Trying to Excuse the Idolization of Nationalism - By Anthony Wade

Excerpted from here. Our comments in bold.
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We can only take so much of Rev. Wade's flame-throwing, so today we are just going to deal with two excerpts. 

Rev. Wade is obsessed with the NAR. He cruises Charisma News just looking for targets, then blasts away at them for offenses, imaginary, supposed, misread and inferred. Today he levels his sights on Joseph Mattera.

We should note that we do not intend to defend Mattera or the NAR.

Strangely, this "Reverend" rarely quotes Scripture. He has a lot to say about what proper beliefs should be, and any violation, perceived or real, unleashes his wrath. But he never documents his claims. He spouts rhetoric in a stream-of-consciousness mode, repeatedly making various claims as if they were unassailable truth. 

Lastly, we should remind the reader once again that Rev. Wade is a political leftist, which is the principal reason he objects to the idea of "Christian Nationalism." 

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(Excerpt one)

"The Lord's prayer takes it further as it involves praying for God's kingdom and will to be done on earth (not just in church buildings for two hours on a Sunday morning) as it is in heaven (Luke 11:2-4)." - Joseph Mattera

The prayer for the kingdom of God to come refers to the second coming of Jesus Christ. (Undocumented claim.)

The NAR dominionist warps this into the belief that our role as believers is to bring the kingdom of God to earth itself. (Undocumented claim.)

On that glorious day beloved, Christ will make things on earth as if they were in heaven. Read Revelation. (It's too much trouble for Rev. Wade to tell us where in Revelation.)

The lion will lie down with the lamb. The bastardization that Mattera traffics in is well known in the apostate church in this country. (Undocumented claim.)

On earth is if in heaven is a literal mantra of Bethel Church. It is a dangerous false teaching... (Undocumented claim.

Now that we have a sense of Rev. Wade's deficient rhetorical style, we shall examine the principal claim, that in the Lord's Prayer Jesus was talking only of the Second Coming. We shall quote the Bible to do so. First, let's quote the Lord's prayer:

Mt. 6:9-13 This, then, is how you should pray: "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today our daily bread. 12 Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."

The literal rendering of verse 10 is

Come the kingdom of you be done the will of you as in heaven also upon earth

"Come" is 

b. equivalent to to come into being, arise, come forth, show itself, find place or influence: τά σκάνδαλα, Matthew 18:7; Luke 17:1; τά ἀγαθά Romans 3:8 (Jeremiah 17:6); τό τέλειον, 1 Corinthians 13:10; ἡ πίστις, Galatians 3:23, 25; ἡ ἀποστασία, 2 Thessalonians 2:3; ἡ βασιλεία τοῦ Θεοῦ, equivalent to be established, Matthew 6:10

"Kingdom come" is an arising, coming forth, establishment of the Kingdom. This combined with His will being done. "Be done" is 

4. to be made, done, finished: ...of commands, decisions, purposes, requests, etc. to be done, executed: Matthew 6:10

It's God's purpose to execute the Kingdom, for it to be brought to completion or fullness, and we are to pray for this. Thus "your will be done" is a process being made more and more present on the earth. It is in stages of implementation, so as to eventually have the very same Kingdom here as in heaven. This process of implementation has been going on since man was created, and continues to present day.

Let's examine the Kingdom.

Jn. 18:36 Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world."

Jesus did not come to make an earthly kingdom. But a Kingdom not of this world doesn't mean the Kingdom cannot be here. He intends to expand His heavenly Kingdom upon the earth. Jesus wants heavenly principles to happen on earth ("Your Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.")

• The Kingdom is near:

Mk. 1:15 “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!”

• The Kingdom is upon:

Mt. 12:28 But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.

• The Kingdom is within:

Lk. 17:20-21 Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, 21 nor will people say, `Here it is,’ or `There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is within you.”

• The Kingdom comes:

Mk. 9:1 And he said to them, “I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power.”

Ac. 2:33 Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear.

Ac. 1:8 "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

• The Kingdom of priests:

Re. 1:5-6 ...To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, Re. 1:6 and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father — to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.

• The Kingdom is ours:

Mt. 25:34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, `Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.'"

• We are receiving an unshakeable Kingdom:

He. 12:28-29 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, 29 for our “God is a consuming fire.” [Deut. 4:24]

• The Kingdom is eternal:

2Pe. 1:10-11 Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall, 11 and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Now that Jesus has risen from the dead and ascended into heaven He is exalted as King on His throne:

Lk. 22:69 "But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.”

He. 1:3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

We are heirs to that Kingdom, we who have been purified by the blood of the Lamb:

Ro. 8:17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs — heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

We would assert that the Kingdom first touched the earth with Pentecost. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit is the fulfillment of Jesus' promises about the Kingdom. The indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit is the proof of His Kingdom come. The Holy Spirit is the power that raises us to new life, and gives us what we need to live godly lives. The Holy Spirit is the Kingdom come until Jesus comes again.

After the Holy Spirit was poured out, Peter gave the very first sermon ever preached. The crowd was stricken. They asked what they must do, and Peter said,

Ac. 2:38 "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."

So the call to all men everywhere is the same message as both John the Baptist and Jesus preached: Repent. The Kingdom is inextricably linked to salvation. The Kingdom is no longer near, it is here, and those who repent and call on the name of Jesus will be saved and receive the Holy Spirit and be brought into the Kingdom:

Col. 1:13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves...

The Bible closes in Revelation with many statements of our King and what he will do. Once He has executed judgment on earth, we find another statement of His eternal Kingship:

Re. 11:15 The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever.”

It is at this time the coming Kingdom will be fully arrived. Conclusion: The Kingdom is here within the believer, and that came at Pentecost. The Kingdom will be fully implemented at the Second Coming.)

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(Excerpt two)

"As far as "salt and light" Christian nationalism, we are responsible as individual believers for loving our neighbor as we love ourselves. We cannot care for others if we do not take care of ourselves. The apostle Paul also commands Christians to manage their household and care for their family members (1 Tim. 3:5, 5:8). The command to take care of one's own family first can be logically expanded to include providing first for your nation since a nation sustains the ecosystem needed for healthy biological families." - Joseph Mattera

Huh? How in the world is it logical to expand taking care on one's family to taking care of an entire nation? That is asinine on its face. (Summary denial, with a pejorative. Typical for Rev. Wade.)

When Jesus walked the earth His people were under Roman oppression. They suffered the type of persecution that NAR dominionists could not even imagine. (Oh, really? How does he know this?)

What did Jesus say about this? Absolutely nothing. What did He teach about it? Absolutely nothing. (This is what happens when one's Bible remains closed and dusty on the bookshelf. Rev. Wade's ignorance is all the more astonishing because he purports to be a teacher of the Bible. Let's enlighten him:

Mt. 20:25-27 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 26 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first must be your slave — 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Mt. 23:13-15 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to. 14 Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Therefore you will be punished more severely. 15 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.

Lk. 12:11-12 “When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, 12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say.”

Jn. 18:36-37 Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place.” 37 “You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”

Jn. 19:10-11 “Do you refuse to speak to me?” Pilate said. “Don’t you realize I have power either to free you or to crucify you?” 11 Jesus answered, “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above. Therefore the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.”

Notice what we did. We consulted our Bibles and discovered that Jesus had a lot to say about ruling authorities.)

What did He do about it? You guessed it - absolutely nothing. His kingdom is not of this earth. Being a shining city on a hill means maintaining a healthy Christian family based upon biblical values amidst a sea of unrighteousness within this world. (Undocumented claim. Since we are weary of Rev. Wade's summary statements and vague claims, we shall in similar manner summarily dismiss him.)