The rights of man come not from the generosity of the state but from the hand of God. –John Kennedy

During the summer of 1977 I saw the Statue of Liberty for the very first time when I was working at a camp outside of New York City. Tears came to my eyes. It was a very moving moment for me.

Earlier that same year I also visited Washington D.C. for the first time. It’s one of my favorite cities to visit. I’ve been blessed that I’ve been able to visit D.C. several times since. The monuments to our forefathers always move me. We have so much to be thankful for as Americans!

No 4^th of July is complete for me without having Lee Greenwood’s song, God Bless America blaring at least once. I am proud to be an American and there’s nothing biblically wrong with that. Citizens should be loyal and proud of their country, unless it’s an evil one like North Korea. 

Many of my friends are Canadian. You should see how misty eyed they become when O Canada is played. There should be national pride. No country is perfect. All have major flaws because they’re all filled and led by sinful humans. The only perfect Kingdom is God’s. One day, according to Scripture, it will be the only Kingdom. Until then as Christian-Americans, we should be thankful for the country God has blessed us with. 

Yesterday was the 250^th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. The celebrations of this great occasion are the largest in a generation. 

How Should Christ-Followers Handle Patriotism to America? 

How should Bible-believing churches handle it?There is a great danger in mixing Christianity and politics. We must be Christ-followers first, Americans second. It’s must always be the eternal Kingdom of God before a temporal country for the Christ-follower. It is vital that we never let partisan politics become a barrier to our God-given mission of sharing the gospel and seeing the lost come to Christ. A biblical view of patriotism is conditional. It’s natural to love the land you were born in and reside in, provided your love remains subordinate to your love and loyalty to Jesus Christ and doesn’t cross the line into idolatry or exclusionary nationalism.

That doesn’t mean that we can’t be proud of our country. We know that God blessed us with the U.S.A. and its freedom, particularly religious freedom, which no other country has as we have. 

A Biblical View of Patriotism Prioritizes Its Loves

The Bible teaches that Jesus must be Lord of all. Even our love for our spouse, children and grandchildren is to be lesser in importance than our love for the Lord Jesus. When they’re not, it’s idolatry. To be obedient to Scripture, it must be that way with our love for our country too. 

The prophet Jonah disobeyed God because he put his loyalty to his country before loyalty to God. Yet, Jeremiah shows us God’s way. He writes about what a healthy sense of duty to and love of nation looks like. He instructed Jewish exiles taken captive by Babylon to embrace the place where they’d been sent and to seek to be a blessing there (Jeremiah 29:7). 

For Christ-followers, their nation is a temporary home. Our eternal land and permanent home is heaven. Yet like Jewish exiles, we can still love our earthly home. Healthy patriotism isn’t about choosing between loving God or loving country. It’s about ordering those loves rightly. As C.S. Lewis wrote, we should express affection for our homeland but keep it subordinate to our love for God. When loving God conflicts with our love for our country, “we must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29). 

And when there are wrong laws or policies, resistance to those wrong policies and governmental abuse often springs from love for one’s nation. It doesn’t mean rejecting our love of a country so much as rejecting obedience to a bad government or bad laws. Because we love our country, we care deeply about whether its government is on the right path.

A Biblical View of Patriotism is Grateful

Genuine patriotism shows gratitude for the places—local and national—where God has placed us. Everything we have has been given to us by God, even our country or community. Nothing on earth should be bypassed without thankfulness. If there is anything that should distinguish Christ-followers from unbelievers, it’s gratitude. It’s an essential trait for a godly believer. 

Too often as American Christians, we take freedoms for granted that others long for – freedom of worship, freedom of speech, and freedom of movement, etc. It’s only by God’s grace that we have been given the gift of living here. Patriotism shows gratitude for the places God has placed us. We live in a country where we’re free to worship as we believe and can choose from various faithful congregations with like-minded believers. 

A Biblical View of Patriotism Longs for Spiritual Transformation

We love America because this is where God has called us to live. God’s will is for us to roll up our sleeves and work to make it better. We must speak out for those who often cannot speak out for themselves: the unborn, the abused, the immigrant, the financially impoverished…to name a few. We must unite with other Christ-followers and churches to make a difference together. We must support public policies that promote the common good. We’ll serve in the public square where appropriate. Most importantly, we’ll pray for a movement of God’s Spirit. We’ll pray our fellow citizens will see their need of the gospel and turn to Christ. Loving our country means praying for its turning to the one true King, Jesus!

The Bible commands us to love our Lord, our families, and our neighbors. But what about love of country? With the growing evil in our country, it’s tempting for contemporary Christians to dismiss this love as unnecessary or even wrong. Jesus loved and died for sinful people, and we must love them too. Sinful people live in sinful countries with sinful leaders. Our biblical responsibility is to love, pray for them, and share the gospel with them as we can. God gave us America and we’re to be grateful to God for all He gives us. The nation where we live—from its greatness to its ghastliness—isn’t an exception.

Wherever we live, Jesus has also called us to be salt and light. That means that we work to make it better. It doesn’t begin nationally. It begins locally with our neighborhoods and communities. Most communities are focused on those with the most money or the loudest voices. As Christ-followers, we listen to only one voice – the voice of our Lord. The question we must ask, even if it costs us, “Does this please Jesus?” Sometimes it’s very clear – what’s wrong and what’s right. Other times it’s complicated. Even then, we must be the ones who wisely think through and seek to move things forward in our communities for the glory of God. We were placed here by God. Loving Him and loving our country means seeking to influence and be part of bringing about what pleases Him! So, yes, I am proud to be an American and I thank God that He made me one!