“Home sweet home.” “There is no
place like home.” “Home is where the heart is.” “Take me home…country roads…” “You
can’t go home again…” Ok, well maybe not the last quote, but the word ‘home’ evokes
a powerful memory in all of us. We
define home as the place we are from, the place we go to when we are scared…the
place that is sacred to us.
As we continue to learn about
Evangelicals in the 21st century, we are confronted with the second
of N.T. Wright’s five questions: “Where do we live?” As we examine this question,
we will see how important the concept of home is for them.
As we have seen,
Evangelicals view themselves as the true heirs of Christ’s church, the last
protectors of the true faith and the only legitimate church. They find themselves caught between
liberalism on one end and secularism on the other. They see themselves always on the defensive
and they need to protect their territory against all enemies.
“Where do we live?” or “where
is home?” is important for Evangelicals.
So where do American Christians live?
Well…the United States…obviously…duh.
Ok, yes, the United
States is the physical home for the American evangelical church. But it is not the physical location we are
talking about…it’s the spiritual…or philosophical meaning that is truly important.
The United States has
always been important in Christian history.
The Puritans arrived here to have religious freedom (so one myth
goes). God has appointed the United
States to be a ‘city on a hill’ to bring the light of Christ to the world (so another
myth goes). But there is a sense in
Evangelical understanding that this country is the rightful heir of Israel in the
Old Testament. The United States is a
special country, chosen by God, to be a vessel for the transmission of the
Gospel throughout the world.
Christians look to the
Founding period to assure themselves that the Founding Fathers envisioned a
Christian nation. The United States, the argument goes, is a Christian nation, conceived
to be such. Authors such as Peter
Lillback, demonstrate that George Washington was extremely concerned to create
a Christian nation. Popular myths, such
as Washington almost being killed by Native Americans during the French and
Indian Wars, become evidence of God’s providence. Christian Evangelical scholar
David Barton reinvents Thomas Jefferson as a devout Christian who has been deconstructed
by liberal scholarship. John Adams is
summoned to talk about the necessity of the country’s Christians ethos. American
history is rewritten to a Christian narrative in books like The Light and
the Glory, which are taught in Christian schools and homeschools around the
country. The modern narrative is that
the United States is one of the last true vestiges of Christianity in the
world. It must continue to be a light in the darkness and the city on a hill.
But the problem is that
this Christian nation is under threat by the same enemies that they themselves face. The liberals and secular powers want to make
the United States into a non-Christian nation.
National issues like abortion and homosexual marriage are battlegrounds
in the ever lasting war over the soul of the American nation. If the United States continues to allow
abortion or homosexual marriage, then it is evident that the United States has
turned it’s back on God. If this
happens, the Gospel will suffer and many will not be able to achieve salvation.
These issues are very
important to the Evangelical church because they are directly related to the vision
they have for America. If any issue or
topic can unite the hopelessly disjointed Evangelical church, it is the hope
for the United States. Evangelicals will
unite around a topic like abortion because the very home they love is at stake.
If the United States embraces liberalism, it will deny God and therefore
forsake the very purpose of its existence.
‘Battles’ over political
issues reveal the true war going on in the country for the Evangelical Church. Abortion, gay rights, socialized medicine,
gun control all represent issues that threaten the spiritual and moral fiber of
the country. Evangelicals align
themselves with conservative politicians and issues because these politicians
represent the heroes fighting against the tides of evil. This explains why so many Evangelicals are
willing to forgive conservatives for sins while lambasting liberals for the
same failings.
For many American
Evangelicals, the role of the country and the church are tied into each other. The
traditional values must be adhered to, otherwise God will be angry. Almost every year at the See You At The
Pole, students around the country pray for the country and recite 2
Chronicles 7:14, “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble
themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I
will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and heal their land”
(NIV). This verse, taken out of context
and applied to the United States, becomes a banner by which the Evangelical
Church can unite for a common purpose.
It is no wonder, then,
that we are seeing the rise of Christian nationalism within the country. Rich
Lowry’s book The Case for Nationalism provides an understanding for the
Evangelical church not only to the power of nationalism but also for a purpose
in resisting the cases of evil. Nationalism provides an avenue for Christians
to pursue wholeness and wellness for the country that God has blessed them with.
Where do Evangelicals
live? They live in the United States…one nation UNDER GOD…which has been called
to be the special receptacle of God’s grace and the foundation for God’s
kingdom in the world. Remember that
Evangelicals view themselves as the true heirs of God’s teaching…God is
preparing them a special country to live in, just like he did with Israel.
Ideally, although they
would never admit, the Evangelical Christian would like to live in a
theocracy. In fact, many already believe
they do.
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