“One Nation under God …... Again”
Psalm 33:12-22
This morning I want us to begin with a history lesson. In November of 1620 the first pilgrims arrived in this country. They arrived in a sailboat that was about 25 ft. wide and 100 ft. long. They landed on the east coast in the middle of a very harsh winter. They immediately signed a written agreement called the Mayflower Compact. This agreement states that they came for this cause ... “for the Glory of God and the advancement of the Christian faith.
That first winter was really rough. Some days their food supply was limited to 5 grains of corn per person per day. History tells us there were 102 men and women who arrived in 1620 and in the first 5 months 44 of them died. In the fall of 1621 however they received their first harvest..... 21 acres of corn. The first thing they did when that harvest came through was to thank God ... they joined together and marched through the corn fields singing “the earth is the Lord’s and the fulness thereof, the world and they that dwell therein. Ps 24:1.
The following month those 58 who had survived met together with 80 Indians and for 3 days they did 4 things. They ate, prayed, sang songs and preached. All of this leads me to the first question I want to ask this morning.
1. What is it that makes American great? We live in a beautiful country. From the mountains of North Carolina to the coast of California, from the bluegrass of Kentucky to Clearwater beach we live in an amazing country. There is no place on earth quite like it. But that’s not what makes America great.
America has an abundance of things. If you have ever traveled to a 3rd world country and seen first hand how people live that is when we begin to realize how much we have. In America we have the ability to buy a nice home, buy a car, buy more than one car and buy it all on a monthly plan. But that’s not what makes us great.
I believe that the greatness of America is in our freedom and in the men and women who fought so that we could have it. Those men who signed the Declaration of Independence had far more to lose than they ever stood to gain. Most of them were men of great wealth with a lot of influence but they knew that there was something much more important than all of that. It was considered an act of treason to sign that document yet they did it. These men paid the price for what we enjoy today. This is what makes America great. Great people who have made a great sacrifice.
2. Is America a Christian nation? My answer to that is we have been in the past and we can be again. Historians have tried to rewrite the history books to make us believe that our founding fathers were not Christians. And there is that old saying in politics that says, “tell a lie often enough and loud enough and soon everyone will believe it.” History books now say that the early pilgrims and the Indians met together to express their thanks to each other. The truth is they met together to express their thanks to our Heavenly father.
The story is told of Abe Lincoln. Abe was taking to a farmer one day and he asked how many legs a cow had. The farmer of course said 4. Abe then asked him how many legs a cow would have if you counted his tail as a leg. The farmer then said 5. Lincoln said no it doesn’t matter what you call the tail, the cow still only has 4 legs. The truth is the truth no matter what we say. And the truth is America was founded by Christians who looked to God for leadership.
This wonderful organization the ACLU fully believes in the statement that if you tell the lie often enough, people will believe it. They have been screaming this for years telling us that there is a wall of separation between the state and the church and the government put it there. The origin of the separation of church and state was that Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter to a group of Baptists assuring them that the government would stay out of the church’s businesses. In other words he did it to protect the church from the state not the other way around.
Do you know what George Washington’s first act as President was? When he was sworn into office he kissed the Bible that was used. Then he held a two hour worship service in the Congressional hall. Now to show how far we have fallen, Judge Roy Moore was fired from his position on the state supreme court for keeping a monument of the 10 commandments in the entry way to a state building.
Congress voted to put the words “In God we trust on our dollars. In 1776, 11 of the 13 colonies required that before you could run for political office that you must be a professing Christian. The following year Congress voted to spend 300,000 dollars to distribute Bibles across America and in every classroom as a part of their curriculum. The liberty bell has Leviticus 25:10 inscribed ..... Reagan said if America ever forgets that we are one nation under God, we will be one nation gone under. Former President George Bush was asked who had the greatest influence on him. He said Jesus Christ, because HE changed my heart. So is America a Christian nation? My answer is the same. We have been in the past and we can be again. Hopefully soon.
My final question today is this. What will it require of you and me to turn this nation around and return to our roots? I happen to believe that this final question is not as complicated as we make it. I see 4 things we must do.
1. Bring prayer back into our public schools. When I was in grade school every day we started the day with two things (1) The pledge of allegiance and (2) The Lord’s Prayer. When I was ten there was a ban placed on prayer and Bible reading in schools. That was a sad day in the public school system. So what can students do? Well first of all you can pray before class every day ... silently. No one can stop you from doing that. And as adults we must pray for our students. In case you don’t know it, schools have changed. I read this week that 70% of people who go to church regularly do not pray daily and that includes pastors. If we expect our nation to change we cannot leave out prayer. The solution to our problems today will not be found in the White House, the State House or the Court House. It will be found right here in God’s House and Jesus said my house shall be a house of prayer.
2. Bring the Bible back into public schools. Again, did you know that no one can stop you from that. Any student who wishes to do can read their Bible and I encourage you to do it.
3. We must stop the murder of unborn children. I believe one of the greatest tragedies we face is the abortion of unborn children. Nearly 4000 abortions are performed every single day in the United States. That is over 1.4 million abortions every year. How can we as a nation ask God to bless America when we allow the senseless killing of God’s children every day?
4. Elect Godly men and women who know Christ and practice their faith daily. Too many of our officials have only claimed they believe something in order to get your vote. Once they get into office it’s like they become a completely different person. I believe our nation will be a better nation if we put people in office who are believers.
Let me ask you 3 quick questions. * How can we expect our nation to return to God if our leaders do not pray? * How can we ask God to bless America when we block Him from our schools. By the way I like the bumper sticker that says as long as there are exams in school there will be prayer in schools. * How can we expect our nation to return to God if our leaders do not know Him?
Chuck Swindoll tells us about a church in the Soviet Union. A few years ago they were forced to meet secretly because it is illegal to hold public services in someone’s home. They tried to be inconspicuous as possible as they gathered each week. They would arrive ta the designated home at different times, tried their best to look casual ... then when they all go there they would close the doors, pull the curtains and worship the Lord. But one Sunday night in the midst of their worship service, 2 soldiers broke into the room, held them at gun point and lines these Christians up against the wall. Then one of the soldiers said if you are willing to deny your faith in Christ you can leave now. 2-3 quickly left ... then another ... then two more. Again the soldier spoke ... “this is your last chance. Either leave now and deny your faith a or stay and you will suffer the consequences. 2 more left. But the rest stood their ground, children standing beside their parents, trembling, crying as they watched their parents with their hands in the air fully expecting to watch them be gunned down at any moment. The soldiers then closed the doors, looked back at those who stood against the wall and said, keep your hands -but this time in praise to our Lord Jesus Christ. We are also Christians.
The 2 soldiers explained that some time earlier they had been sent to another house church to arrest the Christians there. But in the process they heard the gospel and they accepted Jesus abs their Lord and Savior too. But they explained we have learned that unless people are willing to die for their faith, they cannot be fully trusted.
