Patriotism and Christianity

I am as patriotic as anyone, probably more than most. I love this country, and am proud to be an American. I served in the US Army for 24 years. I have heard it said that I could not be a Christian and serve in the Army, or be so patriotic. Some people think that Christians cannot be patriotic to America or any other country, or that those who are patriotic, cannot be Christians. These statements are not true. However, as a Christian, our first loyalty IS to GOD. Therefore, when there is a conflict between what a Christian believes or is required to do, and what is demanded of them, or is "Legal" to do as a member of a particular nation, the Christian should do what is required of them, as a Christian, not the conflicting thing. So what would be an example of this? In World War II, there were many Christians in Germany. It was required of German citizens to report Jews, and let the police know where they lived. Some Christians did give into this pressure. Other Christians did the right thing, and hid the Jews they knew, and even helped them escape the Nazis. Those who did this, when caught, were shot, or sent to concentration camps. Today, we have similar, albeit different, and less lethal conflicts.

There are those who say that Christians may not speak out on issues that they believe strongly about, or they will be fined for hate speech. In Canada, a preacher was fined because he said that the practice (not attraction, or temptation, but the practice) of homosexuality was sinful, and wrong. The Bible clearly states that the practice of homosexuality is an abomination to God. Therefore, a Christian can and should speak out about it. Just because the law says it is "legal" does not make it right, or acceptable.

But lets get back to the issue. Yesterday, we celebrated Independence Day. The day 233 years ago that citizens of a fledgling nation declared independence from England. This sparked a war that lasted 7 years. Many of the patriots that fought the British were Christians, fighting for their right to believe and practice their faith their way. They were tired of tyranny, unfair taxation, and opression because of what they believed. Today, we have soldiers providing support all over the world to people of other nations that are attempting to do similar things, and fighting terrorists, to help keep our borders more safe. So thank a soldier, airman, marine, or Navy or Coast Guard Seaman when you see them, and pray for their safety.

Bottom line, be patriotic, support our nation. It is still the best in the world, even with its problems. Stand tall, salute the flag, remember our history, and our foundational principles -- all based on Biblical principles by the way !!!

Do you HAVE to go to Church?

Many people say that they do not have to go to church to worship God, the question is whether or not a Christian needs to go to Church.

Today's sermon spoke about this topic, and the preacher, one of our Senior Pastor's brothers, made some very good points about how this question should be answered. !

The text was from 1 Kings 12

²⁶ Jeroboam thought to himself, “The kingdom will now likely revert to the house of David. ²⁷ If these people go up to offer sacrifices at the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem, they will again give their allegiance to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah. They will kill me and return to King Rehoboam.”²⁸ After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves. He said to the people, “It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” ²⁹ One he set up in Bethel, and the other in Dan. ³⁰ And this thing became a sin; the people went even as far as Dan to worship the one there.

Some of the points made are as follows:

• Jeroboam was king of the Northern Kingdom just after Solomon died
• Solomon had strayed from the correct path and created idols and temples for worship to false gods
• Jeroboam was worried that if the people from his kingdom went to Jerusalem to worship, he would lose their allegiance
• Jeroboam decided to keep them from going to Jerusalem, he would build two duplicate altars (of the altar in Jerusalem) in the northern kingdom, along with golden calves for the people to worship.
• Jeroboam led his people into sin, instead of making life more convenient

On top of these points, we should look to Jesus, and see what He did, and the commands of the early church fathers:

• Jesus frequented the synagogue, as well as the temple on the sabbath
• The writer of Hebrews commanded the early Christians to ²⁴ And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. ²⁵ Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
• The Apostles also pointed out that each of us is a member of the body of Christ. The hand cannot say to the foot, I don't need you.

The preacher pointed out that if the leg just chooses not to show up, then the body of Christ is crippled

Although Christians are not REQUIRED to attend Church, we NEED one another. We are called to community, not to isolation. If once we accept Christ as savior, we are not required to do anything else, not supposed to bring fellowship and love and support to one another, as well as lead others to Christ, then God would just bring us home immediately. We ARE CALLED to community, and to support one another, as well as lead others to Christ.

So the bottom line is Yes, we do need to go to church to Worship God, not because we are REQUIRED, but because it is good for us, and for our fellow man.

Shepherd or Sheepdog

Ok, this is to relate the previous post to the role of Christianity, and what makes Christianity different from all other religions...


As I was sitting in church today, the following thoughts occurred to me, regarding the sheep, sheepdog, and wolf analogy...

As Christians, we are not the shepherds, we are called to be sheepdogs, however. We do not lead the sheep, we herd them in the direction that The Shepherd (Jesus is the good Shepherd) would like us to go. We assist the shepherd in protecting the sheep, but the ultimate protection is His responsibility. As He stated, "I Am the Good Shepherd, the Shepherd lays down His life for His sheep." Even pastors, who are referred to as shepherds of the flock, really are sheepdogs. They only lead the flock as Jesus leads them. If they do anything other than that, they are false christs. It is the responsibility of the sheepdog to listen to the Shepherd, and follow His direction. We do, fight the wolves of this world, but again, the ultimate protection is done by, and in the authority of the Shepherd. We have no authority on our own, but only under Him.