OH CANADA – WE STAND ON GUARD FOR THEE
OPEN: On July 1st we celebrate Canada Day!
• Discuss trip to Ottawa in Summer 2006 for The Cry Prayer Rally on Parliament Hill - powerful experience!
QUOTE: “Every generation and every nation has had righteous radicals for God. These were mighty men and women who laid down their lives to see righteousness established in their generation, and, in their nation. Canada is no different. Our history is full of heroes of the faith who forged rough terrain, persevered long voyages, endured brutal persecution and overcame intense spiritual warfare for the sake of the Kingdom of God in this land. These ones sacrificed to see the gospel of Jesus Christ advanced and His name honoured at various stages of the nation’s growth… It’s (time) to (reclaim) the righteous foundations laid by generations past.” (Faytene Kryskow, Stand on Guard).
THE BIG IDEA: God is looking for a generation who will rise up and reclaim the righteous foundations in our nation of Canada.
KEY TEXT: “He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, And from the River to the ends of the earth…Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, Who only does wondrous things! And blessed be His glorious name forever! And let the whole earth be filled with His glory. Amen and Amen.” (Psalm 72:8,18-19).
WHAT ARE THE RIGHTEOUS FOUNDATIONS OF CANADA?
1. OUR NAME: “He shall have dominion also from sea to sea.” (Psalm 72:8).
“Sir Samuel Leonard Tilley, then premier of NB, was one of the 33 Fathers of Confederation. He was a born-again Christian who started his day with prayer and a chapter of the Bible… When reading Psalm 72:8, the thought occurred to him, “What a splendid name to give Canada!” A letter signed by John A Macdonald explained to Queen Victoria that the name was a tribute to the principles they earnestly desired to uphold.” (Faytene Kryskow).
- declaring that Jesus will have dominion as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
2. OUR FLAG: Our nation’s flag is the only one in the world that has a leaf on it. The leaves “for the healing of the nations.” (Rev. 22:2).
3. OUR CREST: The motto is in Latin a mari usque ad mare (From sea to sea).
- also taken from Psalm 72:8 speaking of Jesus having dominion from sea to sea.
4. OUR FOUNDATION:
- John Cabot planted a Cross on Newfoundland’s shores in 1497 claiming it “For God and for England.”
- In 1533, Jacques Cartier sailed up the St. Lawrence River to Montreal. To commemorate the founding of this city, Cartier wrote in his diary, “We all kneeled down in the company of the Indians and with our hands raised toward heaven yielded our thanks to God.”
- This year, as we celebrate the 141st anniversary of Confederation, we also celebrate the 400th anniversary of Québec City (founded in 1608 by Samuel de Champlain who came to share God’s love with the First Nations peoples).
BIBLE STORY: Background Info
“29 In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab the son of Omri became king over Israel; and Ahab reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years. 30 Now Ahab did evil in the sight of the Lord, more than all who were before him. 31 And it came to pass, as though it had been a trivial thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took as wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians; and he went and served Baal and worshiped him. 32 Then he set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. 33 And Ahab made a wooden image. Ahab did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him.” (1 Kings 16:29-33).
THIS STORY IS A PROPHETIC PICTURE OF OUR NATION OF CANADA!
Our nation, like Israel, has a godly Christian foundation, but we have forsaken those roots!
Our national anthem declares, “God keep our land, glorious and free! O Canada, we stand on guard for thee!” But we have not stood on guard for our nation, and wickedness abounds!
QUOTE: “All that is necessary for evil to prosper is that enough good men do nothing.” (Edmund Burke).
THE SPIRIT OF JEZEBEL: We need the spirit of Elijah that will say no to the spirit of Jezebel!
• Sexual perversion (legalization of homosexual unions & pre-marital sex)
• Rebellion (we live in one of the most rebellious generations of all time)
• Witchcraft (increase of interest in this - Harry Potter & more)
• Violence (from video games and cartoons, to movies and the news)
THE STORY OF ELIJAH: (First Kings 17:1-3;17-24).
“1 And Elijah the Tishbite, of the inhabitants of Gilead, said to Ahab, "As the Lord God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, except at my word." 2 Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 3 "Get away from here and turn eastward, and hide by the Brook Cherith, which flows into the Jordan.” (1 Kings 17:1-3).
• God raised up the prophet Elijah in response to the wickedness of Ahab & Jezebel
“17 Now it happened after these things that the son of the woman who owned the house became sick. And his sickness was so serious that there was no breath left in him.
• This boy is a prophetic picture of many people today – spiritually dead, lost, broken
• They are dead in their trespasses and sins, depression, drugs, suicide, death culture
18 So she said to Elijah, "What have I to do with you, O man of God? Have you come to me to bring my sin to remembrance, and to kill my son?" 19 And he said to her, "Give me your son." So he took him out of her arms and carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him on his own bed.
• God wants to raise up an Elijah revolution who will take this ‘dead generation’ to the upper room of prayer and begin to pray for them
20 Then he cried out to the Lord and said, "O Lord my God, have You also brought tragedy on the widow with whom I lodge, by killing her son?" 21 And he stretched himself out on the child three times, and cried out to the Lord and said, "O Lord my God, I pray, let this child’s soul come back to him."
• We need to cry out to the Lord in passionate, faith-filled prayers for REVIVAL!
• We need to pray with perseverance (3 times) and stretch ourselves beyond our comfort zones.
22 Then the Lord heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came back to him, and he revived.
• Does God hear YOUR voice? Elijah was human just like us, and God heard him!
23 And Elijah took the child and brought him down from the upper room into the house, and gave him to his mother. And Elijah said, "See, your son lives!" 24 Then the woman said to Elijah, "Now by this I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is the truth.” (1 Kings 17:17-24).
• It’s time to begin to reach out to today’s lost, hurting and broken generation!
APPLICATION: O CANADA, WE STAND ON GUARD FOR THEE
1. The first thing we need to do is to PRAY for our nation – and its leaders:
• “Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence.” (1 Tim. 2:1-2).
2. Secondly, we need to POSSESS the gates of influence:
• “Your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies.” (Genesis 22:17b).
• “In the Old Testament, gates were places of great influence… gates include any and every avenue by which a generation’s mindsets, cultural values, moral standards and the like are determined.” (Faytene Kryskow). (things like schools, politics, communications).
3. Finally, we need to be PEOPLE of UNITY:
• “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious anointing oil… For there the Lord commanded the blessing-- Life forevermore.” (Psalm 133).
• We need to be a unified nation – English, French & First Nations!
CLOSING: Sing “O Canada” and pray for our leaders:
“God keep our land, glorious and free! O Canada we stand on guard for thee!”
Beausejour Community Church Website: www.beausejourchurch.ca
Pastor Chris Jordan’s Blog: http://thelandofpromise.blogspot.com/
