Listen to the Word of God: 62 Scripture passages that refute 'Christian' Nationalism - #19: Matthew 26:52

The Vision of the Cross, 1520-24 by Raphael and his assistants

Matthew 26:52     New International Version

“Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him, “for all who draw the sword will die by the sword."

The History of the Church contains amazing highs of love, mercy, and justice, and horrific lows of hate, greed, and injustice.  As a rule of thumb, the more temporal power the Church has wielded, the worse it has behaved.  When the Church has had the power to put people to death, it has tortured and murdered in Christ's name.  

Prior to the famous vision of Constantine preceding his victory at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge in 312, the Church was a persecuted minority.  One generation later it began to wield the power of the Roman Empire, a change for the worse if ever there was one.  Now, nobody in their right mind would rather be a member of a persecuted minority instead of a member of the ruling elite, but those aren't the only two choices that were, and are, available to the Church.

In America today, 'Christian' Nationalism promises to give Christians the cudgel with which to beat down their enemies, enabling the Church to dominate society through the force of law whether its teachings are accepted by the citizens of the nation or not.  This proposed bargain has tremendous appeal to those who are scared about the future of the Church in America, promising to erase decades of change that they don't like.

But the promise is a hollow one, and also something that Jesus warned Peter against believing.  Having the whip-hand won't fill our churches again, it won't undo the sexual revolution, and it won't force God to bless America simply because prayer in school is once again mandatory. 

What it will do, instead, is make evangelism a more daunting task, drive yet more young people from a Church that in their eyes cares more about controlling than loving people, and offer up to Christians all the temptations associated with the love of power (its cousins in crime: lust and greed).

The sword?  It won't help you.