We’re going through the fruits of the spirit in church. As a refresher that this passage:

Gal. 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

The associate pastor that gave the sermon did some research and determined that the word “goodness” can also be translated as generosity or beneficial acts towards others. He went on to stress that we as a body should be focused on sacrificial giving towards others. That gift could be monetary or one of time or abilities that you use for their benefit. Whatever form it takes, he went on to say that it should be characterized by a passage from Hebrews chapter ten.

32 Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering. 33 Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. 34 You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions.

This sermon was especially relevant in the face of a video I had just watched on Saturday. Zach Ricks, good friend, co-author, and editor of Flagship, gave a talk at a Tea Party rally recently and posted the Youtube video. The whole thing got mashed up in my brain and I need to get it out on “paper”. So watch these videos (they’re short) and think with me on this.

Now, Zach and I don’t agree on much politically. I suspect we also differ on a number of theological issues, though nothing either of us would consider critical. But, as he says in the video, we should be able to discuss that. I won’t pick apart everything I disagree with in the videos. That’s not the point of this post. The point isn’t even to pick apart the “on topic” things I disagree with. The point is, given the notion that at least a significant portion of Tea Party folks are Christian and that that’s part of their platform, I want to look at some of the claims that at least Zach makes and see if they line up with this notion of sacrificial generosity.

At about the six minute mark in video one he quotes Calvin Coolidge. “Our great hope lies in developing what is good.” and then he goes on to say, “America is good”. Now I’m not going to say that America is bad. We have many, many good qualities. The questions is, if we are good, what does that mean?

Zach says that there is no country that compares to us militarily, scientifically, culturally, or economically. I’m not sure what grounds he’s using to make those statements and they seem to be a little subjective and as such are arguable. In any case, does that make us good? He also says that we don’t conquer our neighbors. That may be true at present, but wasn’t true when we first came here. Again though, while that may be true, does that make us good?

Zach says that God “is the center of my life.” Laudable, commendable in a brother and I don’t doubt that he means it. He then goes on to say that without religion there can be no virtue. Here he is referencing Dr. Benjamin Rush. God isn’t (and I’d argue shouldn’t be) the center of America’s life. It sounds like Zach thinks he should be. I think that a God, perhaps even the God that I believe in, is the center of many American’s lives. Assuming for the moment that God even could be the center of a country’s life, how would it look? Well, if goodness/generosity is a fruit of the spirit then that would be a part of what we would need to express in order to be a good, Godly nation.

The notion of letting someone pick one’s self up, he says in the second video, is an American virtue. We can’t guarantee equal outcomes. It’s up to us as individuals to figure out that course which will give us a state of comfortable subsistence. All of that is true, as far as it goes. None of that really sounds like generosity though. It sounds like rugged individualism (not necessarily a bad thing by itself) and not at all like having the giving and generous nature that God wants for us.

He goes on to say that the government can’t force us to be charitable. Charity comes from the heart. Forced charity equals theft. That’s all very true (except for maybe the last part which is arguable) and here’s where our goodness is put to the test. If government does take from us that which is “rightfully ours” what do we do? Do we joyfully accept the confiscation of our property and move on in a spirit of generosity? Or do we complain that we’re being dealt an injustice? (Please be aware that I don’t think that all the folks that were at this rally, Zach included, are “complainers” or aren’t generous.)

I suppose one could do both. It’s well within one’s rights as a citizen to protest bad taxes. Still I think any given generation had a significant portion of the populous (probably in any given country) that felt wronged by how the government spent “their” taxes. The question becomes, what do we as Christians do when that happens?

In the face of this, Zach says, “we are a giving people”. He goes on to say, “we give more as a percentage of GDP than any other country”. If that’s true (and the stats I’ve found don’t entirely back that up), is that alone enough to make us “good”?

As a nation we’ve done great things. We are certainly not, as some on the left have said, evil. Though, it should also be said, we have done and continue to do evil things. As individuals the Americans I know are, in general, “good” people, in the sense that they care about others and in the world’s eyes at least they could be a lot worse.

We all sin though and have fallen short of the glory of God. That is a Christian doctrine that I have no problem affirming. Given that, I’d be hard pressed to say that as a country, we’re “good”. I don’t think that’s something any one of us as citizens should take personally. I just think that we should be careful going about and telling others how good we are as a country, without something a little more solid to back it up.