Most immigrants in the 17th
century came for religious liberties fleeing government oppression. Therefore, it seems reasonable to believe,
that if we eliminate God from the equation of the American experiment, we
eliminate the reason this nation first began. Most were devout Christians; some
were deists’ and others were adventurers looking for their pot of gold.
Let’s begin with our most famous deist, Benjamin
Franklin, who exhorted the founders, “I have lived, Sir, a long time, and
the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth – that God
governs in the affairs of men . . . and if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground
without His notice, is it probable that an empire cannot rise without His aid?”
Here was a man who did not pretend to have an evangelical
Christian belief, nevertheless, he realized that “unless the lord builds the
house, they labor in vain who build it.” It was a scary thought for Franklin to
imagine that God be left out of the building of our nation. To this day we still have prayer that is
offered at the beginning of each session of Congress. However, prayer needs to be a matter of
conviction and desperation and not a mere formality.
Another founding father, Samuel Adams, wrote,
“We have this day restored the Sovereign to whom all men ought to be
obedient. He reigns in heaven and from
the rising to the setting of the sun, let His kingdom come!”
I do not believe that Adams was referring to God
setting up His kingdom in America, but to acknowledge that He is “sovereign”
and we ought to obey His moral laws and look to Him for guidance and
blessings. Instead, too many government
leaders completely ignore the moral laws of God and attempt to lead this
country down a decadent slippery slope.
The latest example of this arrogance was displayed by our President who
supported the depravity of homosexual marriage.
I could go on and on with many illustrations of this dangerous trend,
but you get my point.
George Washington prayed, “And now, Almighty Father, if it is Thy
holy will that we shall obtain a place and name among the nations of the Earth,
grant that we may be enabled to show our gratitude for Thy goodness by our
endeavors to fear and obey Thee.”
Washington, a devout Christian, had a great vision
for America. He believed that in
generations beyond his, the United States would become a world power. He also believed that we would be exalted to
world supremacy only by the aid of God Almighty. Unfortunately, our position as a super power
is on the decline. In many ways we have
turned our back on God because we, in horrible pride, believe we have gained
our world position without His aid. We
have ignored the biblical belief that “the one who borrows becomes a slave to
the lender.” We see this decline before
our eyes every day. Before long we may
become subservient to countries, who, not long ago, were considered “developing
nations.”
Another deist, Thomas Jefferson, declared,
“God who gave us life, gave us liberty… and can the liberties of a nation be
thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the
minds of the people that these liberties are the Gift of God?”
We have witnessed in recent years the increased
attacks on civil and religious liberties.
The present administration seems to have pulled out all the stops. They have become very arrogant to believe
they can get away with this suppression of rights by their assaults on
religious liberties. They seem to
believe that “government” is the new god and they will determine what liberties
we should be granted and which should be eliminated. These opponents of God feel they must remove
all opposition to their agenda of a secular society where government is supreme. The unfortunate response by those of us who
feel different is that we tend to “roll over and play dead!”
Lastly, we have another Christian, Abraham
Lincoln, who gives us the way out of our decline! He said, “It is the duty of nations as well
as of men to owe their dependence on the overruling power of God, to confess
their sins and transgressions in humble sorrow…yet, with assured hope that
genuine repentance will lead to mercy and pardon.”
Lincoln gives us hope and the direction we must
pursue if we want to see better days for America. There is no other way but what is demanded
from God and that way is “repentance!”
You know the verse: “If My people, who are called by My name, shall
humble themselves and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways;
then I will hear from heaven and forgive their sins and heal their land.” God has provided a way for our children to
experience better days. These ways are
the “ancient paths” that He has prescribed for His people. He will not change His appeal even though we
want some easier way back to the days we once knew.
