Christian Nationalism, the Social Gospel, and the Only Hope We Have

As a pastor with more than a few gray hairs now (okay, maybe a lot of gray hair), I’ve seen some things. My calling has always been to shepherd the people of The Door Church by feeding, protecting, and overseeing. That means guarding the pulpit, ensuring that what is preached here is nothing less and nothing more than the gospel of Jesus Christ. My aim is simple: to bring you to the Chief Shepherd safely.

Over the years, I’ve noticed that the gospel is often attacked not by being denied outright, but by being added to. People slip in “Jesus plus something else.” These counterfeits are subtle, and they sound good at first, but they end up pulling us away from the only hope we have in life and death: Jesus Christ.

When I first planted the church 15 years ago, there was a strong pull toward what’s often called the social gospel. The message was essentially this: Jesus + social reform = salvation. It focused heavily on good works, justice, and human progress. On the surface, that sounds noble, even biblical. The problem was that it often neglected the cross, substitutionary atonement, and personal conversion. Yes, following Jesus should lead us to care for the poor and seek justice. But those are the fruits of the gospel, not the gospel itself. If we confuse them, we meet earthly needs while neglecting humanity’s deepest need, forgiveness of sin and reconciliation with God.

In recent years, another distortion has risen: Christian nationalism. This message says: Jesus + politics = salvation. It blends Christianity with political identity, often giving the impression that God’s kingdom advances through government power or cultural dominance. It ties faith to symbols like the flag or a party platform. And it can quickly create an “us vs. them” mindset. But again, this misses the heart of the gospel.

I recently watched the Charlie Kirk memorial gathering and was encouraged to hear many people, including politicians, boldly proclaim Christ as their hope, even describing how their faith compels them to serve in the public square. Yes, and Amen! Yet others on that same platform seemed blind to the glory of Christ, promoting national allegiance above allegiance to Him. Could you tell the difference? My desire is to give you discerning eyes, so that you can recognize the counterfeit by treasuring and hiding the true gospel deep in your heart.

So what is the real gospel? It’s the good news that Jesus Christ lived the life we could not live, died the death we deserved, and rose again so that sinners might be reconciled to God by grace through faith. That is salvation. Everything else flows out of it, personal transformation, compassion, mercy, justice, even politics, but as fruit, not the root. The gospel critiques both the social gospel and Christian nationalism by refusing to worship progress or America. Instead, it centers everything on Jesus’ finished work and His kingdom mission (Matthew 28:18–20). 

Our hope is not in Washington or in social reform, it is in Christ alone. 

Here’s the formula in its simplest form:

Jesus + Nothing = Salvation