As longtime readers of this blog know, I have been a vocal critic of politics from the pulpit, and secular partisanship within the ekklesia. Moreover, as a former member of an Armstrong Church of God, I have especially focused on the tendency of some of those groups to get entangled in American politics. Thus, it is a pleasure to be able to report on a positive development in this area. Mike James, of the Church of God International, has contributed an article to the winter edition of The International News that deserves our attention and praise.
The article is titled "Christian Nationalism, Good or Bad for America?" Pastor James began by quoting from a number of different sources attempting to define Christian Nationalism. The most succinct statement in this regard was drawn from a Christianity Today article: "Christian nationalism is the belief that the American nation is defined by Christianity, and that the government should take active steps to keep it that way." Mike went on to observe: "One major problem with Christian Nationalism is who gets to define what is meant by 'Christian.' Would you want to support something that promotes Sunday observance as the Sabbath or Christmas and Easter observance? Obviously not, and it remains to be seen how far some Christian Nationalists would want to go, but I cannot support something that teaches things that are not true." In other words, the pastor clearly understands that this movement has the real potential to actually limit religious freedom in this country.
Mr. James then pointed to two of the most recent actions of the Christian Nationalists in Oklahoma and Louisiana. Oklahoma mandated the Bible in the classroom, and Louisiana has mandated the Ten Commandments in every classroom. Mike went on to observe that "These two initiatives in Oklahoma and Louisiana are influenced by Christian Nationalists, but is this what Christians should be concerning themselves with—politics? Some of these Christian Nationalists are part of dominionist groups that believe Christians should seek to take over positions of power in culture and government." The pastor then went on to point out that this is inconsistent with CGI's theology surrounding the Kingdom of God - that Jesus Christ would return to this earth someday and establish that kingdom, not by Christians working within the parameters of human political systems.
As with many ACOG folks, Mike was honest about his own right of center political leanings. He wrote: "Listen, I probably agree with many Christian Nationalist positions. But one of the problems with Christian Nationalism is they can turn politicians and our nation into an idol. We can’t expect any nation or any leader to be a Messiah figure or an answer to all that ails our country. The Bible is definitive and clear: Christ is the only answer to the problems our nation and the world is experiencing. Be careful that you don’t turn your nation into an idol (Deuteronomy 5:6–7)." A little later in the article, he added: "Galatians 3:28 tells us that in Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek.” What this means is when you commit to Jesus Christ first and foremost in your life you now belong to Him and His Kingdom. Any other group you are a part of (nation, ethnicity, club, organization, church, town, or family) pales in significance and could become an idol."
In addition to numerous citations of Scripture throughout his article, Mike also listed a substantial list of the other sources of information he used in writing his own well-articulated piece. We can only hope and pray that Pastor James' article will be well-received and implemented by the membership of the Church of God International. After all, God is NOT going to reward his people for making an idol out of one of the secular nations of this present world influenced by Satan, and he has already sent us a Savior!
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