UK in transition: Have you prayed for Liz Truss?

What should we make of Liz Truss?

I’m always struck by the apostle Paul’s command in 1 Timothy 2:1-2, where he says God wants us to pray for all kinds of people. He then immediately gives the examples of kings, emperors, and those in authority over us, and draws a connection between prayers for these people and the freedom we enjoy to live quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. Recognising our human weakness and tendency to ignore commands, he adds a further reason to this duty: it pleases God who wants all kinds of people to be saved.

What I find striking is that in Paul’s time, this was about praying for the emperor Nero. Think about that for a moment. Nero was, by some distance, one of the most evil emperors in the history of the Roman Empire. Nero is infamous for killing his own mother, two of his wives and maliciously targeting Christians. But Paul still wants God’s people to pray for him!

Why this lengthy introduction? For the simple reason that before we say anything else about Liz Truss, and this applies whether we agree or strongly disagree with her policies, we should ask ourselves if we’ve prayed for her. Will we make sure we model this to our congregations if we’re in leadership? When we pray for Truss, we’re praying for the Prime Minister God has given us. She is a flawed, sinful human being whose most desperate and urgent need is to be convicted of her sin and humbled before her Creator God. Let’s pray that for her!

Truss is known as a grafter. She’s been in government since 2012. Those who’ve worked with her generally say she is on top of the detail – not something her predecessor was associated with. There are, however, some question marks over her moral integrity.

What about her policies? I’ve argued on the CARE website that the government has a moral duty to act over the rise in energy bills. Its help, I think, should be targeted to the most vulnerable in our society. This is consistent with a Biblical ethic where we see God acting on behalf of the most vulnerable, typically defined in Scripture as the poor, the orphan, the widow, and the foreigner. Truss has now revealed her package of help and there’s no doubt it’s a massive injection of cash to help people during these tumultuous times. It remains to be seen how targeted it will actually be.

Some positives might be that Truss has been a supporter of the work of Fiona Bruce MP, who was Boris Johnson’s special envoy for freedom of religion and belief. Long may that continue!

Over her time in Parliament since 2010, she’s largely abstained from voting on abortion. On culture-war issues like transgender rights, she’s aligned herself with the ‘gender-critical’ position that biological sex is immutable. She said during the hustings that trans women are not women. Her campaign manager, Iain Duncan Smith, indicated during the campaign that she wanted to revisit the proposed conversion therapy ban legislation.

She is also planning on removing the green levies on energy bills, which has drawn criticism from those concerned about the environment. She is in favour of a smaller state and her Cabinet is undoubtedly from the right of the Tory party. So, if you’re politics is more centre-left, or left wing, you’ll find yourself more exasperated than encouraged.

But thankfully, as Christians, our hope is not in Truss. It’s in King Jesus and His eternal kingdom which will never pass away. Whatever our view on Truss, let’s pray for her, and for her Cabinet – and for a season of God’s grace and refreshing, which I think means a new awakening and a revival of the church. This is our nation’s ultimate need.