Today is Canada Day. I often find that this day is a good opportunity to reflect on my true identity as a follower of Jesus Christ.
I live in Canada. I’m glad that I live in Canada. I love the landscapes of Canada. I love the folk stories of Canada. I love the music of Canada, the food, the various cultures. I love the history of Canada. There are chapters in our history that are not good. They are, nevertheless our history.
I am Canadian.
Yet, that is not my full identity. I am Canadian only because my ancestors left Scotland, settled in Canada, and a few generations later I was born.
My truest identity is as a citizen of a nation that transcends political and temporal boundaries.
I belong to the living God who made a covenant of protection, provision, and prosperity with the human race through a man named Abraham. Such is the grace of this God; He took upon himself both his own and our responsibility for keeping the terms of the covenant. By the death of Jesus on the cross, God has directed the curse of breaking the covenant onto his own person. And by Jesus’ resurrection we have the assurance that all is forgiven. In Jesus’ name, whoever believes and is baptized is adopted into the family of God, made citizens of the kingdom of heaven, and joint heirs with Christ of all the blessings God has in store.
I am a Christian who happens to live in Canada. It is no accident that when the Presbyterian denomination was being formed the deciding voices chose the name: The Presbyterian Church in Canada instead of the Presbyterian Church of Canada. Wherever I go, whoever are my neighbours, my life is hidden with Christ in God. I belong in life and in death to my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ. This is true whether or not the country we call Canada is at peace or at war; whether the nation thrives or dies; whether we are free or overtaken by another.
My King is Christ. What have I to fear?