It’s Christian Nationalism, Stupid!
“It’s the economy, stupid!”
It was a phrase coined by James Carville to focus the 1992 Clinton campaign, and everyone else, on one singular issue he thought was a campaign winner—and it worked. Politicians, especially as campaigners like to keep their message focused. This coming election is no exception. The 2020 election was a referendum on Covid. The 2022 election was an abortion referendum.
The 2024 election will be a referendum on illegal immigration.
That message is a loser for one party and they know it. According to Tom Basile at the Washington Times, the democrats will try to shift the focus from the economy and immigration to the manufactured horrible specter of Christian Nationalism. I am not sure it will work, but the effort seems to be there and it impacts all believers. Christians have had to face the issue of Christian Nationalism and are having thoughtful, conscientious debates on the subject. But what is coming will be anything but a thoughtful, conscientious debate.
I will not try to define Christian Nationalism here; there are many pundits with as many definitions as there are articles written on the subject. The coming firestorm is not about clear definitions or a thoughtful debate. The goal is to paint Christians and Christianity as the enemy of the free world. This type of tactic is what Hitler did with the Jews in World War 2 and what the Communists did with the merchant class in Russia and China. The political left is going to create a tag that is presumed by many as evil, and then paint as many of their political rivals with it—that tag is “Christian Nationalist”. Just a quick news search shows this to be true.
A Kansas City Star story (reproduced in Yahoo News) includes an editorial piece by a Baptist pastor who paints House Majority Leader Mike Johnson as a Christian Nationalist.
An Atlantic story paints the Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court as a Christian Nationalist. And there are many others.
Here are just some things for us fundamentalist, biblically-focused, dispensational, Baptists, to remember as we endure yet another election cycle.
We are not here to usher in the Kingdom. Jesus will do that. We see Revelation 19-20 as prophecy to be fulfilled literally and that Jesus Christ will accomplish the work of establishing the Kingdom in a moment at His return. hat is our blessed hope. Revelation chapters 4-20 indicate that there will be a world of trouble happening in the seven years before His return.
Our focus must be the Great Commission. The power of true New Testament Christianity is not only in the power of the gospel to save people from sin but also in the power of the Holy Spirit to transform lives
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (1 Corinthians 5:17).
That transformation also transforms the thinking of a believer.
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. (Romans 12:1-2)
The thinking of the world around us will not be transformed by discussions about the evils of abortion, or the other sins that dominate our culture. Only through regeneration and the influence of the Holy Spirit will that happen.
Do not be brow-beaten into abandoning the implications of your faith in the public square. Just because we do not believe that widespread change will happen without regeneration, does not mean we are allowed by God to abandon the responsibilities our faith presses upon us as we fulfill our societal duties. One side of the political aisle in particular is demanding that you divorce your faith from your public life—that you lay aside the implications of the gospel as you enter the ballot box or in the exercise of your constitutionally granted freedoms. Just because the gospel is the focus does not mean that God does not care about the sanctity of life, the nature of marriage, thievery, and many other issues with Judeo-Christian ethical implications.
Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience’ sake. For because of this you also pay taxes, for they are God’s ministers attending continually to this very thing. Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor. (Romans 13:1-7)
The secular ruling class in the United States would like to construe this passage to mean that they are the authorities and that all other citizens, including Christians, should submit to their authority. However, as long as we still have a US Constitution and live under its authority, every citizen is a ruler. Every citizen must fulfill the responsibilities given to rulers by God. Therefore, we must use whatever political power we have to promote good, oppose evil, and dispense justice on those who practice evil—especially when they perpetrate evil upon others.
Using the derogatory term “Christian Nationalist” is the way these enemies of God and the gospel will seek to intimidate you into abandoning your salt and light responsibilities.
Though sloppy media (not all media) etc., are being, as usual, sloppy, CN is not a ‘manufactured horrible specter.’ As for defining it, we can clear a lot up if we focus on those who claim the term themselves vs. those using it as kind bogey man label for everything they don’t like.
So… scratch most media personnel and all elected officials. That narrows it down to CN advocates who author books, CN advocates who speak at conferences, and CN advocates who form/chair various advocacy groups/PACs and the like. These are the people behind the real CN movement.
Jake Meador has a helpful piece on the topic dated 3/8/24. It’s a bit of wading, but illustrates how some truly pernicious ideas underly CN and how various ‘conservative’ influencers are loosely networked to promote them in various ways. https://mereorthodoxy.com/if-it-were-me-id-try-not-helping-the-christian-nationalists