Making The Case For A Nation's Return To God
Our boast is that we are one nation under God. If we are one nation under God, why aren't we doing better? We have heard the Gospel and accepted it. Why aren't we making a stand? We must, as a nation, become praying people staying in the presence and will of God
It is time that I must speak out. I have sat back and watched a
moral and spiritual decline in our nation and remained quiet
like far too many in the Christian community. Our moral and
spiritual decline in America concerns me. We have sat idly by
and allowed Satan to have his way. I have come to the point that
every time someone says “God Bless America,” I counter the
statement with this question, “Can God Bless America?" My focus
in this essay is to wake up the sleeping giants and call them to
action. Who are the sleeping giants? The members of the
Christian Community are the sleeping giants. We are a majority
in America, but we are taking the position of ease like Lot did
in Sodom. As I begin this wake up call let me start with some
things that should have awakened us as we read them or heard
them on the news. 1963 was a tumultuous year for the United
States. It was the year of Vietnam involvement, civil rights
discord, the Supreme Court reversal of 80 previous decisions
with the removal of the Lord's Prayer and Bible readings from
public schools, the assassination of President John F. Kennedy,
and a subsequent loss of values and direction in our society.
Morality hit a new low during the 1992-2000 U.S. Administration.
Euthanasia became legal in Oregon, same-sex union became legal
in Vermont, and the specter of a police state grew as the
Administration supported the invasion of our privacy and the
disarming of America, our best defense against tyranny.
The most devastating effect on our future is the nightmare of
abortion, as the death toll from legalized abortion reached 40
million. The civil rights of the unborn remain violated, in
spite of public opinion and the visualization of the baby in the
mother by ultrasound. With 40 million Americans missing 30 years
of age and under, this group comprises the new American
minority!
These are some lines from the petition to remove “In God We
Trust” from our currency: It is our firm belief that it is
unconstitutional to force ones thoughts of God, or a god upon
another American. We have the right to religious freedom, as
well as the right of freedom from religion. For those who are
not believers in God, or a god should not have to feel as though
it is a wrong belief due to the symbolism on our money. Nor
should they be made to feel out of place due to the forcing of
the idea of a god onto them. The American society has more
faiths then Christianity and other deity-based beliefs, so the
American citizens shouldn't be forced or stereotyped as being
one.
On Aug. 5, 2003, a federal judge ruled that a Ten Commandments
monument prominently located in the rotunda of the Alabama
Judicial Building had to be removed. On August 5, U. S. District
Court Judge Myron Thompson issued an injunction that called for
Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore to have the 5,280-pound granite
sculpture removed within 15 days. His opinion suggested that the
court could order substantial fines against Judge Moore should
he fail to obey the injunction.
On Wednesday, February 4, 2004, The Massachusetts Supreme
Judicial Court cleared the way for lesbian and gay couples in
the state to marry, ruling, on February 3, 2004, that government
attorneys “failed to identify any constitutionally adequate
reason” to deny them the right. In a 4-3 ruling, the court gave
the Massachusetts state Legislature six months to rewrite the
state's marriage laws for the benefit of gay couples. The ruling
by the court on the Massachusetts Constitution could set new
legal ground, and drew quick reaction from advocates on both
sides of the issue. Massachusetts' governor immediately
denounced Tuesday's decision and said he would work for a
constitutional amendment to overturn it. But an openly gay U.S.
congressman from the state said the amendment couldn't come
before the voters before 2006, and by that time same-sex
marriages will be law. On February 12, 2004 in San Francisco,
California, couples flocked to City Hall. Officials issued 95
marriage licenses to same-sex couples before closing for the
day. The Associated Press reported that 87 couples were married
on the spot. Officials told the remaining couples to come back
Friday (February 13, 2004), according to the AP. As of Friday
afternoon, 489 couples had gotten married, the AP reported. The
first to be married Thursday were Phyllis Lyon, 80, and Dorothy
Martin, 83, who have been together 51 years.
When I think on these events, I am ashamed of myself and the
Christian community. We have sat in the comfort of our homes,
churches, and para-church ministries and allowed a small
demographic to move this nation away from God. There was a time
that we stood firm on the Word of God rather than stand idly by
and let sinners do their work.
In God We Trust:
Our official national motto, first appearing on a two-cent coin in 1864. In 1955,
through an act of
Congress, this motto was approved for use on our paper money. It
has appeared on all U.S. currency since that date.
In God We Trust
Did you know....... As you walk up the steps to the building
which houses the Supreme Court you can see, near the top of the
building, a row of the world's law givers and each one is facing
one in the middle who is facing forward with a full frontal view
...... it is Moses and the Ten Commandments! As you enter the
Supreme Court courtroom, the two huge oak doors have the Ten
Commandments engraved on each lower portion of each door. As you
sit inside the courtroom, you can see the wall right above where
the Supreme Court judges sit a display of the Ten Commandments!
There are Bible verses etched in stone all over the Federal
Buildings and Monuments in Washington, D.C.
James Madison, the fourth president, known as “The Father of Our
Constitution” made the following statement... “We have staked
the whole of all our political institutions upon the capacity of
mankind for self-government, upon the capacity of each and all
of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves, to sustain
ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God.” Patrick
Henry, that patriot and Founding Father of our country, said ...
“It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this
great nation was founded not by religionists but by Christians
... not on religions but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ.” Every
session of Congress begins with a prayer by a preacher ... whose
salary has been paid by the taxpayer since 1777. Fifty-two of
the 55 founders of the Constitution were members of the
established orthodox churches in the colonies. Thomas Jefferson
worried about that the Courts would overstep their authority and
instead of interpreting the law would begin making law ... an
oligarchy- the rule of few over many. The very first Supreme
Court Justice, John Jay, said ... “Americans should select and
prefer Christians as their rulers.” How then, have we gotten to
the point that everything we have done for 200 years in this
country is now suddenly wrong and unconstitutional ?
What is going to happen to this nation that pledges “One Nation
Under God” if we the people of God don't make a stand. We talk
the talk but we aren't walking the walk. These group who are
pushing God and the principles of His Word out of America will
quickly organize a rally and march for their purposes. Where are
we? Wouldn't it be great if thousands of Christians went to
Washington, D.C. to make a stand for the Lord? Have we gotten
too comfortable in Sodom ( I mean America)?
The God of Second Chances
I believe we serve a God of a second chance. The stipulation
that comes with that chance is whether there are any righteous
in the nations. The Bible gives the account of Abraham's
questioning of God as He was preparing to go destroy Sodom and
Gomorrah in Genesis 18:16-33. It says:
16 When the men got up to leave, they looked down toward Sodom,
and Abraham walked along with them to see them on their way. 17
Then the LORD said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about
to do? 18 Abraham will surely become a great and powerful
nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him. 19
For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and
his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing
what is right and just, so that the LORD will bring about for
Abraham what he has promised him.” 20 Then the LORD said, “The
outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so
grievous 21 that I will go down and see if what they have done
is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will
know.” 22 The men turned away and went toward Sodom, but Abraham
remained standing before the LORD. 23 Then Abraham approached
him and said: “Will you sweep away the righteous with the
wicked? 24 What if there are fifty righteous people in the city?
Will you really sweep it away and not spare the place for the
sake of the fifty righteous people in it? 25 Far be it from you
to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked,
treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you!
Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?” 26 The LORD said,
“If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will
spare the whole place for their sake.” 27 Then Abraham spoke up
again: “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord,
though I am nothing but dust and ashes, 28 what if the number of
the righteous is five less than fifty? Will you destroy the
whole city because of five people?” “If I find forty-five
there,” he said, “I will not destroy it.” 29 Once again he spoke
to him, “What if only forty are found there?” He said, “For the
sake of forty, I will not do it.” 30 Then he said, “May the Lord
not be angry, but let me speak. What if only thirty can be found
there?” He answered, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”
31 Abraham said, “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to
the Lord, what if only twenty can be found there?” He said, “For
the sake of twenty, I will not destroy it.” 32 Then he said,
“May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more.
What if only ten can be found there?” He answered, “For the sake
of ten, I will not destroy it.” 33 When the LORD had finished
speaking with Abraham, he left, and Abraham returned home. (NIV)
Abraham simply wanted the people to have a change. He worked his
angle with God in hopes of the city being spared for the sake of
the righteous. God agreed that if there were only ten righteous
that the city would not be destroyed. The Angels of the Lord
went to Sodom but they encountered low morals and the demon of
homosexuality. Genesis 19:1-22 gives us the account of the
events in Sodom. The angels arrived and Lot was sitting at the
gate of the city. He invited them to his home. Verses 4-11
brings the disturbing revelation that this city was morally and
spiritually bankrupt. It says:
Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the
city of Sodom—both young and old—surrounded the house. 5 They
called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring
them out to us so that we can have sex with them.” 6 Lot went
outside to meet them and shut the door behind him 7 and said,
“No, my friends. Don't do this wicked thing. 8 Look, I have two
daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out
to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don't do
anything to these men, for they have come under the protection
of my roof.” 9 “Get out of our way,” they replied. And they
said, “This fellow came here as an alien, and now he wants to
play the judge! We'll treat you worse than them.” They kept
bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the
door. 10 But the men inside reached out and pulled Lot back into
the house and shut the door. 11 Then they struck the men who
were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindness so
that they could not find the door. (NIV)
The sinfulness of the city is very clear. These men wanted to
violently rape the angels and wouldn't accept anything less. The
angels intervened by blinding the men and pulled Lot into the
house. They asked Lot about his family in the city. I think this
might have been their way of seeing if there were even ten who
were righteous in the city. They found that only Lot, his two
daughters, and Mrs. Lot were willing to leave. They made their
way out of the city but Mrs. Lot had to look back. She was
turned to a pillar of salt. In this city only three seemed to be
righteous. Surely in America, there are some righteous. We have
freedom of religion. We have numerous churches in every city of
this nation. We have para-church ministries throughout the
nation. We have great theologians. We have great television
evangelist and preachers like Bishop Eddie Long, T.D. Jakes, Dr.
Otis Moss Jr., Bishop Dennis Leonard, and Bishop G.E. Patterson
who are proclaiming the Gospel. Our boast is that we are one
nation under God. If we are one nation under God, why aren't we
doing better? We have heard the Gospel and accepted it. Why
aren't we making a stand?
I am sounding off from my heart
in this essay because I am
concerned. America is a great nation. I served in the US Army
for twenty years to include a tour in Vietnam so I must love
this nation. My love is still great for our nation but my
concern is that we have allowed ourselves to be put into a
position where God can't bless our nation.
I tell you I am concerned about today as well as the future. Our
nation is drifting away from the very principles that made us
great. We are turning away from our God who has been faithful
and who has blessed us. We have turned away from His Word that
was a light unto our path. In some of our pulpits, we have
watered down the Gospel rather than preaching about sin and the
need for true repentance.
I am not sure that God can bless America in our current state.
There is hope! In 2 Chronicles 7:14, we find hope. It says, If
my people, which are called by my name, shall 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. (KJV) If we want the blessings of God, we
must do as this verse says. We must humble ourselves. This means
from the President's house to our house. We must humble
ourselves before the Lord. We must pray.
I remember as a child the saying in the church was that a family
that stays together prays together. I believe that a nation that
will pray together will stay together. We must, as a nation,
become praying people staying in the presence and will of God.
We must pray! We must next seek God's face. This is simply
moving from moral bankruptcy to getting into God's will and
walking according to His ways.
The next step is to turn from our wicked ways. The Body of
Christ must get back to the basics. We must worship, study,
pray, praise, and not compromise. We must stand against the
wiles of the Devil. We must not let any more compromise come
into our nation. We must take back what the Devil has stolen in
this time of our sleeping. We need to repent as a nation for our
lack of action and relaxing of morals. We need to repent for our
softening of the Word of God. We need to get back in our pulpits
and preach like we have never preached before to call God's
people to action and to a higher level of commitment to the
Lord.
My dear friends, when we humble ourselves before the Lord, pray,
seek God, and repent, God promises that He will hear from heaven
and will forgive our sin and heal our land.
Can God bless America? He can't bless us right now because we
are living in a mess. He can, however, bless us once we get
right. We can only get right with God by applying the principles
given in 2 Chronicles 7:14.
I am awake now....what about you? I have invited God back into
America by rededicating my life and my ministry...What about
you? Are you ready to do the same?
Just Keeping It Real!
Reverend Dr. Henry Johnson
15 February 2004
doctorj@praisenet.org
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