I live in the United States of America, which is a wealthy
nation, an affluent nation in many respects. It isn’t that everyone here is
wealthy, but perhaps by third world standards we all are. We have many freedoms
and privileges that people in other nations do not have. We are pretty much
free to go wherever we want and to do whatever we want, as long as we obey the
law of the land. But, some of those freedoms are slowly ebbing away.
The Lord has often given me a picture of America as a
modern-day Sodom and Gomorrah, yet there are righteous people here, too, who
love Jesus, and who are serving him with their lives, although we are in the
minority.
The Lord Jesus has also often given me a picture of our
nation as the harlot spoken of in the book of Revelation, i.e. Babylon.
Although I believe “Babylon” represents the world’s system, as a whole,
including within today’s modern market-driven churches, the USA fits the
description given of Babylon better than any other nation in the world in our
day and time.
In addition to this, the Lord Jesus has opened my eyes to
see much of the corruption that has been going on within our government and
within the institutional market-driven church here, too, across this nation,
and across denominational boundaries, as well. And, there has been a massive
moral decline within the church and within our nation in recent years, too.
And, good is being spoken of as evil, and evil is being spoken of as good.
What the Lord has also been showing me is how many of our
government leaders and our church leaders are opening the door wide for the
people of our nation to engage themselves in all sorts of wickedness, too.
For, there has been a massive breakdown of all that is
sacred and holy, such as the sanctity of marriage and the uniqueness of male
and female. Living in sin is becoming a human right even if it hurts other
people, including the innocent and children. And, the cheap grace gospel is
granting permission for “Christians” to keep on in their sinful practices while
promising them heaven when they die, and so they are being coddled in their
sin.
Thus, God’s boundaries which he has set up for us for our
good, and for our protection, are being destroyed, and thus many people, even
Christians, are indulging in self-pleasure, and many are going to the outer
limits, even to the extremes of decadence, immorality, and wickedness, and they
are testing and trying all sorts of evil which is vile, disgusting and immoral.
And, many are believing that it is their right to do so, and so they are
demanding their rights to do what ought not to be done (See Romans 1:18-32).
“Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days. Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you.” James 5:1-6 ESV
There are many applications that could be made of this
scripture to the current moral and spiritual condition of the USA, and to the
church, overall, in America. But, what the Lord Jesus is having me focus on
this morning is how the church has paved the way for this moral decadence in
our nation by pushing aside God’s moral requirements for salvation, and by
instituting the cheap grace gospel which gives permission for “Christians” to
indulge in all manner of evil without guilt.
God is exposing the lies of this cheap grace gospel, and he
is exposing the fall-out from it, too, which is the vast majority of people who
call themselves Christians living no different from people who make no profession
of faith in Jesus Christ. For, the gospel has been reduced to a mere profession
of faith in Jesus Christ, and God’s requirements for repentance and obedience
have been shoved out of the way to make room for “believers” in Jesus to engage
in all manner of evil, even way beyond “normal.”
By pushing God’s righteous requirements for salvation from
sin out of the way, these who are promoting this cheap grace gospel, in
essence, have halted the moving of the Holy Spirit in people’s hearts and
lives. They have immobilized the Spirit of God so that they can be comforted in
their sins and in their sensual indulgences. And, they have done this by
softening God’s righteous requirements for salvation, by reducing them to what
is more palatable to the tastes of those who want to continue in their
wickedness.
So, what are God’s righteous requirements for salvation and
eternal life with God? We must leave our former lives of living for sin and
self behind us, and we must turn to God and then walk with him in obedience to
his commands. We must walk (in lifestyle, in practice) according to the Spirit
of God, and no longer according to our flesh if we want to have eternal life with
God (Rom. 6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-17; Eph. 4:17-24; Eph. 5:3-6; Gal. 5:16-21; 1 Jn.
1:5-9).
“Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door. As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.” James 5:7-11 ESV
Many of us who are seeing what is happening within the
church of today, with regard to the cheapening of God’s grace, and with regard
to pushing God’s righteous requirements aside to make way for all manner of
evil to be indulged in, are brokenhearted over what we are seeing. We are grieved.
We are incensed. And, revulsion is what we feel when we see all the wickedness
that is being allowed to go on within the church under the guise of God’s
grace. It is sickening. And, it is insulting to God’s grace.
Many of us are crying out to God about this, too. And, we
are praying for evil to be exposed and for blinded eyes to be opened so that
many will fall on their knees before God and will repent of their sins, and so
they will follow our Lord in obedience. But, yet the evil goes on, and the gospel
is still under attack, and many people are believing the lies, and they are
being led astray, and people are being hurt and even killed because of all this
evil that is in men’s hearts and that the church is permitting with their cheap
grace.
But, the Lord is saying to wait on him, to be patient. He
has this all under control. He has a plan that he is working out, which is for
the good of those who love him, and which is for the salvation of human souls.
And, even if we must suffer for righteousness’ sake, we are in good company.
The prophets of old and Jesus Christ and his NT apostles all suffered, too,
because they stood for what was right against all that was evil, and thus they
were hated and persecuted for it.
So, the Lord is encouraging us who are walking with him and
who are being persecuted for righteousness’ sake to be steadfast in our faith,
and to keep on in the work of the Lord, and in speaking the truth in love, and
in praying for the salvation of human souls.
We are to remain steadfast, too, in exposing evil for what
it is, and in exposing deceptions and false teaching, and in sharing with
people the truth of the gospel so that many can be saved and have eternal life
with God.
For
Our Nation
An
Original Work / September 11, 2012
Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Trust Him with your life today.
Make Him your Lord and your Savior.
Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.
He will forgive you of your sin;
Cleanse your heart, made new within.
Men betraying: Our trust fraying.
On our knees to God we’re praying,
Seeking God to give us answers
That are only found in Him.
God is sovereign over all things.
Nothing from His mind escaping.
He has all things under His command,
And will work all for good.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Men deceiving: we’re believing
In our Lord, and interceding
For our nation and its people
To obey their God today.
He is our hope for our future.
For our wounds He offers suture.
He is all we need for this life.
Trust Him with your life today.
Monday, November 25, 2019
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