I Pledge Allegiance . . .

The early Christians of the first century were declared “enemies of the State.” 

Can you imagine that?

All those living under Roman rule were forced to offer their allegiance to the State (Caesar). The Roman pledge was simple: 

”Caesar is Lord!”

Those first Christians understood the stakes involved in declaring that Jesus was their only Lord and not Caesar. They understood that crucifixion was the Empire’s way of dealing with unpatriotic zealots, revolutionaries, insurrectionists, those who disrupted the status quo, and those who refused to offer unconditional allegiance to the Emperor. 

Then the Apostle Paul, a Jewish Roman citizen who once persecuted Christians, wrote a letter to the Christians in Rome. In that letter he makes it quite clear to whom each Christian is to offer allegiance. 

This little three-word confession is the oldest extant baptismal confession available to us today. It simply states (Romans 10:9): 

“Jesus is Lord!”

Three simple words yet so powerfully meaningful.

When the early Christians were baptized this confession fell off of their lips and was also embedded deep within their hearts. 

But here’s the deal: 

To publicly utter the words, “Jesus is Lord” was also to also declare, “Caesar is not my Lord.”

To confess Jesus as Lord is to denounce Caesar as Lord. Such a confession was treasonous. We modern day American Christians too often overlook this historical fact about our first baptismal confession. We associate baptism with joining the church, a picture opportunity with grandparents present, and in so doing fail to grasp the dangerous and lethal political implications behind the confession.

Paul was quite clear as he writes to the Ephesians: 

“One faith, one Lord, one baptism.”

That’s right: “One Lord!” We Christians confess and serve only one Lord.

For the early Christians there was never any doubt who their Lord was and it wasn’t Caesar or his empire or any other prevailing political ideology. This is what led them to be considered enemies of the State."

It is sad that much of the American Christian Church today has allowed itself to be co-opted by the State. Many congregations see no conflict with flying the American Flag within their sacred worship spaces and in many cases rivaling the cross for the place of prominence within the sanctuary. 

Many congregations see no conflict with accepting tax-free exemptions from the government as if it was some expected entitlement. Has such an arrangement compromised the church's effectiveness in critiquing the State when necessary?

Today we witness so many memes on Facebook calling for our country to “get back to God” or to acknowledge “our need for God.” 

That’s all good and well but we don’t need God as much as we need to readjust our allegiance to Jesus Christ and reclaim our identity as followers of the crucified and resurrected Lord. This is who we are first and foremost. This Christ identity shapes whatever conditional loyalty we offer to our nation.

Of course this will not sit well with many Christians today and it’s not all their fault. Many, myself included, have been taught from birth that being an America and being a Christian is one and the same thing. God and country seems like a natural fit doesn't it?  But nothing could be further from the truth. Just ask the first Christians.

They paid the ultimate price with their lives for declaring Jesus as their only Lord and not Caesar. There was no question in their minds to whom they owed their unconditional allegiance. Many were executed as a consequence.

Patriotism is for many the highest ideal for any citizen. But for those who are citizens of God’s kingdom through Jesus the idea of being a fully unconditional nationalistic patriot is somewhat foreign to the Gospel. 

Unbridled or unfettered nationalism is extremely dangerous business. It can lead to bad places.

The Germans who witnessed the rise of Adolph Hitler to power in the middle part of the 20th century were blindsided by their own nationalistic fervor and don’t think for a moment that the Nazis didn’t use a nationalistic brand of Christianity as a means to further their ideological agenda.

One only needs to read the Cost of Discipleship by the German pastor Dietrich Bonheoffer to appreciate the dangers of compromising the Gospel for the sake of patriotic nationalism. The Nazis executed Bonheoffer near the end of WWII. Sometimes paying full allegiance to Jesus leads to unpleasant and unwanted consequences.

There is nothing wrong with loving one’s country and being a conditionally loyal citizen but we Christians owe our unconditional loyalty to Jesus Christ. I believe Christianity in America will continue to decline in both relevance and significance so long as our identity is muddled by unconditional allegiance to nationalism or patriotism or to a political ideology. 

In reclaiming our unique identity we may find ourselves unpopular or even despised, but this is indeed the cost of discipleship. Jesus invites us to follow him, even to the cross. We are called to offer allegiance to only one Lord and that is Jesus Christ.  

Let’s not forget that it was the Apostle Paul’s uncompromising and unconditional allegiance to the risen Christ that led him to a Roman execution. Jesus was his one and only Lord and it cost him his life.

As Christians our unconditional pledge is simple yet powerful:

“Jesus is Lord!”