Christian Nationalism is a Great Thing

A couple of years ago, a spiritual leader publicly questioned my teachings on America’s faith-based values and heritage. I was surprised by the unsolicited attack.

The leader accused me of teaching “Christian nationalism”–a term I had never heard before. 

After hearing this phrase become mainstreamed in our culture over the past few years. I understand why some believers are being deceived into thinking it’s bad.

They’re being lied to. 

Christian nationalism is a great thing.

Christian Nationalism is a Great Thing

Newsweek recently stated that, “Culture wars have taken center stage in America over the past several months, with debates emerging from the conservative side about protecting children from “woke” ideology promoted in Democratic-leaning states, and touting Christian nationalism.”

In Newsweek’s eyes, “woke” and “Democratic” are good and Christian nationalism is bad.

Dr. Paul D. Miller, the co-chair for global politics and security at Georgetown University, explains that Christian nationalism is the belief that the United States is defined by Christianity and that the government should take steps to keep it that way.

I agree wholeheartedly.

I have written many articles and some books about America’s Christian history, her miraculous birth as a nation, our faith-based governmental principles, social values, and God-given destiny in promoting freedom and world evangelization over the past two hundred years.

You can’t understand America without God and the Bible.

That reality has angered the atheistic/secular forces who are currently assaulting our nation on every level. Their latest lie is that Christian nationalism is both bigoted and will produce authoritarian theocratic rule in our nation.

Hogwash. It did the opposite for two centuries.

America’s biblical foundations made it the happiest, most free, wealthiest, and most visionary nation in the history of the world as “one nation under God.”

The Bible is clear as to why: “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people” (Proverbs 14:34). 

We are sinking as a culture because we are rejecting our Christian roots, not embracing them.

All nations have a primary religion or worldview, either practiced by a majority of the people, or promulgated by an influential minority. As my book River of God details (my doctoral thesis), there are five primary religious worldviews: Biblical faith, Polytheism, Pantheism, Atheism, and Islam.

History has clearly demonstrated that nations based on biblical faith have more freedom, create more wealth, allow greater religious diversity, and use their blessings to help others more than the other four.

That’s because character is destiny–and the moral goodness that Jesus produces in his followers creates strong and more vibrant societies.

Creating Christian-based nations is inherent to fulfilling the Great Commission.

Atheists created the “Christian nationalism” propaganda term for three reasons: 1) They want to denigrate national sovereignty and replace it with one a world orientation, 2) The devil wants to “kill and destroy” human beings (John 10:10) by assaulting biblical morality, and 3) They want to use this term/tactic to divide the Church.

Gary Randall shared a story recently about a “Christian Nationalism” attack against Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders over some beautiful artwork her kids created (photo above) on the driveway to the entrance of the Governor’s mansion.

Governor Huckabee posted on Facebook a picture of her three children standing behind a large image of a cross and stained glass they colored with sidewalk chalk. Huckabee captioned the image: “New artwork to welcome people into the Governor’s Mansion,” 

The post provoked a response from the secular Americans United, a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C. The group wrote a letter to the governor, arguing that the chalk artwork conveyed an “impermissible message that those who do not share the favored faith are unwelcome and will be treated differently.”

Americans United wrote on Twitter, “When fighting to defend church-state separation, we must always reject Christian nationalism. Two days ago, Sarah Huckabee Sanders posted a photo of a Latin cross at the entrance of the Arkansas Governor’s Mansion. We sent her a letter to explain why this is a problem.”

In an official letter of her own on Friday, Sanders responded to Americans United.

I have received your letter and my answer is no. I will not erase the beautiful cross my kids drew in chalk on the driveway of the Governor’s Mansion or remove my post on social media, and I will not now or ever hide that I am a Christian, saved by Christ.

You [Americans United] are “wrong to claim that our Constitution prevents public officials, let alone their families, from making earnest expressions of religious faith.” Our founding documents are riddled with religious language – stating plainly that the very rights you claim to defend are ‘endowed by our Creator.’ You are asking me to ignore that truth and hide a crucial part of my identity and the identity of my kids. That, I will not do. In Arkansas, we stand up to bullying liberals.

We won’t let you power-wash our kids’ chalk drawings off our front steps. We won’t let you tear down Christmas decorations and stomp our traditions into the dirt. We don’t live our lives in fear of strongly worded letters coming down from Washington.

I am offended by the implication that, just because I am a Christian, I am somehow a bigot. All people, of all faiths, are welcome in our state. All Arkansans are welcome in the Governor’s Mansion. We are all citizens of this same great country – one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Thank God that Gov Huckabee knows the truth.

Faith in a nation elevates, unites, and prospers it. It doesn’t alienate or destroy. In fact, Biblical faith is the only worldview that creates great freedom and respect for other religions. Would you rather live in oppressive Islamic Iran? How about police state atheistic China? Or what about pantheistic/polytheistic and impoverished India? 

No. We want to save the biblical world view of our own nation and bring the Good News to those nations that they might be blessed by God as we have.

We desire for all the nations of the world to become Christian nations. 

This truth was clearly understood in early America. Most of the early colonies and states have statements similar to that of Pennsylvania:

“No free government now exists in the world unless where Christianity is acknowledged and is the religion of the country…Its foundations are broad and strong and deep. It is the purest system of morality, the firmest auxiliary, and the only stable support of all human laws” (Pennsylvania Supreme Court, 1824, in Updegraph v. The Commonwealth).

Referring to the Great Commission in Matthew 28:18-20, renowned Bible commentator Matthew Henry wisely explains:

“Christ the Mediator is setting up a kingdom in this world, bringing the nations to be his subjects; setting up a school, bringing the nations to be his scholars, raising an army for carrying on the war with the powers of darkness…The work which the apostles had to do  was to set up the Christian religion in all places, and it was an honorable work. The achievements of the mighty heroes of the world were nothing to it. They conquered the nations for themselves and made them miserable. The apostles conquered them for Christ and made them happy.”

The Bible backs up Henry’s sentiments: “The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God” (Psalm 9:17).

We must reject the deceivers and destroyers.

Let’s help create Christian nations on earth to make them and their Creator happy.