God’s chosen nation? We can’t have it both ways

By Dr. Doyle Sager

Since Puritan John Winthrop preached his famous 1630 sermon about America being a city on a hill, shining for all the world to see, our nation has sensed the great blessings of Providence. Unfortunately, some have found it a short step to the idea that we are God’s new chosen nation. I don’t have space here to list all the theological and historical problems with “America equals the Israelites of Hebrew scriptures.” Debates about American exceptionalism will continue to swirl.

But for argument’s sake, let’s suppose that our country is at the top of God’s most favored nation list. Such a privilege comes with a warning label. Blessings come with obligations. Grace is always accompanied by demand. John Winthrop knew that. In that oft-quoted sermon, he declared that a Christian presence in New England should set an example of communal charity, affection and unity to the world. If the Puritans failed to uphold their covenant with God, “we shall be made a story and a by-word through the world,” a story that would culminate in God’s judgment. Strange. That part of his sermon doesn’t get quoted nearly as often.

This two-pronged reality of privilege and responsibility goes all the way back to our faith’s origin. Hear Yahweh’s summons to Abraham: “I will bless you….and in you all the families of the earth will be blessed” (Genesis 12:2-3). In fact, most of our First Testament is the tragic narrative of how Israel failed to live up to her role as moral example and light to the nations. When Israel-Judah lived for herself, she decayed.

If you’re hungry for a fresh dose of irony, read the Book of Jonah, a four-act play which unmasks the ugly face of selfish nationalism — a perverted patriotism which disdained other people groups. By contrast, the breathtaking vision of the prophet Isaiah pictures a time when all the peoples of the earth will be blessed and Israel will fulfill her messianic task of pointing other nations to justice and peace.

This preferred future isn’t naïve prattle, expecting all of us to agree on policy details. But being a leader-nation is not first of all about controlling the content of national debates; it is about setting the tone. Whether the conversation is about racial justice, earth care, immigration, food security, the centrality of family or the sanctity of life — America should be the moral exemplar to the world by the way we frame the issues. All life matters. We live in a web of relationships in which morality matters. The world watches. And listens.

Going it alone and despising “those other people” may make a great movie script but it is not the Judeo-Christian story line. Simply put, America can’t have it both ways. We can’t aspire to greatness while jettisoning our global responsibilities. If we want to be great, we must be good.

Dr. Doyle Sager serves as senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Jefferson City, Mo.

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