To Love One’s Country

To Love One’s Country:

In the scriptures, I’m commanded to love a lot of things: my God, my neighbor, my wife, my enemy… I’m never commanded to love my country. In fact, if “loving my country” means that I demonstrate preference to someone based on their ethnicity, their nationality or, for instance, their loyalty to America’s foreign policies, I think I’ve pretty much undermined a very important aspect of Jesus’ mission on this earth—to make his temple a “house of prayer for all nations” and ours, to “make disciples of all nations.” And when I’m willing to value American lives over, say, Iranian lives or when I’m willing to promote America’s economic interests over the interests of the world’s poor simply because I’m American I may actually demonstrate my infidelity to the only Kingdom worthy of my allegiance.

Via

 

2 Comments

  1. Gravatar for Mike Mike 2 years, 1 month ago

    I see where you’re going here, and I can go with you most of the way.  However, there is an assumption in the statements here that all nations are arbitrary, morally neutral units.  That sounds nice, but it isn’t true.

    The way God has ordered the universe, “the people” are subject to “the rulers.”  Throughout history, we see God passing judgment on nations, not just individuals.  We also see this nation being used by God to “smite” that one.  God does business with individuals, but he also does business with nations.

    I agree with you that we should be concerned with the welfare of Iranians, Germans, and so on.  However, if the ruler(s) of Iran or Germany take it upon themselves to, say, try to wipe an entire ethnic group off of the face of the earth, a righteous nation would have no choice but to confront said rulers, as well as the people sovereignly placed under their authority by God, to restrain them from their wickedness.

    There are many ways that churches in all nations should be participating in the restoration of all things.  One way is by feeding the world’s poor.  Another is by proclaiming, with words, the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Still another, equally valid way is to restrain the evil that exists in the world.  Police officers do this on a local level.  Nations do this on a global level.  That’s the way God made it.

    I would also say that the fact that God has placed you in this nation is no more arbitrary than his decision to place you in the family you grew up in, or the one you are now in charge of.  Yes, you are a Christian first, but you are also an American, a Lincolnite, a husband, and so on.  You have a responsibility for the people God has put around you in each of these spheres.

  2. Gravatar for Mike Mike 2 years, 1 month ago

    ... (continued from above)

    It is not wrong for you to feed the woman and child that live in your home instead of feeding the family that lives down the street from you.  God has put *this* family into your care.  Neither is it wrong for you to seek to do good and restrain evil in (and through) the country that you have been placed in.  In that sense, American lives should be more important to you just as Renae and Simon’s lives are more important to you than those of my children.  That doesn’t make them any less valuable, but your responsibility to them is strikingly different.

    Just my two cents.

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