[This is part 6 in a series on “pride in the scriptures.” See part one, two, three, four, five, seven, eight]

Leaving Egypt Ministries, Obadiah D. Morris

The statolatry—idolatry toward the State—in men is seemingly so common that they can somehow think that it’s an acceptable form of idolatry or pride, that God doesn’t really care about “Go America!” types but is more focused on something else. But as I have sufficiently shown, such statism—worship of the State and such political power systems as gods—is a principal form of pride and idolatry in the scriptures and is exactly what God is talking about. That so many men have fallen into the sin of statism does not somehow exempt it. Such pervasiveness, if anything, proves that this rampant worship of “governments” in our society is just what all the prophets were talking about when they had pronounced men to be in rebellion with God. 

Thus, to think things like “our military is the best in the world” is not some “exceptional” form of pride that God permits people to make so long as they don’t think too vainly of themselves, as one “conservative Christian” argued with me, but the very pride that God is talking about. It is not like God permits patriotism and nationalism but frowns upon someone rooting for their child’s victories in a sports game or something like that. God is much more concerned with the American flag bumper sticker than the “my kid is an honor roll student.” 

Contrary to the statist idolaters who try to exempt their worship of the false god State from being considered pride, God is surely much more concerned about the pride of patriotism than He is the relatively benign pride of a man’s ego (which shouldn’t be dismissed either). 

More than the non-political problems of some individual’s personality, pride is better understood as the god-like feelings of omnipotence and unlimited power held by those who control governments, as well as the beliefs of their followers that these men who rule over us with these feelings of pride are needed for “our” protection. “The proud” are those who think they are the “almighty” gods, or those that say we need these god-kings to rule over us.  

This is why God has to knock them down: To show “the proud” that their expectations of being indomitable were wrong. 

Pride isn’t just about personal faults or falls, but also the fall of whole nations. In the scriptures, “Israel” becomes prideful and forgets God, turns to false gods, and is punished repeatedly for it. But this is no less true of men today, such as with Americans who, filled with the spirit of statism, venerate the State as the salvation and liberty of our people while they are only inviting God’s judgment upon this land. 

There is really nothing more contradictory than a “Christian nationalist,” supposing that by “nationalist” we mean someone who identifies with the kingdoms of men of the world. Jesus was clear that His kingdom is not of this world (John 18:36), which is not say that it’s purely heavenly or otherworldly, but that it is most unlike—indeed entirely opposed and different from—the statist systems of the world, from Babylon, to Egypt, to Rome, to the “United States.”

Those “Americans” who have proudly identified themselves to be “citizens” of man’s statist kingdoms rather than citizens of heaven (Phil. 3:20) have for so long downplayed the much more fundamental problem of statist pride while attacking arguably lesser forms. It wouldn’t be surprising even if someone was to accuse this ministry of being “prideful” by asserting with confidence what the word of God is talking about.

Repentance from worldly citizenship 

It’s time “Americans,” and people all over the world, admit that their pride and idolatry toward the State (their statism) is the essence of these concepts, repent from their evil ways, and join themselves with Jesus Christ the King of kings and Lord of lords. It is time that we put our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ (John 3:3) and become born again into the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 3:2; 7:21; Romans 14:17). It is time for men to repent of their old wicked ways and leave the satanic world systems behind. New creatures in Jesus Christ could never identify as “Americans” nor cling on to the love of the State (2 Corinthians 5:17). Those who have given themselves over to the Lord would admit to the foolishness and evil of their old ways, transform their thoughts and actions, and even be ashamed that they had ever believed in the “governments” of the world or stood behind them (Romans 12:1–2). They would admit that their patriotism and nationalism and general worship of the State was to be deceived by the world (1 John 2:15–17).