Christ Above Every Nation: Reflections on Coming Home from War

Quick answer How should a Christian love their country? Colossians 1:15-20 settles it: every nation, government and ruler was created through Christ and for Him. That frees us to love a country deeply — to serve it, defend it, mourn its failures — without ever confusing it with the Kingdom of God. Long after every flag is folded, Jesus Christ will still be on His throne.

In this article

• Christ is before every nation
• Christ holds all things together
• Germany’s warning, and America’s opportunity
• Christ is head of the Church
• Until every flag is folded
• Frequently Asked Questions
• About the author

7‑minute read · July 30, 2026

Just minutes ago, after months deployed overseas, I stepped off the plane and onto American soil.

Without really thinking about it, I bent down, reached toward the ground, grabbed a handful of it, and kissed it.

It simply felt good to be home.

As we walked through the terminal we were met by smiling faces, volunteers waving flags, grateful citizens welcoming home soldiers they had never met. The words were simple. Welcome home. Thank you for your service. We’re glad you’re back.

After months in combat zones, military bases, airports and foreign cities, those moments stirred something deep. I found myself profoundly grateful — not only for the family waiting at home, but for the nation I was returning to.

Yet on the long flights home, another question had been occupying my mind.

Why do some societies flourish while others descend into oppression?

On this deployment I spent time in Iraq, Lebanon, Israel and Germany. I worshiped with believers in the Middle East. I stood in places where the apostles once walked. And later I wandered the streets of Germany — the land of Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation.

Germany left a particular impression on me.

It is beautiful. Clean. Orderly. Efficient.

It is also the nation that gave the world the Reformation and, centuries later, the horrors of Nazi tyranny.

Walking those streets reminded me how quickly even a people with a rich Christian heritage can drift when Christ is replaced by something else. It reminded me, too, that the deepest questions facing any civilization are finally theological ones.

I kept returning to Paul’s words in Colossians.

“He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”

— Colossians 1:17

Christ is before every nation

Paul begins with an astonishing declaration:

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created… whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through Him and for Him.”

— Colossians 1:15-16

Every government. Every nation. Every ruler. Every military. Every civilization.

None of them exist independently of Christ.

America was not self-created. Germany was not self-created. The nations of the Middle East were not self-created. Every flag flies over land that ultimately belongs to King Jesus — “the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof” (Psalm 24:1).

That truth immediately reshapes how we think about patriotism.

Christians may rightly love their country. We may serve it. Defend it. Pray for it. Mourn its failures. Celebrate its blessings.

But we never worship it.

Our highest allegiance belongs to the King whose kingdom will never end.

Christ holds all things together

Paul continues: “He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”

That verse reaches far beyond physics. Christ not only sustains the universe — He upholds the moral order woven into His creation.

Ideas have consequences because truth corresponds to reality. When societies recognize that every person bears the image of God, human dignity flourishes. When governments understand that their authority is derived rather than absolute, liberty has room to grow. When families honor marriage, parents disciple their children, churches proclaim the gospel and citizens cultivate virtue, societies tend to flourish.

This does not make any nation perfect. America certainly is not. We have much to confess, much to repent of, and much to learn.

Yet I remain deeply grateful for the remarkable political experiment our founders undertook. They recognized that rights are not created by governments but endowed by our Creator. They understood that free people require moral restraint, and that self-government depends on a people capable of governing themselves.

John Adams famously wrote, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious People. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”

Whether or not one agrees with every implication of that sentence, history confirms the principle underneath it: laws cannot create virtue. Constitutions cannot regenerate hearts.

Only Christ can do that.

Germany’s warning, and America’s opportunity

One of the great lessons Germany teaches is that Christian heritage alone cannot preserve a nation.

Magnificent cathedrals cannot save a civilization. Historic confessions cannot regenerate hearts.

When Christ ceases to occupy the center, something else inevitably will.

Race. Power. Pleasure. Autonomy. The State.

Human beings never cease to worship. We simply exchange one object of worship for another. Paul describes exactly this tragic exchange in Romans 1 — humanity did not become irreligious, it exchanged the glory of the Creator for created things.

History has confirmed his words again and again.

Christ is head of the Church

Paul then reminds us: “And He is the head of the body, the church…” (Colossians 1:18).

That verse keeps everything in proper order.

As a pastor, my calling is not to save America. As an Army chaplain, my mission is not merely to produce patriotic soldiers. My calling is to proclaim Jesus Christ.

The Church has outlived every empire in history. Rome fell. Kingdoms have risen and disappeared. Borders have shifted countless times. Yet Christ continues building His Church.

That reality frees Christians from both despair and triumphalism. We need not panic as though God’s kingdom depended on political success. Nor should we withdraw as though our citizenship in heaven excused us from loving our earthly neighbors.

We seek the welfare of the cities where God has placed us, while remembering that our true citizenship is in heaven.

Loving America because Christ is Lord

Coming home reminded me how thankful I am to be an American. I believe our nation has been extraordinarily blessed — not because we are morally superior, and not because God owes us anything, but because His common grace has been abundantly displayed through freedoms that have allowed churches to flourish, missionaries to be sent, charities to thrive, innovation to prosper, and millions to pursue lives of purpose.

Those blessings are gifts. And gifts are meant to become stewardship.

The more I study history, the more convinced I am that ideas shape civilizations. The Christian worldview has profoundly influenced America’s understanding of human dignity, religious liberty, limited government and justice. If those roots are forgotten, eventually the fruit will wither — not because Christianity exists to prop up a nation, but because Christ created reality itself, and societies flourish to the degree that they live in harmony with His design.

Until every flag is folded

As our flight landed, I kissed the ground because I love my country. I thanked God because I love the freedoms this nation has protected. I prayed because I love the people who call this land home.

But my greatest hope was not the flag waving above the airport.

It rests in the Savior who reigns above every nation.

Long after every constitution has been amended…

Long after every election has passed…

Long after every battlefield has grown quiet…

Long after every flag has finally been folded…

Jesus Christ will still be upon His throne.

“He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”

That is why Christians can love their country deeply without confusing it with the Kingdom of God.

And that is why, after returning home from war, my deepest prayer is not simply that America would remain strong.

It is that America would once again look to the One who has always held all things together.

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