Good Day, Meetpastordan Readers…I’ve been thinking about today’s subject matter for a few weeks now, but an appropriate introduction continued to be elusive. So before I even started writing, I opened the Bible with the thought, “Holy Spirit, I’m looking for a missing link”, not even sure of what that looked like, but the random opening took me to Jeremiah 6, subtitled “Jerusalem’s Final Warning”. Here’s what I gleaned from this chapter: (vs10-11) “To whom can I give warning? Who will listen when I speak? Their ears are closed, and they cannot hear. They scorn the word of the Lord. They don’t want to listen at all. So now I, the Lord, am filled with fury! Yes, I am weary of holding it in! (vs.16-19) So now the Lord says, “Stop right where you are! Look for the old, godly way and walk in it. Travel its path, and you will find rest for your souls. But you replied, ‘No! that’s not the road we want to travel’. I set watchmen over you who said, ‘Listen for the sound of the trumpet!’ But you replied, ‘No! We won’t pay attention.’ Therefore, listen to this, all you nations. Take note of my people’s condition. Listen all the earth! I will bring disaster upon my people. It is the fruit of their own sin because they refuse to listen to me. The have rejected all of my instructions.” Voila! This is the perfect introduction. All I have to do is substitute “America” for “Jerusalem” and I have the perfect introduction for my thoughts. (Thank you, Holy Spirit)
Other than ancient Israel, no other nation in the history of the world has been more abundantly blessed than America. In fact, many scholars and theologians have made a case for America being the prophetic beast referenced in Revelation 13:11:1. In prophecy, beast represents a great nation. 2.This nation grew out of the earth and in a wilderness while previous great nations grew out of the seaports. 3. This nation started out as a baby lamb, then grew into a Christian nation. 4.The prophetic horns with no crowns means no rule of kings. “America did rise to heights no other nation had ever known. Not that we were ever without fault or sin, but we did aspire to fulfill our callings. “And what were those callings”, you might ask? To be a vessel of redemption, an instrument of God’s purposes, a light to the world. It would give refuge to the world’s poor and needy, and hope to its oppressed. It would stand against tyranny. It would fight, more than once, against the dark movements of the modern world that threatened to engulf the earth.” (Jonathan Cahn, The Harbinger) In fact, after our country’s first presidential inauguration, the President, his Cabinet, and Congress adjourned to St. Paul’s Chapel to dedicate this great country to God, and to ask for His blessings on the United States of America.
All of that sounds great! It definitely makes me proud to be an American. But the country I’m looking at today seems to be headed in a totally different direction. Rather than standing on the fundamental principles that made our country great, such as the Constitution, Judeo/Christian principles, freedom of religion and speech, the traditional family structure, upholding the rule of law, and pride in our history and our accomplishments, there seems to be an all-out assault on these values. The pride and unity we used to feel as an American is challenged today by a new norm that is characterized by yelling, screaming, finger pointing, name calling, defaming our flag and our military, lying, cheating, and promoting a “Liberal Progressive Agenda” (LPA) whose capstone is a big government that will become our hope, our provider and our god. When the populace is dependent on the government for its well-being, that government has power and control over the populace. Hmm…what could possibly go wrong with that plan?
“Wow! How did that happen? What went wrong? you ask. Jonathan Cahn masterfully addresses these probing questions: “It started with a spiritual complacency, then spiritual confusion, then the merging of God with idols and then, ultimately, the rejection of His ways. Just as with ancient Israel, America began ruling God out of its life, turning step by step against His ways, at first subtly and then more and more brazenly. As God was expunged from American life, idols came in to fill the void, idols of sensuality, idols of greed, of money, of success, comfort, materialism, pleasure, sexual immorality, self-worship, and self-obsession. The sacred increasingly disappeared, and the profane took its place. The smiles of heaven cannot remain on a nation that disregards the ways of God. If America turns away from God, its blessings will likewise be removed and replaced with judgment.” (The Harbinger)
In 2016, when Donald Trump shocked this country and the world by winning the Presidential race, I, like so many other believers in Jesus Christ and Bible prophecy, believed this was a time of reprieve. I believed this was a gift to us, a time to fulfill the message of repentance that has been proclaimed throughout both the Old Testament, the New Testament, and even today by Billy and Franklin Graham. Repent! Turn from your sins and turn to God! The Bible is resplendent with examples of people and nations being restored when they responded to this proclamation, but there are also many examples of people and nations being destroyed when they refused to respond. This is recorded over and over throughout Biblical history (and also in world history, although the terminology is secular and refers to “human nature” rather than “sin nature.”) Unfortunately, reading the Bible is out of vogue today, and the prevailing thoughts about history seem to be, “how can it be rewritten to further a particular agenda?”
But like the Scriptures from Jeremiah that were used in the introduction, or the words of wisdom spoken by Jonathan Cahn, when men or nations believe they no longer need God and begin expunging His Words and His teaching from their midst, history has proven that they bought into the same lie that deceived Eve in the Garden: “You will become just like God, knowing everything both good and evil.” (Genesis 3:5) Just as Eve could not resist becoming her own god, that same lie has always been irresistible to the intellectual mind. “Why submit to something when I can be CEO of my own life and my own agenda?”
Let’s look briefly at how the Serpent works today. Remember, he is the Father of Lies, the Master Deceiver and the purveyor of the evil that we see running rampant throughout our culture today. He always wraps his enticements is something that is appealing or something that sounds righteous. For example, let’s take the hot-button topic of “tolerance”, and again I will refer to Jonathan Cahn. “There is a growing tolerance for immorality and a growing intolerance for the purity that is now being mocked, marginalized and condemned. Innocence is being ridiculed and virtue is being vilified. Children are taught of sexual immorality in public schools while the Word of God is banned. It is a tolerance that has put the profane on public display and removed nativity scenes from public sight…as if a contraband; as if some how they had become a threat to a strangely intolerant tolerance. ” (The Harbinger)
Obviously, I believe the answer to our nation’s malady must be found in a spiritual solution rather than a political solution. I mean…just look at our political system. It is totally corrupt and broken! What you see is man’s best effort. But the truth is, people are fallible; they can be agenda driven; they can desire power and wealth; and in many cases they are willing to do anything or say anything to get what they want. Unfortunately, the swamp in our nation’s capitol seems to be healthy, and it still tries to do business as usual.
My purpose for writing this is just to get my thoughts somewhat organized and on paper, but even more important, I wonder what my readers think about these challenges. I started off with Scripture presenting Jerusalem’s Final Warning? Do you think this is applicable to America today? Have we chosen our own way, a way contrary to God’s will for our country? Is there an agenda designed to destroy the America we once knew? Did God give us a reprieve in order to “Repent! (become willing to make a decision to change course.) Is it time to return to the fundamental principles that made our country great, and to restore the Judeo/Christian principles that provided a moral compass for us as a nation? If these questions are legitimate, how are we doing? How are we responding to God’s reprieve as a nation? Do you see any change?
Feel free to respond to this posting, and please “like” it and share it with other social media friends. Or if you really feel brave, share these questions at the water cooler.
May God Bless Ya….
Dan Presgrave (a.k.a. Pastor Dan)
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