Posted Dec 14, 2020 by Michael L. Brown

This past Sunday morning, Beth Moore tweeted, “I do not believe these are days for mincing words. I’m 63 1/2 years old & I have never seen anything in these United States of America I found more astonishingly seductive & dangerous to the saints of God than Trumpism. This Christian nationalism is not of God. Move back from it.” Was she right in raising these concerns?

Before we can respond, let’s put aside the question of whether you are a Beth Moore fan or not. To some, she is a beloved and faithful teacher of the Word. To others, she has become “soft.” That is not the issue here. The issue is the substance of her words.

We also need to define what is meant by “Christian nationalism” (although we cannot say with certainty this is exactly what Moore meant).

Are you a Christian nationalist simply because you love and appreciate America? No.

Are you a Christian nationalist simply because you are patriotic and serve in the military? No.

Are you a Christian nationalist simply because you believe Trump was better for America than Biden? No.

Are you a Christian nationalist simply because you believe there was electoral fraud and are doing your best to fight for a free and fair election? No.

Are you a Christian nationalist simply because you believe that America must protect our religious liberties? No.

Are you a Christian nationalist simply because you believe that God raised up America for special purposes in order to bless and help the world? No.

But you are a Christian nationalist if you confuse loyalty to your country with loyalty to the kingdom of God.

You are a Christian nationalist if you wrap the gospel in an American flag.

You are a Christian nationalist if you “merge Christian and American identities” (as stated here; readers might have differences with other statements on this site).

As defined by Pastor Jeremie Beller, “Christian nationalism is the intertwining of the Kingdom of God with the kingdoms of men. In the American context, it is often displayed by describing America through language reserved for the Kingdom of God. . . . The marriage between patriotism and righteousness further blurs the line between the Kingdom of God and the kingdoms of the world.”

To be sure, much of the attack against “Christian nationalism” comes from left-leaning thinkers, as can be seen in some critiques of the concept.

For example, according to Andrew Whitehead and Samuel Perry, authors of Taking America Back for God: Christian Nationalism in the United States, “Christian nationalism merely uses the Bible to impose its conservative political agenda. By asserting that they are true followers of Christ in a country that is founded on Christian principles, adherents of Christian nationalism can brand their political opponents as both ungodly and un-American.

“By playing the role of an oppressed minority, Christian nationalism adds moral strength to its position while hiding the truth that its ideology is aging out and driving young people away through its intolerance.”

But putting aside these critiques, which we are often reacting against when stating our positions, is there substance to Beth Moore’s tweet?

In my view, the answer is absolutely yes. Many Christian conservatives today are equating the fate of America with the fate of God’s kingdom, making one party (obviously, the Republican Party) into God’s party and the other party (obviously, the Democratic Party) into Satan’s party.

That’s why, on Saturday, prayer rallies for election integrity were scheduled together with “Jericho Marches” in key, swing-state cities.

This was not simply a display of patriotism. This was not just a public demonstration against perceived injustices. This was not just a show of support for Donald Trump. This was about the kingdom of God advancing. The two have become merged as one.

That’s why a “peaceful protest and prayer march [that] took place in Washington, DC Saturday where participants rallied for America's election system to be free from fraud and corruption” was called, “Let the Church ROAR.”

That’s why a victory for Trump (even before the elections were contested) meant a victory for Jesus. (All the more is this true now that there is a widespread perception that the election was stolen.)

And that’s why I tweeted, “As a Trump voter, I must say candidly that it is very troubling to see many American Christians far more mobilized for Trump than they have ever been mobilized for Jesus.”

The problem is that the differences between being Christians who love America and Christian nationalists are often subtle, since we have many shared values (such as being pro-life).

Many sincere believers would also ask, “Should we just stand back and let our country be destroyed? Should we let democracy be crushed forever? Should we simply hand over our nation to corrupt leaders? Should we not stand up and fight for what is right?”

Certainly not. We should fight for what is right and against what is wrong.

But the cause of Trump is not the cause of Christ, nor is the battle for the Senate a battle for the kingdom of God.

America, like every other nation on the planet, is part of the world system (or, in New Testament terms, part of “the world”). It is not the kingdom of God, nor is it a special manifestation of the kingdom of God. In fact, God’s kingdom values are often diametrically opposed to the values of our country.

Let’s be real, my friends.

We have aborted more than 60 million babies since 1973. We lead the world in the making and exporting of pornography. Our murder rates are off the charts, as are our rates for teen drug use, teen promiscuity, and teen suicide. Much of our history has been marked by racial injustice, and we have as many radical elements on the right as we do on the left. And we have pushed LGBTQ extremism on other countries at the risk of them losing our financial support.

Need I say more?

To equate America with God’s kingdom or to merge the cross with the flag is to make a terrible and dangerous mistake. And that is the error of Christian nationalism.

The irony of all this is that if we would be kingdom-minded people first and foremost, we would bring the most blessing to America. If we would look at America as our mission field rather than our spiritual refuge, we would help our nation fulfill whatever plans the Lord has for us. And if we would exalt Jesus infinitely more than any political leader, we would best serve our country (and our leaders).

Has Beth Moore, then, gone soft? Is she becoming politically liberal? Those are not the questions I am asking here.

Is she right to warn about the dangerous rise of Christian nationalism in our country today? I say absolutely yes. (For the record, she also warned against falling into “Bidenism.”)

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Contend4Truth posted a comment · Dec 28, 2020
SteveW -- you make it sound like it is a foregone conclusion that there was election fraud in this election. Yet over 50 lawsuits failed to find anything worth going after. Time to give it a rest.
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SteveW posted a comment · Dec 16, 2020
Problem stevej713, is that Christians like yourself are suffering from cognitive dissonance. You have no issue (rightly in my opinion) with supporting the ideals of the Revolutionary War, the American Civil War or fighting the tyranny of the Nazis in WWII, but criticise today's Christian patriots who are fighting against the massive Election Fraud and the takeover of America by the globalist elites, who are gearing up to unleash untold harm on America and the world. And your response to this modern tyranny is to fold like a cheap suit! Unbelievable.
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stevej713 posted a comment · Dec 15, 2020
There certainly is a problem with excessive patriotism in the American church. Just from talking to my fellow believers, I can sense that too many of their hopes and fears are bound up in the United States and its political developments rather than the Kingdom of God. We are finally entering an era where one's Christian faith is something more than a societal value system or a set of family traditions. We will need to contend for Christ in our everyday lives, and just like the early church, we can't expect the government to be an instrument in that regard. Unfortunately, our country was founded on the fictional premise of virtuous government or institutional/cultural Christianity. Christianity is not cultural, it is not legislated, and it is not achieved through protest marches. God cares about our hearts infinitely more than he cares about the US Constitution.
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RAS posted a comment · Dec 15, 2020
Dr. Brown, with all due respect, how does the United States of America and the birth of liberty come to be realized in America without “Christian nationalists”? At St. John’s Church in Richmond in 1775, evangelist Patrick Henry, “The firebrand of the republic”, in opposing those who called for reconciliation with England cried out: “Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? … I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!”. Indeed! However, should we choose to address idolatry among Christians who put excessive hope in men, let us refrain from terminology framed by the left to create a stigma of fanaticism. The term, “Christians nationalists” is clearly crafted slam words created to cast patriotic Christians in a negative light. To put the issue in a more precise context; it would be clearer and more accurate by far to use a term like, “Christian Trumpism”, in reference to those whose faith is misplaced. We should be careful not to fall into the trap of allowing our enemies to coin slanderous terminologies with negative connotations to define us.
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RAS posted a comment · Dec 14, 2020
Creating a label, “Christian nationalism” is at least as seductive & dangerous to the saints of God, and to the existence of America as Trumpism. Space here will not permit to eleberate, so consider these points: (1) Where did nationalism come from? God instituted it when he divided the nations and scattered the people so they were not one under a satanic global rule at Babel. (2) Without nationalism there would be no biblical Israel in the bible as an example to the nations. (3) Nationalism is necessary for the preservation of a place for the people of God to spread the Gospel at home and abroad. I repeat, nationalism is of God, he created it. (4) The agenda of the Democrat party is Antichrist, it is Satan’s party. But who said the Republicans are the party of God? Christians don’t claim that. What is left of the Rs is the only place Christians can find a voice at all in the direction of the country. (5) Most of the fanatical Trumpsters who seem to worship him aren’t focused on God, many are gay, or drunkards, etc. etc, or are nominal Christians at best. Why should Trump supporting Christians be thrown in and defined by them? Most devout Christians have things in perspective and know God rules and he alone is salvation. (6) Creating a label “Christian nationalism” blurs the lines between fighting for your freedom and fanaticism. It creates a stigma to cast upon Christians who wish to preserve their nation and their liberties. (7) Most people are not serving God in either political party, to denounce those who are using the only viable vehicle available to them by accusing them of idolatry is damaging. (8) The term, “Christian national” is too broad and too judgmental to be used as a label since God is the judge of each and every single heart. For that reason alone it can only become a harmful cast.
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SteveW posted a comment · Dec 14, 2020
It may be true that some Christians are falling into Christian Nationalism, but to imply this is the majority position is frankly ridiculous. I think that most genuine Christians think that Trump has become almost incidental and are for the most part fighting against the imposition of what is patently an Anti-Christ system. In fact I am more concerned with Christians like yourself who seem incapable of recognising that huge Election Fraud has taken place and are blind to the risk that globalist policies (i.e. the Great Reset and the Great Covid Hoax) represent to the world. You should be more focussed on asking the Lord to rescue us from this evil than seeking out minor issues to assail Christians with.