Patriotism Is Biblical
What other nation on earth is like your people Israel? What other nation, O God, have you redeemed from slavery to be your own people? You made a great name for yourself when you redeemed your people from Egypt. You performed awesome miracles and drove out the nations and gods that stood in their way. II Samuel 7:23 (New Living Translation, NLT)
Patriotism and national loyalty is of the Lord. Israel was set aside by God as His own people, and they were to remain true to the Lord and to their nation. As long as the Israelites remained true to the Lord, the nation prospered and was great in the earth. This set them apart from other nations. God expected the people of Israel to follow Him and to be unified under His Name. Each Hebrew person was to know their lineage and be loyal to the family into which God placed them. This is one of the reasons we see geneologies in the Bible.
We, too, have been strategically placed by God into the families, cities, states, and nations He has chosen for us. While we aren’t all born into Jewish family lines or in the nation of Israel, God placed us where we are, and He expects us to have a heart for our homeland. His desire is for us to love our nation and to fight for righteousness and justice to come to the country into which He has placed us. Although God chose Israel as His own people, His desire is for all nations. He loves all peoples and wants them all to be blessed and part of His family. He chose Israel in order to bless the rest of the world and to draw people to God.
Godly patriotism means praying for your nation and its leaders. Speak forth salvation into your nation. Stand for godliness and resist evil ideas and mindsets from taking over. Love the citizens of your nation and help them with their needs and help them to know God. Support leaders who want to protect the citizens of your nation from enemies and who promote their citizen’s blessed prosperity. Seek to know the real history of your nation and protect it from being erased or altered. Preserve your heritage just as Israel was expected to preserve hers.
Some people call this Christian nationalism and attempt to portray it as a bad thing. However, if you look at those two words: Christian and nationalism, there is nothing negative about them. It is right and good to share Christianity with others and to seek to shape society by godly standards. It is also right and good to seek the good of your nation and its citizens as a priority. A nation that does not prioritize and care for its own cannot hope to become strong enough to help other nations.
Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He has chosen as His heritage. Psalm 33:12 (Amplified Bible Classic Edition, AMPC)
Finally, patriotism without God is not enough. Patriotism seeks to honor the heritage of a nation and its right to exist and prosper. However, without God in the mix, a nation will never reach its full potential.Patriotism without God often turns to socialism and other forms of government that eventually remove the rights of the citizens. Patriotism promotes a national identity, but does not ensure good, moral, and honest government to promulgate laws that protect human dignaity and equal rights for all its citizens.
As believers, we are called to seek the good of our own nation and its citizens. We are to put a value on the country in which God has placed us. As we share Jesus with our fellow citizens, we will bring each of our nations to a glorious and prosperous existence that benefits all people and glorifies God. Pray and stand for righteousness in your land and do what is needed to promote godly values that will ensure your nation’s success and blessing. That is true patriotism, and it is biblical.
