"This is truly a battle between good and evil", says TV evangelical preacher Hank Kunneman about the slew of criminal charges facing Donald Trump.
"There is something about President Trump that the enemy fears."
The Nebraska pastor, who spoke on the cable news show "FlashPoint" last summer, is among several voices in the Christian media saying a message of biblical proportions: The 2024 presidential race is a battle for America's soul and a persecuted Trump has God's protection.
"They're just trying to bankrupt him. They're trying to take everything he has. They're trying to put him in jail," said author, media personality and self-proclaimed prophet Lance Wallnau in October on “The Jim Bakker Show,” a daily hour-long broadcast that focuses on news and revelations about the end times he says we are living in.
"The hand of God is upon him, and he cannot be stopped."
In the 2016 and 2020 elections, evangelical voters strongly supported Trump, despite allegations of adultery and sexual misconduct, which he denied.
With Trump now facing dozens of criminal charges as he seeks a second term, some Christian media are bolstering his support by portraying him as an instrument of God's will facing persecution from his enemies.
While the people making these claims are largely outside the mainstream Christian media, they have amassed significant followings online, and their messages resonate across radio shows, cable TV and broadcast platforms that reach millions of Americans every day.
Many conservative Christians have long relied on the Christian media to advocate for political causes related to their faith, such as anti-communism and anti-abortion.
Language that casts Trump in messianic terms helps energize his base, said Paul Djupe, a political scientist at Denison University who specializes in religion and politics.
Wallnau and Kunneman did not respond to Reuters requests for comment for this article.
