Independence Day

Introduction

Read , ,

A few weeks ago I visited another church. It was a wonderful congregation with many brothers and sisters. However, when I entered their sanctuary I noticed an interesting setup. It was a large cross with an American flag ornately draped over it, and a Bible sitting on a stand in front of it. This was no ordinary Bible though, because I noticed that it was opened to on one side, but on the opposite page was something different. When I looked closer I realized that it was a copy of the Declaration of Independence, and that littered throughout this Bible were many distinctly American documents interwoven with Scripture. As I was trying to figure out how I felt about the whole thing, someone walked up next to me and said, “Don’t you find this to be a little disrespectful?” I was glad to know that I wasn’t the only one…until he said, “I just can’t believe the flag is touching the ground.”

We clearly had different concerns. I simply asked him two questions in return: 1. Who or what is being worshipped here? Jesus, or America? and 2. Which is Scripture? The Bible, or the American documents, because in that particular Bible they were placed side-by-side and it was hard to tell the difference.

This made encounter made me start to wonder though, “Do we idolize America?” I have come up with a test to see if in fact we do. I call it the “It bothers me” test. Now the “It bothers me” test can be applied to pretty much anything to see if we put too much stock in something that isn’t Jesus, and the more we worship that thing, the more it will probably bother us when something happens to it.

Here we go:

STAND/KNEEL Would it bother you if…we played the national anthem in Church? If not, would it bother you if while it played, I refused to stand, and instead got down and kneeled?

CONTRAST: earlier when I read Scripture, would it have bothered you if I had made you stand? Would you be bothered if someone refused to stand?

2. TOUCHING THE GROUND Does it bother you that the flag is touching the ground?

CONTRAST: does it bother you that this Bible is laying on the ground?

3. CUTTING/TEARING Would it bother you if I took these scissors and starting cutting up this flag and ripping it apart?

CONTRAST: does it bother you if I cut up this Bible and tear it apart? (Rip out some pages).

4. BURNING: Finally, would it bother you if I burned this flag right now?

CONTRAST: What about if I burned this Bible?

How did you do? Did you pass the test, or were you bothered? See it says a lot that even for an illustration I was more willing to damage this book than I was to damage that flag. Don’t get me wrong, you can just as easily worship this book, which is just as dangerous. People get more concerned about the physical leather and paper than what’s actually written inside of it. They become seers of the word, but not doers. They worship the book, not the Author who it reveals.

But The “It bothers me test” showed us which was the greater idol didn’t it? Don’t get me wrong, I love our country, I am thankful to live here, I value our freedoms, and I am proud to be an American…most of the time…but when patriotism becomes nationalism, pride becomes idolatry.

And Idolatry has consequences. Every time we worship something that isn’t Jesus, we lose a part of ourselves and ultimately cause more damage. We usually end up hurting our selves, and hurting others. When Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal, what did they do? They physically hurt themselves to try and get their god’s attention. When Nebuchadnezzar builds the golden statue, what do the rulers do to those who refused to worship? They wanted them killed. The destructive effects of idolatry are everywhere, and sometimes they are obvious, but other times they are far more subtle. Here are three subtle effects of worshipping our country.

Idolatry Destroys Community

A. It destroys our church family.

What about someone from a different country, and we make them say the pledge of allegiance?

This is what Paul argued against. For us it isn’t circumcision that separates us, it’s our nationalities. We have to realize that our church is to be a reflection of the throne room of heaven that we see in , a place where all tribes, nations, and tongues worship Christ together. When we walk in that door, if nationality is going to damage our worship, then we have to leave it at the door.

B. It destroys our relationships with those we are closest to.

Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego were all government officials, but when they refused to bow to the statue, did you see who turned them in? It was their friends and colleagues who thought it was more important that these three men kneel, than their friendship and their lives.

Daniel was in a similar situation a few chapters later. The king thinks it’s completely fine to make himself an idol that people must pray to. When he finally realizes the implications, which is that one of his closest friends and advisors was going to have to die, he almost can’t handle it, staying up all night hoping Daniel survives the Lion’s den.

We often do the same things without even realizing it. Like forcing people to stand for the national anthem, or demanding that they respect our country, or demand that they become like us. The stakes are even higher for us, because these could be people who have never heard the gospel. How can we tell them about Jesus, if we aren’t allowing relationships to be built?

Idolatry Desensitizes Us

What I mean by this is that we often view our idols through rose-colored glasses. They can do no wrong, and when they do we find a way to justify it, or allow them to justify themselves. This is especially true when our favorite party is in power. It means turning a blind eye towards bad policy because if we confront it, that could mean that these idols might be wrong. Worse than anything, it means the government can use our Scriptures against us to justify policy or to gain our votes. Both sides of the aisle do it. Just a few weeks ago, our Attorney General quoted to justify the government’s policy for separating children from their parents at the border. He didn’t even try to defend that specific policy, but rather used our Scripture to try and convince us to fall in line with everything the government does. First, A secular government should not be using our Scriptures anymore than they should be using the holy books of other religions. Second, it makes a mockery of us and the Word of God. This isn’t anything new though. Politicians have been doing it for years. Our idolatry has desensitized us to it, often to the point that we don’t even notice it anymore.

Idolatry Distorts Reality

Finally, idolatry distorts reality. When we look around, we see a nation that use to be “great and God-honoring” but has since fallen away. But that’s not the reality. The reality is, our nation is just like every other nation that has ever existed. It’s not special. It has its good and bad qualities. Because idolatry distorts reality it causes us to get scared whenever our idol loses. This is especially true when we lose a culture war. Gay marriage, abortion, divorce, pornography, and more are all battles that we’ve lost, and it terrifies us. These things are that actually really normal for all nations, causes us anxiety because we think, “If we lose the war, then that means our god is losing.” and we can’t let our god lose. So we fight. This is what make Jesus different from all our false gods. False gods don’t actually do anything, which is why people fight for them. But Jesus is different. At his trial he tells Pilot, “I’m a king, but I am a different king. If I was like all the others, my followers would be fighting for me right now.” And they didn’t, because he didn’t need them to. Any fight Jesus wants to win, he can, without our help. Which is why with every culture war we lose, we get closer to the reality that we are in fact what Peter calls us, “exiles” in a foreign land, just like the rest of our brothers and sisters all around the world and God will tear down every idol and cause us to lose every battle until we realize that He is the only One we need and the only One worthy of our worship.

Conclusion

So where do we go from here? I know for me, I’m still going to get a tear in my eye and a shiver that goes down my spine when I hear our national anthem. I’ll even still stand probably. But if others don’t want to, well then that okay too because I love our country, but I don’t worship it. I’m still going to celebrate this Wednesday, because who doesn’t love blowing stuff up? I’m going to be thankful for everything we’ve been blessed with in America but I will also remember that my love and loyalty for Christ, who is above and over every nation on Earth, far outweighs the loyalty for my country. I will also ask God to continue to tear down the idols that are in my life. My favorite hymn, Fount of Many Blessings, says, “Prone to wonder, Lord I feel it, prone to leave the God I love, here’s my heart Lord take and seal it, seal it for thy courts above.” I want my heart to be solely focused on Christ, and if that is something you want too, to get rid of the idols that entangle your life, no matter what they are, then come. Today is your Independence Day.