By Scott Tibbs, February 6, 2017
Note: I sent this open letter to President Donald Trump a week ago.
Dear Mr. President,
I understand you were elected on a platform of more strictly limiting immigration, both from our southern border and internationally. That said, with the executive order you signed on January 27 I would like to remind you of this commandment from God's Word:
- But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God. -- Leviticus 19:34
Obviously, there are details to be worked out and national security considerations that must be addressed. You have a responsibility from God to protect this nation from our enemies. My point here is not the details of immigration policy so much as making sure we remember this principle from Scripture. We can disagree on details - or even have sharp disagreements on what the general policy should be - but as Christians we have to submit to the principle God sets out here.
One of the reasons why I am a bit perplexed by your executive order is that you banned all immigration from Syria and Iraq, where you have admitted that Christians are subjected to horrific persecution by Muslim terrorists. It is strange to outright ban immigration from those nations, after you complained bitterly in the campaign that we are allegedly not doing enough to help Christians persecuted by Muslim terrorists.
We need stronger vetting of immigrants from Muslim-majority nations and we need to protect our national security and our people. A blanket ban of all immigration from seven nations - especially where Christians are being tortured, decapitated and crucified by Muslim terrorists - is an overreaction and is the policy equivalent of smacking a spider with a twenty pound sledgehammer when a newspaper would get the job done.
President Trump, you were granted authority by God to be the President of these United States. The same is true of all of your predecessors. All authority flows from Almighty God and you would have no authority had it not been granted to you by God. Therefore, you have a special responsibility to submit to God's commandments found in Holy Scripture. God will judge you based on your obedience and submission to Him over these next four years. More importantly, He will judge our nation.
I urge you to strongly reconsider these policies and pray for wisdom and discernment from God. Most of all, I urge you to read and study First Corinthians 13 about the importance of love. Your Vice President is a dedicated man of God and will be a great resource to help you discern His will.
