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The Kingdom of God versus Christian Nationalism

Mike Slaughter August 9, 2022

Jesus’ first century followers lived in prophetic tension with the politics of state. The book of Acts describes how some of the early church’s opponents in Thessalonica turned the church’s faithfulness to God into a political accusation. “These people who have been disturbing the peace throughout the empire have also come here. …Every one of them does what is contrary to Caesar’s decrees by naming someone else as king: Jesus” (Acts 17:6-7, CEB).

Through almost six decades of ministry, I have observed the heresy of privatized faith corrupt Jesus’ gospel of the Kingdom of God. As I wrote in Renegade Gospel: “When we privatize our faith, we cease to be salt and light in the world. No longer part of a countercultural revolution, or an outpost of heaven demonstrating God’s plan for restoration and resurrection in the world. We reduce our faith to no more than Jesus came, died, and rose from the grave to get me into heaven. No! We don’t pray to get into heaven; we actively pray (and work) to get the kingdom of heaven into earth” (Renegade Gospel; pg.43-44).

A large number of Christians today have confused the gospel of the Kingdom with the politics of nation state and have embraced worldly political leaders as ultimate heralds of truth. The word of God reminds us to exercise restraint when it comes to idolizing worldly leaders: “Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save. When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day, their plans come to nothing” (Ps. 146:3-4).

Who are you trusting?

Mike Slaughter, pastor emeritus and global church ambassador for Ginghamsburg Church, served for nearly four decades as the lead pastor and chief dreamer of Ginghamsburg and the spiritual entrepreneur of ministry marketplace innovations. Mike is also the founder and chief strategist of Passionate Churches, LLC, which specializes in developing pastors, church staff and church lay leaders through coaching, training, consulting and facilitation services. Mike’s call to “afflict the comfortable” challenges Christians to wrestle with God and their God-destinies. Mike’s latest book, from which this post is partially excerpted, is Revolutionary Kingdom: following the Rebel Jesus, available on Amazon and Cokesbury.

Uncategorized Christian Nationalism, Ginghamsburg, Mike Slaughter, Passionate Churches, Rebel Jesus, Renegade Gospel, revolutionary kingdom

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Jesus was not what most folks expected. When you think about God, adjectives like powerful, majestic, and almighty tend to come to mind. But Jesus did not come to the earth with any air of worldly wealth or majestic power. On the contrary, everything about Jesus’ life stood in stark contrast to worldly priorities and values. He arrived on the scene not in strength but in weakness. He was born a Palestinian Jew, into a community of marginalized, oppressed people, spending his early years as a refuge in Africa, eluding political genocide. His formative years were spent in a nondescript village, as a member of an ordinary working-class family.

As a man, he lived in tension with the organized religious system. He resisted the world’s obsessions with wealth, pleasure, power, and recognition. He identified with the weak and powerless, the widow, and the orphan. He did not condemn but defended the sinner. So what does God look like? Like Jesus! Jesus was the embodiment of God’s values and priorities. He is Immanuel, “God with us.” In Jesus we see not only the face of God but also the fullness of his humanity, who you and I are created to be. I can believe in a God who looks like Jesus!

Mike Slaughter, pastor emeritus and global church ambassador for Ginghamsburg Church, served for nearly four decades as the lead pastor and chief dreamer of Ginghamsburg and the spiritual entrepreneur of ministry marketplace innovations. Mike is also the founder and chief strategist of Passionate Churches, LLC, which specializes in developing pastors, church staff and church lay leaders through coaching, training, consulting, and facilitation services. Mike’s call to “afflict the comfortable” challenges Christians to wrestle with God and their God-destinies. Mike’s latest book is Revolutionary Kingdom: following the Rebel Jesus, available on Amazon and Cokesbury.

ALL God’s People

Mike Slaughter October 28, 2022

Rachel Billups, lead pastor of New Albany UMC near Columbus, Ohio
and former senior pastor of Ginghamsburg Church

The church should be safe space from the “-isms” of racism, sexism, ageism, and classism that foster everything from fear to hate crimes. But too often we faithful church attenders can be as divisive in our actions and attitudes as an unchurched neighbor with a Confederate flag decal on his car window. We allow fear to trump faith. We fear those who don’t look, speak, act, vote, love, or believe the same as we do.

Living Generously

Mike Slaughter October 12, 2022

LIVING GENEROUSLY

Following Jesus means being God’s hands, feet, voice, and bank account for the oppressed and undeserved. How do we start to live out of the abundance of God’s kingdom versus adopting the fearful and selfish scarcity mentality of the unjust economies surrounding us – economies where the rich do get richer as the poor grow poorer?

The Kingdom of God versus Christian Nationalism

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