We are citizens of heaven. Members of a chosen nation. Our “country” is comprised of people from every nation, language, tribe, and tongue.

We are looking forward to our homeland, going home to a place we’ve never been before. (apologies to John Denver) God is preparing for us a city, one where we will truly belong.

When we fully realize that, political boundaries lose their importance. They have to. When I realize that a Christian in Mexico is my brother and a member of the same nation that I am, how can I get all worked up about the border created by the Rio Grande River? When I see that Christians in Cuba are my family while most of the politicians in Washington aren’t, can I really favor policies that hurt those people and benefit the United States? When I accept the fact that I have spiritual family throughout the Middle East and Asia, don’t I have to look at those regions differently?

When I embrace the fact that my people, my countrymen, my family, God’s holy nation… all of these… live scattered throughout the nations of this world, I can’t promote the interests of one nation above the others.

Someone remarked this week that “there’s a new movement among Christians to downplay patriotism and nationalism.” No, there’s a very ancient movement in this world called Christianity that does that very thing.