The biblical, two-kingdom way of celebrating the fourth
It’s the week of the Fourth of July, a time when Americans celebrate the freedoms that they have in this country. Sadly, many do not know how precious are the freedoms that this country has established for its citizens. America was the first place in history that “set free” the average citizen, to freely live “self-disciplined,” virtuous lives for family, Church, and community, motivated by their faith in God not coerced by government fiat. Think about the risk to set up a culture of “law and order” where people are “free to do the right thing.” What a concept! That’s what all the marching bands are about this week. That’s why there are celebratory fireworks. The Star-Spangled Banner is supposed to remind us that this kind of “freedom” had to be fought for, sacrificed for, and that’s what the stars and stripes are meant to embody too.
For many this is a purely secular, political event, as if there is nothing inherently spiritual to it at all. For others it is a deeply religious event that may even have millennial hopes and dreams conflating American freedoms to the very coming of the Kingdom of God. Both of those positions ultimately miss the point. For those who are secular, they miss the point that God is indeed at work to grant us this unique freedom, religious liberty, free-speech protection. Amazingly, God is preserving this country (Yes, God is at work even through “Caesar,” through government.) from our inherent selfishness and sinfulness through the various vocations of all freedom-loving people, often times in spite of ourselves. For the religious folks who blend the work of the Church and the State into one, they miss the absolute uniqueness of God’s Kingdom, created and inaugurated by the person and work of Jesus alone. His Kingdom is always not “of this world,” but it is “in this world” as a gift for all to receive solely by grace through faith in Him (see Jesus’ words in John 18:36).
So, is there another way to celebrate the Fourth of July? Is there a third way? Well, yes. We at the LCRL call it the two-kingdom way. It’s the way that Jesus defines in Matthew 22 when He says, “Give to Caesar, the things that are Caesar’s, and give to God the things that are God’s.” Later, He even reminds Pontius Pilate (one of Caesar’s boys) that the authority Pilate has in this world is also from God alone (John 19:11). For people who realize that God is at work two different ways, to preserve the world and to save the world, there is a way to celebrate the freedoms that all Americans cherish, even as we proclaim the unique freedoms that only Christ can give. For those who are two-kingdom people (those who know and learn to differentiate God’s work in the civil and the spiritual realms as His two different ways), it is a time to celebrate the unique liberties that God has made available to us in this country and to rejoice in the results of their wise, faithful use. While at the same time, we remember that even these liberties, as unique and wonderful as they are, are nothing compared to the eternal liberty that Christ earned on the cross for all. Our American liberties may form a “better union,” a more civil and tolerant and just society compared to others, but it is merely a band-aid fix that still yearns for God’s ultimate work, a work that only He can accomplish for all.
One of the reasons why the LCRL is in Washington is to contend for such a culture of freedom so that all might hear freely of the eternal freedom that only Christ can bring by His life, death, and resurrection. The LCRL works with many other like-minded groups on the Hill to ensure these God-given fundamental rights are respected for all (Everyone’s freedoms depend on that!), and to make sure that they are differentiated from God’s ultimate liberating work in Christ that can never be accomplished by politics, polity, or policy (Government cannot solve the big issues in humanity!). One can celebrate our liberties as Americans, even contend for and defend them, while differentiating them from the Gospel that alone can truly save.
Remember St. Paul in Acts 16 when he claimed his Roman citizenship and used it for his own protection, even as he sought to proclaim the Gospel for all to hear. Think about that when you put the hot dogs and hamburgers on the grill, or when you talk to your neighbors about cherishing your American freedoms, and the freedom that really matters in Jesus alone.
The Rev. Dr. Gregory Seltz is the executive director of the Lutheran Center for Religious Liberty.
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“Praise God! God Himself has brought us to this place and time. As the days grow darker, the truth about marriage shines ever brighter. As love grows cold, the warmth of hearth and home becomes ever more inviting. As the loneliness of social media enslaves, the ties that bind set us free. Unlike any time in human history, the simple act of human marriage is both the unspoken longing of every human heart, and a distinctly Christian confession.”
