Feb. 29, 2016
Donald Trump, president and chief executive of Trump Organization Inc. and 2016
Republican presidential candidate, holds up a Bible while speaking
at the Values Voter Summit in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Friday, Sept. 25, 2015.
The annual event, organized by the Family Research Council, gives
presidential contenders a chance to address a conservative Christian audience
in the crowded Republican primary contest.
Photographer: Drew Angerer/Bloomberg via Getty Images
While God may not speak nearly so often as some may claim, God does still speak to His own, and He still, at times, speaks through dreams, just as He always has, for He changes not (Mat. 1:20, 2:12-13, 2:19, 2:22, 27:19, Acts. 2:17, Mal. 3:6). The Lord recently spoke to me in a dream as follows, and bear in mind that Donald Trump has not been a focus or a concern of mine, whatsoever, for I have many other pressing personal issues that could've used a word from heaven. Therefore, while Donald Trump is of no concern to me personally, he is, obviously, of great concern to the Lord, in regard to His people. Hence, the dream.
I had a dream about Donald Trump, who is, as of this writing, running for the Republican nomination for the presidency of the United States of America. I saw in the dream a "bramble bush" that I somehow knew was Donald Trump. I heard over and over "bramble bush", but I just had a knowing that the bush I saw represented Donald Trump. I then took a shovel, and where the dirt had been removed, exposing the root of this bush, I cut the one single thick root with the shovel, and turned the bush upside down. This happened more than once, perhaps thrice, apparently for emphasis, or reiteration (Acts 11:10, 2 Cor. 13:1). I then awoke with the phrase "bramble bush" going through my mind.
It was obvious to me that the dream was a prophetic dream in which the Lord was revealing something, for the dream was simple, clear, consistent, and obviously symbolic. I went to the Bible, not knowing if the phrase "bramble bush" was in the scripture, yet sensing that it was. However, I first looked up the definition of "bramble bush." The definition made it very clear that this was a prophetic dream, for the definition perfectly describes the man Donald Trump.
Definition from Wikipedia:
In British English, a "bramble" is any rough (usually wild) tangled prickly shrub—specifically the blackberry bush (Rubus fruticosus)—or any hybrid of similar appearance, with thorny stems.
What could better describe the man Donald Trump than the three words "rough, wild, and prickly?"
The bramble bush is first mentioned in the scriptures in Judges 9:15 "And the bramble-bush said to the trees, If you truly anoint me king over you, come put your trust in my shadow. And if not, let fire come out of the bramble and burn up the cedars of Lebanon" (MKJV).
In this passage of scripture, the bramble bush represents Abimelech, a treacherous man who became king through intrigue. According to Wikipedia, he was "an unprincipled, ambitious ruler, often engaged in war with his own subjects."
The famous leader of God's people Israel, named Jerubbaal, better known as Gideon, had seventy sons by several wives, and he had one son, named Abimelech, by his servant girl, or his concubine. Gideon, as one of the judges in Israel, was a true servant leader, as were all of the judges of Israel, in those days. They were not kings, lording over God's people, but rather, benefactors, who gave of themselves with a strong sense of civic virtue. However, upon Gideon's death, his son Abimelech saw an opportunity to be, not a servant, but a ruler, and this man's ambition drove him to a ruthless pursuit of a merciless reign over God's people. We read of it in Judges chapter Nine: "And Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem, to his mother's brothers. And he talked with them and with all the family of the house of his mother's father, saying, I pray you, speak in the ears of all the men of Shechem: Which is better for you, either that all the sons of Jerubbaal, seventy persons, reign over you, or that one reign over you? Remember also that I am your bone and your flesh. And his mother's brothers spoke of him in the ears of all the men of Shechem with all these words. And their hearts were bent toward Abimelech, for they said, He is our brother. And they gave him seventy pieces of silver out of the house of Baal-berith, with which Abimelech hired worthless and reckless persons who followed him. And he went to his father's house at Ophrah and killed his brothers the sons of Jerubbaal, seventy persons, upon one stone. But Jotham, the youngest son of Jerubbaal, was still left; for he hid himself. And all the leaders of Shechem gathered together, and all the house of Millo. And they came and made Abimelech king beside the plain of the pillar in Shechem. And when they told Jotham, he went and stood in the top of mount Gerizim. And he lifted up his voice and cried, and said to them, Listen to me, leaders of Shechem, so that God may listen to you. The trees went forth to anoint a king over them. And they said to the olive tree, Reign over us. But the olive tree said to them, Should I leave my fatness with which they honor God and man by me, and go to be promoted over the trees? And the trees said to the fig tree, You come and reign over us. But the fig tree said to them, Should I forsake my sweetness and my good fruit, and go to be promoted over the trees? Then the trees said to the vine, You come and reign over us. And the vine said to them, Should I leave my wine, which cheers God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees? Then all the trees said to the bramble-bush, You come and reign over us. And the bramble-bush said to the trees, If you truly anoint me king over you, come put your trust in my shadow. And if not, let fire come out of the bramble and burn up the cedars of Lebanon. And now, if you have done truly and sincerely in that you have made Abimelech king, and if you have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and have done to him according to what his hands did, in which my father fought for you and much endangered his life, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian. And you have risen up against my father's house today, and have killed his sons, seventy persons, upon one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his slave woman, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your brother; if then you have dealt truly and sincerely with Jerubbaal and with his house today, rejoice in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you. But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech and burn up the men of Shechem and the house of Millo. And let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and from the house of Millo, and burn up Abimelech. And Jotham ran away and fled, and went to Beer, and lived there for fear of Abimelech his brother" (Jdg 9:1-21 MKJV).
This prophetic dream, and it's biblical interpretation, is God's opinion of Donald Trump. It is, for us, a window into the man's character (if his words and behavior were not a clear enough window), and it is a stern warning to God's people. I did not "dream this up!" I'm not capable of such. This came from heaven, the word is sure, and God's people would do well to heed the warning contained herein. In case you cannot see what is at stake for you, as one of Christ's followers, I will attempt to cast a little more light on the interpretation that God already gave us through His word, as well as to give some application, so that we know what to do with this revelation.
This dream came to me a few days prior to Donald Trump's tiff with the Pope over who was the better Christian. That whole interchange, just as all of Donald Trump's campaign for the presidency, would've been comical, were it not so tragic. It is tragic that we as a country find ourselves in this condition, and that in a time of national decline, we find ourselves looking to a man of this character as our hope, and that God's people could be helping to bring disaster upon a nation, and judgment upon themselves, by standing with, and for, a man whose character God has compared with the bramble bush Abimelech.
We are in a time of judgment, and in a time of judgment it is critical that one does not find him or herself standing with, or for, that which is marked for judgment, and remember that the Lord declares in His word that judgment will begin in His house (1 Pet. 4:17). Believe me, when Jesus, whose eyes are as a flame of fire, returns to His house to cleanse it of those who make merchandise of the things of God, I don't want to be on the business end of that whip (John chapter 2), and neither do you, so I suggest we all heed this warning. In a time of judgment, I want to stand as far away as possible from that which is marked out for judgment, and according to this dream, that is exactly what God has in store for Donald Trump, and for the principles that he embodies, as well as for those who stand for and with him, and who aid him in his grasp for power.
Remember, in verses 18 and 24 of Judges 9, Abimelech's guilt for the murder of his half-brothers was imputed to all who "voted" him into power. This man was no servant leader. He was a ruthless, ambitious, and unscrupulous man, with a thirst for power and a willingness to step on others who would stand in his way. Jesus said, "For a good tree does not bring forth corrupt fruit, neither does a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. For every tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush" (Luke 6:43-44 MKJV).
The Root
In the dream, if you remember, the one single root was cut, and the bush was uprooted and turned upside down. I am reminded of the scripture that says that the love of money is the root of every kind of evil (1 Tim. 6:10). That may well be what the root represents, and I find a relevant verse of scripture regarding this root in Psalms 52...
"God will likewise destroy you forever; He shall take you away, and pluck you out of your tent, and root you out of the land of the living. Selah. And the righteous shall see, and fear, and shall laugh at him, saying, Behold, the man who did not make God his strength, but trusted in the abundance of his riches, he was strong in his wickedness" (Ps. 52:5-7 MKJV).
I believe that God has removed His protective hand from this once great nation, and that we are getting the leaders that we want and deserve, unfortunately (Pro. 1:24-31). At this point, I don't believe that any president will avert the inevitable disaster that our nation faces. However, that being said, to cast our vote for Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, or Donald Trump would be to cast our vote for disaster. I don't know any true followers of Christ who would consider casting a vote for Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders, but, amazingly, I do know some who are supporting Donald Trump. Could he be the qualitative assay of God's people in a time of judgment, a time of sifting and separating?
God is angry with all the nations of the Earth, including our great nation (Is. 34:2). As the Babylonian system of man's rule, and all that he has created in his pride and rebellion to God collapses, my concern is God's concern, and that is that His people, "not be partakers of her sins, and receive of her plagues" (Rev. 18:4). As to whether or not Donald Trump is capable of evil that Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders are not, I will leave that to your judgment, for I don't know. However, remember that in God's eyes, He is capable of the ruthlessness of an Abimelech, for it was the Lord who drew the parallel for us, and we, as God's people, don't want to be partakers of this man's ruthlessness, and therefore, of his judgments.
Can I encourage you to earnestly pray to God to uproot this ungodly grasp for power before it's too late (I write this on the eve of Super Tuesday), and to cast your primary votes in another direction, so that we not discover the depths of evil that lie within the heart of an Abimelech. Heed this warning from God, it is His mercy to us to speak to us regarding this.
Because of Donald Trump's tiff with the Pope over who is the better Christian, many have spoken out and stated that we cannot know if a man is a Christian or not, for only God "looks at the heart", and Jesus commands us to "judge not, lest ye be judged." Both of these statements are true, in that they are quoting scriptures, but the argument is actually false, in that they are misapplying these scriptures.
First of all, if your definition of a Christian is someone who sincerely holds to a belief in the "Christian religion", then no, no one can judge if that is truly a person's sincere belief, or not. However, a true Christian is not one who sincerely holds to Christianity, but rather, one who has been born from above by the miracle of spiritual rebirth (John 3:3), and one who has been delivered from bondage to sin, and translated from darkness into the Kingdom of His Dear Son by the awesome regenerating power of the Holy Spirit, according to an act of God's will and choice, and not as a result of any works of man, including religious works or rituals of which evangelicals (as well as Catholics) have become fond.
If we take that as our definition of a Christian, then the scripture gives us all we need in order to determine whether or not Donald Trump is a true Christian. By the way, I can't believe I even need to address this.
Jesus said to judge not, lest you be judged. However, Paul said that he had already judged the man who had committed sexual sin (1 Cor. 5:3). The scripture says, "Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts. And then shall each one have praise of God" (1 Cor. 4:5). So, we cannot judge the counsels of men's hearts, or the motives of a man, for that is to judge before the time. The Lord will judge motives when He comes. However, as spiritual men, we can judge, as it says in the sixth chapter of 1 Corinthians. What can we judge then? We cannot judge motives, for that is to judge before the time. However, we can judge actions, just as Paul did.
Paul wrote, "But now I have written to you not to associate intimately, if any man called a brother and is either a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler [that means abusive], or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such a one not to eat. For what is it to me to also judge those who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? But God judges those who are outside. Therefore put out from you the evil one" (1 Cor. 5:11-13 MKJV). So, we certainly are expected to judge, as lost, those who claim to be Christians, but who continue to live sinful lives.
Also, John wrote that, "We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brothers. He who does not love his brother abides in death. Everyone hating his brother is a murderer. And you know that no murderer has everlasting life abiding in him" (1 John 3:14-15). So, if Donald Trump expects his profession of Christianity to be beyond question, then he must, without question, accept Ted Cruz's profession as well. That being the case, the fact that Donald Trump does not love Ted Cruz, his brother in Christ, is proof enough that he is no Christian, for that is one of the key indicators that we have passed from death to life - that we love the brethren, and that according to the definition of love as found in 1 Corinthians chapter 13.
I won't go into all the blatant indicators that Donald Trump is a lost sinner, and not a Christian (by biblical, not pop-culture definition), for it is unnecessary to state the obvious. However, I would point out two things. First of all, it's a silly notion that a man can be a Christian and, not only live a sinful life, but also, be a Christian, having never asked God for forgiveness (Trump's words). What? He's a Christian, but never asked God to forgive him??? Like a popular author put it, "That's like saying, 'I'm a swimmer, but I've never been wet.'"
Secondly, the fact that Christianity is at such a low ebb in this nation that we can no longer discern the difference between a sinner and a saint, and that Christians, some of whom I know to be true Christians, and even leaders in the church, could support a bramble bush of a man as president of the United States, over and opposed to men of far greater stature, is to me a scandal beyond comprehension. We have olive and fig trees (at least by comparison) offering their service to our nation, and the cedars of Lebanon are seeking refuge under a bramble bush.
"...let fire come out from Abimelech and burn up the men of Shechem and the house of Millo. And let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and from the house of Millo, and burn up Abimelech" (Jdg. 9:20 MKJV).
Brother Mark