Hello, and welcome to the Biblical Imagination, where we attempt to read the Bible with fresh eyes, shedding new light on old truths. Yes, the Biblical Imagination is back online! Demands of a job, summer chores, and other issues have left me with little time or energy to write. But things are winding down now. I cannot guarantee how frequent future posts will be, but I hope to do so once a month, especially as winter approaches.
When I launched this blog, my ambition was not to preach or discuss current issues but to highlight biblical imagery, literary beauty, and meaning that often go unnoticed as we read and study the Bible. Thus, my byline is "Reading the Bible with fresh eyes." But for this post, I’m veering off course. I feel I should address a contemporary issue Christians are increasingly embracing. Generally known as Christian Nationalism, the movement has been brewing for over a decade and is gaining steam ahead of the presidential election. It goes by the name Christian, but I find it disturbingly out of step with the ethos of biblical religion and the teaching of Jesus.
I realize this may not even be on the radar for some of you, while others may be especially interested. A few years ago, I knew little about the movement. It blipped on my radar when an article pointed out that an increasing number of Americans supported it. Earlier this year, a friend loaned me his book on the topic that piqued my interest. The more I have investigated the movement, the more alarmed I have become. I realize there are gaps in my knowledge. I have not researched extensively. But what I have learned has inspired me to speak up. This post is my effort to do so.
Here is my outline. I’ll begin by defining and explaining the movement and why it is gaining popularity. Then, I show how the movement goes against the core of the Christian faith, specifically the cross of Christ and the teachings of Jesus. This will make up the majority of the post. Next, we will look at how previous generations of Christians seemed to understand Jesus' teachings better than we do and how they changed the world by putting them into practice. Finally, I will insist that our calling as Christians is to be about the Kingdom of God. I will conclude with thoughts on how we must, like the early church, change hearts before changing our culture. This is our participation in bringing the Kingdom of God on earth.
What is Christian Nationalism?
The movement, sometimes known as Christian Dominionism but now generally recognized as Christian Nationalism (I will use the designation CN from here on), seeks, as one advocate puts it, “to make America great again by making it Christian.” The title of one book on the topic captures the essence: It’s about “Taking America back for God.”1
CN proponents insist that “Christianity has defined America and that our government should take active steps to keep it that way to sustain and maintain our Christian heritage. It’s not merely an observation about American history. It is a prescription for what America should do in the future.” While CN does not advocate theocracy, proponents do believe that Christianity should enjoy a privileged position in the public square.2
Another book promoting CN insists that the movement is about “Christian men …embracing their God-given masculine energy to conquer and lead.” The authors see it as a responsibility for Christians to rise up and take back control of our country. They write: “We are done being the footstool of the Enemy. We are done being pushovers. . . We want to “win.” The authors use the word “win” seven times in three brief pages.3
Particularly striking is the portrayal of the movement in terms of a war. A video clip on the web has pastor Mark Driscoll of Arizona praying, “God, we didn’t come to go to church. We came to go to war.” Another video recorded at the 2023 “Stronger Mens’ Conference,” a church-sponsored event in Springfield, MO, shows an army tank busting through a banner of the American flag, driving up a stage, and then, on top of four cars, smashing them. To give the scene its full effect, theatrical cannons go off as the massive vehicle rolls onto the stage and over the cars - the tank gunner at the top is blazing a machine gun in each hand, firing like a madman putting on his own theatrical light show.
Why Christian Nationalism?
In one sense, this movement is unsurprising; after two World Wars and then globalism, the world has become smaller. America has grown less Christian and more liberal. Conservative influence and power have shrunk, leaving conservatives and conservative Christians on the defensive. The America we once knew and loved seems to have faded like a dream. Much of what we consider good, right, and true has been lost or taken away, piece by piece. The Bible and prayer have been removed from our schools, the cross from public display, the legalization of homosexual marriage, issues surrounding transgenderism. . . on and on.
To sit still and do nothing seems almost sinful! Thus, the push for Christians to get involved in returning our country to its Christian roots and repealing laws that have led us away from these roots. The widespread consensus is that we must take action to stop the spread of sin and wickedness in our country and return her to our Christian roots. Thus, the language of “taking America back for God.”
This idea has broad support. In 2022, a Pew Research poll reported that 45 percent of Americans believe the country should be a Christian nation. More than half of those people said the Bible should influence U.S. laws. Not everyone is a hardcore promoter of the ideology. More concerning is the much larger group, which includes both promoters and those sympathetic to the movement. According to the authors of Taking America Back For God, 78% of self-identified evangelicals are either fully on board or supportive of the movement.4 The idea seems to be that Christians can halt the cultural landslide of unrighteousness if we possess the political clout necessary. CN is working to do just this.
Promoters are proposing various ways to restore America to its Christian roots. These include reintroducing prayer in schools, teaching the Ten Commandments and Christian interpretations of American history in schools, and adding amendments to the Constitution to acknowledge America’s Christian heritage.5 In a broader sense, the movement aims to place Christians in places of political power and authority to uphold and promote Christian values nationwide.
While these proposals are somewhat vague, what I gather from this overview is that the movement wants to establish a political power structure to implement, enforce, and preserve Christian values in America. It is as if constructing something like this will allow God to act with sovereignty through it! What is particularly alarming is the idea of using political “power” to promote anything “Christian.”
“Masculine power,” “authority,” “war,” “military tanks,” “conquering,” and “winning." This is the movement’s imagery and vocabulary—that of a Christian war, in the name of Jesus Christ, a cultural war against what are often seen as Satanically inspired enemies.
But I want to say “NO!” God draws people by lure, grace, and kindness, not coercion! There is a reason why sinners crowded around Jesus. They saw in him a friend and sensed in him a love and kindness toward them. Here, we should be reminded that it is the kindness of God that leads us to repentance (Romans 2:4). To use coercive power of any kind, political or whatever, is not an option for Christians! Let us now turn to scripture to see why.
I begin with a brief look at an Old Testament passage in the book of 1 Kings.
In 1 Kings 22:1-40, King Ahab of Israel seeks to reclaim a town from the Syrians and asks King Jehoshaphat of Judah to join him in the fight. To his credit, Jehoshaphat insists that before embarking on the mission, they inquire of the Lord. Ahab's prophets (400 of them) advise them to “go up. . . the LORD will give it into the hand of the king!” But Jehoshaphat is not convinced, so he seeks another opinion. The prophet Micaiah then contradicts Ahab's prophets and, in so many words, warns against going, which is the right decision, but Ahab insists they proceed anyway. Ahab loses his life in the battle.
I see this as a parable of the cultural moment we face. Much of our beloved Christian culture in America has been lost, taken captive by an enemy. As we have seen, like Ahab, many insist it is time to take action and recapture our nation’s biblical values. “Surely,” CN promoters think, “This is the right thing to do!” “God will bless this effort!” But not so quick!
Commentator Peter Leithart offers a sobering summary of our situation in light of this OT passage:
“He [God] does not exist to underwrite our projects. . . He is the “judge of all the earth,” whose word is an instrument for bringing all our projects, intentions, and aims, especially the most pious of them, under scrutiny and judgment.”
I do not claim to know what God thinks directly, but He has given us His Word to guide and warn us. Let us, like Jehoshaphat, seek the Word of the Lord before offering CN approval. Like Ahab’s prophets, many will insist they have done so, but I’m unconvinced. Let’s listen for the Word of the Lord.
“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.”
(James 1:5)
Is Christian Nationalism Biblical?
It goes by the name Christian, but is this movement biblical? Is it faithful to the ethos of biblical orthodoxy? Do the goals of CN sound like Bible teaching you are familiar with? I ask these questions because CN seems so out of step with the Christianity that I am familiar with. As the movement becomes increasingly popular among some Christians, others are challenging it as thoroughly unbiblical, contradicting fundamental New Testament truths.
The tragic irony of CN is that in the name of Christ, it seemingly fails to recognize the self-sacrificial nature of Jesus' death on the cross and his teachings as a paradigm for the church and the Christian life.
Standing in utter contrast to “army tank” Christianity, which wants to enforce righteousness by asserting political power, stands Jesus’ incarnation and the Roman cross upon which he was crucified for the sake of the world.
Let’s pause a moment and reflect on the following words:
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son,
John 3:16
The New Testament illustrates for us the love and humility of Almighty God, Creator of Heaven and Earth - how he takes upon himself our feeble humanity and lives the life we were created to live: speaking and teaching about how human beings ought to live and behave,6 then allowing himself to be crucified upon an instrument of cruelty and torture, a Roman cross! Being put there by a corrupt, power-wielding governmental system that opposed everything He was about!
Yet, this description fails to convey the profundity of the event. Please bear with me as I attempt to flesh it out further. Heaven help us understand, for the degree of sacrificial love displayed at Calvary is almost beyond our comprehension.
Out of love for the world and the beings he created, God, in the person of Jesus of Nazareth, allows himself to be utterly degraded, tortured, and mocked to the nth degree! See Him? There, he hangs naked upon a Roman cross, arms stretched-out, beaten beyond recognition, spit upon and bloodied, a crown of thorns upon his head, his Jewish circumcision, the unmistakable mark of who he is and whose he is, on display before his enemies who mock the “King of the Jews” to come down off the cross! The scene is surreal, at once summing up the mass of suicidal brutality and degradation humans have inflicted upon one another since times immemorial. 7
But, on the other hand, He was God! He could’ve come down off the cross! He could have called down seven legions of angels to his rescue! He could’ve, Zeus-like, hurled lightning bolts at his enemies! He could have caused the earthquake that day to swallow them! He might have even called in army tanks!
But NO! He hangs there naked and alone, praying with his last breaths that his Father will “forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Beloved reader, this is not "army tank" Christianity, but rather sacrificial love in the highest degree! Moreover, It is God‘s paradigm for changing the world!
If 78% of self-proclaimed evangelicals support CN, I can’t help but ask: Have we forgotten that Jesus’ humility, self-sacrifice, and suffering on the cross are paradigmatic—a model for God’s people to follow? How can we forget or overlook that the Christian faith is fundamentally grounded in this act of sacrificial love?!
Jesus served his enemies by dying for them. “While we were still sinners, Christ died for the ungodly” (Ro 5:6, 8), but CN wishes to serve its enemies by calling in army tanks of political power!
If we have forgotten, Jesus reminds us: “Take up your cross and follow me. . . For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (Matthew 16:24-25). The goal of the Christian life is to grow up in Christ and conform to his likeness (Ephesians 4:15; Romans 8:29). The path to that goal is to take up our cross and follow him. This is how the kingdom of God grows and spreads until it encompasses the entire earth (Rev 11:15). It is not a display of power but rather a grassroots movement grounded in God’s sacrificial love!
The Kingdom Is About Humility And Serving
My mention of the kingdom here brings up another irony: Each time we pray the Lord's prayer, we pray for the kingdom of God to come in all its fullness on earth. “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven”—in other words, we’re praying for all earthly kingdoms to be ended!
The kingdom of God comprises “every tribe, language, people and nation” (Rev 5:9), and Christians are to be about enlarging God's kingdom, not making America into a Christian kingdom. Surely, part of the problem is that many Christians do not understand the Kingdom of God, so they don't understand what they should be doing. 8
As if "Take up your cross and follow me" were not challenging enough, scores of other texts challenge CN's “army tank” approach. For example, when two of his disciples, James and John, ask to sit to the right and left of Jesus when he sits on his throne in the kingdom. This makes the other disciples indignant, so Jesus calls them to himself and addresses the situation.
. . . “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mat 20:25-28)
Nationalism was a problem in Jesus’ day, too. James and John made this request of Jesus in the context of Jewish expectations that God was about to exalt Israel over the nations. 9 As opposed to lording it over others—typical worldly behavior—Jesus insisted that those who would be great in his kingdom must be servants. Thus, Christians are called to serve, not to Lord it over others, be they Gentiles or fellow believers.
Jesus’ example further backs this up. One of Satan‘s three temptations was to offer Jesus power over people. Satan “shows him all of the kingdoms of the world” and says to Jesus, “To you, I will give all this authority and their glory.” Jesus refused, and we must also resist the temptation to wield power over others. (Luke 4:5-8).
Showing him all of the kingdoms of the world,” he said to Jesus, “To you, I will give all this authority and their glory.”
Jesus refused, and so must we also resist the temptation to wield power over others.
(Luke 4:5-8).
The NT is chock-full of teachings and examples of the sacrificial nature of the Kingdom. Often explained as the "Paradoxes of the Christian life" or the "Upside-Down Kingdom," these teachings consistently challenge the world’s way of doing things.
To be like our heavenly Father (and Jesus), we must learn to love our enemies (Matthew 5:44). Before we can truly live, we must first learn to die (Matthew 16:25). To win, we must first lose (1 Corinthians 9:19). To gain, we must first give (Luke 6:38). To be exalted, we must first humble ourselves (Matthew 18:4). True strength is found in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). To become first, we must first learn to be last (Matthew 20:16). In short, the wisdom of the world is but foolishness to God (1 Corinthians 1:20).
Theologian Nick Perrin elaborates:
“Jesus’ kingdom is absolutely a backwards kingdom. It’s all about giving oneself away, and being willing to give up power, and washing another’s feet. So this is an absolutely upside down kingdom, which means our lives have to be conformed to the same way. If we want to get on board with this kingdom, it means that we say no to the selfish acquisition of power or control or the will to dominate others. This kingdom is not about domination. It’s quite the reverse.” 10
The Example of The Early Church
The early Christians understood the teachings of Jesus and the New Testament authors well. Because God first loved us and gave his son for us, the early church soon won over the Gentile masses by giving in return. They began by feeding the poor. Economically poor themselves, out of their poverty, they gave so much that the Roman Emperor, Julian, angrily confessed: “The impious Galileans provide not only for their own poor but for ours as well!” 11
Rejected by the Romans as “atheists” because they would not acknowledge the gods of Rome, like Jesus and the apostles before them, faced martyrdom with resolve and courage.12 This stunned the Romans!
The early Christians were known to scour the garbage dumps and dung heaps for abandoned children - (the ancient version of abortion, called exposure) - whom they then took in, nurtured, and raised as their own.13 This goes without mentioning caring for the sick and outcast, ministering to those in prisons, and dozens of other ways of ministering to those in need.
Sociologist Rodney Stark offers a stunning historical example of this mission in his book, The Rise of Christianity. When the plague epidemics of the third century struck a town or province, the wealthy and those with means often fled, leaving their loved ones behind to suffer and die.
Astonishment is not a strong enough word for what people experienced when Christians began to enter the homes of the sick and dying and cared for them as if they were their own family - many of them dying themselves after contracting the plague. 14
Later, Christians, Basil, for example, began to build hospitals; others worked to end slavery, build universities, expand the rights of women and the poor, and so much more. 15
These Christians understood their neighbors to be other human beings in need, many of them pagans, whom they could serve in the name of Jesus. “On what grounds, then,” Christian nationalists should ask themselves: “Do we insist we can love our neighbor by imposing Christian ethics through governmental power and authority, such that everyone must live under the rule and authority of Christians!” We are called to be servants rather than rulers, to be sheep rather than wolves!
The Kingdom of God Or The Kingdom of America?
CN wants to make America Great. Jesus wants the Kingdom of God to fill the earth. The Old Testament repeatedly states, “The earth will be filled with the knowledge of the LORD.” 16 In Revelation, “loud voices in heaven declare: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ” (Rev. 11:15).
If we are not working toward this common goal, we may find ourselves fighting against God (Acts 5:39). Conversely, it would be wonderful if American Christians were to lead a throng of worshippers praying and working for the fulfillment of the Kingdom of God?!
If we wish to do so, then let us offer ourselves in sacrificial love in the name of Jesus in all that we do. Let us attempt to love our enemies. Let the world hear from every corner and in every city and town how Christians sacrifice themselves for the sake of others in hopes of bringing in the kingdom.
It happens occasionally.
The world was stunned when, in the fall of 2006 a gunman walked into an Amish schoolhouse with a gun and killed five young children – but the world was even more stunned when the Amish community publically proclaimed to forgive that man and treated his family with kindness!
In a 2012 a 14 year old student at Miami Dade HS, Jordyn Howe, took his stepfather’s pistol to school – all he wanted to do was to show it off to his friends. On the school bus he allows a friend to load a bullet in the gun but then forgot about it. Playing with the gun he points it at people and pulls the trigger. When he pointed it at 13 year old Jina, it fired, killing the girl.
He immediately confessed and pled guilty to manslaughter. During his trial the girls mother, Ady, faced her daughters killer in court. But instead of rage and revenge, she gave Jordyn Howe a tearful hug!
The judge later said: “In 20 years I’ve watched human tragedy unfold in this courtroom. I could have never imagined a victim’s mother embracing her child’s killer.” 17
The world takes notice of such displays of love! Less dramatic examples of love can be found in our consistent attendance at church, in the kindness we show to people we may not like or find challenging to be around or in the selfless love of a spouse caring for their incapacitated partner day in and day out. Likewise, for the parents caring for a Downs syndrome child or taking care of their elderly parents.
Rather than forcing Christ upon the world, Let us follow in the footsteps of Jesus and the early church and love the unlovely and the broken. The world will begin to listen. If we are truly concerned about abortion, Yes, let’s argue against it, let's work against it, but let us also demonstrate how important it is to us. For example, let every church attempt to rescue a child from abortion by paying the mother to give birth or otherwise support the child, or let Christians pay for the birthing costs and then adopt and raise them in their homes. See if such acts of love will not capture the world’s attention. They did so once, and they will do it again!
Let sacrificial love be the common report to the world rather than pastors and youth leaders sexually abusing those in their care. Let our sermons be about how we can love the unlovely for the sake of Christ rather than brag about the authority Christian men have over their wives and children. 18 Let our sermons be how we can help those in desperate need in our midst and, yes, even those on our borders!
This is the way of Jesus! This is the way to participate in bringing the Kingdom of God on earth in all of its fullness!
And please don't hear me saying none of this is not already being done, but at this cultural moment, the church’s sins are drowning out her good works
Finally, and yes, we want to see America become more of a Christian nation, but that requires that Americans act like Christians, like followers of Christ, and not as weilders of power, attempting force Christian principles and ethics down the throats of others. This, too, has been tried in the past and brought shame in the name of Christ.
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Whitehead and Perry, Taking America Back For God.
Paul Miller, What Is Christian Nationalism, Christianity Today, Feb 2021: Lee, Christian Nationalism Is Worse Than You Think, Quick to Listen Podcast, episode 247
Christian Nationalism, Torba & Isker, p 27, 29, 30
I am trusting Paul Miller for this reference in the podcast: Feb 2021: Lee, Christian Nationalism Is Worse Than You Think, Quick to Listen Podcast, episode 247
Paul Miller, What Is Christian Nationalism, Christianity Today, Feb 2021:
Think, for example, of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7)
Jesus’ circumcision identifies him as a Jew. To the Gentiles present, his God, YHWH, commands their males to perform this odd act on themselves. His God, the creator of heaven and earth, did not so much “choose” Israel as He created them for his purposes, to be a light to the nations. At Calvary, both Israel and the nations are crucifying the “Son of God,” the holiest man to have ever walked on the earth.
Flemming Rutledge, in her book on the Crucifixion, writes, “If Jesus’ demise is construed merely as a death—even as a painful, tortured death—the crucial point will be lost. Crucifixion was specifically designed to be the ultimate insult to personal dignity, the last word in humiliating and dehumanizing treatment. Degradation was the whole point.” (Rutledge, Crucifixion P. 78).
What is the Kingdom of God? In a nutshell, It is “God's reign that is present and active on earth where there are human agents obedient to His will." (G. B. Caird, NT Theology p. 133).
Perhaps CN fails to see the disconnect between what it advocates and what the Bible teaches because it lacks an understanding of the kingdom of God. Jesus came to earth to establish the kingdom. Many Christians have been told that Jesus “offered” the kingdom to the Jews who rejected it, and thus it was not established. No, Jesus planted the seeds of the Kingdom on the earth. He didn’t ask permission. The parables of the Kingdom in Matthew chapter 13 make this clear.
See also Acts 1:6 “So when they had come together, they asked him, ‘Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?’”
From a Zondervan video course on the Kingdom of God: A Biblical Theology For Life.
Tom Holland’s, Dominion, p. 138. Holland also notes how tragic poverty in the ancient world could be. Sometimes, families felt compelled to sell a child into slavery to obtain enough funds to put scraps of food on the table for its siblings!
See, for example, the martyrdom of Polycarp. “Polycarp was brought before the proconsul, who begged him to have respect for his great age (he was probably nearly 100), saying, “Swear by the genius of Caesar” and denounce “the atheists.” But Polycarp, seeing “the lawless heathen” in the amphitheater, “waved his hands at them, and looked up to heaven with a groan and said, ‘Away with the atheists.’ ” The proconsul persisted, “Swear, and I will release you. Curse Christ.” And Polycarp replied, “Eighty-six years have I served him, and he has done me no wrong; how can I blaspheme my King who saved me?” He was condemned to death and burned alive.” (https://www.christianitytoday.com/1990/07/persecution-in-early-church-did-you-know)
Tom Holland elaborates: “Across the Roman world, wailing at the sides of roads or on rubbish tips, babies abandoned by their parents were a common sight. Others might be dropped down drains, there to perish in the hundreds.” (Holland. Dominion (p. 143). Kindle Edition).
Stark, Rodney. The Rise of Christianity (p. 82).
The classic book on this topic is D. James Kennedy’s, What if Jesus Had Never Been Born?
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/mother-hugs-daughters-killer_n_5490692
This video, “For Our Daughters,” demonstrates so well how far off-base much of American Christianity is. (It is also the source of my “army tank” story above and some quotes.
This was well presented and caused me to think. I would say that since there are false doctrines & teachers, there are also different "versions" of Christianity. Which in itself is sad, but then the deceiver specializes in division. I can agree that the imaginary being used of (tanks & guns) is over the top, I would say that the war can be a spiritual "war" as we wrestle not with flesh and blood. Which would be better symbolized by people on their knees in prayer.. Interesting that America's forefathers managed to use both to overcome British rule! Also interesting that God told the Israelites to drive out all the other "ites" from their Promised land. This was not political per se, but was sanctioned by the Ultimate Judge ( granted, it was before Christ Jesus walked the Earth) . Because of man's fall in the garden, war is inevitable at times simply because "the prince of Persia" rules this World. Government is of God, for man's benefit (at least when done the way God intended it to be) but the enemy of our soul brought about "busyness" and wore out earthly saints, trying to keep up with the "Joneses" and they forgot to pray for those in authority. But yes we should love our neighbor as ourself. This is a Herculean effort that can only take place not by power, not by might, but by My Spirit, says the Lord. Therefore I believe the Lord will have to "pour out my Spirit upon ALL flesh".........you will receive power from on high when the Holy Spirit dwells within you. Most "Christians" are not necessarily "filled" with the Holy Spirit, as many don't believe in Him, or grieve Him. The Lord Himself will have to bring "correction" to the body of Christ to realign with His original intent and purpose. That requires UNITY amongst the Body of "16 different flavors (exaggerated?) of Christians. Let me clearly state, I am NOT advocating for physical war; but sometimes the only thing evil understands is a force greater than itself i.e. Hitler! God has called some to be martyr's & some to be soldiers, but blessed are the Peacemakers. I will stop here on the verge of rambling.