Meaningless! Ecclesiastes vs. My Permanent Mid-Life Crisis

If you read this blog regularly, you probably know my story.  That is, my journey from death to life in Christ.

So it won't surprise you to learn that I’m new to reading the Bible.  This means I'd never read most of it, including the entire Book of Ecclesiastes -- that is, until just recently.  I must admit ... I was initially shocked and confused by its starkly negative tone!

Truly, when I thought of this book, the only thing that readily came to mind was chapter 3: “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:  a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot…”  Honestly, this was the only part I knew.

But a Bible-reading plan is pushing me into uncharted territory, so a couple of weeks back I found myself starting into Chapter 1 of this cryptic text.  I didn't get very far. Verse 2 stopped me cold:

Meaningless!  Meaningless!” says the Teacher.  “Utterly meaningless!  Everything is meaningless. 

Great.  This had to be the most confusing Bible verse I had ever read (and that's saying something).  I pressed on, finishing the first chapter.  It wasn't getting any better.  Really?  This was supposed to be "wisdom"?  Why did I have to read this just before bed?

But to fully grasp the depths of my confusion, I need to take you back ...

Most of my life was characterized by a search for truth -- the meaning of my existence.  Finally, joyfully, I had come to believe in the Bible as Truth.  Now here was this ... this "Teacher" telling me that it's all “a chasing after the wind”.

How was I supposed to feel about that?  Or this:

Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun – all your meaningless days.  For this is your lot in life and in your toilsome labor under the sun.  Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom. (Ecclesiastes 9:9-10)

I didn’t like where this was going, so I stopped reading.  I didn’t know what possible lesson I could learn from these depressing passages.  Fortunately, I wasn't reading alone.  I was accountable, and had the help of someone who'd been there before. My mentor gave me both encouragement and context, which helped me to plunge back in.

In fact, it helped me learn to love, love, LOVE this book!  One lesson stood out for me:

We all have the same destiny.  

We all live our lives here on earth, 

and we will all die.

For as long as I can remember I'd been terrified of dying. I feared I would simply vanish from this earth as if I'd never been here, with no real legacy to leave behind.  I looked at others' accomplishments to measure mine, to see if my life had any value.  It pained me to think about how far behind I was, especially when I compared myself with those whom I looked up to.

Or perhaps "envied" is a better word:

And I saw that all labor and all achievement spring from man’s envy of his neighbor.  This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. (Ecc. 4:4)

Frankly, I seemed to be stuck in a permanent mid-life crisis.  I was indeed "chasing after the wind."

Ecclesiastes brought it all home to me.  The "Teacher" taught me that I can live ANY life I want to:  “Be happy, young man, while you are young, and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth.  Follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see…”  But I MUST understand that “… for all these things God will bring you to judgment.” (Ecc. 11: 9-10).

For most of my life, I have been searching and fearing, but never understanding what it was that I needed to do.  Then I read the last two verses of Ecclesiastes, and there it all was:

Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of ALL mankind.

For God will bring every deed into judgment,

including every hidden thing,

whether it is GOOD

or EVIL.

(Ecc. 12:13-14)

I will die.  We will all die someday.  All we’ve done to make ourselves known in this world will eventually disappear.  Who we are in the memories of others will fade away.  I’ve always had an issue with death because I didn’t think I'd done enough to be remembered.  That’s all meaningless.  I know now.  As Rich Mullins said: "... if my life is motivated by my ambition to leave a legacy, what I'll probably leave as a legacy is ambition."

The Teacher of Ecclesiastes taught me that I must move forward from here, to do what will truly matter: “Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind.”  This is MY duty.  It is the only one with eternal value.

I never understood before when my Christian friends said to me that they were “ready to die”.  It simply made no sense to me before.  But now I find I am finally content in knowing this simple truth: I am a child of God, and I am saved by His grace.

I can say it now:  I am ready to die ... which means now I can truly live.

"For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain." 

(Philippians 1:21)

Porn: A Wake-Up Call

The church had better wake up.  In last year's post on this topic, I noted:

This sin is not going away. In fact, this year someone is making $100 billion by victimizing 30,000 of us every second and terrorizing its employees. They will make more next year. Who's stopping them? Virtually nobody. 

I should caveat that there is a nascent movement pushing back against the porn industry. I was encouraged to see the influential nonprofit TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) highlight the rapidly growing evidence that porn effectively rewires the user's brain in harmful ways during a Glasgow conference last year.  It's worth watching in full:



By directly addressing this metastasizing cancer, TED joins secular social media campaigns such as Pornography Harms and Fight the New Drug in a small but growing counterattack on the porn behemoth.  More is needed, and the church needs to step up to the challenge.  Playing defense on this issue is a loser.  We need to go on the offensive, starting by talking openly and often about this problem.

The Beverly LaHaye Institute helps by compiling a list of 10 facts we need to know and talk about (from the report, 10 Harms of Pornography):

• Pornography is addictive - The anatomy and physiology of the brain changes, and those who watch pornography crave more.
• Pornography warps perceptions - Viewers of pornography think violence and degradation are normal and enjoyable
• Pornography harms children - Not only are children viewing pornography, but some are victims of child rapists and pornographers because of it
• Pornography is increasingly violent and degrading - Pornography desensitizes viewers, leading them to seek more violent and degrading images
• Pornography ruins marriages - Using pornography is a pathway to infidelity and divorce.
• Pornography use can lead to impotency - Pornography addicts can suffer loss of libido, impotence, and ability to perform with real women.
• Pornography objectifies women - Surgically and digitally enhanced women are the norm in pornography. 
• The use of pornography leads to aggressive behavior - Viewers of violent pornography believe women enjoy rape and other deviant behaviors, leading to acts of sexual aggression, violence, and controlling behaviors.
• Pornography is linked to sex trafficking - Victims are forced to appear in pornography, and traffickers use pornography to train sex slaves, including children who will be used for child pornography.
• Pornography is not protected free speech - “This much has been categorically settled by the Court, that obscene material is unprotected by the First Amendment,” Miller v. California (1973).

For the church I add this:

Can there be any doubt that we are already seriously infected? Our kids, our men, more women than we think, and yes ... our pastors and leaders are increasingly falling prey to this extremely aggressive and calculating industry.  This sin is so very deadly because the Internet has made it so accessible and anonymous--all you need is a computer, a tablet, even a smartphone (still think your kid's not exposed?).

The result is that suffering from porn addiction in shameful silence is the norm.  Embarrassment is a satanic tactic to keep us cravenly addicted and quiet.  Unless the church talks frankly and openly about this, it will only get worse.  We simply must create an environment of clear, bold teaching and safe places for our people to come forward, confess, repent, and be restored.

Conversations on Same-Sex Marriage

It was a busy week on social media, and I got lost in a number of conversations sparked by the topic du jour.  Many profiles had turned pink and red in the manner shrewdly concocted by Human Rights Campaign, the LGBT advocacy group, while the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in two cases involving same-sex marriage (SSM).

Facebook is an interesting venue for such conversations, because people who would not normally interact on such topics are mashed together into a common forum.  I am something of a Facebook warrior, insofar as I am perhaps more willing than some to mix it up on a variety of hot-button topics.  So to give you an idea of how this goes, here's a sample:

An Ideology's Search for a Validating Theology

When one non-Christian (but theologically informed) friend of mine suggested this article by Eric Smith on the Patheos "Progressive Christian Channel,"  I thought it deserved response.  To begin with, I felt Mr. Smith's approach was haphazard rather than systematic, and I said so:

Actually I find this one to be a confused mess--an ideology in a rather random search for a validating theology. Mr. Smith does not approve of the text as plainly written, so he takes a shotgun approach toward discrediting it. The strategy is "it doesn't say what you think it says." Or maybe "It's just old and needs to be updated." Or perhaps "Science says something else." If not, then "God is love and love is awesome." He also seems to be confused about the meaning of the word "normative". The fact that there are OT biblical examples of certain practices (including polygamy) does not make them normative. In fact, nearly all OT polygamous marriages in Scripture yield results ranging from poor to disastrous (including such luminaries as Abraham, Jacob, David and Solomon). For clarity you need to locate didactic passages (rather than anecdotes), which he hand-waves with vague references to "original language" and "matters of interpretation".
Mr. Smith also gives away his guiding ideology when he chooses the latest advocacy buzz-word, "marriage equality", to describe the issue, rather than a more neutral term such as "homosexual marriage". Moreover, he treats as significant the Facebook-silence of his ideological opponents and attributes it to their fear that they are wrong. Perhaps it is instead their concern that Facebook is a poor venue for reasoned debate, as it tends to invite angry shout-downs ("Hater"! "Bigot!" "Homophobe!") rather than serious, respectful discussion. I'm afraid I've seen it too many times ...
My real point about Mr. Smith's article is that it is not a theological defense, but rather a scatter-shot of his various thoughts and impulses. Of course, the same could rightly be said of my article (though I don't claim to be a theologian), which suggests both of us are writing to our own constituencies.

This last point is worth dwelling on, as my own "Eight Propositions" fall far short of a thorough theological examination of the topic (for this I recommended my friend read "Homosexuality According to the Bible" over on Soul Device). This is significant because there really isn't a pro-homosexuality position to be argued from Scripture, so advocates generally are reduced to trying to poke holes in the Bible's multiple and obvious censures of homosexual acts, or blithely stating, like Mr. Smith: “'God is love,' scripture says. Where love flourishes, God is pleased. This three-word sentence is as simple as theology and Biblical interpretation get. God is love."

As I said, this is "an ideology in a rather random search for a validating theology".

Legal and Public Policy Consequences

In a more general vein, I shared an article from Heritage on "The Consequences of Redefining Marriage: Eroding Marital Norms."  I was interested in this because of the question of whether you can "legislate morality".  One of my more libertarian friends objected that, "If two people love each other and want to get married, more power to them. It is none of my business."  Here my response therefore gravitated toward the public policy demerits:

[T]here are real sociological impacts to redefining this pre-existent institution that don't require religious faith to comprehend. As the author notes, civilizations have been built for millenia on the basic foundation of family structure, basically defined as two parents raising biological children. This is not to say that other family structures are illegitimate (I have an adopted daughter, whom I love dearly), but rather that biological families are the basic, natural building blocks. Over time our society has sought to systematically replace that structure with alternatives (such as normalizing out-of-wedlock births, divorce, extended adolescence, and substituting family responsibilities with government institutions), much to the detriment of children specifically, and society more generally. Previously, government sought to reinforce the biological family as the foundation, though support has eroded recently. What you have expressed is the belief that marriage is basically about companionship rather than about the formation of biological family groups upon which to build healthy societies. I don't believe that same-sex marriage is itself the end of civilization--rather, it is another large step in the direction of societal disintegration brought upon by the erosion of its basic building block.

A fellow believer then weighed in to observe that "Every law ever written was to regulate some form of sin." To this I responded:

One could say that laws against theft "legislate morality", but the reason for them is to protect private property. Similar rationale applies to laws against murder, child pornography, and sex trafficking. All are moral issues, but the reason for the laws is to protect something (life, children, women ...). Laws which set aside heterosexual marriage for special treatment are not constructed for moral reasons, but because the state takes an interest in promoting the formation of natural, biological family units as the basic societal structures. The state does this because it judges those structures to be elemental to healthy society, not because it is moral to do so. People may disagree with that choice, but they should at least not confuse the rationale as being a theocratic impulse.

Is Same-Sex Marriage the Modern Equivalent of Interracial Marriage?

Later, a politically liberal Christian friend of mine observed that her interracial marriage was once considered illegal and unbiblical in many quarters, and then drew the popular parallel.  This led me to challenge the merits of her argument as a logical matter:

Racial equality is the analogy SSM advocates have been pushing--successfully, it turns out. The question is whether the analogy holds true ... In this case, the analogy is attractive: the civil rights case seems obvious and elicits powerful emotions ... Objections to SSM are often overwhelmed by the fear of being caught on the wrong side of history. There may be no stigma as great as being considered a bigot! ... 
This is the reason I bring up the "false analogy" issue, which goes like this: "P and Q are similar in respect to properties a, b, and c. Object P has been observed to have further property x. Therefore, Q probably has property x also." In this case, the idea is that opponents of interracial marriage (P) and same-sex marriage (Q) made arguments that appear similar in certain respects (a, b and c). Interracial marriage opponents have been shown to be wrong (x), therefore SSM opponents must also be wrong (also x). This can break down in several places, especially that which says the arguments share some characteristics, therefore they must be interchangeable, but it does not account for other characteristics (d, e, f, etc.) which are dissimilar. This is why the "false analogy" is listed among the logical fallacies. 

So what is the point of sharing all this?  The fact is that many of us feel bewildered by how rapidly public opinion seems to have shifted recently to accepting the idea that homosexuality is "normal" and SSM is a civil rights matter.   Perhaps we should not be, because much groundwork has already been laid by the dissolution of marriage as a permanent institution in our society.  The fact is, marriage has never been less important to Americans, so here we are.


The Church's Response

So what should the church do?  Ultimately, it all comes back to "Exalt Christ, Make Disciples".  The terms of the debate have been set by the culture, which has grown up out of the now-poisoned soil of spiritual decay, which has been decades (at least) in the making.  The church will certainly need to see to its own, because we have certainly been infiltrated already by this ideology.  Many of our youth in particular are likely to have already bought into the world's system, and are ignorant of the Bible's teaching.

At the same time, we need to be ready to make a defense of the truth in a variety of ways, of which the above represent a few.  This is difficult, because the tenor of the current discussion is such that Christians are very much on the defensive, as we wither under accusations of bigotry.

A fellow believer recently posted a video of Rev. Tim Keller, for whom I have much respect and with whose positions on this topic I agree.  He deals very sensitively with the issue and seems to disarm a potentially hostile crowd with tact and grace:


Even so, I told my friend I found fault with Rev. Keller's presentation, because it seemed to me that this same determination to be tactful seemed to muddy the waters:

I think I know what he was trying to say, but he seemed so eager to show himself as tolerant that he never really seemed to get around to the real issues. He almost seemed to be saying homosexuality was not sinful and that sin is not grounds for judgment, which I'm sure is not what he intended to say. I also felt his framing the question as about "my church" instead of all Christians was confusing. I would have rather he framed it in terms of what the Bible clearly teaches. At some point you do have to deal with 1 Cor 6:9 and 1 Tim 1:10, as unpleasant as that can be in today's society, because you don't want the audience walking out thinking you're saying homosexuality is no big deal. So back to the question, "Will homosexuality send you to hell?" Yes, of course it will, as will any other sin without the saving work of Jesus expressed through personal faith and repentance ... which is why part of loving our neighbors involves lovingly telling them the truth, so that they know that faith and repentance are necessary. We really don't need to make it too much more complicated than that, or it just comes out tortured and confusing.

This "tortured and confusing" interaction demonstrates the problem of trying to speak truth in love to a world that has so fundamentally changed the very language of the discussion.  How do we truly "love our neighbors" by speaking the truth, when they stand so ready to accuse us of "hate" for doing so? The answer is ... well, it's easier said than done!

The bottom line is that I'm still working my way through this matter:  how did we get here, and what should we do now?  I invite you to share in the discussion by posting your comments below ...

He Has Risen Indeed!

Resurrection Sunday!  Time to take a break and remember ...

Joy to the world! He has risen! Alleluia!

    

Thanks for the reminder, Keith.  I look forward to meeting you in glory when this life is through!

By Faith: The Limits of Christian Apologetics

... for we walk by faith, not by sight. (2 Corinthians 5:7)

Except ... well, frankly, I'd really rather walk by sight.  Sorry ... but I'm just keepin' it real, y'know?

In 1972, Josh McDowell published his landmark apologetic, Evidence that Demands a Verdict.  In the 4 decades since, the book has been repeatedly revised, republished, amended, appended, attacked and defended.  McDowell's method emphasizes archaeological and documentary proof of the Bible's historical accuracy, which is important and abundant.  It is not--indeed, no amount of evidence can ever be--dispositive.  In other words, we will NEVER prove our case, even to our own satisfaction, by any apologetic method. Period.

Let me explain it another way.  I have often thought how much easier it would be to believe God--and conclusively prove His truths to others--if I could see one really impressive, knock-your-socks-off miracle.  I don't know, maybe something like this:

Moses and Aaron did as the Lord commanded. In the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants he lifted up the staff and struck the water in the Nile, and all the water in the Nile turned into blood. (Exodus 7:20)

Yes, that would do it!  Just one like that and my testimony would be set for life!  Of course, apparently neither that, nor plagues of frogs, gnats, flies, death of the livestock, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, or the death of the firstborn served to get through to Pharaoh.  But his was a special case, yes?  After all, He was raised up for that very purpose!

Now the people of Israel--God's chosen people--they had all that and more!  Where shall I start?  Pillars of fire and cloud.  Red Sea, parted.  Pharaoh's army, swamped.  Manna from Heaven.  Water from rocks.  Fireworks at Mount Sinai.  Shall I go on?  If ever there was a people with an abundance of proof of Yahweh's supremacy, this was the generation.  No need to check the documents or dig for clues.  They were set for life!

Er, except how'd that work out exactly?

For who were those who heard and yet rebelled? Was it not all those who left Egypt led by Moses? And with whom was he provoked for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient? So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief. (Hebrews 3:16-19)

The fact is simply this:  sight cannot replace faith.  At most, it purchases a temporary enthusiasm, as it did when Christ walked the earth and performed many miracles to the delight of crowds.  Yet these same crowds abruptly rejected, deserted, and called for the execution of the miracle-worker.  Like tepid fans turning on a losing team, they jumped off the bandwagon as soon as things got tough.

Don't get me wrong--I believe there is abundant evidence that testifies to the truth of Scripture.  I believe our faith is solidly substantiated and extremely reasonable!  Moreover, the Scripture makes clear that we need to stand ready to contend intelligently and persuasively for our faith. In other words, Christian apologetics is an important and necessary endeavor, because it demonstrates that our faith is firmly rooted in objective reality, not a blind leap into some fantastic alternate universe.

But apologetics cannot resolve doubt and unbelief.  These are ultimately spiritual maladies that can't be cured with applications of more and better evidence.  My testimony would certainly be more spectacular if I could engage in a little water-walking or produce never-before-seen video of Jesus' resurrection, but that does not mean it would ultimately be more effective.  Once again, there is no amount of sight that can penetrate the hardness of men's hearts.  Only the regenerative power of the Holy Spirit is sufficient for that!

So by all means, contend intelligently for the faith!  Engage the minds of men by testifying to the weight of the evidence and the reasonableness of Scriptural truth.  Just remember, we will never successfully debate the world into the Kingdom of God, nor will we ever finally resolve our own nagging doubts by mastering the apologia.  The wisdom of God will ever be foolishness to the carnal mind, for faith does not come by sight. It comes by the life-giving power of God's Spirit!

For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. (1 Corinthians 1:22-25)

Youth Ministry FAIL: The Church's 70% Dropout Rate

Happy, well adjusted ...
and out of the church within 5 years

How's your church's youth ministry going?  Before you answer that question, look beyond the crowded Wednesday night gathering with its rockin' Praise Band and the hip youth pastor who can "get real" with the kids.  Instead, look at the post-high-school dropout rate.  Where are those kids 5 years after graduation?

Statistics say 70% of them will have left the church.  Seventy percent. 

That's a very big number, and is going to include a lot of "great kids" who seem to be "on fire" during their teen years.  That also means the church is badly failing to equip our kids.  We've traded in disciple-making for the long term in favor of the short-term satisfaction of seeing happy kids in church.

If you haven't been there already, get over to Marc5Solas and absorb his observations on what is happening to our kids after they leave the church.  It's well worth reading in full, but I'll give you the condensed version here.

In short, we're working so hard to get our kids to emote for Jesus, that we're sending them out without even a rudimentary understanding of why they should.  We want so badly for them to see our Christianity as accepted and cool, that they trade in our phony hipness for the world's better product.  In other words, we're not teaching them Scripture.  We're targeting them with relevant-sounding messages by relevant-looking people and begging them to feel good about being Christians.  This is utterly inadequate, and a very thin reed on which to build authentic faith over the long term.

Now, the job isn't easy.  The American family--both inside and outside of the church--is a shattered mess.  I'd venture to say that most parents aren't looking for the kids they drop off at Youth Group to receive Biblical instruction.  To the extent they know what they want, they're looking for someone to entertain them in a safe, healthy, and positive environment ... or they want someone to fix them so they can survive high school without permanent damage.  They get little spiritual reinforcement at home.  Frankly, many of them are practically orphans ... at least spiritually.  So the church has a tall order to meet the need that presents itself.

But therein lies the temptation. There are lots of safe, healthy and positive environments.  Scouting, Boys & Girls Clubs, sports, after-school programs ... if the church is trying to compete with these we have already lost our way, because our mission and our message are utterly different from theirs.  Let them specialize in practical life skills for this world.  We preach Christ and Him crucified for eternity!  Or we're supposed to ...

It's great to focus on community, but community for what purpose?  Lots of organizations offer community.  As Francis Chan once said, "This is why I didn't believe in 'fellowship' before, because I didn't need any more 'friends'." Yet that is precisely what many of our youth programs most specialize in delivering--happy, well-adjusted kids in church.

Read Marc's crushing conclusion.  We've passed down a "faith" they simply don't need:

Our kids are smart. They picked up on the message we unwittingly taught. If church is simply a place to learn life-application principals to achieve a better life in community … you don’t need a crucified Jesus for that. Why would they get up early on a Sunday and watch a cheap knockoff of the entertainment venue they went to the night before? The middle-aged pastor trying desperately to be “relevant” to them would be a comical cliché if the effect weren’t so devastating. As we jettisoned the gospel, our students are never hit with the full impact of the law, their sin before God, and their desperate need for the atoning work of Christ. Now THAT is relevant, THAT is authentic, and THAT is something the world cannot offer.

We’ve traded a historic, objective, faithful gospel based on God’s graciousness toward us for a modern, subjective, pragmatic gospel based upon achieving our goal by following life strategies. Rather than being faithful to the foolish simplicity of the gospel of the cross we’ve set our goal on being “successful” in growing crowds with this gospel of glory. This new gospel saves no one. Our kids can check all of these boxes with any manner of self-help, life-coach, or simply self-designed spiritualism … and they can do it more pragmatically successfully, and in more relevant community. They leave because given the choice, with the very message we’ve taught them, it’s the smarter choice.

Our kids leave because we have failed to deliver to them the faith “delivered once for all” to the church. I wish it wasn’t a given, but when I present law and gospel to these kids, the response is the same every time: “I’ve never heard that.” I’m not against entertaining our youth, or even jumbotrons, or pizza parties (though I probably am against middle aged guys trying to wear skinny jeans to be “relevant).. it’s just that the one thing, the MAIN thing we’ve been tasked with? We’re failing. We’ve failed God and we’ve failed our kids. Don’t let another kid walk out the door without being confronted with the full weight of the law, and the full freedom in the gospel.

"This new gospel saves no one."  Well, at least 30% stick around to see what happens next.

Faith, Patriotism, and Ultimate Allegiance

I have spent a good deal of time over the past year considering the proper intersection between faith and patriotism for the Christian.  Bottom line:  can a Christian also be a patriot? In other words, how much can and should a Christian love his country?

On parade with a few of my friends, March 2011

Does that sound provocative?  After all, most people would consider me very patriotic.  I've worn my country's uniform for over 26 years, and have solemnly sworn to "uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies."  I have deployed into two combat zones.  I have twice marched proudly down Constitution Avenue in our National Independence Day Parade.

On the other hand, a Christian surely has a higher allegiance!  Scripture leaves no doubt that our ultimate fidelity is owed to our Eternal King, not any temporal one.  For this reason, many evil governments throughout history have oppressed and persecuted the church, fearful of what disruption unwavering allegiance to God might bring to despotic rule.

So how does this play out?  Does my country have reason to doubt my fidelity?  Let us consider an analogy (with the usual caveat that there's no such thing as a "perfect analogy"):

In a Christian marriage, each spouse's primary devotion must be to God. If they put one another over Him, they are guilty of idolatry.  Does that make them less devoted?  In fact, exactly the opposite!  The love and fidelity I give my wife is strengthened by loving Christ first.  He both commands and empowers it, pushing it beyond where I, in my natural selfishness, would prefer to turn inward.  He thereby makes my marriage to withstand many storms and failings--both hers and my own.  By loving God first, I love my wife better.

The same principle holds true of my country.  My willingness to be America's good and trustworthy citizen, to serve her well and faithfully, and even to lay down my life in her defense, is undergirded by my belief that in doing so I obey, honor and serve God.

Now, it is true that our allegiance to God may at some point bring us into direct conflict with the government.  This has happened throughout history, even in America.  Christians must be willing to disobey our earthly rulers when they attempt to force us into disobedience to our Heavenly King--such as refusing the right to worship and make disciples as we have been commanded, as occurs in many places even today.  We may even be called to engage in civil disobedience to voice our objection to grievous wrongs, such as human slavery or (more currently) abortion.  In other words, we need to know when it is time to stand and say, "We must obey God rather than men!" (Acts 5:29)

On the other hand, we need to be careful and choose our battles wisely.  The church frequently loses its way when it becomes so concerned with earthly government that it forgets its primary calling.  The freedom to worship freely is not the same as demanding civil society conform to our beliefs or value them above others.  While we can and should certainly advocate and vote for godly institutions and outcomes, God has not called upon the church to expend our best energies to perfect our secular governments.  That would truly be a tall order.  In fact, the church would do well to first examine our own legion imperfections, removing the plank in our own eye.  Purifying ourselves is hard enough, and more clearly our direct responsibility.

The Apostle Paul gives us the guidelines for our understanding of worldly governments. Besides flatly calling for our obedience (Everyone must submit ... The authorities that exist have been established by God ... pay taxes ... respect ... honor.  Romans 13:1-7), he also tells us how to pray for them:  I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. (1 Timothy 2:1-2)

So then, when we have a government which will allow us to live out our faith peaceably, we have much to be thankful for.  And remember, Paul wrote this at a time when there were no "Christian" governments on the face of the earth!  In other words, he wrote this at a time when governments were far more oppressive, corruptible, and tyrannic than most of us who live in 21st century democracies are likely to encounter.

So can a Christian be a patriot?  Absolutely ... in fact, the very best kind of patriot.  The Christian is one who believes in godly obedience to every authority He has established ... but also believes in just and right governance, and therefore is willing to take a stand to obey God rather than men when necessary!

In short, I return to my favorite musician-poet, Rich Mullins, for a healthy perspective on Christian love for & allegiance to country:

Nobody tells you when you get born here
How much you'll come to love it
And how you'll never belong here
So I'll call you my country
But I'm lonely for my home
And I wish that I could take you there with me