I was certainly not surprised by the results of this Gallup poll, but it was intriguing and compelling because there is comparative data for the exact same question going back all the way to 1937.
In 1937, 18% of Americans said they would vote for an otherwise well qualified candidate for president who happened to be an atheist (i.e. denies the existence of God). In 2015, 58% of Americans said they would do the same. Here is a pdf of the study.
How enlightened we’ve become! Psalm 14:1 says unequivocally that atheists are fools. This is representative of how fast a society can plummet spiritually. This study demonstrates that substantial majority of Americans are either completely ignorant of what the Bible says about atheists or they disagree with it. In the space of one lifetime this change has occurred.
Perhaps Satan is winning the long war, or perhaps the 40% (58% – 18%) of people who changed their tune regarding the suitability of an atheist president derive their opinions on such matters based upon the herd rather than as a result of independent thought. Maybe back in 1937 there was a higher percentage of followers of Christ in America, or maybe there was a similar percentage, and the fact that Biblical understanding was greater at that time among all Americans moderated public opinion against atheism.
Which brings up an interesting question: can someone who follows the herd be a follower of Christ? Matthew 7:13-14 indicates otherwise…
It is also interesting that the same Gallup polling organization in December, 2014 found that 77% of Americans identified themselves as Christians and 76% believed that the Bible was the Word of God. So there is a maximum of 24% (100% – 76%) out of the 58% of people who would vote for an atheist that might do so because they themselves don’t subscribe to the divine authority of the scriptures. That means that AT LEAST 34% of Americans believe the Bible is God’s word but either haven’t bothered to read it or don’t allow it to inform their decisions/opinions!
The fool has said in his heart “There is no God”. How much bigger a fool is the one who acknowledges the divine authorship of the scriptures but doesn’t bother to see what they say or allow them to guide his opinions?