread because I can say that I have seen The President, although only in videos and news reports and never in person, but I have seen him saying that he is a Christian and I have seen him saying that he is a Muslim. There is a video of that confession. There are videos of both confessions.

It is difficult to judge anyone, except that we may judge what they do and say as to whether they are violating what God has already judged as sin. It is the m.o. of our day to say one thing and do another, and it is not limited to the President of the United States or to the other elected officials.

We are all in a world of trouble and only God will be able to fix it.

PRAY! That is the word for our day.

[tomoral]

Although I might not always agree with his politics....I feel Barack Obama is a doing what he feels is best for the country. I was proud to be a part of history when a black man was elected President of the United States, because I am against all forms of racism. I grew up in the south during the civil rights movement, and I saw atrocities and injustices against a race of people done by others who proclaimed to be Christians.

I was created by God just as every child was, regardless of race, creed or color. If President Obama says he is a Christian, I cannot doubt that he is, only God can truly make that determination.

I can say from my observation of his actions that he is a humanitarian, seeking liberty and justice for all, not just a few. As Christians we must pray that Christ truly is in his heart and that he leads this country in the direction God wants it to go.

God Bless the USA

[Colswann1]

The same has been said of Tony Blair in our country (i.e. he's the AC).

The presumption comes from speculations from Bible students and scholars that there would be a revived Roman Empire in the last days and it would be headed up by the AC. Formulating, at the present time, is a united states of Europe (similar to the countries included in the old Roman Empire) and there is talk of a leader to head this and Tony Blair is positioning himself for this position and a strong possibility to get the position.

I think that is why some are speculating he could be the one!

[chrishawk]

My concern is that, as Christians, we put too much emphasis on politics. Jesus didn't involve himself much in politics. Economics and politics can only offer damage control; they can only touch symptoms; they can only apply bandages. As such, the purpose of government is damage control.

Jesus called us to a higher standard. He called us to transcend touching symptoms. He called us to be more than appliers of bandages. He called us to go to the roots. We are to be vessels of the Holy Spirit. Our eyes are to be fixed on Jesus--our Lord, our Savior, our King. When Christians start looking at political leaders as either the destroyers or the saviors of nations, our focus has been diverted from the King.

I was in India last year. The last thing on my mind was concern about politics. I was there as an ambassador of the Kingdom. I was there on Kingdom business. I had to obey the laws. I had to subject myself to authority. But it never entered my mind to try to change anything about the law. I was passing through. It wasn't my home. I knew it was best to leave the politics to those who call India home. Likewise, as Christians, we are no longer of this world. We are merely passing through as ambassadors of Christ.

There is no indication that Jesus ever made any effort to instill holiness through the political realm. And John says that if we are in him, we should walk as he walked (1 John 2:6). He knew that the power he had and that he would soon be giving us--the Holy Spirit--is infinitely more effective in confronting sin than any government could ever be. The Holy Spirit can uproot sin while we cannot.

In America, we're are woefully stuck in an Old Covenant mindset of law. I believe it goes back to our nation's founding. Our nation certainly had a biblical foundation at its founding, but there is little to indicate that the foundation's focus dealt with New Covenant renewal. It was steeped in the Old Covenant mindset of law.

The emphasis of the Church in America on politics also has a lot to do with democracy. But I don't think that's any justification for Christians to be concerned about the political realm. In 1 Samuel 8, God declares very clearly that Israel's decision to choose their own political system was a clear rejection of him. Taking that further, in 1 Samuel 10:27, we see the 'Sons of Belial' refusing to honor Saul. Could it be that they refused to honor Saul because they were disappointed with God's choice of king? Could it be that they believed they could have chosen a better king? Could it be that they were very early proponents of democracy? I think that if we want to take the gospel seriously, we have to consider these things. It's not deep stuff. It's only appears deep because wrapped in the cords of strongholds that won't let us see beyond what those strongholds want us to see. Unfortunately, the Church in America is very blind.

Democracy inherently lifts up us, the people. Just as Paul warned Timothy about in 2 Timothy 1:5, there will be those who have a form of godliness but deny the power. Such is the inherent structure of democracy.

The world should certainly have its democracy, but the Church is called to something more. We need to move into what God has called us to be. As long as our sight is on politicians, our sight is off of our King. Jesus is the only salvation. The gospel, delivered through us as vessels by the Holy Spirit, is the only thing that can uproot sin in our country. We need to focus on the roots instead of the symptoms.

This doesn't directly speak to the original question in the post, but I think to Christians, the question should be irrelevant. How do we know that any of our presidents have truly been Christian? We could debate it for years and we'd never know. It just isn't relevant. All we need to know is they are in positions of power in the world system and that our faith shouldn't be put there.

My prayer is that we can move into a deeper faith, that we can walk as Jesus walked, forsaking the weapons of the world and the lure of their false power.

[jo555]

Well, I will say this about President Obama. First, let me make it clear that I don't follow politics as I used to, as much as I can enjoy that venue at times.

Going back to when he was first running for office. When I first heard him I liked him and had my eye on him as someone I may vote for. I liked his speeches about bringing parties and the nation together, yet after awhile I wanted to hear more, not just that speech. I wanted to hear more specifics with things overall. And, as a Christian, I know that any foundation not built on Christ will eventually fall. So, I was undecided as to whom to vote for.

At the time I was fellowshipping with other Christians that, to me, seemed to be judging his intentions inappropriately. I don't always know if I am right. I often question what I sense as I don't trust my own judgement. Yet, they were going on about his Muslim beliefs and it seemed that they felt he was going to try and influence us to become Muslim, or something to that effect. Like they felt that was his heart intentions. It didn't sit well with me, but what do I know.

During all this I remember one night while lying down I had a vision. From an above view I saw a man dressed in Muslim clothing. I didn't see his face as I was viewing from above him, but I just knew as you can just know in these things, that it was Barak Obama. He was crossing a desert to reach the Muslim people, and again, I just knew as you can at times just know in these things, that he was dressed that way in order to get on there level. That was at his heart. it was an act of humility. I didn't feel I needed to prayerfully interpret because I felt at the time I was watching this, it was being revealed to me what was going on. It reminded me what Paul said about becoming all things to all people so that he can reach them for the Lord. Whether he was trying to reach them for the Lord, I cannot say, I didn't get all that, but he was looking to reach them and it was an act of humility.

I shared my vision with the group, and a good deal felt the vision was confirmation that he was of the Muslim faith and something underhanded was going on. So, I repeated that that wasn't what I was getting. That I didn't feel the vision needed an interpretation because I felt I had the interpretation as it was being revealed to me as the vision was unfolding.

So, i don't know what the Lord may reveal to others about the state of affairs of Obama's heart. Even I, because of his initial speeches wondered if maybe he would be the antichrist, if indeed there is a particular person who would be the epidemy of antichrist (I'm unsure if scriptures point towards one person or if that person it speaks of is reprentative of a group of people), but unless God reveals to me, one way or another, I don't know.

And, I also try not to read more into what God reveals to me. I didn't take the vision as an endorsement on Obama for President. And we know just because a man's heart may be in the right place at one point in their lives, doesn't mean it will stay that way, so just sharing what I was given at that time.

I personally didn't vote. I didn't know which way to go and there were some things I didn't care for in each party, so i didn't vote, but I did suspect that he would win.

I personally THINK that he was probably put in place as our President for that season to help with international affairs. And then there has been the, what's it called, Arab Spring or something or another. It's nice to see them liberated from oppressive leaders and government. Yet, at the same time, as I heard one of them leaders over there say, "The vision needs time to grow."

Amen. Whatever one may personally think of that leader, those are wise words indeed. It can be a sad thing when a move can go bad because the vision hasn't grown and matured.

And, on a last thought for this post, in the bible there were times when God placed a man in leadership that didn't even know Him (and God even called them brutes and such), in a leadership position, even over his people. These things can be part of his master plan, and through it all we are to continue to plant and grow and pray for all so that God's will, will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. And, by our example and prayers, God can turn their hearts to Him.

So again, this isn't an endorsement on Barak Obama, but as the leader of our country we should pray for him, as I believe you all know.

Keeping in mind again that I haven't followed politics like I used to, I have heard others grieve over the fact that they felt Obama hasn't lived up to his decree on bipartisonship. That he is looking to enforce his democratic position on the republican party, and even do away with them. How true that is, I don't know. But I will say that in some religious circles that I have traveled in I have seen a somewhat similar trend. May we continue to pray for each other, and may God's will be done above all, in Jesus name. And it shall be.

[jo555]

Wanted to come back and say that I said he was wearing Muslim clothing . . . but in actuality, at the time as I best recall, I took it as mid-eastern attire, like you see the Arabic people wear, and he was crossing the desert to reach those people. I believe most are Muslim, but I don't recall associating the clothing to the religion.

[Paula22466]

CHRISHAWK- I very much enjoyed what you've written here. Have you published anything like that? If not, I encourage you to polish it up and submit!

[chrishawk]

paula, i've submitted several essays on here. my member profile is http://www.faithwriters.com/member-profile.php?id=61667. they've all been taken from my blog--which has much more than i've submitted on this page. the address for my blog is http://aradicallydifferentway.blogspot.com/. i'm thankful that it has touched you. it's a message that god has really put on my heart. he's been building it in me for over a year now. i believe he's calling us to deeper faith. thank you for the encouragement. i often feel like a heretic. haha!