The Evanglical Church and the Flag

Yesterday I tried in vain to understand why a church would approve of warfare, and then it suddenly dawned to me: it is because the American evangelical churches worship the Ideology of the United States and all that goes with it. It explains why their sanctuaries display the flag of the United States prominently at the front, and why Awana children pledge their allegiance to the flag instead of God.

In their minds, of course, the flag represents God, for the nation of the United States has been merged with the Kingdom of God, wherefore the symbols of both represent one reality: the Christian nation of the United States of America.

For most Christians the idea of a Christian nation is incomprehensible.

All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country-a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them (Heb 11:13-16, NIV).

The fourth-century bishop, Augustine, wrote a lengthy treatise which he named, The City of God. This is what he had to say about the subject:

Accordingly, two cities have been formed by two loves: the earthly by the love of self, even to the contempt of God; the heavenly by the love of God, even to the contempt of self. The former, in a word, glories in itself, the latter in the Lord. For the one seeks glory from men; but the greatest glory of the other is God, the witness of conscience. The one lifts up its head in its own glory; the other says to its God, "Thou art my glory, and the lifter up of mine head." In the one, the princes and the nations it subdues are ruled by the love of ruling; in the other, the princes and the subjects serve one another in love, the latter obeying, while the former take thought for all. The one delights in its own strength, represented in the persons of its rulers; the other says to its God, "I will love Thee, O Lord, my strength." And therefore the wise men of the one city, living according to man, have sought for profit to their own bodies or souls, or both, and those who have known God "glorified Him not as God, neither were thankful, but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened; professing themselves to be wise,"--that is, glorying in their own wisdom, and being possessed by pride,--"they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and four-footed beasts, and creeping things." For they were either leaders or followers of the people in adoring images, "and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever." But in the other city there is no human wisdom, but only godliness, which offers due worship to the true God, and looks for its reward in the society of the saints, of holy angels as well as holy men, "that God may be all in all" (Book XIV, Ch 28).

When Jesus stood before Pilate, and Pilate asked him if he was the king of the Jews, Jesus answered:

Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place" (John 18:36 NIV).

Not of this world. 

How can it be that the kingdom of God is not of this world, but American evangelical Christians think that the kingdom of God has been merged with the United States? For the same reason Constantine made Christianity the official religion of Rome, and bishops donned the Senators outfits, to better "fit in." Where the power of God and the power of the world are merged, who will pray for the ending of the violence? No one, for God's insignia is found on every weapon.

In this half-and-half kingdom, where even God approves of machine-guns, every Christian is given a blank check called "salvation by faith," which allows them to ignore the Bible when the Bible comes in conflict with cultural expectations, such as war on terror, racism, white privilege, and patriarchy. Thus evangelicals are quick to demand that others turn their left cheeks, while they ask for grace and mercy for themselves from God, for the Ideology of the United States whispers to them they have the right to treat others as they wish. Masters need, after all, their slaves.

If the American evangelical church wishes to cease being the laughing stock of the world, and bring shame upon the name of God, a heartfelt search within would be a good beginning. "Examine yourselves to see if you are in the faith," (1 Cor 13:5) is a mandate to all Christians. It's time evangelicals did just that.