A Few Thoughts about America and God's Grace

Having recently celebrated Independence Day with friends and family, I was reflecting on the song "America, the Beautiful". One of the lines in the song is the phrase "God shed His grace on Thee..." It got me thinking, is it really accurate to say that God has shed His grace upon a particular country?

As an American, I love this nation where I derive my earthly citizenship. As a Christ-follower, I love grace, because it alone secures me in my eternal citizenship both in and beyond this world. In the New Testament, grace is offered to individuals in numerous ways, not the least of which is through Christ's sacrifice for sin on the cross. So if the New Testament concept of grace is extended to individuals regardless of race, color or national identity, the question is worth asking: In what sense is God's "grace" shed on America - or any other nation, for that matter?

I do believe that America's foundational documents (i.e. the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, etc.) are morally superior to other systems of human government. And while we have at times fallen very short of living up to the ideals of our founding intentions, these documents are nonetheless a beautiful and Scripturally rooted set of values by which we seek to perpetuate freedom for our citizens. In that sense, God has indeed been gracious to the citizens of this nation - allowing us to live in relative peace, prosperity and political freedom by comparison to the vast majority of the global population.

And yet, under the New Covenant God no longer operates through specific "chosen nations" such as He did in the Old Testament. For "there is neither Greek nor Jew, slave nor free, male nor female - but all are one in Christ Jesus". The New Testament concept of grace is centered upon the unmerited favor of God being freely bestowed upon those who will simply receive God's grace as a free gift through faith in Christ. Obviously, not everyone in America believes this message. So again I ask, "In what sense is God's grace been shed upon America?" Or is that particular line of the song misstated?

Biblically, grace is the highest and sweetest expression of the love of God toward humanity. It is the offer of complete forgiveness of sin and eternal life based upon no effort of our own. So when we say that God has shed His grace upon America, do we mean that He loves Americans more than others? Is this line something that should be sung by Christians, thankful and patriotic as we may be about our country? I would love to know your thoughts...