Dying to Self and the Place of Patriotism
Question: Would you say that in its biblical context, dying to self could include the death of patriotism? In other words, for first-century Jews, the self was shaped by Jewish national identity, covenant privilege, and loyalty to Israel. Could dying to self mean letting go of patriotism when it becomes the source of superiority, exclusion, or confidence before God?
Scripture does speak of the believer’s “death” in various senses. Paul writes, for example, that “our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin” Romans 6:6, and elsewhere, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me” Galatians 2:20. These passages deal with a fundamental reorientation of the believer’s identity and allegiance.
In the first-century Jewish context, personal identity was indeed deeply bound up with national status, covenant privileges, and loyalty to Israel. Paul himself could list his credentials—“of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews” Philippians 3:5—yet he goes on to count such things as loss compared with knowing Christ. That does not mean that Jewish identity became evil, but that it could no longer be the basis of confidence before God or superiority over others.
In that sense, dying to self can certainly include a profound relativizing of patriotism when patriotism functions as a spiritual prop. If love of nation becomes the ground of one’s worth, or the basis on which one feels superior, or a substitute for trust in Christ, then it must be crucified with the rest of the old self. To that extent your question is well framed: dying to self includes letting go of any national pride that competes with or displaces faith in Christ.
However, it does not follow that any and all patriotism is excluded by a biblical call to self-denial. There is a difference between (1) an idolatrous nationalism that uses God to sanctify the nation and looks to the nation as a functional savior, and (2) a measured love and gratitude for the place where God has providentially set one’s life, especially when that nation has, in some measure, protected justice, promoted order, and allowed the spread of the gospel.
Patriotism becomes spiritually dangerous when it:
- serves as a source of personal righteousness or standing before God (“we are favored because of our nation”),
- fosters exclusion and contempt for others in a way that contradicts the gospel,
- demands allegiance in conflict with obedience to God.
In such cases, dying to self does indeed mean letting that form of patriotism die.
But it would be difficult to construct a solid biblical argument that all forms of love of country are incompatible with living for Christ. One can, for example, give thanks to God for blessings particular to one’s nation, work for its good, honor what is honorable in its history, and still hold firmly that ultimate allegiance, confidence, and hope belong to Christ alone. The apostles could say, “We ought to obey God rather than men” Acts 5:29, recognizing that when the state’s demands conflict with obedience to God, the believer must choose God. That principle sets the hierarchy: love of God is ultimate; love of neighbor and, derivatively, love of country are subordinate and conditional.
So, in direct answer: yes, in its biblical context, dying to self can and sometimes must include the death of a certain kind of patriotism—namely, patriotism as pride, superiority, or spiritual confidence. At the same time, Scripture does not require the abolition of all patriotic feeling. The call is to ensure that any love of country is firmly subordinated to loyalty to Christ and is purged of elements that contradict the grace and truth of the gospel.
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