Questions for My Christian Nationalist Friends

Tune in to S4E4: Questions for My Christian Nationalist Friends (8/31/24) to experience podcast format of this content.

In 2018, I penned an article making a case against the social justice movement entitled, “Social Justice: Why Jesus Didn’t Pursue It + Why Christians Shouldn’t Fight for It”. It was a well-received piece, namely among my Christian conservative friends, and it served as a resource for those who discerned the burgeoning movement was problematic, but had trouble precisely articulating why this was so. Honestly, before writing that piece I, too, struggled with offering a precise, Biblical case for how something that, on the surface, sounded so good was ultimately quite evil.

Years later, I’ve found myself similarly positioned regarding Christian Nationalism, the latest problematic movement seeking to take root in America and in the Church.

The Case for Christian Nationalism

Before 2022, “Christian Nationalism” was largely a catchall pejorative coined by political progressives to demonize faithful Christians who were against demonic policies like legalized abortion and same-sex “marriage”.

As the social justice movement worked overtime to make everyone and everything “racist”, the political left conflated Christianity with “white nationalism” (hence “Christian Nationalism”) as they claimed our faith was ultimately the root of America’s evils and its “original sin” of slavery. With feminism also falling under the social justice umbrella, the movement’s ultimate common enemy would be revealed to be the white, Christian/conservative male. Women and those of minority ethnic groups who were also Christian and/or conservative were simply identified as brainwashed or victims of internalized “whiteness”.

Frustrated with unjust laws and being unfairly demonized, especially so for the sins of their fathers, a growing number of young, white conservative males began to push back. Though somewhat understandable in the beginning, it seems a fringe, albeit increasingly influential, group of these young men have opted to not only push back, they have decided to fully embrace the “Christian Nationalist” label and launch a movement of their own. The issue is they’ve stumbled into becoming - or exposing themselves to be (?) - exactly who the “woke” originally claimed them to be.

Taking literal pages from Stephen Wolfe’s book The Case for Christian Nationalism, many of these men have popped up all over social media, YouTube, podcast streaming services, conferences and in local churches espousing a dire need to make America a “Christian Nation”...again.

While definitions for Christian Nationalism seem to vary, the general (and most problematic) premise of the concept goes beyond America being a nation with a culture and customs that are influenced by Judeo-Christian principles. Instead, the overarching goal is to “re-introduce” America as a nation that wholly lives by God’s laws as mandated through civil legislation and under the authoritarian rule of professors in Christ. Christianity wouldn’t merely be a faith that organically sways American society, but the faith that is coercively prioritized and favored.

Because Jesus is “King of Kings” and “Lord of Lords” of all Creation, my Christian Nationalist friends believe it their God-glorifying mission to take up government leadership to make every knee in America NOW bow and every tongue in America NOW confess that Jesus is Lord. This sounds like a noble undertaking, except 1) Christ has told us that before His return MOST in the world won’t acknowledge Him as they ought (ex: Matthew 7:13-14; Isaiah 45:23; John 3:19), 2) He’s told us that His kingdom is NOT of this world, for if it were THEN His disciples would fight (John 18:36), and 3) this world is passing away (1 John 2:17; 1 Corinthians 7:31).

Nevertheless, many of these well-meaning brothers (and a few disingenuous wolves in their midst) are dead set on moving forward with establishing Christ’s kingdom right here, right now on earth. While some of us can clearly see the error in doing so, I thought it would be a good exercise to grant the movement an opportunity to address some unresolved political and theological issues “Christian Nationalism” presents. Indeed, if they can rightly divide the Scriptures and utilize consistent logic to reconcile these matters, perhaps Christian Nationalism is worth a shot after all. (I don’t believe it is, but again, let’s see…)

Why Not ‘Christian Globalism’?

At present, Christian Nationalism is a movement being pushed for the stated benefit of America and Americans. While there are self-identifying “Christian nations” and “Christian states” in other parts of the world, to my knowledge, there are no current talks or foreign relations negotiations to take this movement global or to collaborate efforts, even as proponents of Christian Nationalism claim the movement fulfills the Great Commission:

“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:16-20).

According to their interpretation of the Great Commission, Christian Nationalists claim it is their duty to make disciples of all Americans and to do away with American laws and leaders who prove hostile to Christianity. Yet, it seems to gloss over those nations that blatantly worship false gods and whose laws make it possible to be overtly hostile to Christianity. Indeed, I disagree with same sex “marriage” legislation here in America, and I agree with Christians speaking against it. But if the goal is to use legislation to overthrow all forms of wickedness for the glory of God and the benefit of His people, why limit these things only to America?

According to Christ, the Great Commission is a world-wide imperative - hence the command to make disciples of “all the nations”. More than that, we know from a cross reference in Mark 16, the Great Commission requires our need to go into the world to proclaim the Gospel and make disciples of those who believe it (Mark 16:15-18). But if we were to interpret the Great Commission as our Christian Nationalist friends do, one has to wonder why they’re limiting their cause to a single nation and the people within it.

Perhaps the point is to make America a point of reference for pagan nations? But that can’t be a proper conclusion as we know Israel is the only nation the Lord set apart to serve that purpose in the earth until Christ had come (Isaiah 49:6). And He has since come. (And Israel is currently embroiled in a battle largely due to their ongoing disobedience to the very King they were set up to point towards. But that’s another topic for another day.)

Maybe the Christian Nationalist thought is that by using our laws here to “disciple” even unbelievers to at least have a form of godliness, we can teach other nations to do the same? Though, this conclusion also seems to be improper, at least upon considering Stephen Wolfe’s offering on the subject.

Wolfe argues that limiting the Christian Nationalism movement to America stems from the idea that “people in the same place and culture should live together and seek one another’s good.” He goes on to say, “The grace of the Gospel does not eliminate our geography, our people, and our neighbors. Instead, it restores us to pursue local needs and local leadership freely and without apology.”

If I’m honest, at worst, this argument makes absolutely no sense. But if I were to be charitable, it sounds like he’s encouraging isolationism. If this is so, Christian Nationalism (at least Wolfe’s treatment of the concept) would not only run counter to the Great Commission, it would discourage our love and support for the universal Church. For example, we see in Scripture that the Corinthian, Galatian and Macedonian churches collected and sent via Paul a financial offering for the Jerusalem church, which was suffering from famine and persecution (1 Corinthians 16:1-4; 2 Corinthians 9). Would a Christian Nationalist America turn her back on suffering Christians abroad because they aren’t “local”?

Is ‘Christian Nationalism’ Synonymous with ‘White Nationalism’?

In addition to Christian isolationism, mainline iterations of Christian Nationalism also seem to place an overemphasis on ethnic exclusivism.

Again Wolfe, who is the most lauded voice amongst Christian Nationalism proponents, essentially suggests that America would do well if each people group would stick with its own kind, and if whites (or descendents of Europeans) maintained the majority in this nation.

In his now infamous tweet from April 2023, Wolfe posited that “white evangelicals are the lone bulwark against moral insanity in America”. He’s also suggested that interethnic marriage, while not “sinful absolutely” can be “sinful relatively”. As Wolfe explained in his since-deleted September 2022 Twitter musings, “...while interethnic marriage is itself not wrong (as an individual matter), groups have a collective duty to be separate and marry among themselves.” He and other proponents of Christian Nationalism have been especially intentional with expressing this “duty” where ethnic mixing involves Americans with anglo-saxon heritage. Again, this doesn’t make a lot of sense if you hold to a Biblical worldview. Not only is such a “duty” not a command levied upon us by God, there are several examples of interethnic marriages (and children) in Scripture (Genesis 41:50 & 46:20; Ruth 4 Numbers 12; Acts 16:1-5), so such thinking is easily debunked. Moreover, the only requirement or duty God has for His people concerning spouse selection is that we marry another Believer in Christ (of course, marrying someone of the opposite gender goes without saying) (1 Corinthians 7:39; 2 Corinthians 6:14).

Interestingly, Wolfe seems to have slightly walked back or re-explained some of his treatment of ethnic exclusivism after being called out on these ideas, so it’s challenging to pin down exactly where he currently lands on this topic. Though, other Christian Nationalists, like Texas Pastor Joel Webbon, remain overt in their stance on the matter. For example, during a recent panel discussion on Christian Nationalism at the New Christendom Press conference, Webbon admits that the growing ethnic and religious diversity in his Texas community is so concerning to him that he feels a “small sense of relief” when he finally sees another white family. Nevermind whether that white family is Christian, his overarching sentiment is that they would be more likely to love and fight for America and have a vested interest in her welfare than those of other groups.

In each man’s defense, neither outright states that non-white ethnic groups would not be welcomed in a Christian nationalist America. They simply come across as if to say that whites and white evangelicals are strongly preferred, especially if - as Webbon says - “things get rough”.

And things may get rough if the answer to my next question is, “yes”.

Wouldn’t Christian Nationalism Guarantee Persecution + War?

While Christian Nationalism doesn’t seem to have any immediate goals to upend hostility towards Christians and Christianity abroad, its proponents have stated a goal to prevent Christian persecution in the U.S. Again, they endeavor to do this by causing all citizens to submit to the Law of God via civil legislation. The thought is if everyone in the nation is living a godly life (whether truly a Believer or not), there would be no one to persecute because we’d all be on the same page. Yet, when filtered through the light of Scripture, this logic presents an interesting conundrum.

According to the Apostle Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit, “Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution” (2 Timothy 3:12). In other words, persecution is inescapable for the Christian, and it doesn’t appear there is anything even the most well-meaning are capable of doing to prevent it. Of course, to be fair, persecution could certainly be reduced or altogether avoided if there were a massive falling away in America. Yet that would also mean America wouldn’t be a Christian Nation after all! So we’d sort of be back at square one.

But let’s pretend that, on the extremely off chance, most or all Americans did submit to live by the whole of God’s Law - what if each citizen here did desire to live a Godly life in Christ Jesus: Wouldn't that trigger the nation’s persecution by unbelieving nations from around the world?

If we might truly become a “guiding light” to all nations, would there not be pagan nations working to snuff us out? And wouldn’t that then require America to engage in ongoing war?

According to Article 18 of their “Statement on Christian Nationalism & The Gospel”, James Silberman and Dusty Deevers essentially say that it would. Listing the various allowances for national or international conflict, Silberman and Deevers cite protecting human life from persecution as a just cause for waging war in a Christian Nationalist America.

So, as a nation where most or all of our citizens are living godly lives, the logical conclusion is that we wouldn’t know peace from our pagan neighbors.

Unless, of course, the persecution would come from within our own borders. But again, if from within our own borders, it would mean our adversaries would have the numbers and/or authority to carry out the persecution of Christians. So, again, could we then rightly claim to be a Christian nation if a large swath of our citizenry not only hated us, but also had the numbers and/or power to do something about it. Or, might our Christian Nationalist government be the one doing the persecuting, namely of those who wish to remain faithful to the Scriptures?

Which Christians Would Lead the ‘Christian Nation’?

Church history demonstrates a rather hostile relationship between various denominations of Christianity that is likely to be repeated under Christian Nationalism. We know the Puritans fled to America to escape religious persecution by the Church of England, which was said to have taken on a lot of the false religious teachings and traditions of Roman Catholicism. Yet, even the Protestants engaged in persecuting other Protestants.The history between Presbyterians and Baptists, for example, entails Presbeyterians charging Baptists with “child abuse” because they refused to baptize their infant children. So what guards would be in place to mitigate such fighting amongst professing saints? Wolfe presents a Christian Nation with reformed / presbyterians at the helm while Silberman and Deever’s Christian Nation cite that their version needn’t require a particular confessional tradition or denomination. Meanwhile, the New Apostolic Reformation’s iteration of Christian Nationalism leaves the issue totally unaddressed. (Perhaps they’d simply rely on receiving a “new revelation” on the matter when the time comes, but I digress.)

My point is that Christian Nationalists, who already don’t seem to agree on a definition for their movement, also don’t agree on who exactly would be in charge if the movement were ever realized!

One of the main reasons I left social media was because of how divisive professing Christians tended to be over various, non-essential matters. We couldn’t even agree on Twitter. Could we imagine having such battles offline while in the process of trying to lead a nation of pagans in having a form of godliness? Moreover, I find it ironic that the men who’ve proven to be the most divisive, uncharitable and even rude towards others online are some of the very same who have had a hand in promoting the Christian Nationalism movement. Christ, who is King and Lord of the only Christian Nation that can and will ever exist (which is the Church), describes Himself as “gentle and lowly”…

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30).

Christian Nationalists, on the other hand come across as restless, harsh, domineering and, frankly, confused.

Even as Christ is also a Lion who will exact justice on His enemies, this, again, will occur after His return for judgment day. That Day, though coming soon, has not yet come. Yet it appears Christian Nationalists have the mind to treat enemies of Christianity as if it had. And they would do this to the betrayal of God’s clear commands to love and pray for even our enemies. Ironically, they would also do this to the betrayal of the very country they claim they wish to save.

Was America Founded as a “Christian Nation”?

Even as the Founding Fathers built America on Judeo-Christian principles, it can’t be definitively argued that they intended America to be a “Christian Nation”. While they willingly borrowed from the Christian or Biblical worldview to establish many of our laws, they also left a lot of room for a secular state to exist. It’s as if they accepted all of God’s benefits without also accepting God, Himself.

Many like to point to things like “The Pledge of Allegiance” as evidence that we were established as a “nation under God”. Yet, the Pledge of Allegiance, which was first written over 100 years after America’s founding, didn’t originally include the phrase “under God”. It wasn’t written to declare our nation’s loyalty to God. It was intended to promote our patriotism - or our loyalty to this country. Even when the phrase “under God” was added to the Pledge by an act of Congress in 1954, there was still oversight in explicitly identifying who this God is. So, sure, we were now pledging ourselves to be one nation under “God”, but we didn’t specify that we were one nation under the ONE TRUE God.

To be fair, I would argue that most at that time likely had an inherent understanding of “God”, as He is revealed in Scripture, in mind. Nevertheless, because He is not explicitly defined in any of our founding documents, it unfortunately leaves a lot of room for different interpretations. Further, the US Constitution, which is the “supreme law of the land”, makes it clear in the FIRST Amendment that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof”.

Even if the founders and original settlers in America presumed Christianity as the supreme faith of the land, they did not acknowledge or specify that in the supreme law of the land. As such, America is officially a secular state. In fact, she is said to be “the first explicitly secular state in history”. Thus, contrary to popular thought, America wasn’t founded as a Christian nation, nor can she be formally established as one without violating the US Constitution.

America: The First Secular State?

To be fair to my Christian Nationalist friends, however, we do need to acknowledge the Christian faith intentions of some of the first settlers into the new world. The Mayflower Compact, which was signed in 1620, made explicit reference to the Pilgrims’ voyage from England to New England “for the glory of God, and advancement of the Christian faith…”. However, the agreement, which consisted of only three short paragraphs, was general in nature and would prove to be temporary, as it also noted that the colonists remained loyal to King James and that their agreement was applicable only to the New Plymouth Colony.

According to editors at history.com, the Mayflower Compact is important to American history because it “was the first document to establish self-government in the New World”. They go on to acknowledge that it was an “early, successful attempt at democracy”.

The Pilgrims and Puritans who fled to this new world did so to evade religious persecution. They wanted the right and freedom to practice their faith. Yet, they didn’t want the government to be able to dictate what that faith should be or how it should be practiced. This likely explains why, over a century and a half later, many states would not ratify the Constitution until such guarantees were explicitly spelled out via the Bill of Rights. This was a smart addition to demand at that time, but it is proving to be a double-edged sword in modern-day America.

Most to nearly all who dwelled and immigrated to the US during America’s formative years had a Biblical worldview…or were at least respectful of Judeo-Christian values. With this in mind, it becomes apparent that America did not present as a “Christian nation” because America is or ever was a theocracy, but because it is a democracy. The people drove the Christian culture America has long enjoyed. The people desired such a society, so the people, in large numbers, voted for representatives, advocated for policies, and lived lives that reflected what they desired.

Yet, as the entire world is perishing and many are falling away or growing reprobate, the people now lack knowledge, reverence and love for God - and the things of God (Romans 1; 2 Timothy 3:1-7; 1 John 2:17). So while the initial settlers were on to something, the failure to establish Christianity as the state religion left a loophole that benefits those from other faith traditions and practices, as well as those who profess to hold no faith at all.

Like my Christian Nationalist friends, I once thought of America as a Christian nation, and I believed it was founded as such. I’m sure I’ve even attempted to argue this point in previous articles within this blog. But I now realize America’s “Christian” identity hasn’t been so because of something our government explicitly established, nor is such an identity spelled out in our founding documents. Instead, any semblance of Christianity and godliness our nation has ever had has been because most of the people here desired a godly culture and had sought to live something like godly lives according to their own conscience.

Some might say, then, that men like Wolfe or Webbon may have a point when they lament over increased ethnic and religious diversity in America.

Perhaps, but their conclusions about how this issue is best addressed would remain problematic and unbiblical. The answer isn’t to put Christians in charge and force Christianity on the masses. The answer is to preach Christ and to live our individual lives according to His teachings.

We might also consider that America (and Americans) of old still had major imperfections that missed the mark of Christian faithfulness - at least before the Lord. At the end of the day, fallen PEOPLE, regardless of their ethnicity or professed faith, have been involved in the American experiment from the very beginning.

Even in our best times (as defined by those nostalgic for an America pre-industrial revolution), we still defended and legalized the enslavement of other human beings. We still cheated workers of their wages. We still forbade Christians from worshiping together on the basis of skin color. We still had an alcoholism epidemic. We still allowed husbands to beat their wives with legal impunity until the 1920s!!! The government has come in to address most, if not all, of those issues, yet the government has not resolved all that ails the human condition, nor can it. There will always be sin with which to contend, so it’s likely that some sins would still be normalized even as others are forbidden in a Christian nationalist America. And considering the ethnic exclusivism touted by some Christian Nationalists, it’s possible sins might even be triaged according to people groups.

I’m being somewhat facetious with my last point, but my argument remains. Even if a “Christian nation” were realized, it still would fall short of the glory of God. But again, I don’t believe this is a movement for the ultimate glory of God but for the glory of men.

I Said All of This to Say…

As utopian and encouraging as Christian Nationalism sounds on the surface, there remains many holes in this idealistic movement once we begin asking questions and analyzing it from the root. And the root of this movement stems from the hearts of men, not the voice or wisdom of God.

Thus, I’ve surmised that Christian Nationalism is nothing more than a movement of men seeking to address sin from their own understanding, in their own strength and for their own comforts. They can deceive themselves into believing Christian Nationalism is for God’s glory, but when filtered through Scripture, it proves itself to be counter to God’s will for His people.

Of course, even as I disagree with their unbiblical thoughts on the Great Commission, interethnic marriage, ideals of soft segregation and ethnic partiality, attempts to escape guaranteed persecution, etc., I do agree with their desire for just laws and preventing the adoption of wicked policies. As American citizens and residents, Christians have just as much right to voice our concerns in the public square, lobby our political leaders and run for political office as any others. But it is inconsistent with God’s call for Christians to force our faith, and our faith’s favor, onto the masses through government declarations and decrees. It is unbiblical of us to think of making America a Christian nation - whether theologically or solely politically - via authoritarian rule. Even as the Lord now commands all men everywhere to repent, this command is executed through the proclamation of the Gospel (Acts 17:30-31). It isn’t proof text for how we are to govern or rule the lost.

If any Christian Nationalist is serious about making America a “Christian nation” (again), he would do well to obey Christ and share the Gospel in America. He would do well to raise his children in the admonition of the Lord and pray the Lord would grant them a heart to believe. Perhaps the Lord would be merciful and allow the fruit of these efforts lead to a nation of mostly Christians in a future generation - at least for a time?

If I’m honest, I personally wouldn’t be opposed to a group of Christians doing as the Puritans did and relocating to a new land abroad to build a Christian society from scratch. At least then everyone involved would be willing participants in our faith practice. But even with this idea, we will not please the Lord if we simply run away and isolate ourselves from the world.

We’d still need to leave our Christian society and engage in missions, as the Great Commission commands. We are called to be light in the MIDST of darkness. Even if we fled America to escape persecution, we’d still providentially find ourselves in yet another place that needs the Gospel. For if isolationism were God’s will for us, He wouldn’t have needed to pray for us as follows:

“I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.” (John 16:14-15).

Jesus prayed that we not be taken out of the world, but that we be protected from the evil one - meaning that we not lose our faith and be given over to his deception- because the reality is, he is the ruler of this age, this world is passing away and lawlessness is abounding in these last days. Christ and his Apostles made that extremely clear.

And, contrary to Christian Nationalist belief, not only do we not “win down here”, our reward won’t be gained until we die. Christ said that down here, faithful Christians are destined to be hated because the world first hated Him (John 15:18-20). In this life, faithful Christians are guaranteed persecution and trouble (2 Timothy 3:12; John 16:33; Mark 10:30). Down here, according to the world system, Christians are “the least of these” (Matthew 25:40). My Christian Nationalist friends refer to these realities as “loser theology”, but if this were so, they’d also be calling Jesus a “loser”. Our Lord offered Himself to be crucified by His own creation, and those of us in Him, if we will one day share in His glory, we must also now share in His sufferings (Romans 8:17-18; Philippians 1:29).

Certainly, the Lord can keep us and grant us reprieves from hurt, harm and danger as He wills (Matthew 26:51-53; 2 Corinthians 1:3-11). He would even spare an entire nation of pagans for the sake of ten of us dwelling among them, according to His will (Genesis 18:16-33). This alone proves we don’t need to be the majority or in leadership to help “save America”.

In the end, the world system in general, and the government in particular, isn’t something we are here to exert authority over. Instead, we are to submit to our governing authorities, only respectfully deviating where their commands require our explicit disobedience to Christ. And establishing America as a Christian nation through government takeover would be explicit disobedience to Christ in at least three ways 1) again, He’s already told us His kingdom is not of this world, 2) His Great Commission commands us to take the Gospel to the nations and disciple those who believe it and 3) He’s told us to obey our government, which in our case shall make no law with respect to establishing a state religion.

It doesn’t matter that we dwell in a secular state. We retain the right to exercise our faith, but even if our government were to deny us this right, we have God’s permission to do so according to His commands. Amen!

So, as a final question to my Christian Nationalist friends, what exactly can Christian Nationalism accomplish that can’t already be achieved by merely being a Christian in this nation?

I look forward to your responses.