This is an edited version of a sermon that I preached this Sunday, 4th of July weekend. Celebrating America’s 250th anniversary.

This past Friday, millions of Americans celebrated America’s 250th birthday. Marcie and I enjoyed spending time with some of our wonderful neighbors at a Fourth of July party. There were fireworks filling the sky, flags waving everywhere, and people remembering one of the defining moments in our nation’s history, the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776.

As I reflected on our country’s birthday, one question kept coming to mind.

What is the spiritual condition of America?

If you have been a Christian for more than twenty years, you have probably felt it. Something has changed.

Looking back over the last 250 years, it is clear that America has a rich Christian heritage. Biblical ideas shaped much of our nation’s culture for generations. Christianity enjoyed significant influence in public life, and biblical convictions carried cultural weight.

But the ground has shifted beneath our feet.

Christianity no longer occupies the place it once did in American culture. Churches have less influence. Biblical convictions carry less authority. Christians increasingly find themselves on the outside looking in. Many believers are asking two important questions.

What happened?

How do we fix it?

Author Aaron Renn has described our cultural moment this way: “The positive world is over. We now live in a negative world, where being known as a Christian is increasingly a social liability rather than a social asset.”

That observation helps explain what many Christians already feel.

But when the church loses cultural power, the greatest danger is not decline. The greatest danger is confusion about our mission.

Every generation of Christians must answer the same question.

How do we remain faithful when we no longer occupy the cultural center?

Unfortunately, Christians have responded in different ways. Some have withdrawn from society. Others have compromised with the culture. Still others have concluded that the solution is to reclaim the nation primarily through political power. That movement is often called Christian nationalism.

Before discussing it, we need to define our terms.

Many people use the phrase Christian nationalism simply as an insult. It often functions more as a label than a careful definition.

In its strictest sense, Christian nationalism is the belief that the nation should officially identify as Christian and that the government should recognize Christianity as the nation’s defining religion.

At the same time, the term is sometimes used much more broadly to criticize Christians for simply participating in public life. If that is what someone means, then I gladly affirm that Christians should be active in the public square. Jesus called us to be salt and light. We should bring our faith with us wherever we go because there is no such thing as a neutral public square. If Christ is not acknowledged as Lord, something else will inevitably take His place.

One reason some Christians embrace Christian nationalism is because they take promises God made to ancient Israel and apply them directly to modern nations without first asking how those promises find their fulfillment in Jesus Christ.

So what should Christians do?

The question is simple.

How should followers of Jesus live in a post Christian culture?

The answer begins by understanding the distinct roles God has given to government (sword) and to the church (keys).

In Romans 13, Paul teaches that God has entrusted the government with the sword. Government establishes laws, punishes wrongdoing, pursues justice, and maintains public order. Those responsibilities belong to the state.

The church has a different calling.

In Matthew 16, Jesus speaks about giving His church the keys of the kingdom. While much could be said about that passage, the central idea is that Christ has entrusted His church with the authority to faithfully proclaim the gospel and make disciples. The church does not wield the sword. The church holds the keys.

Think about Peter in the Garden of Gethsemane. When soldiers came to arrest Jesus, Peter drew his sword and cut off a servant’s ear. Jesus immediately rebuked him.

Why?

Because Jesus understood that the greatest victory would never come through the sword. It would come through His death and resurrection.

The mission of the church has always been clear.

Proclaim the gospel.

Make disciples.

Baptize believers.

Teach them to obey everything Christ has commanded.

God gave the government the sword.

He gave the church the keys.

Problems begin when we confuse the two.

So what does faithfulness look like today?

First, pray for your country.

Prayer reminds us that America’s deepest problems are ultimately spiritual. Laws can restrain evil, but only the gospel changes hearts. Prayer also reminds us who is truly in charge. Elections come and go, but King Jesus never leaves His throne.

Second, keep your hope in Jesus instead of politics.

Politics matters, but politics cannot save anyone. Only Jesus can.

Third, embrace being a misfit.

The New Testament never promises that Christians will feel completely at home in this world. We are citizens of heaven living faithfully on earth. Feeling like a stranger is often evidence that we still belong to Jesus.

Fourth, ask yourself, who is your one?

Who has God placed in your life that needs to hear the gospel? Our mission has always been personal. We introduce people to Jesus one relationship at a time.

Fifth, faithfully engage the public square.

Salt only preserves when it leaves the salt shaker. Christians should be present in schools, businesses, government, neighborhoods, and the arts. Vote according to your biblical convictions. Serve your community. Consider opportunities like school boards or local leadership. Bring your Christian worldview into every area of life.

Do not allow anyone to convince you that your faith should remain private. Followers of Jesus are called to be faithful witnesses wherever God places them.

Sixth, love and build up the church.

Jesus promised to build His church, and there is no greater investment than strengthening the body of Christ.

Finally, make disciples.

The church’s mission has not changed because the culture has changed. If we win every cultural argument but fail to make disciples, we have missed our central calling. God’s kingdom advances one transformed life at a time.

The future of America will not ultimately be determined in Washington. It will be shaped in churches that faithfully proclaim the gospel and make disciples of Jesus Christ.

As followers of Jesus, we should absolutely engage our communities. We should vote. We should serve. We should love our neighbors. We should seek the good of our nation.

But we must never forget this simple truth.

The hope of America is not found in a political party, a government program, or a cultural movement.

The hope of America is Jesus Christ.

God has placed us exactly where we are for a reason. Here in Collin County, we have been sent on a mission to love people, proclaim the gospel, and point others to their need for a great Savior.

May we never lose sight of that mission.