Our Great Commission Freedoms!

With Memorial Day on May 30^th and Independence Day on the Fourth of July, I have heard winds of hesitancy from Millennials as to whether or not to include patriotic songs in their worship services.

The arguments go something like this: We worship Jesus in our worship services, not the U.S. flag. We are countrymen of a different country (heaven) therefore it is improper for us to show allegiance to the United States, especially within the framework of our worship services. After all, did not Adolf Hitler demand a commitment to the Third Reich from pastors in Germany?

Then comes the argument that America has never been a “Christian” nation. Moreover, it was not proper for John Winthrop to consider the Massachusetts Bay Colony as a “City on a Hill.” Or again, as my college history professor explained with glee: “The American Experiment did not work!” Rather, say these antagonists, the Puritans who settled Massachusetts possessed an inflated self-importance and a misconstrued interpretive model of Christ and culture for even trying to shape a nation from the teachings of the Bible.

Meanwhile U.S. Evangelical Christians are told to mind their own business and keep their religious views out of the political process.

As to the U.S. being a Christian nation, let us remember that the current Pope is calling for “Christian Europe” to accept the immigrant refugees, supposedly buttressed by the teachings of the Bible. Surely the Pope cannot be misinterpreting Scripture when he considers Western and Central Europe to be “Christian.” Interestingly, many Evangelical missiologists consider Western Europe to be “post-Christian.”

Further, the same liberal theologians who deride conservatives for “imposing their morality” every election cycle—simply for voting their conscience—are the same liberals who impose their political views in the name of Christianity. Is it not liberal theologians that invoke “love” and “acceptance of others” from the Bible to allow unhindered access of our public schools to the LGBTQ lobby? Is it not the same liberals who call for civil disobedience if illegal immigrants are kept from entering our country?

They cannot have it both ways: (1) Use the Bible to underpin and buttress their political views and (2) tell conservatives who want to vote and voice their conscience that they are imposing their morality on others.

It is interesting that all students at Wheaton College were required to take a first year Bible class entitled, “Christ and Culture.” The required text for this class was H. Richard Niebuhr’s book, Christ and Culture (1951). Niebuhr skillfully framed out of the question the most obvious biblical view in light of the cross of Jesus: “Culture against Christ.”

It is this same “Culture against Christ” view that is being skillfully framed out of the debate in today’s arguments. First of all, America’s unique Christian history and heritage is underreported and virtually ignored. And secondly, the constitutional right that conservative Evangelicals have to voice and vote their conscience is maligned.

Let us remember that U.S. political and judicial framework still retains a remnant of Christian conviction from the Puritans and Pilgrims, from the First Great Awakening, and from our Bill of Rights and the freedoms that we are granted by them.

Do we come to church to worship Jesus? Absolutely. He is the reason that we come together to worship. However, we also live in a country whose laws allow us to freely share the gospel and peaceably assemble. These Great Commission Rights have provided a framework for wonderful seasons of gospel harvest in our history.

It is quite unique in the history of the world that the Lord has allowed us such freedom “from sea to shining sea.” I think America is still something to celebrate. And I am grateful to live in America as an American Born Abroad. And I believe that it is perfectly appropriate in our worship services to thank the Lord for the freedoms that we have in these United States of America!