When a Nation Forgets
*** Video "Freedom worth living"
As a nation, we are celebrating America's 250th Independence Day this coming Saturday. That's kind of a big deal! Now, you don't have to be patriotic to be a Christian. But personally, I've become more patriotic over the years as I've grown in my understanding of the uniqueness of this nation and its founding. And my feelings of patriotism are independent of what administration is in the White House. They're not tied to any party or person - but in the beauty of "one nation under God".
And of course, my first loyalty is to Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God! Our hope is, and always has been, in God and His Word. But I came across an article this past week that asked the question, "What would happen if future generations were taught about America's flaws, conflicts, divisions, and failures - but never about the faith that inspired many of its greatest achievements?"
A study examined hundreds of books being recommended ahead of America's 250th anniversary celebration. The researchers found books about race, civil rights, women's history, minority perspectives, and modern political movements. But among the hundreds of recommended titles, not a single book focused on Christianity's role in America's founding.
Nothing on the First Great Awakening, the revival that swept through the colonies before the Revolutionary War. Nothing on religious liberty. Nothing on the faith of many of the Founders. Nothing on the major role many churches played in shaping our nation. The concern wasn't that every history book should be explicitly Christian in nature. The concern was whether anyone can accurately understand America while ignoring one of the most influential forces that shaped it.
One author summarized it this way, "A generation that does not know where their freedoms come from will not know why those freedoms are worth fighting for." And that raises a larger question. It's one thing for a nation to forget where its freedoms come from. It's another thing for God's people to forget where their blessings come from. We need to acknowledge...
I. America's blessings
There's no denying that despite inflation and fuel prices, political division, and all the complaints we hear every day, we are still an incredibly blessed people! We enjoy freedoms that many around the world can only dream about. We gather and worship openly. We can speak freely. We often take these things for granted because, well, 'they've always been there'.
But those blessings didn't appear by accident. They weren't created simply by the brilliance of our founders or by the hard work of previous generations. If we truly want to understand our blessings, we first have to understand where they came from. Our blessings came because our nation's foundation was...
A. Built upon God's Truth
I don't worship America. I don't believe America is perfect. But I do believe America is amazing and unique! Not because Americans are inherently better than anyone else. Not because our leaders were flawless. But because our founders openly acknowledged God as the source of human rights and liberty.
George Washington said, "It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible." And in his farewell address to the nation, he said, "Morality is a necessary spring of popular government. And let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion." - But that's what modern America is currently attempting - freedom without religion.
John Adams, in an excerpt from his personal diary, "The Christian religion is, above all the religions that ever prevailed or existed in ancient or modern times, the religion of wisdom, virtue, equity, and humanity."
John Quincy Adams, from a speech celebrating the 4th of July, "Is it not that, in the chain of human events, the birthday of the nation is indissolubly linked with the birth-day of the Savior? ... That it laid the corner stone of human government upon the first precepts of Christianity?"
John Jay, one of the framers of the constitution and the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, wrote, "Providence has given to our people the choice of their rulers, and it is the duty, as well as the privilege and interest of our Christian nation to select and prefer Christians for their rulers."
The Declaration of Independence states that our rights come from our Creator - not the government. The Plymouth Charter speaks of advancing the Christian religion. The Virginia Charter speaks of propagating the Christian faith. Harvard, Yale, Princeton and many other early universities were founded to train ministers and promote Christian learning. Whether people like those facts or not, they are part of our history!
In the Old Testament we find these words in Psalms 33:8-12 (NIV)...
Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the people of the world revere him. (9) For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm. (10) The LORD foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples. (11) But the plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations. (12) Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people he chose for his inheritance.
When written, this was written specifically about the nation of Israel. I'm not implying that America is the new Israel, God's chosen nation. But under the New Covenant - through Jesus - it can now apply to any nation who submits and follows God. America's blessings do not depend on our education, our party affiliation, our politics or philosophies, our wealth or even military might - but on our acceptance or rejection of God and His ways! America's blessings came through...
B. Submission to God
Not every founding father claimed a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. But even those who did not were deeply influenced by a Christian worldview. They understood and accepted what many others rejected...
Psalms 127:1 (NIV)
Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain.
At the first Constitutional Convention, the delegates were fighting against time to develop this new nation's precepts. Some were so frustrated that they were ready to give up. At that point, Benjamin Franklin stood up and said, "Gentlemen, if it is true that not one single petal from any flower falls to the ground without escaping God's attention, will the distress of this nation go unheeded? Let us therefore determine to seek His face."
The entire body immediately put down their pens and got on their knees in prayer to seek God's divine guidance. God is the source of every blessing! And whenever people forget that truth, trouble follows.
That pattern isn't unique to America. It's the story of Israel throughout the Old Testament. God blessed them. The people prospered. Then people forgot God. The people suffered as God pulled back His blessings. Then the people returned to God. And the cycle repeated.
The question isn't whether God has blessed America. The question is whether America still acknowledges the source of those blessings and is willing to submit to God's leading. America's hope is in...
II. Returning to God
Because God is the source of our blessings, we shouldn't be surprised that forgetting God puts those blessings at risk. Throughout Scripture we see that pattern repeated again and again. When people honor God, they flourish. When they reject Him, confusion and frustration follow. There's a quote repeated by Presidents Eisenhower, Reagan and Clinton, "America is great because America is good. If America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great."
And perhaps nowhere is that confusion more evident than in the way our culture now 'redefines' what is "good." 'Good' used to be tied directly to God's character and God's commands. Now 'goodness' is often defined completely separate from God and His will. Now simply holding the values of diversity, tolerance and open mindedness qualify you as a 'good person'. You can embrace immorality and wholeheartedly reject God and still be called 'good' in today's society. But if we want God's blessings...
A. We can't redefine 'good'
I read an article from a humanist group with their new version of morality. They wrote, "Whereas the Ten Commandments of the Hebrew Bible are a set of strict rules dictated by God, the 'Ten Commitments' stand on their own as humanist values..." So in rejection of God's authority, they set forth their own list of "Ten Commitments", some of them are - "Critical Thinking, Ethical Development, Peace and Social Justice, Service and Participation, Empathy, Environmentalism, and Global Awareness."
Those may be 'nice' values, but in their very creation apart from God, they set themselves up as the highest authority on morality and break the very first two commandments given by God in Exodus 20:1-4 (NIV)...
And God spoke all these words: (2) "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. (3) You shall have no other gods before me. (4) You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below."
And as I look at society today, the warning from Isaiah certainly sounds timely...
Isaiah 5:20-21 (NIV)
Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. (21) Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight.
It's not my goal for us to go around labeling people as 'bad people'. But we do need to understand that Jesus took the concept of 'goodness' very seriously. Let's look at Mark 10:17-18 (NIV)...
As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. "Good teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" (18) "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good - except God alone."
We can't redefine 'good' to fit our actions. It's not an arbitrary standard. If we're honest about really defining 'good' – none of us fit that description as determined by our actions. We've all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. So, if we 'all fall short' and can't even wear the label 'good' – what's the point of trying to be good? What's the purpose of doing good?
I'll say it over and over – we don't do good deeds to get to Heaven, we do good deeds because we are going to Heaven! You can't work your way to Heaven, but you can do things to show God you appreciate His grace and mercy when you fall short.
But identifying the problem is only half the battle. It's easy to point at cultural decline. It's easy to criticize politicians, schools, media, or activists. The harder question is, "What's the solution?" Our nation's problem is ultimately spiritual. No political movement, no educational reform, no government program can solve that...
B. America needs Jesus!
I don't pretend that I'm somehow non-partisan or above politics. I have strong political opinions, and I vote. But I reject the idea that political solutions alone are the solutions that will save this nation. Some believe, "If we can just throw enough money into social programs and pass the right legislation, then we can meet people's needs. When we do all that, then America will prosper."
Our salvation as a nation doesn't ride on who is elected to office or what bill passes or not. I'm not saying politics and legislation don't matter. They do - they affect our lives greatly. And elections do have consequences. So, I stay informed on political issues and develop political opinions based on my understanding of scripture. However...
Acts 4:12 (NIV)
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.
No leader, no general, no politician, no president, no legislation, no other religious teacher, no one can give us what Jesus Christ can! Our only hope is, and always has been, in God and His Word become flesh - Jesus! America's greatest need is not a new program or bill. It's not a new philosophy. It's not even a new political movement. America's greatest need is Jesus Christ!
In the Old Testament, we find King Solomon and the nation of Israel in 2 Chronicles chapter 7. Solomon had completed the construction of God's temple and the Lord spoke to him and said…
2 Chronicles 7:14 (NIV)
if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
We see that when Israel followed God, they prospered – when they rejected Him, they fell into ruin and slavery. We, as Christians, need to get on our knees on behalf of our country. The Apostle Paul wrote...
1 Timothy 2:1-4 (NIV)
I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone - (2) for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. (3) This is good, and pleases God our Savior, (4) who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.
- And that verse applies to each and every President and his administration whether you voted for them or not or even whether you like them or not. We are called to pray for our nation and its leaders. What our nation needs is a spiritual revival - and that will not happen unless God's people intercede on our nation's behalf and pray!
- But revival doesn't begin in Washington. Revival begins in the Church. And revival in the Church begins in individual hearts - our hearts.
So What?
The nation that survives is not necessarily the richest or strongest or 'smartest' nation. The nation that survives is the nation whose God is the Lord. As a nation we should continue to ask, 'Have we blessed God?' But even more importantly, each of us should ask, 'Have I blessed God?' Do I acknowledge Him as the source of every blessing? Do I use my freedom to honor Him? Do I pray for my nation and its leaders? Do I actively work to advance His Kingdom?
Our founding fathers were willing to sacrifice their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor for what they believed. Jesus sacrificed infinitely more for our eternal freedom.
The question is not whether God has blessed America. The question is - what we will do with the blessings that God has already given us. Enjoy the upcoming Independence Day celebration! May God continue to bless America! But more importantly, may America be a blessing to God!