America Where Are You?

 

 

About 27% of the Bible is prophetic. But where is America in Bible prophecy? Where is America in the end?

 The word “nations” occurs 469 times in the Bible. The phrase “the nations” occurs 302 times. The word “America” is not found in the Bible. America where are you?

 The name “Israel” occurs 2,345 times. “Egypt” occurs 572 times in the Bible. “Babylon” occurs 258 times in the Bible. “Syria” occurs 73 times in the Bible. “Tyre” occurs 60 times in the Bible. “Persia” occurs 27 times in the Bible.  “Greece” occurs 7 times in the Bible. And there are many other nations mentioned in the Bible. But “America” is not mentioned even once in the Bible. America, where are you?

 Remember, God is in Control

No matter how bad things get, not matter who hopeless things seem to be, always remember, God is in control. We might not always understand why God allows certain things, but he never relinquishes his sovereignty over the nations. The Bible states:

 

Psalm 22:28 (NKJV)

²⁸   For the kingdom is the Lord’s,

And He rules over the nations.

 

Isaiah 14:26–27 (NKJV)

²⁶   This is the purpose that is purposed against the whole earth,

And this is the hand that is stretched out over all the nations.

²⁷   For the Lord of hosts has purposed,

And who will annul it?

His hand is stretched out,

And who will turn it back?”

 

Daniel 2:20–22 (NKJV)

²⁰ Daniel answered and said:

“Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,

For wisdom and might are His.

²¹   And He changes the times and the seasons;

He removes kings and raises up kings;

He gives wisdom to the wise

And knowledge to those who have understanding.

²²   He reveals deep and secret things;

He knows what is in the darkness,

And light dwells with Him.

 

God is in control. His purposes will be fulfilled. We can and should rely upon God.

Israel is God’s Light to the Gentiles –

Israel is an instrument of God. He works in this world and reveals Himself by way of His interactions and workings with Israel.

 Israel is a pivotal part of deciding blessings or curses. From the beginning, God has ordained that the way people or nations treat Israel, will be a determining factor in being blessed or cursed:

 

Genesis 12:2–3 (NKJV)

²     I will make you a great nation;

I will bless you

And make your name great;

And you shall be a blessing.

³     I will bless those who bless you,

And I will curse him who curses you;

And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

 

When we look historically, it is intriguing and telling, that those nations which bless Israel are blessed by God and those nations that curse or come against Israel are cursed in some way. The United Kingdom is a good example of this. The United Kingdom expanded incredibly throughout the world, but when it began to turn against the Jewish people and Israel, its decline was precipitous. We can see similarities with our nation as well. When we support Israel we prosper, when we fail to support Israel, we suffer in some way. [1]

 Israel is gifted. Israel has a disproportionate number of Nobel Peace Prize recipients based on its size. Scientifically, medically, economically, and in almost every area it is on the cutting edge of advances that profit the world. An example of this is the recent Frontpage Mag article entitled Israel’s High-Powered Laser a Breakthrough.[2] Israel has found a way to weaponize lasers in a way that will be useful in combating the new military drone technology. They can now use lasers to take out such drones with pinpoint accuracy. This is a tremendous breakthrough to guard against drone attacks brought by the enemies of Israel and the United States.

 Israel is God’s means to make Himself known. When God called Moses to lead His people out of Egypt, one of the stated purposes of God’s plan was that Pharoah and the Egyptians “may know that there is no one like the LORD our God” (Exodus 8:10, 22; 9:14, 29; 10:2; 11:7; 14:4). God makes Himself known through His workings with the nation of Israel.

A light to the gentiles. God in His word states one of the purposes of Israel:

 

Isaiah 42:6 (NKJV)

 

⁶     “I, the Lord, have called You in righteousness,

And will hold Your hand;

I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people,

As a light to the Gentiles,

 

Israel is a light to the gentile nations in that she was meant to be a revealer, an example of what nations should be in order to be acceptable or not acceptable to God.

  What Does the Bible Say About God and Nations?

 The phrase, “the nations” occurs 287 times in the Bible. And when we look at God’s word, we discover the following about “the nations”:

• God desires that all the peoples and every nation come to know that “the LORD is God, there is no other” – 1 Kings 8:54-61.
• Jesus will rule the nations of the Kingdom Age with force – Psalm 2.
• God does not feel threatened by nations that oppose Him; He laughs at them – Psalm 2.
• All the nations that forget God will “return to Sheol” or hell – Psalm 9:17.
• The nation “whose God is the LORD” will be blessed – Psalm 33:12.
• God “will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” – Psalm 46:10.
• We should seek to making God’s saving power known in every nation – Psalm 67:1-7.
• Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people – Proverbs 14:34.
• God raises up and brings down kings and leaders of nations – Daniel 2:20-22.
•  In the Kingdom Age nations will be at peace – Micah 4:3.
• A time is coming when God will gather the nations to judge them and “pour out upon them my indignation” – Zephaniah 3:8.
• We are commissioned to “make disciples of all nations” – Matthew 28:18-19.

 How does America Measure Up?

Israel eventually was defeated and taken into captivity because of her sins. Now when we look at Israel, the light to the gentiles, what do we see as the causes for her downfall? This is important because as a light to the gentiles, we gain insight and a measure of what might bring judgment on a nation. What brought about the fall of Israel?

 There are many places we could look to gain insight into the reasons God disciplined Israel with defeat and captivity, but the prophet Jeremiah, who was particularly commissioned to address the nations is a good representative choice (Jeremiah 1:5). A summary sample of Jeremiah reveals the following.

 Jeremiah 1 – Jeremiah’s calling from God. He was not a self-proclaimed prophet, but one called by God.

Jeremiah 2 – Though God’s people once walked in holiness and sought to know and please God, they allowed themselves to drift away from God so that they became unconcerned with God. They forsook God and trusted in “broken cisterns” or things that didn’t hold water.

 Jeremiah 3 – They polluted the Land with their sinfulness.

 Jeremiah 4 – They became hardened toward God and did not heed His call to, “Break up your fallow ground, and do not sow among the thorns. Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskin of your hearts, . . . lest fury come forth like fire. . . because of the evil of your doings” (Jeremiah 4:3-4).

 Then in Jeremiah 5 we see:

 Jeremiah 5:1–19 (NKJV)

            “Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem;

See now and know;

And seek in her open places

If you can find a man,

If there is anyone who executes judgment,

Who seeks the truth,

And I will pardon her.

²     Though they say, ‘As the Lord lives,’

Surely they swear falsely.”

God’s people had lost their concern for “truth.” They swore falsely. They weren’t interested in executing true judgment in their courts and private lives.

³     O Lord, are not Your eyes on the truth?

You have stricken them,

But they have not grieved;

You have consumed them,

But they have refused to receive correction.

They have made their faces harder than rock;

They have refused to return.

 They were unrepentant. They “refused to receive correction. No matter how many prophets were sent to them or how many ways God tried to get their attention to turn them back to Himself, they “refused correction.” They were dull and purposely calloused and spiritually insensitive.

⁴     Therefore I said, “Surely these are poor.

They are foolish;

For they do not know the way of the Lord,

The judgment of their God.

⁵     I will go to the great men and speak to them,

For they have known the way of the Lord,

The judgment of their God.”

But these have altogether broken the yoke

And burst the bonds.

 Their “great men” or people in high and influential positions, who should have known better, did not know better. Because of their education and position, their willful ignorance was all the more culpable.

⁶     Therefore a lion from the forest shall slay them,

A wolf of the deserts shall destroy them;

A leopard will watch over their cities.

Everyone who goes out from there shall be torn in pieces,

Because their transgressions are many;

Their backslidings have increased.

 Therefore they shall be slain, destroyed, watched, torn for their many transgressions or willful sins.

⁷     “How shall I pardon you for this?

Your children have forsaken Me

They did not teach or disciple their children like God had prescribed in His word (cf. Deuteronomy 6).

 And sworn by those that are not gods.

When I had fed them to the full,

Then they committed adultery

And assembled themselves by troops in the harlots’ houses.

⁸     They were like well-fed lusty stallions;

Every one neighed after his neighbor’s wife.

⁹     Shall I not punish them for these things?” says the Lord.

“And shall I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?

 They were unfaithful to God worshipping other foreign gods in spiritual adultery. But they were also personally immoral committing adultery and running to harlots in “troops.” They were given to wanton promiscuity. The marriage covenant had little worth or respect.

¹⁰   “Go up on her walls and destroy,

But do not make a complete end.

Take away her branches,

For they are not the Lord’s.

¹¹   For the house of Israel and the house of Judah

Have dealt very treacherously with Me,” says the Lord.

 Both Israel and Judah were guilty before God. After the kingdom divided, the northern kingdom of Israel did not have one king who was faithful to God, Judah had only a few. They deserved their captivity and discipline from God.

¹²   They have lied about the Lord,

And said, “It is not He.

Neither will evil come upon us,

Nor shall we see sword or famine.

¹³   And the prophets become wind,

For the word is not in them.

Thus shall it be done to them.”

 The prophets “lied about the LORD.” They used the LORD’s name for their own personal gain. They didn’t speak of the possible or potential discipline of the LORD, but they spoke a sugarcoated cotton candy “message” from the LORD. They did not speak of sin or repentance much the same as so-called “prophets” today.  

¹⁴ Therefore thus says the Lord God of hosts:

“Because you speak this word,

Behold, I will make My words in your mouth fire,

And this people wood,

And it shall devour them.

Therefore, the LORD raised up Jeremiah to bring a fiery message to God’s people that would consume their falsehoods and lies and burn up their hypocrisy and sin.

 ¹⁵   Behold, I will bring a nation against you from afar,

O house of Israel,” says the Lord.

“It is a mighty nation,

It is an ancient nation,

A nation whose language you do not know,

Nor can you understand what they say.

God said He would bring defeat and to them by way of “a nation” who proved to be the merciless Assyrians for the northern kingdom of Isreal and the Babylonians for the southern kingdom of Judah.

 ¹⁶   Their quiver is like an open tomb;

They are all mighty men.

¹⁷   And they shall eat up your harvest and your bread,

Which your sons and daughters should eat.

They shall eat up your flocks and your herds;

They shall eat up your vines and your fig trees;

They shall destroy your fortified cities,

In which you trust, with the sword.

The destruction of the harvest and bread speaks of economic decline and diminishing and shortages of the necessities of life.

¹⁸ “Nevertheless in those days,” says the Lord, “I will not make a complete end of you. ¹⁹ And it will be when you say, ‘Why does the Lord our God do all these things to us?’ then you shall answer them, ‘Just as you have forsaken Me and served foreign gods in your land, so you shall serve aliens in a land that is not yours.’

God takes no pleasure in having to discipline people. After His people went into exile, through the prophet Ezekiel God said:

 Ezekiel 18:30–32 (NKJV) - ³⁰ “Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways,” says the Lord God. “Repent, and turn from all your transgressions, so that iniquity will not be your ruin. ³¹ Cast away from you all the transgressions which you have committed, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. For why should you die, O house of Israel? ³² For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies,” says the Lord God. “Therefore turn and live!”

Ezekiel 33:11 - Say to them: 'As I live,' says the LORD God, 'I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?'"

God’s discipline and judgment are always tempered with mercy. He does not judge capriciously or because it gives Him pleasure. He is not sadistic or tyrannical. God’s judgment is always redemptive. He acts to get people’s attention with hopes of drawing them back to Himself in holy relationship.

But the problem is that people, even those who should know better, are hard hearted and resistant to His gracious overtures to turn them from their self-destructive sins. The rest of Jeremiah 5 speaks of their hard-hearted attitude of persisting in their sins:

 Jeremiah 5:19–31 (NKJV)

¹⁹ And it will be when you say, ‘Why does the Lord our God do all these things to us?’ then you shall answer them, ‘Just as you have forsaken Me and served foreign gods in your land, so you shall serve aliens in a land that is not yours.’

²⁰   “Declare this in the house of Jacob

And proclaim it in Judah, saying,

²¹   ‘Hear this now, O foolish people,

Without understanding,

Who have eyes and see not,

And who have ears and hear not:

²²   Do you not fear Me?’ says the Lord.

‘Will you not tremble at My presence,

Who have placed the sand as the bound of the sea,

By a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass beyond it?

And though its waves toss to and fro,

Yet they cannot prevail;

Though they roar, yet they cannot pass over it.

²³   But this people has a defiant and rebellious heart;

They have revolted and departed.

²⁴   They do not say in their heart,

“Let us now fear the Lord our God,

Who gives rain, both the former and the latter, in its season.

He reserves for us the appointed weeks of the harvest.”

²⁵   Your iniquities have turned these things away,

And your sins have withheld good from you.

²⁶   ‘For among My people are found wicked men;

They lie in wait as one who sets snares;

They set a trap;

They catch men.

²⁷   As a cage is full of birds,

So their houses are full of deceit.

Therefore they have become great and grown rich.

²⁸   They have grown fat, they are sleek;

Yes, they surpass the deeds of the wicked;

They do not plead the cause,

The cause of the fatherless;

Yet they prosper,

And the right of the needy they do not defend.

²⁹   Shall I not punish them for these things?’ says the Lord.

‘Shall I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?’

³⁰   “An astonishing and horrible thing

Has been committed in the land:

³¹   The prophets prophesy falsely,

And the priests rule by their own power;

And My people love to have it so.

But what will you do in the end?

 

 There were many other things that led to the humbling and downfall of God’s people. And if God judged His people for these things, He will judge other nations who practice the same offenses. But this is a picture from Jeremiah of what led Israel into captivity.

 It’s not hard to see that America has many similar sinful traits to that of God’s people just before God’s judgment on them fell. Thankfully, God, even in His judgments, is merciful and He did not make a total end of Israel (cf. Jeremiah 5:10, 18). But their persistent sinfulness and obstinacy proved to be their undoing.

 America is not covenanted with God like Israel was. We should also keep in mind that America is not Israel. God has no everlasting covenant with America. America has been an instrument used by God to fulfill His will no doubt. But God has no covenant with America like He has with Israel. To Israel God promised:

 Jeremiah 31:35–37 (NKJV)

³⁵   Thus says the Lord,

Who gives the sun for a light by day,

The ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night,

Who disturbs the sea,

And its waves roar

(The Lord of hosts is His name):

³⁶   “If those ordinances depart

From before Me, says the Lord,

Then the seed of Israel shall also cease

From being a nation before Me forever.”

³⁷ Thus says the Lord:

“If heaven above can be measured,

And the foundations of the earth searched out beneath,

I will also cast off all the seed of Israel

For all that they have done, says the Lord.

God has no such covenant with America. America is imply another one of “the nations.” God has made no promise to keep America in existence, and given America’s sin, that should send a chill down our spine.

  America, Where Are You?

Through Jeremiah the LORD said:

Jeremiah 9:23–24 (NKJV)

²³ Thus says the Lord:

“Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,

Let not the mighty man glory in his might,

Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;

²⁴   But let him who glories glory in this,

That he understands and knows Me,

That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.

For in these I delight,” says the Lord.

And:

Jeremiah 17:9–10 (NKJV)

⁹     “The heart is deceitful above all things,

And desperately wicked;

Who can know it?

¹⁰   I, the Lord, search the heart,

I test the mind,

Even to give every man according to his ways,

According to the fruit of his doings.

 But has America heeded such words? I don’t believe it has or does now. So, when we look at the prophetic picture of the future and we don’t see America, what are the possible reasons for that? What might have happened to America to cause it not to be mentioned in the Bible?

America might be taken out by a Pearl Harbor type nuclear attack. Just this week there was an article in American Military news with the title, Japan warns US a ‘Pearl harbor’ style attack from China and Russia could happen. [3] A nuclear attack on the United States that decimates the country could be a reason why it is not mentioned in prophecy.

 America might be destroyed from within. The rise in socialist and communist teachings in our educational institutions, along with the redaction of history and painting America as a tyrant that needs to be taken out, could be a cause of our nation collapsing from within. The rise in people in our country who literally hate America, is something that should be watched as a potential source of the fall of America.

 America might simply decline. Nations rise, and nations fall. Their fall is usually precipitated by a moral, social and economic decline.  The rise in Same-sex LGBT agenda is ripping apart the fabric of our nation which is the nuclear family. Economically, our representatives in government buy votes with government handouts that lure people into dependence on government and those in government who promise to continue feeding them the cheese in the socialist mouse trap. Presently the national debt (which nobody wants to talk about) stands at $27.27 TRILLION dollars. The prospect of hyperinflation and the rise in costs of things like food, health care, transportation, etc., all are evidence of a nation in economic decline. If America keeps going in the direction its going, it might simply fade away in decline.

 America might be decimated by the Rapture. Jesus is returning for His saints at an event referred to as The Rapture (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). The Rapture is His catching up of His born-again saints to remove them from this world before the Seven-year Tribulation spoke of by Daniel (Daniel 9:24-27) and described in the Book of Revelation (Revelation 6-19). The Bible states those saved by grace through faith in Jesus, are not destined to God’s wrath (Romans 5:9; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; 5:9; Revelation 3:10). Therefore, since the Tribulation is time of God’s wrath (e.g., Revelation 6:16-17; 11:18; 14:10, 19; 15:1, 7; 16:1, 19; 19:15), and Christians are not destined for God’s wrath, Jesus will come and remove us from this world prior to the outpouring of God’s wrath.

 At present it is estimated that about 65%, or 165 million people in the United States are Christian. [4] Now, that includes anyone and everyone who classifies themselves “Christian.” Not all of these people are Biblically born-again Christians. But even if half of those were actual born-again Christians, if the Rapture occurred to remove 80 million people from our nation, it would decimate it. It would cause great chaos for those left behind. It would cause psychological chaos, material chaos, political and governmental chaos (maybe depending on how many representatives are actually Christian), and economic and societal chaos. Remove 80 million people or more from the various positions of life and it would be hard to see how a nation could survive such a loss.

 What if I miss the Rapture? If you miss the Rapture, there is still hope for you. But it would be wiser and better to accept jesus as Savior now and avoid the Tribulation. In the Book of Revelation, we see a picture of those who will come out of the Tribulation:

Revelation 7:9–10 (NKJV) - ⁹ After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, ¹⁰ and crying out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

 Revelation 7:13–14 (NKJV) - ¹³ Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?” ¹⁴ And I said to him, “Sir, you know.” So he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

These are those who come out of the Tribulation, who have been martyred for their faith. Now, you may think, “Oh, I’ll just wait until the Tribulation and accept jesus then.” But if you can’t live for Jesus now, what makes you think you will be able to die for Him in the Tribulation?

Can America Be Saved?

God is so gracious and merciful, and that is true not only for individuals, but for nations. God called Jeremiah to be a “prophet to the nations.” And when we look at what God said through Jeremiah, we see the following:

 Jeremiah 18:6–10 (NKJV)

⁶ “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?” says the Lord. “Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel! ⁷ The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it, ⁸ if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it. ⁹ And the instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, ¹⁰ if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will relent concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it.

If we as a nation turn from our sins, back to the LORD, He will receive us. But if we persist in moving further and further away from the LORD and defying Him and disregarding His words of warning, then there is no hope for us. Can America be saved? The answer is yes. But will we be saved? That is another question entirely.

 Is America Worth Saving?

At one point God tells Jeremiah:

Jeremiah 11:14 (NKJV) - ¹⁴ “So do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer for them; for I will not hear them in the time that they cry out to Me because of their trouble.

 Israel reached a point of no return when God’s judgment was inevitable. Has America reached such a point? We will see.

But Jeremiah, the prophet called by God to bring a message to the nations (Jeremiah 1:5), was inspired by God to give this instruction about the nations where we might be providentially placed:

Jeremiah 29:7 (NKJV) - ⁷ And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace.

 Scripture tells us to pray for our government representatives (1 Tim. 2:1ff.). We are to cooperate with our government if at all possible (Romans 13:1ff.). We are to obey God rather than men though (Acts 5:29). Wherever we are, we are to seek the welfare of the nation in which God has allowed us to be placed. That would include the United States of America. So, in answer to whether America is worth saving, the answer is “Yes!”

 What Can I Do to Help Save America?

What can “I” do to help save America? You might think there’s not much you can do as an individual, but D.L. Moody, a man of humble means but who was greatly used by the Lord, once said this:

         I am only one, but I am one, I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And that which I can         do, by the grace of God, I will do.

 

In other words, don’t be discouraged. You can’t do everything, but you can do something. So, do what you can do. The Bible provides us with a number of instructive passages about what we can do. Here are some examples:

First, pray:

 1 Timothy 2:1–4 (NKJV) - Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, ² for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. ³ For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, ⁴ who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Second, get right with God yourself.

Matthew 16:26 (NKJV) - ²⁶ For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

Make sure you are right with God. Turn from your sins and admit them to God. Believe in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus on the cross for you. Receive the gospel by faith. Confess jesus to those around you (cf. Romans 3:23; 5:1; 6:23; 8:1; 12:1-2). If you are not right with God, if you haven’t been saved from your sins, no matter what you do, it will be of no profit to you.

Third, be empowered by the Holy Spirit:

 Luke 24:49 (NKJV) - ⁴⁹ “Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.”

 Acts 1:4–5 (NKJV) - ⁴ And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; ⁵ for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

 Acts 1:8 (NKJV) - ⁸ But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

 Fourth, study God’s word to get direction:

 2 Timothy 2:15 (NKJV) - ¹⁵ Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

 2 Timothy 3:16–17 (NKJV) -¹⁶ All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, ¹⁷ that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Fifth, speak the truth:

 John 18:37b (NKJV) - Jesus answered, “You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”

 Ephesians 4:15 (NKJV) - ¹⁵ but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ

Sixth, don’t be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good:

Romans 12:21 (NKJV) - ²¹ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

 Ephesians 5:11 (NKJV) - 11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them.

Seventh, infiltrate the world and influence it for God’s glory:

 Matthew 5:13–16 (NKJV) - ¹³ “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. ¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. ¹⁶ Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

 Eighth, love:

 Matthew 22:36–40 (NKJV) - ³⁶ “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”

³⁷ Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ ³⁸ This is the first and great commandment. ³⁹ And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ ⁴⁰ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

 John 13:35 (NKJV) - ³⁵ By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Romans 5:5 (NKJV) - ⁵ Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

 1 Corinthians 13:13 (NKJV) - ¹³ And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

 Use these seven things as a starting point and then search the scriptures prayerfully for guidance on what the Lord would have you to do.

America, Where Are You?

America, where are you? America, you are headed in the wrong direction. America, you are going down the same road that Israel traveled, and if you persist in this direction, you will end up in captivity just as Israel did, only remember, God has made no covenant promises with America like He did with Israel. We are simply a gentile nation. We began with a heart sensitive to God. But today we have drifted far, far away from that early heart for God. Only if we return to God as a nation, is there any hope for us.

John Adams once stated:  

“The general principles on which the fathers achieved independence were . . .. the general principles of Christianity . . .. Now I will avow that I then believed, and now believe, that those general principles of Christianity are as eternal and immutable as the existence and attributes of God.” – John Adams ^[5]

 

If we are to survive as a nation, we will need to get back to such thinking.

 I came across a “Prayer for Our Nation” that I thought relevant to our message today. It was composed and prayed by one of our founding fathers, Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson’s faith is often criticized and doubted. As I read this prayer, you be the judge of where his heart is at:

Almighty God, You have given us this good land for our heritage. We humbly ask You that we may always prove ourselves a people mindful of Your favor and glad to do Your will. Bless our land with honorable endeavor, sound learning and pure manners. Save us from violence, discord, and confusion, from pride and arrogance, and from every evil way. Defend our liberties and fashion into one united people the multitude brought here out of many nations and tongues. Endow with the Spirit of wisdom those to whom in Your Name we entrust the authority of government, that there may be justice and peace at home, and that through obedience to your law we may show forth Your praise among the nations on earth. In time of prosperity fill our hearts with thankfulness, and in the day of trouble do not allow our trust in You to fail. Amen. ^[6]

That’s a prayer we should dust off and begin praying again.

 

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[1] See John McTernan’s book As America Has Done to Israel.

[2] Israel’s High-Powered Laser System a ‘Breakthrough' | Frontpagemag

[3] https://americanmilitarynews.com/2021/07/japan-warns-us-a-pearl-harbor-style-attack-from-china-and-russia-could-happen/?utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=alt&utm_source=fbchat

 

[4] https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/oct/17/number-of-christians-in-us-has-declined-by-13-mill/?utm_source=GOOGLE&utm_medium=cpc&utm_id=chacka&utm_campaign=TWT+-+DSA&gclid=CjwKCAjwlYCHBhAQEiwA4K21m8CPucRMwpw8s-ziJtwDPEGkdaIlCjNccJHaS8FDtRgKE-GHHuhfnBoCexEQAvD_BwE

[5] David Barton, The Role of Pastors and Christians in Civil Government (Aledo, Texas: WallBuilders Press, 2003)

p. 18

[6] By Thomas Jefferson, taken from “Prayer for Today,” published by leaflet Missal Co. from a meme on social media.