abstract: the country in which a Christian lives and has his citizenship was determined by the providence of God. God has a purpose for him in the particular nation where He has placed him.

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by William Einwechter

Patriotism has proved to be a difficult subject for many Christians. This is due, in part, to the extremes and abuses of patriotism to which they have been exposed. On the one hand, there are those who proclaim that patriotism means "My country, right or wrong," and believe that it is the highest of virtues. On the other hand, there are those who believe that patriotism "is the last refuge of a scoundrel," and "under its guise every sort of sinister human purpose thrives." Then you have the Christian who declares that all patriotism is a form of idolatry, or that since the Christian's true citizenship is in heaven, he is not to concern himself with the affairs of the nations of this world.

A biblical approach to the subject of patriotism does not endorse any of the above views.

The Providence of God

An understanding of the providence of God is helpful in sorting through the issue of patriotism. God's providence indicates His wisdom and power in governing all aspects of His creation for the purpose of accomplishing His sovereign will. Thus, there is a purpose to all the particulars of a Christian's life--the time and place of his birth, his gender, family, physical features and abilities, intellect, etc. Hence, the country in which a Christian lives and has his citizenship was determined by the providence of God. God has a purpose for him in the particular nation where He has placed him.

Patriotism

Patriotism is defined as the love of one's own country which leads an individual to seek the well-being and the highest good of his country. This accords well with God's purpose for a Christian in the nation in which he lives, if the well-being and the highest good of the country are determined by the standard of the Word of God. A Christian patriot works to see the kingdom of God and His righteousness established in the land of his earthly citizenship. He sees that in the providence of God the nation where he lives is the primary sphere of his labors, and with the aid of the Holy Spirit he seeks to promote salvation, prosperity, liberty, and justice in his own country.

An Analogy

Perhaps an analogy will help here. It is evident that God would have us seek the well-being of the particular family that He has placed us in. God gives to us a "natural affection" (Rom. 1:31; 2 Tim. 3:3) for those of our own flesh and blood--husbands and wives for each other, parents and children for one another, brothers and sisters for one another, etc. This natural affection serves the good of the family unit and enables even the unregenerate (in most cases) to be committed to their family and help it to prosper.

God has also given us His moral law that commands family members to love, honor, and respect one another in a unique way. A man is to love his wife in a way that he is to love no other. A wife is to honor and submit to her husband in a way that she submits to no one else. Parents have a responsibility to their own children that they do not have to other children, and children are to obey their parents as they obey no others. This does not mean that family members are not to show love to those outside their family or to serve them, it only means that they have a higher responsibility to their own family members (cf. Gal. 6:10).

So it is in the civil sphere. We have a unique responsibility to the civil society that God has placed us in. First, the proper functioning of the civil community is dependent on the natural affection that God gives to us for those of our own community and nation. This is the source of the sense of patriotism in us. Second, the law of God commands us to love our neighbors as ourselves. Jesus established that our neighbor is anyone, who in the providence of God, we have contact with, or anyone in need who happens to cross our path. Those of our own community, state, and nation are our first and most present neighbors to whom we owe our love. Third, the law of God commands citizens to honor and obey their rulers (1 Pet. 2:13-14), not rulers of other nations, and for rulers to serve the people under them through godly wisdom and justice (Rom. 13:3-4; Deut. 16:18-20), not the people of other nations. In other words, we have unique moral duties to those of our own civil community that we do not have to others.

It is no more idolatrous to love and seek the well-being of one's own country, than it is to love and seek the well-being of one's own family, provided that in each the glory of God is the highest end in view. And, it is no more a denial of the Christian's heavenly citizenship when he works for the good of the country of his earthly citizenship, than it is a denial of the Christian's spiritual, heavenly family (i.e., the church) when he labors for the good of his human, earthly family.

Jeremiah 29:7

The text of Jeremiah 29:7 provides instruction on the duty of the Christian to seek the good of the country where the providence of God places him. It reads: "And seek the peace of the city wither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the Lord for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace." It is true that the context of this verse is Jeremiah's advice to the captives of Judah who had been carried away to Babylon. However, it can still be applied to the subject of patriotism by an argument from the lesser to the greater. If it is true that the people of Judah were to seek the good and pray for the nation where they had been taken captive by the judgment of God, how much more is it true that the people of God should seek the good and pray for the nation that in the providence of God they were born and or now have their citizenship.

Hence, Christians are to "seek the peace" of the land where God has caused their residence to be. The word "seek" is in the imperative mode, and it means "to seek with care." It carries the idea of applying oneself to a task with persistence and care. The term "peace" is the well-known Hebrew word shalom. The word shalom signifies that which is whole, healthy, safe, or sound. In the context of Jeremiah 29:7, it has the sense of "welfare". Thus, the exhortation is to apply yourself to promoting the welfare of the nation in which you live. Do that which will contribute to the welfare--the health, well-being, peace, prosperity--of the land in which you live.

The Christian patriot knows that the best way to promote the welfare of his country is to live a life of humble obedience to God and seek to apply the Scriptures to all spheres of life. In the civil sphere, he will apply himself with persistence and care to the task of bringing his nation to a recognition of the crown rights of Jesus Christ and the authority of biblical law; he will labor for justice in the laws and courts of the land; he will seek the election of godly men to office (or serve as a civil officer himself); and he will strive to reduce the government's role in society to its biblical parameters.

Furthermore, a Christian ought to pray for the land where he lives. He is to "pray unto the Lord for it." Our prayers are to ascend to the Lord on behalf of our country, asking God to work His perfect will among us. In regard to the nation, the Christian prays for the forgiveness of national sins, and for revival in the land; he prays that the citizens might lead a quiet life in godliness and honesty; he prays for wise and just rulers who will recognize the authority of Christ; and he prays for God's judgment on wicked leaders.

The benefit of seeking the welfare of our nation, state, or city is that "in the peace thereof shall ye have peace." The welfare of our civil community contributes to our own welfare. As the foolish woman tears down her own house, while the wise woman builds it up (Prov. 14:1), so the foolish citizen gives no thought to his country or his civic duties, while the wise citizen heeds the admonition of Jeremiah 29:7.

Conclusion

In the providence of God we have been placed in the particular nation in which we live. God would have us recognize that He has put us there for a purpose, and that we have unique moral duties to perform in that context. Christian patriotism grows out of a natural affection and the commands of God's Word. It is based on a desire to serve our country with the goal of promoting righteousness, liberty, and peace. Patriotism, rightly practiced, glorifies God, fulfills the command to love our neighbor as ourself, and benefits us personally.

William Einwechter is the vice president of the National Reform Association and the editor of The Christian Statesman. He also serves as a teaching elder at Immanuel Free Reformed Church in Ephrata, Pennsylvania.

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