"A Birthday Wish For America"
Dr. George Sinclair, Pastor
2 Kings 5:1-14; Ps. 30; Gal. 6: (1-6) 7-16; Luke 10:1-11, 16-20
July 4, 2010
America is 234 years old today. Before we blow out the candles I want to make a wish. Actually, I want to make six wishes. I considered seven but thought better so I’m sticking with six. But before I get to those, I want to make three observations about the Bible and how the Bible views political authority.
The Bible does not present a unified theory of government. The Bible does not think systematically about political authority. Likewise, it does not anticipate modern nation states, especially self-rule or democracy. The Bible was written when kings exercised imperial power by divine right. Most importantly, with few exceptions, the Bible was written not by powerful rulers but by the mostly ruled.
Even under David and Solomon, Israel was never much more than a third rate world power. Yes, from time to time, Israel enjoyed autonomy or at least was ignored by the Great Powers enabling it flourish. But when the Old Testament assumed its final form, the form we have now, Israel was a defeated, disenfranchised nation.
Likewise, Christians were not power holders but subjects of Imperial Rome. The New Testament was not written by self-determining, power elites. Few books in the Bible were written from that point of view. The Bible is written from the bottom up. The Bible views the world from the bottom of the political food chain, not the top. Moreover, the Bible is written from the perspective of God’s sovereign rule. There is no rule, authority, or power greater than God, which means, from the Bible’s perspective, that government or political authority is provisional.
Government or political authority is “for the time being.” It is not eternal, permanent, fixed or final. God alone is eternal, almighty. Political authority, in whatever form, is subject to God. God is the final measure of Truth, Goodness, Justice, and Mercy, which means that political authority, no matter what form, cannot demand, require, or command our ultimate loyalty. That loyalty is reserved for God alone.
Secondly, from the Bible’s perspective, no matter how noble, inspirational, just or powerful, political authority is proximate. God may give human beings dominion, but human dominion is relative. It may be “close” or proximate, but it is never final, which means we must guard against the first and most dangerous sin and that sin is idolatry.
Paul defined idolatry this way: to worship and serve the creature rather than the Creator; which leads to my third and final general observation about political authority: it tends toward idolatry.
Human dominion resists the provisional and proximate role assigned to it by the Creator. Human rulers are never satisfied with just enough power. Human political authority always wants more power. It is never satisfied with limitation, so it forever crosses limitation often with disastrous results.
Paul understood that governing authorities were “instituted by God.” Daniel found at least some of those authorities “beastly” and doomed for destruction. Even when instituted by God, political authority is prone to idolatry which does not mean we can or should escape to the wilderness, as if that were possible, but that we should and must live with our eyes wide open and our hearts firmly set on God who, alone, is our final judge and authority.
Faithfulness demands vigilance. Faithfulness demands discernment. Faithfulness ultimately demands modesty and contrition in exercising political authority.
So, what about my birthday wishes for America?
First of all, I wish Americans would shout less and listen more. I wish we would listen more and shout less.
I’ve observed American politics for forty years and I’ve read a good deal of U.S. history. I came of age at a time of great upheaval in our nation. We were sharply divided by race, war, issues of human sexuality, and national security. The Cold War was hot. There was violence, threatened violence, rioting and unrest. 1968 was no picnic, but even at our worst, in those days, I did not sense the division I feel today.
Maybe I’ve grown up. And maybe things weren’t as rosy as I remember, but even with the divisions of the late sixties, it felt like we were all Americans. Today, I’m not so sure. Today, I sometimes feel politicians are in a race to out-American each other. And in the process they divide us. Americans are being chopped up into narrow constituencies. By narrowly defining what it means to be real Americans, disagreements of any kind result in accusations of failed patriotism, even treason. Who’s more American? Who can out-American the other?
Insecurity of this kind breeds intolerance. I wish Americans would grow up and stop shouting insults at each other as if one side were more patriotic than another. Angry rhetoric is not a sign of courage or leadership, but insecurity. Insecurity breeds fear. And fearful nations make grievous mistakes both domestic and foreign. I wish for a more secure America, one where we don’t question each other’s patriotism when we disagree.
A wise man once said any fool can tear down a barn; it takes a carpenter to build one. That’s my second wish for America. I wish America would become more hopeful and less cynical. Hope is not opposed to criticism. Hope does not fear criticism. Hope is not afraid to admit failure, but hope cannot abide by cynicism.
The cynic does not care about building. Cynics de-construct. Cynics lie in wait. They carp from the sidelines. They hector. They are not doers. They are not game for getting their hands dirty or their feet wet, they’re spectators—people who’ve never played the game and have no interest in playing the game. Their interest is gaming the game because their only interest is self-interest.
I wish for a more hopeful America, a less cynical America. Hopeful Americans get in the game. We’ve become a nation of spectators. Half of us don’t even vote. We read the papers, listen to shouting heads and join the game of “damn ain’t it bad.” That’s not patriotism. That’s not even constructive criticism. That’s the coward’s way. The cynic’s way. And it’s a road to hell.
I wish for a more hopeful America not an America blind to its mistakes, missteps, or its misdeeds, but one that builds rather than tears down.
America is not for sale. That’s my third wish. That America would not be for sale.
Money talks. Money has always talked. Follow the money and you’ll find special interests. And interests are always selfish. I don’t know how it will happen, how it can happen—hey, it’s a birthday wish, but I wish America was not controlled by deep pocket, special interests.
There’s a revolving door in Washington. President Eisenhower named it the military-industrial-complex and it shook the former Allied Commander to his core. Eisenhower feared it would be America’s undoing. His fear was well justified. I wish for an America that is not for sale. We have too many salesmen and not enough statesmen, which leads to my fourth wish for America. I wish for more public servants and fewer career politicians.
I think about kids who grow up wanting to be firefighters, EMTs, police, nurses, teachers—folks who want to help others. Some police came to my house the other night looking for kids who were causing problems on my street. The cops were respectful, courteous, professional and very young. Mobile rookie cops make less than $30,000 a year. That’s not much money for doing what they do. Firefighters and EMT’s are like that too. They’re not in it for the money, at least not the ones I’ve met and I’ve met a few—at accident scenes, in hospital emergency rooms, in the homes of the elderly. We had some first responders here last weekend tending to a man with a diabetic condition. Who are you going to call when you need help—the folks at 911 answer. I wish more politicians had that spirit—public servants, not people looking to make a buck.
Here’s my fifth birthday wish for America: I wish America would realize that government can’t and shouldn’t do everything. How do you right-size government? I can’t begin to answer that. I only know that government can’t do everything. There are some things governments can and should do—security is one. I’m glad we don’t live in the wild-west. I’m happy for courts of law, due process. I’m also glad public money funds road construction, schools, hospitals, libraries, museums, national parks. I am glad government protects workers from long hours and dangerous workplaces. How much government is too much? The disaster in the Gulf is a classic example that we can’t have it both ways—“Let’s get government off our backs and let’s make government clean up privately made messes.” We can’t have it both ways.
Government can’t do everything, but it must do some things. I wish for right government not no government or too much government but right government, which leads to my last wish. I wish for a more modest America.
America is the most powerful nation on the planet and for that reason the nation most prone to exceed its limits. All political authority is provisional. It is proximate. And it is prone to idolatry. Recognizing that can be a saving grace. We will be saved not by exceeding our limitations, but recognizing and living within them.
I love America. I love what it stands for. And I hope it stands for a long time to come. I love the fact that we are a nation of immigrants. Everybody here came from someplace else. The truth is, people of all nations ultimately come from someplace else. We are a planet of travelers. We only appear to be settled by virtue of a brief lifespan which distorts our sense of place in history.
Last summer I visited my ancestral home. Sinclairs left Scotland and came to America the year before the Declaration of Independence was signed. If you ask me where I’m from, I’ll likely answer North Carolina but my roots can be traced to Scotland. And where before that? Before the clan was in Scotland they were somewhere else. If you go back far enough, somebody in my family walked out of Africa and the Garden of Eden.
So who am I? Where am I from? I am a member of the human race. I’m proud to be an American, but I’m also a member of the human race. Being an American helps me remember that. Being an American helps us all remember that, that we come from someplace else. We are travelers or as the Bible names us—wandering pilgrims.
On America’s 234th birthday, I wish for a deep memory of our pilgrim past. We are wandering pilgrims, strangers and sojourners. And I pray that that memory will help us live with modesty, that it will help us live within limits.
The world is growing up. We are a rich and powerful nation, but no nation stays rich and powerful forever. The sooner we realize that the more likely we are to survive and not only survive but help lead the planet to a better place. That place will always be provisional. It will always be proximate. And it will always be prone to idolatry, but it will be better than if we ignore our limits.
Ignoring limits shortens lifespan. America needs to get over its exceptionalism and join the human race. I wish for an America that lives with modesty, for an America that lives within limits. That nation will be helpful to the planet and long-lived.
Happy Birthday America. And may God shed his grace on thee. Amen.