“If at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I intended to do to it. And if at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and plant it, and if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will relent of the good that I had intended to do to it.” [1]
This preacher is under no illusion that what he says will be heard on Parliament Hill. It is highly unlikely that anyone in the British Columbia Legislature will be aware that I have delivered a message bearing the title, “A Solemn Warning to the Nation.” I doubt that any congressional representative or senator serving in the hallowed precincts within the District of Columbia is aware that I exist. Thus, I cannot anticipate that such august individuals will ever hear any message I may present. Nevertheless, I could wish that policy makers in my natal country, as well as those who govern in my adopted country, would hear what I will say this day. However, I am content to know that you who are seated here this day, and that those who hear my words delivered via television and radio, will hear what I have to say. Perhaps some will echo what is said so that others will hear and take heed, turning from evil and embracing righteousness.
While warning Israel, God reveals a broader perspective on His relationship with nations. Assuredly, the Lord could have been speaking to Canada when these words were given to the prophet. He might as easily have been speaking to the United States. To be certain, Canada must take to heart the thoughts conveyed in this message, as must the United States if they hope to continue enjoying God’s divine blessing.
Nor should any nation boast in military might, let alone boasting in economic might. The Psalmist warns,
“The king is not saved by his great army;
a warrior is not delivered by his great strength.
The war horse is a false hope for salvation,
and by its great might it cannot rescue.”
[PSALM 33:16-17]
And the Wise Man observes,
“The horse is made ready for the day of battle,
but the victory belongs to the LORD.”
[PROVERBS 21:31]
Military strength absent dependence on the Living God is a vain hope, a fool’s fantasy that can lead only to defeat and destruction.
Which nation was the reigning world power when God gave His warning through Jeremiah? Perceptive students of the Word will know that the reigning world power at that time was Babylon! No other nation could resist their might at the time Jeremiah wrote the prophecy that bears his name. Looking back over the sweep of history and the empires that seceded Babylon, we witness the Persian Empire, followed by the Greek coalition, succeeded in turn by the Roman Empire. Then, in time we witnessed the French Empire, succeeded by the Austrian Empire, succeeded by the British Empire. The power of the contemporary Persians was demonstrated when American B-2 bombers delivered munitions with stunning precision that destroyed their efforts to develop nuclear weapons. The Roman Empire faded into the distant millennia. Waterloo was the high-water mark of the French Empire. The glory of the British Empire is long past. And the might of the American Empire is always under threat, and one day shall be displaced by another power hungry for dominance. Indeed, we who worship the True and Living God must never forget,
“The king is not saved by his great army;
a warrior is not delivered by his great strength.
The war horse is a false hope for salvation,
and by its great might it cannot rescue.”
[PSALM 33:16-17]
“If at any time…” declares the LORD through His Prophet. The words are a solemn reminder that the blessings of peace and prosperity that a nation enjoys may be withdrawn in a moment. And without question, Canada has long enjoyed divine blessings that include peace and prosperity! But those blessings are in jeopardy today. The words that open the text serve to remind anyone who looks even casually at the history of nations, that disaster and ruin can be unleashed on a nation suddenly, unexpectedly, when the nation least expects such reversal of fortune. God owes Canada nothing; and if He should withdraw His mercy, what could we do about that? Any nation, and that assuredly includes Canada, is but a breath away from ruin. All that keeps any nation from disaster is the grace of God.
REPENTANCE BRINGS DIVINE MERCY — “If at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I intended to do to it” [JEREMIAH 18:7-8]. Our God is gracious; He reveals His compassion toward the penitent soul. More germane to the message, the Lord reveals His compassion toward the nation that turns from national wickedness.
We see an example of God’s compassion when a violent nation repented. What was witnessed when Nineveh repented at the pathetic preaching of a reluctant prophet reveals the reality of the Lord’s gentle treatment of any nation that turns from national wickedness. Let’s refresh our memories of how God acted in that instance.
We read in the opening verses of the Book of Jonah, “Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, ‘Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me’” [JONAH 1:1-2]. God would not send His judgement without warning the people to give opportunity to repent.
Jonah, however, was unwilling to obey God’s command. Therefore, we read, “But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the LORD” [JONAH 1:3].
Of course, you know the way in which God changed Jonah’s mind about obedience. All it took was a great fish and an extended ride in a unique marine environment followed by Jonah being vomited out of the belly of that great fish. At last, Jonah reluctantly entered the city of Nineveh and began to preach. He proclaimed, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown” [JONAH 3:4]! Only five words in that original language—you wish the Pastor’s messages would be this short! Yet, those five words had an impact far out of proportion to what anyone could have anticipated. The divine text informs the reader, “The people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them” [JONAH 3:5].
But that wasn’t all! The king heard what was taking place, and he rushed to get ahead of the parade. Thus, we are told, “The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes” [JONAH 3:6]. But the king was just getting started. The king then issued a proclamation, commanding, “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water, but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish” [JONAH 3:7-9].
Now, here’s the most fascinating result of what was taking place in the city. “When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it” [JONAH 3:10].
When Jonah began to pout, complaining that he was grieved that God showed mercy, the LORD responded, “Should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much cattle” [JONAH 4:11]? God is merciful, and He is responsive to national repentance! If God could spare a wicked nation such as Nineveh, would we not rightly expect that He will spare Canada? Or the United States? Or Australia? Or any of the multiple nations of our world if a nation should humble itself and turn from wickedness?
Does Canada have anything for which we as a nation need to repent? I’m glad you asked. It seems as if we have gone out of our way to defy God during the past several decades. While it may be tempting to accuse the federal government of creating the conditions that defy righteousness, provincial governments are every bit as complicit. Both seem quite intent on ensuring that righteousness is but a distant memory for citizens of the nation. And government reflects the character of the citizenry!
God says children are a heritage sent by him; He says that the “fruit of the womb” is His reward [see PSALM 127:3]. Canada despises God’s reward by encouraging the killing of the unborn while they are still in the womb. Since we can no longer afford our social programs as result of our declining birthrate, we must import multitudes of people who have no desire to honour our moral and ethical standards. The people we eagerly import seek the monetary benefits we provide without adopting Canadian values. Short-sighted politicians see these imports as a cheap way to pay for social programs rather than seeking people who want to adopt Canadian values and themselves become Canadians.
When Israel sacrificed their children to the gods about them, just as we sacrifice our children to the gods of this darkened world, the LORD condemned the nation, stating that the people were profaning His sanctuary. This is the way in which God viewed the evil as recorded by Ezekiel. “Son of man, will you judge Oholah and Oholibah? Declare to them their abominations. For they have committed adultery, and blood is on their hands. With their idols they have committed adultery, and they have even offered up to them for food the children whom they had borne to me. Moreover, this they have done to me: they have defiled my sanctuary on the same day and profaned my Sabbaths. For when they had slaughtered their children in sacrifice to their idols, on the same day they came into my sanctuary to profane it. And behold, this is what they did in my house. They even sent for men to come from afar, to whom a messenger was sent; and behold, they came. For them you bathed yourself, painted your eyes, and adorned yourself with ornaments. You sat on a stately couch, with a table spread before it on which you had placed my incense and my oil. The sound of a carefree multitude was with her; and with men of the common sort, drunkards were brought from the wilderness; and they put bracelets on the hands of the women, and beautiful crowns on their heads.
“Then I said of her who was worn out by adultery, ‘Now they will continue to use her for a whore, even her!’ For they have gone in to her, as men go in to a prostitute. Thus they went in to Oholah and to Oholibah, lewd women! But righteous men shall pass judgment on them with the sentence of adulteresses, and with the sentence of women who shed blood, because they are adulteresses, and blood is on their hands” [EZEKIEL 23:36-45].
Undoubtedly, the continuing slaughter of the unborn is a national disgrace and an affront to Holy God Who gives us the children of our nation. These children are vulnerable, requiring our protection. What is sometimes forgotten, or at least ignored, is that each of us, should we live long enough, become vulnerable again. In time, we age and lose the vitality we had when we were youths.
The nation, especially because of our health policies employing universal payer to provide for the Canadian system of health care, faces constant pressure from an ageing population. As people age, the demands placed on the health system increases. Older people require more health intervention, driving up the cost of that care. In an attempt to cut costs, though it was not first presented as such, governments implemented MAID (Medical Assistance in Dying).
The concept was that physicians, people who took the Hippocratic Oath are now encouraged to become merchants of death. Euthanasia has become the treatment of choice for difficult diseases, and even for psychological disabilities. Rather than encouraging life, Canadian governments are promoting death as a means of holding down health expenditures. Surely, such actions dishonour the Lord, being a deliberate violation of the Commandment, “You shall not murder” [EXODUS 20:13].
Here is yet another area where we are in error before the Lord God. When we suppress the industriousness of the people in order to promote nebulous global ends that benefit brutal governments and give recognition to violent regimes that openly affirm that they intend of destroying God’s Chosen people, are we not inviting divine judgement from the One Who warned, “Thus said the LORD of hosts, after his glory sent me to the nations who plundered you, for he who touches you touches the apple of his eye” [ZECHARIAH 2:8].
Of Israel, the Lord GOD has said,
“When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance,
when he divided mankind,
he fixed the borders of the peoples
according to the number of the sons of God.
But the LORD’s portion is his people,
Jacob his allotted heritage.
“He found him in a desert land,
and in the howling waste of the wilderness;
he encircled him, he cared for him,
he kept him as the apple of his eye.”
[DEUTERONOMY 32:8-10]
It is a vile thing to imagine that one can align the nation with wicked people who are filled with hatred against the Chosen People of God. But that is the alignment our own nation has chosen when we seek to recognise violent people identifying as Palestinians.
Going even further down this rabbit hole, we are foolish to imagine that we can seek comity with Muslims that are taught to hate everyone who is not precisely as they are. We are foolish to imagine that we can find comity with godless Communists; they hate the Faith and the faithful are not simply an enigma to them, they consider the faithful to be unworthy of life itself. I am not suggesting that we must hate Communists or Muslims, but we should be cautious about imagining that we can somehow find commonality with people who hate us at such a fundamental level. And to seek to support them in their aims by finding mutual support is folly-wide-the-mark.
Consistent with the pronounced drift toward governmental antisemitism, it is evident that with increasing frequency our governments, both federal and provincial, are more concerned with the rights of violent felons than they are concerned for the rights of the innocent. This is nothing less than a distortion of the concepts of freedom and is most assuredly grievously distorted compassion. Unsurprisingly, this drift is witnessed even in many local governments. Violence becomes more commonplace with each passing year throughout our nation. This rise in violence reveals a growing distrust of government and a resort to a jungle mentality to protect life and property. Undoubtedly the importation of people who neither share our heritage of building life on a biblical foundation nor who have any desire to build their lives on that foundation is a contributing factor in the increase in violence witnessed during the past several decades.
I might conclude that the violence observed in our communities is planned by government intent on moving our nation more rapidly toward socialism. What I mean is that capitalism emphasises individual initiative since it elevates the individual to take responsibility for his or her own actions. Socialism emphasises the group—in this case, government—over the individual. Whereas capitalism seeks to empower the individual, socialism seeks to empower the group, making the individual dependent on government. Violence destabilises society, necessitating increased government intervention through creation of evermore onerous regulations and a multiplication of statutory restrictions. Thus, it is difficult not to conclude that the increase in violence is deliberate.
ARROGANCE BRINGS JUDGEMENT — “If at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and plant it, and if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will relent of the good that I had intended to do to it” [JEREMIAH 18:9-10]. Just as the Lord is gracious and gentle, we must know that His grace is always seen through His righteous Being. His righteousness will not permit Him to overlook evil. Either the evil we have committed is covered by the blood of the sacrifice our Saviour has provided, or we continue to bear the evil that marks our lives. And how can we imagine that we can face the Righteous Judge of the universe if we bear our own sin? How can we hope to stand before Holy God when we are enshrouded in the filth of our own wickedness? We need a Saviour; and without His mercy there is no hope for us.
Nations grow prosperous resulting from the goodness and grace of the Lord God. A nation that is spared from war, spared financial reversal, spared famine or widespread disaster, seldom pauses to think that they have received grace. Nevertheless, that nation is the recipient of divine grace. Let’s admit that it is arrogance, the height of folly, for an individual, or for a nation, to refuse to hear the voice of the Lord. No doubt, many nations will plead that they do not know what God would say to them. However, in speaking to His ancient people, God spoke with words applicable to all nations, words that are pertinent for every society, words that are relevant to each culture, including our own Canadian culture. Speaking through the Prophet Micah, God cautioned,
“He has told you, O man, what is good;
and what does the LORD require of you
but to do justice, and to love kindness,
and to walk humbly with your God?”
[MICAH 6:8]
It does not require an advanced seminary degree to understand that God expects societies to be just, to seek justice in all instances and for all people. When a nation establishes a multi-tiered justice system, whether accidentally or by design, so that some are held to account while others are excused, that nation cannot say it is either just or that it is seeking justice. When we witness school systems excusing laziness and failing to reward merit, we must admit justice is absent from the situation. When melanin content excuses lawless behaviour, society has ceased to be just. When provincial courts, and even federal courts ignore scofflaws dependent upon the race of the violator, do we any longer have justice? When politicians can transgress the rules that are imposed on the rest of society without consequences, have we not descended into a lawless condition?
Canadians might argue that we love kindness. Are we kind if our governments take ever more moneys from the pockets of citizens to redistribute those moneys to whomever bureaucrats determine to be needy. Is setting up drug injection sites kindness? Compelling people to spend thousands of dollars on unreliable modes of transportation, making it increasingly difficult to use the means of transportation currently available may not qualify as kindness. Does refusing care for mentally unbalanced people, claiming that permitting them to sleep in the frigid winter cold has somehow become kindness? Is it kindness to pump children with hormones and mutilate their bodies because they were indoctrinated into believing they were born in the wrong body?
And when society remains silent as religions that openly advocate silencing Christians or Jews while noisily demanding tolerance for themselves, where is the evidence that the nation is walking humbly with its God? Society’s silence in the face of such wicked actions becomes tacit agreement with the wickedness of such evil religions. Clearly, modern western societies remain silent about the invasion of the Religion of Peace and the stifling of Christianity, as is also true from the rise of assaults against Jews.
While it is true that no professing Christians are being hacked to death in Canada, would the burning of forty-four churches in our nation during the three-year period of 2021 to 2024 qualify as walking humbly with our God? It is difficult to view this as anything other than an attack against the Faith. When provincial law societies refuse to certify graduates of a Christian law school as they seek to punish the school for refusing to compromise biblical integrity by promoting sexual intimacy outside of heterosexual marriage, can such a nation be walking humbly with its God? When a nation promotes the murder of the unborn in the womb and sanctions sexual intimacy outside of marriage as taught in the Word of God, is that nation walking humbly with its God?
After the disaster of governmental silencing of churches during the Covid disaster, it is no longer a dystopian fantasy to imagine religious citizens being muzzled and debarred from living out their Faith—it is an undeniable reality.
Here are a few examples. Coach Joe Kennedy was fired from his job as a high school football coach because his school district deemed it inappropriate for him to kneel and pray silently after a football game. Does this sound like walking humbly with God?
Aaron and Melissa Klein were forced to shut down the family bakery, Sweet Cakes by Melissa, after their state imposed a $135,000 fine because they refused to create a custom cake celebrating a same sex “marriage.” Is this walking humbly with God?
Two Alaska Airlines flight attendants were fired for questioning the company’s “Equality” act, because the act would impact people who hold religious convictions?
Or consider the case of Robyn Strader, a nurse practitioner with multiple advanced degrees, who was fired by the pharmacy which had accommodated her religious convictions for six years. However, the policy changed so that when her faith would not permit her to prescribe abortifacients, she would no longer be accommodated.
Gail Blair, a blind woman in her sixties who loves to spend time at the public park where she shares her faith with those who listen, was banned from entering the park for the “crime” of sharing her faith. Officials of her town even banned Gail from entering the public library out of fear that she might share her faith!
More recently, the mayor of Mullins, South Carolina demanded that a three foot by four foot Nativity scene—paid for by private funds—be removed from public property. The mayor’s demand was because she felt other religions might feel excluded despite the display including Santas, a snowman, wreaths, and lights.
In a reversion to 2020, even in Dallas, Texas, street preachers can be debarred from preaching if a police officer decides the preacher cannot preach. An incident, outside the American Airlines Center occurred on December 18 this year. The preachers from “Testimonies of God” ministries, were arrested for “interference with public duties.” Understand that the city of Dallas generally allows people to exercise their religious, political, or other views on public sidewalks so long as the speakers are not using amplifiers, nor blocking the sidewalks, nor engaging in unsafe behaviour; but “interference with public duties?” Admittedly, that does appear to be a stretch.
This latter incident is somewhat close to my heart since at one time I served as Director of Encounter Missions for Criswell College in Dallas, where I was responsible for overseeing the practical ministries required of each of the Bible students. Many of those students chose to engage in street preaching, and I accompanied them on occasion. Earlier, while living in San Francisco, I worked with the Friends of Israel conducting ministries on the campus of San Francisco State University, and preaching on the campus. Does the arrest of street preachers sound like walking humbly with God?
How is it possible that societies can distort the goodness of God to justify evil? Long years ago, the Apostle to the Gentiles addressed the arrogance of a complacent societies when he wrote, “You will say to me then, ‘Why does [God] still find fault? For who can resist his will?’ But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, ‘Why have you made me like this?’ Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use? What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory— even us whom he has called, not from the Jews only but also from the Gentiles” [ROMANS 9:19-24]?
Jewish culture had grown complacent, assuming they had a right to God’s mercy despite grossly distorting the will of the Lord God. Paul was reminding them that God owes them nothing. And if God was not obligated to the people whom He delivered from slavery in Egypt, why would western nations imagine in this day that God is so indebted to us that He must bless us regardless of our disregard of Him and His will? Why would western societies ever imagine that though we distort justice and justify every wickedness of our heart that He will still protect us? When we import wicked peoples who attempt to import the deficiencies of their fallen societies into our own nation, promoting their lack of values over the order and law of our own society, should we anticipate that God will bless us and continue to ensure that we prosper? The answer is self-evident!
Moses was sent by God to warn a wicked leader to free the people whom God had chosen, and that leader in his arrogance responded to the demand, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD” [EXODUS 5:2]. Anyone with even a passing familiarity with the biblical account know how that worked out.
If someone should argue that God must bless our nation because He created us, they need to familiarise themselves with the warning delivered by the Weeping Prophet. God gave Jeremiah an object lesson, before warning those who heard the Prophet speak as he did in the text before us today. The LORD instructed Jeremiah to go down to the potter’s house. There, the man of God saw the potter working at his wheel. As he worked, the clay which he was working was marred. What is done when the clay being shaped is marred before it is fired? The potter lifts the clay from the wheel and throws it down onto the wheel again to begin anew forming the clay into the vessel that is planned.
It was at this point that God spoke to the Prophet, saying, “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter has done? declares the LORD. Behold, like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel” [JEREMIAH 18:6]. While the immediate warning was to Israel, Canada—or any one of the western nations—must take heed that what is said could be applied to them. It is folly-wide-the-mark to ignore God our Creator and Sustainer upon Whom we are dependent for the blessings we crave.
In our arrogance, we boast that we have accumulated wealth and all the prosperity that enriches our lives, even as our souls are wasted. Even now,
“In [our] heart [we say],
‘I sit as a queen,
I am no widow,
and mourning I shall never see.’”
[REVELATION 18:7b]
But we do not realise that the wealth and the prosperity we value so highly comes from the Lord God Who has given us peace and permitted us to live in a land of plenty. Even the might of our armies cannot protect us if the Lord God should not defend us. God has blessed us with a rich heritage and throughout our history we were blessed with leaders who showed wisdom at guiding the nation through the tumultuous waters of war and conflict, always ensuring that we were kept in safety. We fail to realise that just as He has blessed us, He can withdraw His blessing in a moment of time.
I tremble when I realise the truth revealed in the words of the Psalmist,
“The LORD looks down from heaven;
he sees all the children of man;
from where he sits enthroned he looks out
on all the inhabitants of the earth,
he who fashions the hearts of them all
and observes all their deeds.
The king is not saved by his great army;
a warrior is not delivered by his great strength.
The war horse is a false hope for salvation,
and by its great might it cannot rescue.
“Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him,
on those who hope in his steadfast love,
that he may deliver their soul from death
and keep them alive in famine.”
[PSALM 33:13-19]
And yet, we boast in military might … until it is no longer effective. We failed to realise that the peace that permitted us to acquire ever more things was given by God—it was never the result of our strength. Our arrogance was our undoing. God was always our shield and our protector, until He wasn’t.
A SOLEMN WARNING TO THIS NATION — “If at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I intended to do to it. And if at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and plant it, and if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will relent of the good that I had intended to do to it” [JEREMIAH 18:7-10].
How gracious is the offer our Lord makes through His servant. It is as though the Lord GOD is offering an opportunity to our own nation—and perhaps it is a final offer. We can either turn from our maddened plunge into national destruction, or we can continue the insane rush toward national ruin. The choice lies within our hands.
You do understand that a nation is not monolithic. A nation is composed of citizens, and the government a nation has reflects the society in which the citizens exist. Effectively, a people have the government they deserve. If the government is righteous, good, and honourable, it is because the citizenry is righteous, good, and honourable. If the government is corrupt, base, and dishonourable, it is because the citizenry has become corrupt, base, and dishonourable.
Among the Psalms is one which raises a question the nations of the West would do well to ponder in this day. I’m speaking primarily to Canada and the United States of America, but truly any of the once-great nations of the west must take heed to what I say. The Psalmist asks,
“If the foundations are destroyed,
what can the righteous do?”
[PSALM 11:3]
The Psalmist continues by focusing his gaze, and the gaze of his readers on the sole source of strength possessed by any nation, or by any society. David writes,
“The LORD is in his holy temple;
the LORD’s throne is in heaven;
his eyes see, his eyelids test the children of man.
The LORD tests the righteous,
but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence.”
[PSALM 11:4-5]
Here is the essential truth that the nation would be advised to hold in mind. With the influx of people who have no desire to become adopt Canadian standards, people who are intent on imposing the evil of the nations from which they came, the foundations are being destroyed. After the foundation is destroyed, nothing may be done. Destruction may be prevented, however. Before destruction is accomplished, the righteous may pray, live upright and change his world by delivery of the Word of God. Let us set ourselves to repair the damage to the foundations and protect against future ravage.
Our foundations include the biblical heritage of liberty and individual responsibility received from those who preceded us. While Canada and the United States may not have been as vibrantly Christian as we would have wished in days gone by, people respected the Faith and were at least conversant with the Word of the Lord. I don’t know that the churches were necessarily filled with people who ardently pursued the Lord, it was still true that people knew what was right and they recognised what was deviant. Such general recognition of right and wrong are not so evident today. Society, even when it does not approve of every evil imposed by governmental leaders, is tolerant of the wickedness that is sanctioned or prescribed. The foundations are being destroyed. And we may well ask, “What can the righteous do?”
The Psalmist looks to the LORD in His holy temple. Therein lies the answer to the question, “What can the righteous do?” You may imagine that you are but one person, doubting that there is much that one person can do. However, you are a twice-born child of the Living God, if you have faith in the Son of God. Christ has all authority; power is in His Name. Therefore, you can look to Him.
What would happen if the followers of the Risen Lord were to call on Him to raise up godly leaders with the courage to make difficult decisions? What would happen if those who are redeemed by the Living Lord of Glory were to dare live as saved people, refusing to go along to get along, insisting that they would live godly lives regardless of the thoughtless lives that are lived out about them? I do believe that “The eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him” [2 CHRONICLES 16:9a].
I am certain that God is merciful. And though the promise given to Solomon at the dedication of the Temple was for Israel, the Lord God yet anticipates that His people will seek Him and His glory. When we ask, our God is pledged on His sacred honour to act. He promised Solomon, “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land” [2 CHRONICLES 7:14]. I will not attempt to put words in the mouth of the Lord, but I know He is merciful. Who knows whether God will relent from the judgement we deserve if we begin to seek mercy. And who is better situated to begin this journey toward mercy than those who know the Lord?
But perhaps you don’t know the Lord? Have you not heard that God sent His Son to present His life as a sacrifice for sin? Jesus, the Christ, gave Himself to make atonement for your sin. However, He did not remain in the tomb. He broke the bonds of death, rolled back the stone that covered the tomb, and came out of the grave. Jesus our Saviour conquered death, hell, and the grave. Now, He offers forgiveness of sin and a new life to all who come to Him in faith.
The Word of God promises, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved” [ROMANS 10:9-10].
No one should complain that this sounds too complicated, for God ensures that anyone can understand what must be done, when He says, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” [ROMANS 10:13]. And this includes you. No matter what you may have done at some point in the past, no matter how wicked you may think yourself to be, the promise is given for you.
Jesus invites you even now. He promises, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” [MATTHEW 11:28-30]. Receive Him, now. Amen.
[1] Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers, 2001. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
