“My country, ’tis of thee…”
From an American background, those words sound so patriotic and wonderful. We (especially those of us who are a little older) grew up saying the Pledge of Allegiance at school and singing the national anthem for ball games. I even remember taking a patriotism class when I was young; such classes can be helpful, and they’ve come to us historically in our American culture because we grew up being taught to love and support our country. As John F. Kennedy said at his presidential inauguration, “Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.”
But in our current culture, patriotism can be controversial. It’s not so much about patriotism as it is about politics. They always say that you should never mix God and politics—just like you should not mix politics and a Thanksgiving family meal (many of you really know what I’m talking about!). Even within the confines of the church family, issues around government, politics, and instituted laws or edicts are at best confusing, and at worst highly divisive and toxic.
This coming Sunday, Chris Berry, one of our elders and worship leaders, will share a message concerning this very topic. As you know, many churches today are highly political in their approach to worship and teaching. We at LifeWay have never been this way. Trust me in this: during this week’s service, we are not going to tell anyone how to vote. We are, however, going to teach what God says about the role of government in society and our responsibility as Christians as it relates to government authority and leaders. What does the Bible really say about the government’s role in this world, and about the Christian’s responsibility in government? How obedient are we called to be to the government, and how and when are we called to stand up to certain governments? And even more importantly, how are we to relate to each other—especially when we disagree on political issues?
The challenge is this: How should the church deal with politics as we carry out God’s Kingdom work in the world?
Be praying for this coming Sunday, and be prepared for a message that should be helpful, informative, and hopefully very challenging.
See you Sunday morning at 10 a.m.!
