By
Bob W. Lovelace
INTRODUCTION:
When such destruction comes without
total annihilation (“one” reason being others’ hatred of a nation or people for
whatever the reason), you see things you admire such as patriotism, heroic acts
to save others ~ even giving one’s own life to do so, also generosity and
compassion for one’s fellow man. Most any nation responds thusly to tragedy.
Out of concern for our nation - mourning is respect - scenes of sorrow require
compassion and tear your heart out - there is such a thing as patriotism and
love of your people, and nation. God understood man’s emotions when he ordained
civil government. However, "these" emotions of patriotism are not the
same as Repentance towards and obedience to God. A distressing factor in all of
this is that this is a country whose government, educational process, and
entertainment industry has too often passed judgment upon morality while
condoning and fostering immoralities. Thankfully, the knowledge of
"salvation" that comes from God’s Word points to the true purpose of
our lives here upon this earth and man’s eternal destiny thereafter. When my
and your life is over, at the end this is what ultimately matters.
A. Proverbs
14:34,
"Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin
is a reproach to any people."
B. For a
resolve that did not work:
"Whereas Edom saith, We are
impoverished, but we will return and build the desolate places; thus saith the
Lord of hosts, They shall build, but I will throw down; and they shall call
them, The border of wickedness, and, The people against whom the Lord hath
indignation for ever."
1.
C. We, as
Christians, can’t get an entire nation to repent and turn to obeying God’s New
Testament. Such a concept as a “christian” nation is not in the New Testament.
We do find the church as God’s own possession being capable of edifying or
building itself up (I Pet. 2:9; Eph.
II.
SUCH TIMES AS OURS ARE TIMES OF INAPPROPRIATE STATEMENTS AND MISLEADING
APPLICATIONS.
A. At times such
as this people thrive on misapplications of God's word, and in giving human
reasoning and wisdom instead of God’s eternal truths. And many love to “go with
the flow,” and jump on the bandwagon at such times. Some live for this!
1.
Illustrations: “Nostradamas said…,” “the Mark of the Beast,” “Armageddon has
come,” “an earthly reign of Christ is near."
B. I must
frankly confess that I can’t say for certain that “I” always know how to apply
Prov. 14:34 today.
1. What
standard of morality does God accept that keeps a nation going? Where does He
draw the line and say that nation will be no more? Oftentimes Christians get
caught up in “going with the flow” so to speak, and then when God doesn’t “go
with the flow” and do what people think He will that isn’t enough. Then people
reason that God must do more for me or us.
III.
WHEN MEN HAVE SUCH QUESTIONS AS, “WHY DID THIS HAPPEN?" OR "WHAT IS
OUR FUTURE?"
From a personal perspective "I"
can bank on a limited number of things. They are precious, but few. I’m going
to enumerate the things I know for sure that sustain us as Christians. (Please note that I am talking
about us as Christians and not us as a nation.)
The things I will mention is where your "life" is “today"
as a Christian.
A. Christ
Jesus (God) Reigns Over All Things ~ Matt. 28:18-20,
"And Jesus came and spake unto them,
saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. [19] Go ye
therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and
of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: [20] Teaching them to observe all things
whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the
end of the world. Amen."
1. He is King
of all kings ~ 1 Tim. 6:15,
"Which in his times he shall shew, who
IS (Emph. mine, B.L.) the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and
Lord of lords;"
2. This is
central to any nation a Christian might live in. Any christian anywhere should
put this foremost. It is very hard for me here, having not traveled abroad, to
picture true christians elsewhere and see them caught in this struggle of
nations, fighting for democracy and freedom such as we have here, strivings for
justice and against injustices. I have difficulty, at times, trying to
determine with my limited knowledge of things abroad just what is “just”. I do know that God always stands for what is
just.
3. The
examples of the “martyrs” (Stephen, Acts 8, Rev. 6:9 “those slain for the Word
of God and the testimony of Jesus“) are not the same category necessarily as
lives lost in a nation today at war.
4. There is no such thing as a “christian”
nation today. It is the church of Christ that is described as a "holy
nation" where Peter says, "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal
priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the
praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous
light:" (I Peter 2:9). Our great “nation” IS a political body that will
exist upon this earth as such for a period of time. I like it a lot. I really
like being here. There is no other place I’d rather be. There are lots of
wonderful blessings, with freedom being the greatest with a view to being able
to worship and serve God without persecution. Also, I find great delight in the
fact that God's children here are willing to show such "benevolence"
to saints in need elsewhere (I Cor. 16: 1-4), and thus share in spiritual
blessings and the material blessings enjoyed here.
5. My
“thoughts” are often no more than “dust” ~ When I look one place and see a
nation not even claiming belief in God growing stronger and increasing, and
then at home and see our nation’s immorality, I have to confess that its just
too great for me.
B.
God Uses, At Times, One Government To Punish Another (People) ~ Matthew 24:1-2,
"And Jesus went out, and departed from
the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the
temple. [2] And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say
unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not
be thrown down."
1. God
destroyed
C.
The Distinctions Of Being A Christian ~ Things We "Know" and
"Do."
1. First,
Something We Know. We Know the Reality of Physical
Death and of Eternal Damnation. This always suggests the urgency in
just one person’s salvation that we might love or be acquainted with.
a. There is
indeed a fire to be cast into ~ Mark 9:45,
"And if thy foot offend thee, cut it
off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be
cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:"
b. Please
COMPARE this with a fire in the trade center to escape from. Some were willing
to jump even to their deaths rather than be consumed in that fire.
c. Question:
To what length have you gone to escape the “eternal” fire? Have you yet to obey
this command? Mark
1) A certain
disciple said to Saul, "And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized,
and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord." (Acts
2. We Are to be Obedient to Civil Government, Rom. 13:1-7.
Why? Because not to be is to be disobedient to God! There is a qualifier, for
we must obey God rather than man (Acts
3. The New Testament Emphasis Is Primarily A Spiritual Keeping
~ Luke
"And
ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends;
and some of you shall they cause to be put to death. [17] And ye shall be hated
of all men for my name's sake. [18] But there shall not an hair of your head
perish. [19] In your patience possess ye your souls."
a. This is
where your life is as a Christian! Through perseverance and patience we will
gain eternal life ~ Col. 3:1-4,
"If ye then be risen with Christ, seek
those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.
[2] Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. [3] For ye
are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. [4] When Christ, who is our
life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory."
b. As we faithfully
pursue such, setting our affection on things above and not on things of this
earth (Col. 3:2), we will not suffer eternal or spiritual loss. Jesus by no means meant that His disciples
would not suffer or be persecuted. For the Apostles, obviously, “apostleship”
meant physical death for many. Their and others' martyrdom was specific to
their living and preaching the Gospel, and by refusing to worship false
religions (Rev. 6:9). Satan was involved in a big way. Remember, Revelation tells us that many of
the disciples were martyred. Everyone will die physically until the point Jesus
comes again (Heb.
c. Who lived
and for how long “was” also at times displayed as being in His hands,
1) Paul at
2) Stephen
who “saw” Him but died physically ~ Acts 7:54-60, "When they heard these
things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth.
[55] But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven,
and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, [56] And
said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the
right hand of God. [57] Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped
their ears, and ran upon him with one accord, [58] And cast him out of the
city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young
man's feet, whose name was Saul. [59] And they stoned Stephen, calling upon
God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. [60] And he kneeled down, and
cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he
had said this, he fell asleep."
3) A church
in
d. Thus we
see that individual Christians wherever they might be were promised a spiritual
keeping. Other verses giving emphasis to this:
1) 2 Thes.
3:3, "But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you, and keep you from
evil."
2) Jude 1:24,
"Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you
faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy."
3) Hebrews
13:5, " Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with
such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake
thee."
4. How We Pray Is Very Important ~ I Tim. 2:1-2,
"I exhort therefore, that, first of
all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for
all men; [2] For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a
quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty."
a. This is
where your life is as a christian!
b. As stated
above we are to pray for all that are in authority, "…that we may lead a
quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty."
c. We do pray
for the physical necessities of life ~ Matthew
d. And we
pray for physical blessings such as health ~ James 5:15, "and the prayer
offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him
up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him."
e. Of course,
as christians and having received initial forgiveness through baptism (Mk.
16:16, Acts 2:38; Col. 2:11-13) we now pray for and receive forgiveness when we
sin ~ 1 John 1:8-10,
"If we say that we have no sin, we
deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. [9] If we confess our sins, he
is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness. [10] If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar,
and his word is not in us."
f. Many
passages show our prayers “count” with the Father; our intercessory prayers for
one another help ~ 2 Cor. 1:11,
"Ye also helping together by prayer
for us, that for the gift bestowed upon us by the means of many persons thanks
may be given by many on our behalf."
g. Prayers
for personal strength (Eph. 6:18) or otherwise should express our desire that
God's will be done ~ Matt. 6:10; Matt. 26:39 " … nevertheless not as I
will, but as thou wilt."
h. If you are
like me there are so many things that you do not know all of the facts on. When
such is the case, ask God for “justice” rather than define it for yourself.
Remember that He has told us that vengeance is His ~ Romans 12:19,
"Dearly beloved, avenge not
yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is
mine; I will repay, saith the Lord."
5. Edification In Its Various Forms (both individual and
collective) Sustains Us At All Times,
a. This is
where your life is as a christian!
b.
"Reading" the scriptures to know what God's revealed will is ~ Ephes.
3:3-4
How that by revelation he made known unto
me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, [4] Whereby, when ye read, ye
may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ)
c. Handling
accurately the word of truth ~ 2 Tim.
2:15, "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not
to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."
d. Working at
edifying one another collectively through assembling for worship ~ Heb.
10:24-25, "And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to
good works: [25] Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the
manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see
the day approaching."
e. Times of
assembling are times when "all things are done for edification"
rather than entertainment, games, and show ~ 1 Cor. 14:26,
"How is it then, brethren? when ye
come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue,
hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto
edifying."
f. A worthwhile
admonition ~ Jude 1:20-21,
"But ye, beloved, building up
yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, [21] Keep
yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ
unto eternal life."
CONCLUSION:
In this lesson I haven’t dealt with all the responsibilities man has to civil
government, his fellow man, etc. The scriptures have told those of us who are
christians where our life is. It is in service rendered to our Lord Jesus
Christ. Whether a person is killed in a tragic act of hatred, revenge, or war,
or whether they survive is not in and of itself a measure of righteousness.
Everyone has to die; that’s part of being human (Heb.
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