Patriot: a person who loves, supports, and defends his or her country and its interests with devotion.
Is it biblical to be a patriot of a worldly kingdom? Or can it be said that loving , supporting, and defending a worldly kingdom, can take your concern away from the Heavenly Kingdom, of which I am a citizen?
Or is it our responsibility to love, support and defend our nation, because this is where God placed us? To be a patriot yet to have an ulterior motive, for the salvation of this nation.
Can you win a nation with out support and encouragement?
Lets compare this to a relationship. Can you help guide someone into the arms o Christ if you don't support them and love them? If you don't support them through the hard times, will they believe any thing you say? Love also allows room for you to disagree with a person, or lets say a nation, but as Christians aren't we to look for the good?
So... Do you think that God would want us to be a patriot or not?
let me know what you think....
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4 comments:
In my highly unprofessional opinion...I think you are fusing too many issues in your questions...
First off...a relationship with the country someone is born in is not at all similar to a friendship.
Here are my concerns:
- When you fuse the cross (Christ) with the sword (earthly kingdoms) you get a whole lot more of the sword than you do the cross. Constantine: father is political Christianity, convinced people that it was right to kills others to defend and most importantly, to spread Christianity. This is not a good trend. And when President Bush (Walker) was elected, this is the path the country went down. You were probably old enough to remember the extreme repentance and near revival that the US had, reliance on the Lord...but as soon as the announcement for war was made, security again switched to the sword.
- When you identify yourself by your citizenship in your homeland, more than your citizenship in heaven you lose sight of what is really important.
- The United States was NOT commissioned by God Himself to govern the world with tanks...how do I know that for sure...because Jesus was a pacifist...am I saying that government are not set in place so that people act somewhat orderly, no, but I am saying by declaring that a country is God's instrument for God's will, one is stating that that country's actions are divine. And THAT is scary...
- I know all countries have their own list, but when exactly again were the golden ages of the US? Was it before or after we killed hundreds of thousands of Native Americans who were HERE FIRST? Before or after we brought over millions of African Americans on boats and raped and beat them to our own liking?
- Lastly, you should have the exact same amount of love for a shiite muslim in Iraq who has a gun to your head as a white teenage female who has all interests in common with you. If that wasn't true, then where would the uniqueness of the Gospel and of grace be? It would be lost.
- Lastly, I believe it is much more courageous to die loving, than to die killing. Am I saying soldiers are not brave, absolutely not. They are brave, but most of the time, they think they are going to have such a sense of achievement and accomplishment by defending their country when reality is that most wartime soldiers come back more depressed and messed up than before the war. Are people grateful that they are being "defended", sure...but do people have any idea the kind of emotional and sometimes physical pain and trauma that those soldiers must go through the rest of their lives. Christ is my defense. I am not going until He allows it. If someone shoots me right in the face tomorrow, He will make good out of a seemingly terrible situation. It is fine for people with no hope to trust in horses and chariots, but not the people of God...
Whew...
in my opinion, ryan grabill is super cool
Ryan said...
First off...a relationship with the country someone is born in is not at all similar to a friendship.
On the other hand, one's country is one's neighbors,one's friends, is it not? We are all called to bloom where planted, and as Allie mentioned, we will have a hard time sharing our love of Christ with friends and neighbors who see us as hypocritical because we won't share in love of the community, that is, our country.
Ryan makes great points, but I think he "fuses too many issues" when he views patriotism and Christianity through exclusive glasses. The atrocities he ascribes to America have happened the world over, throughout time...and yet, we believe that the love of Christ was there in the midst of these atrocities, through little personal stories that aren't recorded in the history books. Much the same, the greatness of our country...it's in the unwritten details. To this part of the story of America we hope to contribute through our patriotism, and our witness, and we pray that God will guide us even while keeping us humble. And may He continue to pour out His blessings on America, for it looks like dark times ahead without his intervention...
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