God commands us to worship no-one and nothing but him. In fact, God is such a self-professed “jealous” God, that he made this commandment to be the first and foremost of all. Jesus reiterated the commandment’s importance and fleshed it out as: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and all your soul, and all your mind, and all your strength. This leaves little room for misinterpretation, and yet every time you recite a pledge of allegiance to your country or salute your flag, you’re breaking this commandment.

When you pledge allegiance to your country, you’re worshipping your country. When you salute the 100% polyester ‘graven image’ of your flag, you’re likewise worshipping your country.

Most people don’t see it that way. They see saluting a flag or swearing an oath as a show of respect, and showing respect for your country isn’t the same as worshipping your country, is it?

Or is it?

Jesus told us not to swear any oath whatsoever, and that includes pledges of allegiance. And in God’s eyes, saluting a flag is the same as bowing down before it, which God told us not to do before anyone or anything but him.

When your country asks you to support your troops or to take up arms to kill an enemy, but God says “Thou shallt not kill” – who will you obey?

When your country demands that you treat all religions as being equal, but God says there is no God but him – who will you obey?

When your country makes it illegal for you to openly speak or write God’s truth, but Jesus says to go out into the world and preach the Good News – who will you obey?

If heaven is your goal and doing God’s will is your means to get there, then you’d better make up your mind that when it comes to choosing between God and your country, you’ll choose God.

Sadly, many countries have twisted the notions of “serving God” and “serving country” to appear to mean the same thing. That’s a slick trick of the devil. Catholicism does the same, so that in serving “the Church” and being obedient to the pope, Catholics believe they’re doing God’s will. But nothing could be further from the truth. Stripped to its core, Catholicism is demon worship, just as, stripped to its core, patriotism is demon worship.

God should always take precedence over any construct of man, whether that construct be a country or a religion. Those who purposely confuse the issue by equating God with a country or a religion will get their reward, and it won’t be the one with the cherry on top.

What does this mean, then, in everyday terms? Serve God, not your country. Your duty as a citizen is to obey the laws of the land, not to bow down before a flag-draped entity. And wherever the laws of the land conflict with God’s laws, always choose God, regardless of the consequences.

Countries that guarantee their citizens freedom of religion also guarantee their citizens the freedom from having to salute a flag or recite a pledge, if those acts conflict with their religious beliefs. This right is inherent in religious freedom and should be freely exercised. So, for instance, if you hold US or Canadian citizenship, the freedom not to salute your flag and not to pledge allegiance is your right as a citizen. In exercising this right, you ultimately show your obedience to God first and foremost. As a born-again, the only one you should ever stand up for, salute, or bow down before is God.