Title: Whose flag are you flying?
Text: Jeremiah 29
Church and culture series – part 1
Introduction
Canadian immigration is rising … we are a desirable country!
O. & A. received their “PR” notice this week! ...People are arriving from Ukraine and other places!
• Loss of life in the Mediterranean Sea again this week (migrants from Africa)
• Illegal immigrants are being smuggled into USA on its southern border.
• Canada is in many ways - “the promised land”
When it comes to ultimate allegiance … There arises a question of patriotism and allegiance.
• There is a long history of the relationship between church and state and citizenship.
Roman empire –
Emperor Constantine… declared Roman Empire to be officially Christian. (4th Century)
The Church in France - The French Revolution and the church
Historian John McManners argues "in eighteenth-century France, throne and altar were commonly spoken of as in close alliance; their simultaneous collapse ... would one day provide the final proof of their interdependence."
After a century of persecution, some French Protestants actively supported an anti-Catholic regime, a resentment fuelled by Enlightenment thinkers such as Voltaire.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau, considered a philosophical founder of the revolution, wrote it was "manifestly contrary to the law of nature... that a handful of people should gorge themselves with superfluities while the hungry multitude goes in want of necessities."
The Revolution caused a massive shift of power from the Catholic Church to the state;
although the extent of religious belief has been questioned, elimination of tolerance for religious minorities meant by 1789 being French also meant being Catholic.
The church was the largest individual landowner in France, controlling nearly 10% of all estates and levied tithes, effectively a 10% tax on income, collected from peasant farmers in the form of crops.
In return, it provided a minimal level of social support.
The August decrees abolished tithes, and on 2 November the Assembly confiscated all church property, the value of which was used to back a new paper currency known as assignats.
In return, the state assumed responsibilities such as paying the clergy and caring for the poor, the sick and the orphaned.
On 13 February 1790, religious orders and monasteries were dissolved, while monks and nuns were encouraged to return to private life.
The Civil Constitution of the Clergy of 12 July 1790 made them employees of the state, as well as establishing rates of pay and a system for electing priests and bishops. Pope Pius VI and many French Catholics objected to this since it denied the authority of the Pope over the French Church. In October, thirty bishops wrote a declaration denouncing the law, further fuelling opposition.
When clergy were required to swear loyalty to the Civil Constitution in November 1790, it split the church between the 24% who complied, and the majority who refused.
This stiffened popular resistance against state interference, especially in traditionally Catholic areas such as Normandy, Brittany and the Vendée, where only a few priests took the oath and the civilian population turned against the revolution. The result was state-led persecution of "Refractory clergy", many of whom were forced into exile, deported, or executed.
Interestingly…The French currently (2023) celebrate…
• Easter Monday,
• Ascension Day,
• Pentecost Monday,
• the Assumption of the Virgin Mary,
• All Saint’s Day, and
• Christmas.
Those days off could be replaced, Piolle said, by days to commemorate key moments in French history.
Recently, after the Pentecost Monday holiday, the mayor of Grenoble, France, sparked controversy when he argued French society has evolved beyond religious days off. Pointing to the large number of secular people who don’t follow the church calendar and Muslims who celebrate different religious days, Éric Piolle proposed removing Christian holidays from the civic calendar.
Church In UK – Coronation Of King Charles (2023)
• “Guardian of the faith”
• “Anointed” – behind a screen.
• As monarch, King Charles is not only the head of state for the UK but also the Defender of the Faith & the Supreme Governor of the Church of England.
When he was crowned in Westminster Abbey, he was anointed with holy oil by the Archbishop of Canterbury
While the choir sings “Zadok the Priest,” an anthem used in every coronation since 973 that draws on the anointing of Solomon by the priest Zadok in 1 Kings.
“It is the coronation more than any other event that underlines the sacred nature of the United Kingdom monarchy,” writes Bradley in his book God Save the King: The Sacred Nature of Monarchy.
“At their coronations kings and queens are not simply crowned and enthroned but consecrated, set apart and anointed, dedicated to God and invested with sacerdotal garb and symbolic regalia. Here, if anywhere, we find the divinity which hedges the throne.”
The Church in Germany…
Church in Germany receives 8% tax from members – and “dotations” from the state – 520 euros in 2019 – indexed to inflation. The practise has been in place for 100 years – since the state took over church property… in some cases dating back to the reformation period. (500 years ago)
Churches in Canada have charitable status and donors receive a tax deduction for church donations.
Some provinces (Alberta) fund Christian schools.
• Ontario, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Prince Edward Island don’t fund private schools.
• In B.C., some private schools receive 50 per cent of the funding of public schools, but more elite schools receive just 35 per cent.
• Saskatchewan and Manitoba fund at 50 per cent and Quebec funds at 60 per cent. Alberta is funding private schools at 70 per cent.
1. So its “Canada day” weekend… (Happy birthday Canada! #156!)
a. We are now 40 million strong.
b. There are many things to celebrate…
i. Peace… resources…nature…
c. There are also things to lament…Changing society – we are slowly and steadily moving away from Christian values.
i. Breakdown of marriage institution?
ii. Divide of “morals” – what is called “sin” in the bible is no longer sin in society.
iii. Abortion access in Canada is among the freest in the world. Canada has no criminal laws regulating or prohibiting abortion.
iv. Over 100, 000 abortions are carried out each year in Canada. In practice, abortion can legally be performed during all nine months of pregnancy.
All human life is precious. Life is a gift from God for us to respect and protect through all its stages, from conception to natural death. Each person’s life has worth because they are made in the image of God and loved by him. On the basis of this belief in the sanctity of human life, the EFC supports fetal rights and opposes abortion.
Abortion also has an impact on the mother, with the potential for serious physical, emotional and psychological effects.
v. Meanwhile 30, 000 children in government care are eligible for adoption in Canada.
vi. Canada has legalized euthanasia and assisted suicide under certain circumstances. These practices deliberately and intentionally cause a person’s death.
We live in a “post-modern society” – based on relativism – not classically understood “truth.”
**This presents clear and obvious conflict with biblical truth.
**While we are not in a geographic exile – we are in a spiritual exile.
2. What challenges and opportunities are before us?
Where does scripture help us?
3. Answer – we can look to The exile experience of Israel
a. Read 2 kings 24-25 – select verses.
b. The exile was centuries in the making.
c. Warnings were issued…prophet after prophet…
4. The exile was Devastating… THE major crisis of the OT
***For the Israelites, the exile was the watershed moment of their history through which the entire Bible gains its significance. Everything else orbits around the gravity of this faith-shaking moment.
The entire national structure (culture) of the kingdom, which was thought to be ordained by God himself, came crashing down.
a. Land taken…Temple plundered…Jerusalem (city of David) falls.
i. Scattered people
ii. Bloodshed.
b. Trauma of the highest order.
**The exile marked an unmistakeable period of severe judgement – but at its core - it was a redemptive act by God toward his covenant people.
The siege of Jerusalem lasts for about a year and a half. Once the wall is breached, King Zedekiah and his entourage flee toward Jericho…The destruction of Jerusalem is thorough.
The Temple, palaces, and houses are burned, the temple vessels including the enormous bronze Sea and the wheeled bronze stands are broken and taken.
The temple is of chief concern, since it served as a symbol of the legitimacy of the monarchy.
With the capture and destruction of Jerusalem, the kingdom of Judah ceases to exist.
c. See: 2 Kings 25
Are we living in a similar period of godlessness… is exile coming – or is it already here?
**While we are not in a “geographic exile” – we are in a spiritual exile.
What season of history are we in?
There are things to lament in Canadian society… and there is a greater awareness of God’s redemptive work in the world and our responsibility to engage in it.
5. So…The exile’s receive a “Letter from God” - Jeremiah 29 – on how to cope with and regard this season.
Jeremiah 29 - A Letter to the Exiles
29 Jeremiah wrote a letter from Jerusalem to the elders, priests, prophets, and all the people who had been exiled to Babylon by King Nebuchadnezzar. 2 This was after King Jehoiachin,[a] the queen mother, the court officials, the other officials of Judah, and all the craftsmen and artisans had been deported from Jerusalem. 3 He sent the letter with Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah when they went to Babylon as King Zedekiah’s ambassadors to Nebuchadnezzar. This is what Jeremiah’s letter said:
4 This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says to all the captives he has exiled to Babylon from Jerusalem: 5 “Build homes, and plan to stay. Plant gardens, and eat the food they produce. 6 Marry and have children. Then find spouses for them so that you may have many grandchildren. Multiply! Do not dwindle away! 7 And work for the peace and prosperity of the city where I sent you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, for its welfare will determine your welfare.”
8 This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: “Do not let your prophets and fortune-tellers who are with you in the land of Babylon trick you. Do not listen to their dreams, 9 because they are telling you lies in my name. I have not sent them,” says the Lord.
10 This is what the Lord says: “You will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised, and I will bring you home again. 11 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 12 In those days when you pray, I will listen. 13 If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. 14 I will be found by you,” says the Lord. “I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes. I will gather you out of the nations where I sent you and will bring you home again to your own land.”
There are some surprises in this letter.
a. Instead of subsistence living – put down roots. “settle down”
i. Build houses
ii. Plant vineyards…
b. Instead of fighting/ being angry – seek peace!
c. Instead of looking back to the “good ole days” – look forward
d. Instead of poverty – seek prosperity – the good of society/citizens
e. V. 10 - Here’s hope ? “i will bring you back”!!!
f. Pray – and I will listen…Seek me! V. 13
g. Beware of false prophets – v. 19 & v. 8
EFC (Evangelical Fellowship of Canada) policy – “Christians are called to actively seek the good of those around us and our country (Jeremiah 29:5-6). Our participation as individuals in discussions about public policy and politics, like our engagement in all of life and community, is part of our witness.”
h. Instead of cursing the paganism – pray for the city.
i. What to pray? – pray Missional prayers
ii. Pray Holiness prayers
iii. Pray loyalty to Yhwh prayers.
i. And Beware of false prophets – who minimize the problem and only speak of pleasant things
Please note - The Purpose Of The Exile (& Jere 29) - Was Not Assimilation – but redemption.
j. It was to give hope to God’s people
k. It was call to loyalty to yhwh!
A few years ago I met a “Babylonian Jew” – his family had stayed in Babylon after the exile… they practised Judaism and maintained their Jewish identity. He became a believer in Jesus as messiah – and had become a leader in theological education in Israel.
6. This letter says – after 70 years…God will restore and return his people!
i. Return to Israel…
ii. 70 years of exile
iii. Temple is re-built
iv. Law is read
v. Loyalty to God is reaffirmed.
7. Lets move into the New Testament era - In the 1st century AD – Jesus appears on the scene
And we find the Jews are not in exile – but almost – they are occupied by the Roman Empire.
As the NT opens - The angel Gabriel tells Mary that her son Jesus - will sit on the throne of his father David – and that his kingdom will last forever!
And when Jesus starts preaching, he takes the concept of a kingdom to a completely new level. He talks about the “kingdom of God” – not in military terms – but in spiritual terms.
He says you do not need to be ruled by roman empire – or any empire – instead, join & follow – and belong to the kingdom of God.
There will always be a “kingdom” to impose its values on us.
a. Our loyalty to Christ and his kingdom will always be under threat …there will always be pressure to conform to the ways of this world.
b. Paul says it well in Romans 12:1-2 - “do not conform to the patterns of this world – but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
c. 75 x in the NT we see the concept - “kingdom of God”
“kingdom of Heaven” - 31 x in Matthew
= 106 times in the NT.
Jesus calls us to be loyal to his kingdom!
8. God Wrote More Letters To His People – We Find Them In The NT.
a. Peter’s NT Letter
i. 1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To God’s elect, exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, 2 who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.
ii. 1 Peter 2:11 Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. 12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
What then does this salutation say about the relationship of the Christian to society?
• Our primary group is God’s family (“God’s elect”) and our secondary group is society.
**Peter does not address them as “the socially excluded” but as “God’s elect”; their social standing was completely absorbed by their spiritual calling.
This group of churches, in other words, was composed almost entirely of persons drawn from the slave classes and the disenfranchised.
The reason the believers were literally “aliens and strangers” was twofold:
They were socially marginalized people, and
their faith had no social acceptance and therefore, worsened their social conditions.
So in 1:1–2, Peter gives both their spiritual status (“elect”) and their social location (“sojourners” in the Diaspora).
The gospel of salvation in Christ took root in Asia Minor particularly among the disenfranchised and gave Peter and the early church an important angle on ministry and theology.
What is Peter’s word to us?
(1) Maintain the course of a loving, holy lifestyle, and
(2) find your identity in being part of God’s family, not in being part of a society that does not accept you.
Peter does not tell them to be coarse, rude, and arrogant, nor does he tell them to segregate themselves into separated communes. Rather, he tells them to live their godly lives right in the midst of the society that rejects them, always ready to answer people with a reason for their hope (3:15). He informs them that their very lives are a witness to God’s glory (2:11–12).
Conclusion – Our ultimate Citizenship Is In The Kingdom Of God!
Philippians 3:20
20 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
And so our calling is to engage in missional living – advancing and announcing the kingdom of God.
We fly the flag of the kingdom of God.
