Church Family,
By now most of you have seen the images that have come out of our nation’s capital. As our elected officials were gathered to confirm the electoral college vote, a pro-Trump mob broke into the Capitol resulting in chaos and death and our elected officials had to quickly be taken into safety.
If you’ve been a part of our church family you’ve often heard me mention how much I love the unity in our diversity when we gather for worship, and I’m not just talking culturally or ethnically. I make it a point to also mention our diverse political affiliations such as Republicans and Democrats.
As Christians we can (and we should) engage with politics while still keeping our ultimate hope in Jesus. Today’s events though are a reminder of the dangerous ground we tread when we engage with and place our hope in politics. While I don’t address every issue that comes up in our culture, I felt compelled to share a few things about today’s events. I hope these thoughts are helpful, hopeful, and ultimately unifying for us.
Let me first be clear, I am completely supportive of peaceful protests but absolutely opposed to riots that destroy property and harm people. My family participated in a peaceful march for racial equality with hundreds of Christians as recently as this last Summer. And whether they happen in Portland or D.C. I also have no problem lamenting and speaking out when protests turn to violence. With that in mind, today’s events speak to something that we cannot and should not ever be ok with as followers of Christ.
In the images I witnessed today I saw two flags moving side by side as rioters forced their way into the Capitol building. One was a confederate flag; a sign of rebellion, racism, and revolution. The other was a flag that bore the name of Jesus alongside of the name of Trump. Just as flags are created to do, these both declare allegiances. In the case of the confederate flag, I can think of no American icon more racist and harmful than that. In the case of the Jesus/Trump flag it was not just alarming but completely blasphemous.
Religious power is an alluring thing and what the Jesus/Trump flag reflects is a blurring of the lines between our Bible based faith and a nationalistic ideology. This is called Christian Nationalism. Christian Nationalism is the view that the ways of Jesus can be accomplished primarily by political means grounded in a uniquely American identity. Christian Nationalism, however, offers a path to corporate righteousness that minimizes the Gospel of Jesus and elevates political power. It seeks to blend American identity with our identity as sons and daughters of Christ, so that one is not discernable from the other. Christians Nationalism sees any threat to political power or influence as a threat to the Christian faith and any threat to a political leader as worthy of revolution. It is this ideology we saw on display today and it’s what’s continued to fuel things like unfounded conspiracy theories and support of ungodly behavior from our President.
Let me be clear, this ideology is antithetical to the ways of Jesus and has no place in our church family. Throughout history whenever the church has hitched itself to political power it has subsequently unhitched itself from the gospel.
So how should we respond?
First, we need to both pray against the deception of this thinking and just as importantly prophetically speak against it. 1 Timothy 6:20-21 says, “Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge, which some have professed and in so doing have departed from the faith. “ If you have indulged in divisive political rhetoric, I say this with all love, stop it now. Ask the Holy Spirit to align your heart and your emotions with his will and his ways. Ask him to show you where you have condoned or even justified behavior from our President that is not in line with the Spirit of God and repent.
Secondly, remember the Gospel. Roman 1:16 says, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.” It’s the gospel of Jesus that we put our hope in, it’s the gospel of Jesus that creates lasting transformation in our hearts, communities, and country. And it’s the gospel of Jesus that needs to be proclaimed and demonstrated over and above any political ideology or affiliation. When the church stays in step with the ways of Jesus, she becomes a beacon of hope, a bearer of peace, and blessing to the nation. Doesn’t that sound like what our country needs right now?
As we move into the unknown future let’s double our efforts in prayer and let’s renew our commitment to be led by the truth of Jesus and Jesus alone.
By His Grace,
Pastor Andrew
P.S. Questions, disagreements or concerns? Now is not the time to let outside pressure lead to inside division so let’s talk. You can call or email me to setup a time to connect.