Does Character Count?

Maybe you’ve heard in the news lately with all the social issues that are facing America, “that America is facing a Constitutional crisis.” But its not a constitutional crisis that we’re facing it’s a character crisis storming towards the gates of God’s blessing.

I really do believe that character is the window to the soul of a country. This is a very sacred area of our countries and character is determines success or failure of a country.

Since I heard about the death of President Reagan yesterday, I’ve heard people around the world say of him…

· “A man who changed history."

· "He won the Cold War without firing a shot."

· "He was an actor and he used it well."

· "Whether you agreed or disagreed with Ronald Reagan, you can’t deny that he was honest, fought hard for what he believed in, and had the courage of his convictions."

· "They wrote Truman off as a little haberdasher from Missouri and they wrote Reagan off as a B-grade actor, but in reality both have done a huge amount to lock in the freedoms that so many countless tens of millions of people, including ourselves, take for granted around the world."

· "The sun has set on the remarkable life of the great man who reminded us it’s always morning in America."

Only a man with personal character and powerful convictions could make this kind of affect not only on a nation but also the world.

We can’t ignore what’s happening in the U.S…we can’t afford to yawn and wink at the immorality any longer.

Edwin Burke a great English thinker once said that, “Evil triumphants when good men do nothing.”

On columnist said during the Clinton presidency, “We vote the Dow Jones instead of Paula Jones.”

Dr. Billy Graham asked recently, “Have we gone so far down the slippery slope that character has been bred out of our society?”

It’s interesting to hear people talk how disgusted they are with all the scandals in the political realm and the corruption in the business world, but as long as the bottom line looks good, most just look the other way.

There are 3 types of people today when it comes to hearing all the scandals:

· The one who is convinced that the person is guilty, yet all the facts are not in yet. Everyone gets his day in court still.

· The person who says, “”It’s a right wing thing” or “it’s a conspiracy”.

· Lastly, there is the person who says, “So what, what difference does it make?” This is the group that I’m most concerned about today!

Read Hosea 7: 2,3

So I ask, “Does character count?” It does if we listen to God and his teaching. So let’s examine…

A. The Character That God Requires.

Proverb 29:2 “When the righteous are in authority the people rejoice, but when a wicked man rules the people groan.”

Does character count? Yes, if we want good leaders and God’s blessing!

1. The Person of Righteousness.

Proverb 16:12 “It is an abomination for kings to commit wickedness. For a throne is established by righteousness.”

The Bible is clear teaches that leadership is stewardship!

Romans 13:1-7 gives us insight into the role of government.

2. The Person of Wisdom.

Proverb 8:12-16

We tend to think that leaders are to be skilled politically, but God says that leaders are to be full of wisdom!

America is obsessed with polls. It’s come to the point where a leader won’t make a statement until he knows how polls are leaning!

President Harry Truman said, “How far would Moses got if he took a poll? How far would Jesus got if He took a poll? It’s not the polls that count, its right or wrong leadership. People are easily lead in error by polls.”

A college senior won first prize with his science project. He took a poll asking people to sign a petition for the total elimination of a chemical called “Dye Hydrogen Monoxide”

He listed 5 reasons for it to be banned:

· It caused excessive sweating and vomiting.

· It was a major component in acid rain.

· It contributes to the earth’s erosion.

· It inhibits the effectiveness of car brakes.

· Lastly, it is found in tumors of terminally ill patience.

He asked 50 people to sign the petition to ban this chemical and 43 signed it and only 1 refused to sign it because he knew the petition was banning WATER!

Lesson: beware of making your mind up by what the polls say. We ought to be guided by principles and not by polls!

Proverb 16:16 “How much better it is to get wisdom than gold; and to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.”