Yesterday I preached from Psalm 120, the first of the Psalms of Ascent, or Pilgrim Songs. I made the point that this psalm is written for exiles/sojourners – “Woe to me, that I sojourn in Meshech, that I dwell among the tents of Kedar!” Both tribes mentioned were far from Jerusalem, hostile, foreign peoples. According to Peter, we too are exiles, aliens and strangers, living in a land far from our true home – Jerusalem above.

Psalm 120 is a “stepping off” Psalm. It’s the first in the playlist for the trek to Jerusalem. It’s saying “I’m far from Jerusalem, but I’m on my way.” But what does journeying towards Jerusalem look like when you’re not literally packing a U-Haul? When the destination is Jerusalem above? What does it mean to say, “the world behind me, the cross before me.”

One solution is to say, “Forget this place. It’s not our home.” Those who adopt this position withdraw from society, set up parallel structures and institutions, abandon culture, and suggest that since the ship is sinking, it doesn’t make sense to polish the brass. This was, for the most part, the approach of the fundamentalists of the early 20^th century. And, as I have said repeatedly, it’s a mistake. Jeremiah would say to these brothers and sisters in Christ today what he said to Jewish exiles in Babylon in the 6th century BC:

Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare (Jeremiah 29:5-7)

However, there is a danger on the other end of the spectrum as well. Some turn their back on Babylon and say, “This isn’t our home, who cares?” Others say, “Well, we’re here, let’s turn this place into Jerusalem, or some facsimile thereof.” This second group attempts to transform Babylon into Jerusalem or the state into the church. This goes far beyond what Jeremiah advised the exiles. Yes, they were to seek the welfare of the city, but always recognizing that it wasn’t Zion. We see no attempts to enforce Jewish laws that were good for Israel upon Babylon (or Assyria, Persia, Greece, or Rome). And when the call came, the exiles in Babylon had to be ready to leave behind homes and vineyards to return to Jerusalem. This is the error of Christian Nationalism. Whether Christian Nationalism is a grave danger to the country is for others to determine – that’s not my expertise or my lane. But as a pastor, I’m well within my lane to say Christian Nationalism is a threat to the church!

Anywhere on this terrestrial globe is Babylon – every nation at every time in the history of always is “Babylon” – with two exceptions: ancient Israel, and the church (which is an outpost of the kingdom of God). Thus, Christian loyalties are always to heavenly Jerusalem above and the church here on earth above nation or empire.