On Fox & Friends, Donald Trump was reflecting on his desire to end wars and save lives. Then he said this:
“If I can save 7,000 people a week from being killed... I want to try and get to heaven if possible. I'm hearing I'm not doing well... I hear I'm really at the bottom of the totem pole.”
Later that evening on The Five, Jesse Watters offered commentary on Trump’s words:
“He has this childlike spirit… that if you just do good things, there's a chance... I read a little bit about Christianity this afternoon. Apparently you actually can't just do good things to get into heaven. There has to be more about faith.”
Both of these reactions are revealing, and they both orbit around the same common misunderstanding: salvation by merit.
Trump’s Fear: Too Bad for Heaven
Trump’s worry is that he’s “at the bottom of the totem pole.” He imagines heaven as a ranking system where some saints sit on the top rung and others barely hang on at the bottom. His concern is that he’s done too much wrong, that he’s too bad to qualify for eternal life.
That instinct is common. When people feel the weight of sin and failure, they assume the bar is too high and they’ll never clear it.
Watters’ Hope: Good Enough for Heaven
On the other hand, Jesse Watters voices the opposite instinct: maybe if you do enough good, you’ll get in. He admits he skimmed some Christian teaching and learned that it’s not quite that simple—but his reflex shows the “default mode” of the human heart: work hard, do good, try to tip the scales in your favor.
That too is common. Many people don’t feel crushed by guilt—they feel buoyed by their own decency.
The Real Issue: God’s Holiness
Both perspectives make the same mistake: comparing ourselves to other people. Trump fears he’s worse than others; Watters assumes he’s better than most. But the Bible doesn’t measure us against other sinners—it measures us against God’s holiness.
And against His perfect standard, no one passes muster:
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“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23)
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“By works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight.” (Galatians 2:16)
The standard is perfection. None of us make it. Not Trump. Not Watters. Not me. Not you.
Two Roads of Salvation
When you boil it down, there are only two possible plans of salvation:
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Works. Live perfectly, never sin, meet God’s standard on your own. (Spoiler: impossible.)
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Grace. Admit your inability, cry out for mercy, and receive the righteousness God provides through Jesus Christ.
That’s why Paul could say: “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8–9)
The Good News for Both Trump and Watters (and Us)
The good news is that Christ came for both types of people—for the one who feels too bad and the one who feels good enough. He came for the guilty conscience and the self-confident spirit alike.
The real issue is not our relative standing on a “totem pole,” but our desperate need for a Savior. And in Christ, God has provided one.
Take some time to pray today, read Scripture, speak to someone who knows the Bible well enough to walk you through understanding and receiving the gift of eternal life.
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