I keep hearing American Christians confidently and proudly declaring that the United States is the greatest country on earth.
I find this
troubling, not just because I believe it is incorrect, but because I think that
many of those who say this have set up their country as an idol. And idolatry
is a grave sin.
I am not
American
Before I go any
further, I should say that I am not an American myself. I think some Americans
will therefore probably be offended by me giving my opinion here.
Nevertheless, I
believe I am justified in doing so. If some American Christians are guilty of
idolatry in this area, as I suspect they are, then if I can help to counteract
this, I will be doing them good. I am only trying to make constructive
criticism that builds people up. I am not trying to push anyone down.
Besides, it is my
sincere belief that my own country, the United Kingdom, is even worse than the
U.S. So I am in no way writing from some imagined position of superiority. And
if American Christians want to write criticizing the U.K., then as long as the
criticism is fair – which it isn’t difficult to believe it would be – then I
would be the first to say “Amen.”
When the late British
queen was still alive, I actually wrote an article encouraging British
Christians not to idolize her, so I have a track record of criticizing my own
country in this sort of way anyway. I haven’t written an article specifically directed
towards British Christians who think that the U.K. today is a great country,
for the simple reason that I have hardly ever heard any British Christian say
that.
What counts as a
great country in God’s sight?
When considering this
topic, we first need to think through what we mean by the greatness of a
country.
As Christians we
obviously want to have the perspective that God would have on this issue, what
Paul refers to in 1 Corinthians 2:16 as “the mind of Christ.” So we are really
asking what God sees as greatness in a country.
A good place to start
is Luke 16:15, where Jesus says in no uncertain terms:
“For what is highly
admired by people is revolting in God’s sight.”
The things that the
world admires and is impressed by are usually things that are totally
unimpressive to God. And this surely applies when considering whether countries
are great or not.
So, for example, the
U.S. is the wealthiest country on earth. But we know from Scripture that wealth
doesn’t impress God at all.
For instance, in
Revelation 3:14-22 we read how the risen Jesus sharply rebukes the church in
Laodicea. Materially this church was well off. But Jesus describes it as “wretched,
pitiful, poor, blind and naked” (v. 17) because of its sins. And if God ignores
wealth when forming a judgment on how impressive a church is, it makes sense to
think that He would do the same when forming a judgment on how impressive a
country is.
So the wealth of the
U.S. certainly doesn’t mean that it is the greatest country on earth. Nor does
its power. Here 1 Corinthians 1:27 is relevant, where Paul says that “God has
chosen what is weak in the world to shame the strong.” It is true that these
words are about individual people, but the words tell us about God’s perspective,
and it makes sense to think that they would apply to countries too. God is
unimpressed by power.
Instead of thinking
along the lines of wealth, power, opportunity or anything like that, I would
suggest that the issue of how great a country is boils down to one simple thing.
Surely in God’s sight the greatest country on earth is the one that pleases Him
the most. Surely it is the country where the laws are most pleasing to Him and
where the people act most in line with His will. The whole Bible from cover to
cover would lead us to think this, wouldn’t it?
Is America the
most pleasing country to God?
So our question about
whether America is the greatest country on earth is really about whether
America pleases God more than all other countries on earth.
I don’t pretend to
have special access to God’s mind on this point. But even so, I find it impossible
to believe that the U.S. is the country that pleases Him the most. Some of the
evils that are tolerated and practiced in America are truly horrifying.
Let’s start with
abortion. This is a monstrous evil that has claimed the lives of millions of
unborn babies over the last half century or so in the U.S. It is true that Roe
v. Wade has finally been overturned, but this is unlikely to reduce overall
abortion rates more than a little for the country as a whole. And widespread
abortion is not something that has been forced on an unwilling population by
the American government. It is what most U.S. citizens want.
Of course, there are countries
where abortion laws are even more relaxed than in the U.S. and where even more
of this kind of evil occurs. But there are also more than a few countries where
abortion is much more tightly controlled. In some parts of the world, the value
of unborn children is set much higher than in America.
I would suggest that
this issue on its own clearly disqualifies the U.S. from being the greatest
country on earth.
But let’s think about
another issue too, so-called “gay marriage.” Arrogant Western countries,
including the U.S., have dared to try to alter God’s created order for marriage
by claiming that it is possible for two men or two women to get married. Like
abortion, this is not something that has been foisted on the people against
their will by the government. It is what most American citizens want, and it is
a massive insult to God.
It is important to understand
that there are many countries where people wouldn’t dream of trying to change
marriage in this way. In many parts of the world, the vast majority of the
population rightly sees “gay marriage” as unnatural and an affront to God.
I really don’t think
I need to provide any more evidence to make my case. How can American
Christians possibly claim that their country is the greatest on earth? Do they
think God overlooks the unborn babies being cut to pieces every day? Do they
think He overlooks being insulted when the husband-wife relationship that
mirrors the holy relationship between Christ and the church is discarded in
order to promote perversion? Do they think the fact that many other countries
displease Him far less in these areas is a trivial matter?
Regardless of how
great America may or may not have been in the past, at the present time it is
surely not the greatest country on earth.
God is not
mocked
In Galatians 6:7 Paul
tells his readers:
“God is not mocked.”
Of course this isn’t
to be taken literally, as if people don’t actually mock God. God is mocked all
the time, whether explicitly or whether implicitly in things like abortion and “gay
marriage.”
What these words mean
is that no one mocks God and gets away with it without repentance. Either they
will repent and find forgiveness for their mockery, or they will be punished
for it.
I would encourage
American Christians who think that their country is the greatest on earth to
ponder these words.
For my own part as a
British Christian, I would never even contemplate saying that the U.K. is the
greatest country on earth or anything remotely close to that. It is an evil
place that is piling up its sins against almighty God, and it wouldn’t surprise
me if it is down near the bottom of the list in His sight.
Which are the
greatest countries?
So if America isn’t
the greatest country on earth, which one is? I am not at all confident about
the answer to this question. But if I had to guess, I would say that the best countries
today are probably some of those in sub-Saharan Africa that have a lot of
Christians.
The worldview in
these countries tends to be much more grounded than in the West. There is more
of a humility before God, an understanding that human beings are creatures
under His mighty hand, who have obligations to fit in with His created order.
To be fair, even the
best countries are full of sinful people committing sins. So perhaps we should refer
to the least bad countries rather than the greatest ones. But I would guess
that some of these African ones are top of the list.
See also:
The
Will of the People: A Big Idol among Christians Today
“Human
Rights”: A Big Idol among Christians Today
Most
People in Western Countries Completely Misunderstand What Human Beings Are
