We will break from our normal study in the Sermon on the Mount this week, and next week as well. This week we honor all those who have fought for our country. We honor veterans. There are veterans among us in our assembly. Your pastor is one. I believe we are failing economically, societally, politically, parentally, and certainly spiritually because we do not honor those things for which our veterans have fought. For this reason, and because our current military men and women valiantly serving our country abroad will themselves be veterans some day, the Lord laid upon my heart a burden to minister to you from a passage that is rather typical of the Old Testament prophetical passages. The unique thing is that we actually find it in a historical book.
There were three basic functions of the Old Testament Hebrew prophets. Their first responsibility was to encourage God’s people to have faith, rest in, and trust only in Yahweh for redemption. Yahweh’s mercy and grace would send the Messiah. Man’s strength, man’s musing, and man’s efforts will in no way influence God’s plans or will. All things will be done in His time, and we must submit to His will in these things. This simple testimony is in itself contradictory to other religions that desire to usher in their pinnacle spiritual event through their own efforts.
The second function is connected to the first. Prophets routinely reminded God’s people that through Him, they have safety and God’s favor. However, this condition is predicated on faithfulness, obedience, and adherence to the covenantal promises. God expects Israel to submit to the His doctrines, know them, and apply them in their lives. Further, this submission cannot be a mechanical, material, or superficial. It must be sincere and heart changing. Israel is to relish and take great joy in implementing God’s will in their lives.
The third duty or function of a prophet was to encourage God’s people. Israel, in faith and submission to God, should be able to be optimistic concerning their future. There should be great comfort as they rest in the promises provided from God for their nation. A nation bent upon God’s will, focused upon implementing God’s doctrines, and dedicated to pleasing God in all things – this is a nation that can take courage in their future being blessed by God.
Isaiah is rather typical of the Old Testament prophets. His first messages deal with a call for Israel to repent, to face the current punishment they are enduring because of sin, and informing them that this judgment is given because they had become an unholy and stubborn nation. Oddly enough, Isaiah preaches against worldly wisdom that rejects the Messiah (Is 7:1-25). Consider the fact that Isaiah ministered some time around 587BC, and this becomes profound. Man, as simplistic as society was then, thought he knew better than God, even 600 years before Christ. Isaiah also continually calls for Israel to repent and accept the salvation of the Lord. He teaches of the coming Messiah in many chapters and calls Israel to repent and rest in the coming Messiah.
You might ask what all that prophecy stuff has to do with our message today. Look at 2 Chronicles 7:14 and we will find the answers I believe in the Chronicler’s words. As we consider these scriptures, let me share something with you. Chris and I heard a message from Pastor Rick Cross at the Fundamental Baptist Fellowship conference in Green River when we went there in October. It dealt briefly with this passage. One thing I noted is that this passage deals with a nation, Israel. Because they are the chosen of God, it can also be used to instruct the body of believers. This passage deals with chosen people, the Israelites separated out unto God for Himself. The passage talks of King Solomon taking the throne and offering the first sacrifice under his rule. This is about a specifically selected nation getting right with God. In verse 14 we find four specific things that God calls for His chosen people to do in order that God, “(will then) hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”
I offer the title of this message today not as a fact, but as a desire in my heart. Everyone in our nation wonders why we flounder so much. Many attempt to excuse it as a function of society, which in some ways it is. Many try to excuse it as a function of politics, which in some ways it is. Many attempt to explain our national failures either within our nation, or without, as a function of poor leadership, which in some ways it is. Our nation flounders because our society (the people and their leaders) runs from – instead of embracing and submitting to – God. Our nation flounders because our politicians work only in their own strengths to cure the ills, instead of submitting to God and His word for guidance. Our nation flounders because there is poor leadership now, just as there has been for over 60 years; leadership that gathers power unto itself, instead of requesting wisdom from God to guide the people. Our nation flounders for the same reason Israel flounders now and always has: poor spiritual leadership.
In this, we find the purpose in understanding the prophets. These prophets were valiant men going out preaching, teaching, showing, exemplifying, and doing the work that best supports the nation as a whole. In the case of Israel’s prophets, they preach and teach the word of God to an unappreciative nation. They preach and teach to leaders who think they are better than everyone else. They preach and teach to people who ignore their instruction and have great disdain for their efforts. In the case of our veterans, they fight, they recommit their lives, and they continue to preach the purity of freedom while fighting for it. Our veterans most frequently are ignored, they are sidelined, and frequently are cut off as not worthy of listening to. They are treated with the same disdain as the prophet of old. Nevertheless, they have a great value. They know what freedom costs.
People should ask questions such as, “Why does it take a court order and a legal battle to have ’In God We Trust’ engraved at the entrance to a national monument?” America was founded as part of an effort to freely worship the one true God: the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; the God of the Holy Scriptures; the one whose Son was given for the world’s salvation. We worship the only God, and that God gave Himself for all. That is the epitome of tolerance and equal opportunity in anyone’s book.
Our veterans fought for this freedom and continue to do so. Where the Constitution’s Preamble says, “and secure blessings of liberty,” we should recognize that “blessings” are a function of a divine being bestowing favor upon people. All dictionary definitions of “blessing” tell us of a divine action. Our forefathers knew God had to be involved in our development. Our veterans take an oath to “support and defend the constitution of the United States of America against all enemies foreign and domestic.” This oath ends with, “so help me God.”
In the First Amendment, the very first thing mentioned is that our government shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion – this includes humanism and atheism. Humanism and atheism are the prevailing views of secularism, the focus of our nation today. Our veterans have fought – and many died – not to support secularism, but the freedom for our nation to worship God and NOT the atheist. We fight not for no god to be involved, but for God specifically to be involved in our country. We fight to keep God involved, not to prohibit His involvement. This idea prevails in the latter part of the first statement in Article one before the first semi-colon which says, “or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” Our public schools violate this specific clause when they censor children’s art, writings, or prayer.[1] When a child develops a poster that includes a picture of Jesus, their picture cannot, constitutionally, be denied or censored just because Jesus is in it. People think that others must assuage personal fears by forfeiting their personal rights. Veterans fought for that freedom to express their faith, not tyrannical suppression, simpleton fear mongering, and atheism.
Our study today, then, will examine what a real leader of a successful nation should call for his followers to do. Our study today will identify with a call of a leader anointed by God to give them wisdom in leadership. Our study today will look at the response of a people that are seeking the blessings of God, not the favor of men.
I. Prelude to fellowship (14a)
Looking at our scripture today, we first see Israel is identified as a nation claimed by God. This nation was selected and separated from the world by God for His personal pleasure. The people of Israel were chosen by God as His special people. No other nation in the world holds that distinction. America is not such a nation, and, unlike the Israelites, Americans are not the chosen people of God. However, we can learn from those who have gone before us. This promise is a promise we can lean upon because it is for the people chosen of God and separated unto God. Christians are just such people (Jn 15:19; Eph 1:4).
Israel throughout the Old Testament undulates from faith and belief, to unbelief and paganism. They flow back and forth from believing in their godly deliverance, to falling prey to their own stubbornness, their own wickedness, and their own selfish will. In every instance one thing rings true – national leadership fails them. This does not absolve the people of responsibility, but it certainly does not help the nation as a whole. Every time the nation falls away, God punishes them, just as a good Father punishes and holds His children accountable for their actions. This is the crux of the purpose in God being identified as the “Father” – Father because He gave us life; Father because He provides for us; Father because He disciplines us when we go astray; Father because He loves us enough to give of Himself for our salvation.
I see veterans as great prophets for this nation. They were out there fighting for the freedoms of the Constitution only to see them eroded. Prophets of old fought for purity and sought God’s blessing for Israel. Our veterans fought for our nation’s pure freedom and sought God’s blessing for America. Though not chosen, we know from our early years, and from the times when we have seen great blessings from God in our history that we too can be blessed when we bless God. Unfortunately, our leadership has continually and purposefully failed us spiritually. They do not lead us to God, but to Satan. We must begin a path to return to fellowship with God before we can begin to envision any repair for our nation. The answer is not conservatism, as many political pundits would have you believe. The answer is God and His salvation for a lost world.
Before we can worship God, we have to see that we are first Americans, just as Israel had to first see that they were Israelites. Israelites, even proselytes, did not hyphenate their national identity. Equally, Americans cannot hyphenate their national identity in a way that has come into vogue since its horrid inception in 1890. There was a cartoon that was crafted in 1899 that has Uncle Sam seated next to a ballot box, and a line of people walking to place their ballots in the box. The people are drawn in two nationalities. It pictures men in line that are, for instance, half Irish and half American, half Spanish and half American, half English and half American, etc. The caption reads, “Why should I let these freaks cast whole ballots when they are only half Americans?” Holding onto your heritage is one thing, but forcing the United States to submit to your individual heritage is unacceptable. We did not fight for Ger-Merica, or Ira-Merica, or even Eng-America. We veterans signed contracts with the United States of America – one of the greatest nations in history – because of its great diversity, but single focus on freedom.
Veterans must continue to fight for freedom. The reason we must continue to fight is that Satan and his evil never rests, but always encourages more and more chaos. As long as Satan can draw us away from God, away from fellowship with God, then He divides us nationally, individually, and most importantly spiritually from God.
God is our Father, He is the ultimate Father, and we are children. When this nation’s leaders face the fact that compared to God they are infants, we may see some success because it will bring about humility.
A. Humility before God (14b)
Our scripture here tells us that the first thing God told Solomon to do was pray for a humble people. Solomon, their leader, humbled himself before God. The people, who are decidedly lower on the scale of national leadership, should too. Solomon is not lording over his people. He is not implementing as his first action in office some great “take care of the people” program that gives everyone millions of dollars from other people. Solomon is praying that the people would humble themselves before an almighty God whom Solomon knows put him specifically in charge. The King of Kings and Lord of Lords rules all of these earthly masters. Solomon knows that, and until our national leaders and the people of America humble themselves, we will not fellowship with God.
Prophets were very humble folks. Seldom – if ever – did they live in opulence. Jeremiah, the weeping prophet, spoke against the sins of Israel for over 40 years with nothing to show for it, as Israel continued to falter and fail under faithless kings.
So, how do veterans affect this arrogance and humble themselves? How often have veterans during their service known they were being used as political pawns? Every soldier knows it. When the enemy is in your sights and you are told not to shoot because permission has to be gotten – you know that there is a politician pulling a string, trying to get money, attempting to make a deal, or just incompetent and unable to comprehend the situation. When a soldier, sailor, airman, or marine sees friends who serve without questioning the orders from leadership – serving selflessly, serving only for one another because they know that no politician in charge really cares – that is when you know humility. They are serving not because of the person in the Oval Office who may be a reprobate. They are serving because they took an oath to protect the Constitution from our enemies. They humble themselves even when they know they have a better answer, to take and execute the imperfect orders of their elected officials. That is a military professional. That is a veteran. Every single veteran I have ever met has had to be humble to fulfill their oath of enlistment or oath of commissioning.
The people of America must humble themselves before the Lord; but first our national leadership should humble themselves. You, veterans, model that humility. Our nation will be judged just as Israel, and every other pagan nation on earth, is judged by God. You ask, “Pagans are judged by God too?” Yes:
- Jeremiah 46 Egypt is told of its coming judgment
- Jeremiah 47 Philistia
- Jeremiah 48 Moab, Ammon, Edom, Damascus, Arabia, and Eliam
- Jeremiah 49 and 50-51 Jeremiah tells of judgments coming to Babylon.
God judges the whole world, but He wants His chosen to come back to Him. God specifically judges His people and their nations to pull them back into fellowship with Him. Veterans should call for our national leadership to repent, humble themselves, and seek God and His salvation by exemplifying this humility and submission for salvation.
The next step in this process of returning to fellowship is prayer.
B. Prayer before God (14c)
One only needs to talk to God to pray. You can look up to Him in private, you can be lying down, you can be kneeling or standing. What matters is that you go to God and talk to Him. The next portion of our scripture says, “and pray.” Not only do our leaders and the people have to humble themselves, they have to pray. This activity recognizes some things that our nation right now is having difficulty facing. Namely, that God exists, and that He is in charge. Prayer is communication with God. When we looked at prayer in our doctrines study, we found that it was a simple and natural occurrence for the believer. Prayer is supposed to be such a normal part of our spiritual life, it should parallel the interaction between child and parent in a home. Prayer is worship as it acknowledges God, it acknowledges His ability, and it acknowledges His deity. One commentator says prayer, “is the personal recognition, and acceptance of the divine will” (Wescott). Prayer in itself then brings the individual into fellowship with God. Each individual who endeavors to pray has recognized that God is in Heaven, that God is in control, and that God will deliver them in some fashion. This is why, after humility, we are called to pray.
Many have offered prayers on the battlefield. Some have done so out of fright, some for deliverance, some out of pure adoration and submission; but all by veterans in difficult situations. Today let me implore you, brothers and sisters in arms – pray. Pray that our national leaders repent from their wickedness and move back to godliness. Pray that our nation as a whole seeks God and begins to search the scriptures for ways to honor Him instead of pleasing only self. We are in the mess we are in economically and politically because people of this nation think that freedom means they are free to do whatever they want, whenever they want to, and they do not have to earn a single thing, even their next meal. We are where we are nationally because people have not taken freedom seriously. They have forgotten the cost, and not considered the precarious and ever-challenged nature of freedom. They think freedom means someone else works and they get it. We have a nation as a whole, and a political arm that lacks any semblance of leadership, that is bent upon satisfying and entertaining themselves and not fighting for and maintaining their personal freedom. Pray, veterans for the nation, our leaders, and our people to repent from these ways and submit to the ways of God.
By the way, fellow veterans, if you are not right with God, your prayer will fall upon deaf ears. The promise in this verse is that you first humble yourself; that you first believe; that you, like Solomon first have faith and then pray. You have to pray as Solomon did for Israel. You have to pray as Job did for his friends. Your prayer has to be one that is suppliant and tender, humble and worshipful. Keep fighting, but fight now with a heart felt prayer.
When these things take place, when we humble ourselves and when we get back to our knees and pray, we will be able to seek God’s face unashamedly.
C. Standing before God (14d)
When one seeks the face of God they must acknowledge a few things. First – they are going before the creator of the universe. If we thought going before the commanding officer was a challenging thing, this is the Commander of commanders. Second – the one seeking God’s face can only do so on God’s terms. God told Moses to remove his sandals because he was going to step onto holy ground. Moses did not quibble about pebbles or stones that might hurt his feet. He obeyed and obeyed immediately. If God asks you to come before Him and seek His face, you do so in the fashion that He desires. Next, we should note that God cannot and will not tolerate sin. God judges sin; He does not put up with it. We can be as tolerant as we want as parents on earth, but in Heaven, God is intolerant of sin. A father or mother’s reward of candy, sweets, and dessert for obedience pale in comparison to the reward of eternal life and bliss in salvation. One must go before God in a proper fashion.
That proper fashion is in a state of being sinless, perfect, unblemished, and clean. Since we are sinful, we are imperfect, we are spotted with these sinful imperfections, and we are unclean with the sins of the world, we have no position before God. Someone must go before us. The only person in history that has been worthy of going before us is Jesus Christ. The first thing we must do, then, is to accept the salvation that Jesus provides. This salvation makes us sinless because of His sinlessness. This salvation makes us perfect because of His perfection. This salvation makes us flawless because He was unblemished. Finally, this salvation cleans us with His blood such that we are white as snow.
Once salvation is accepted, we have a way, a vehicle to stand before God. Our nation as a whole must face God to return to His fellowship. We must seek His face as part of our returning to Him. In order to seek His face, we need to accept His Son. We cannot simply say we believe in God. Scripture tells us that if we do not accept the Son we do not accept the Father either (1 Jn 2:23 – sermon on this text here). We must acknowledge and believe in both, or we believe in nothing.
Here then is the beginning point. Humble yourself, pray and seek the face of God. Pray to Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ. Do not make the mistake of the Israelites and deny the Messiah. For their denial, they still do not have their land back to this day. The Abrahamic Covenant will not be fulfilled until they recognize and accept the Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth. Their land cannot be healed, neither can ours be, without God. Since you cannot accept only what you want, but must accept both God the Father and the Son, you must seek salvation in Christ first. Salvation, humility, prayer, and the face of God: that is the formula.
Seeking His face has tremendous implications. We must go before Him pure, we must go before Him cleansed. If this is so, we are turning from our wickedness and seeking Him.
D. Turning to God (14e)
We are to turn from wickedness to godliness. This is a call to all veterans who have stepped up to take upon their shoulders the fight for freedom. Forsake the wickedness of the world and fight again for our nation. This time, fight for the giver and provider of our nation. Fight for the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. This time, fight a spiritual fight and place yourself before the ruler of the power of the air on the battlefield. Take the fight to Satan by purifying yourself. This is a call to all those who know what it is to be in battle. This is a call to all those who know how sly, deceiving, and ever present an adversary can be on the battlefield. Step up and use the greatest weapon of all eternity – your soul. Place your self into the very hands of God for care, for nurturing, and for sustenance. Turn from the ways of the world, of Satan, and of wickedness and seek that which is pure, which is righteous, which is holy. Fight for others to do the same. This is a war that we should be waging and we can lead from the ground floor up. Veterans know what seasoned, solid leadership can develop. It develops good leaders and it develops good soldiers, sailors, airman, and marines. You who are veterans must get into the fight in a greater way than you are now.
Run from the impurities of the world. Run from the hate that can well up inside you against the nation that forsook you. Run to the God of Heaven who will never leave you or forsake you. Run from the disenfranchisement of an ungrateful people and run to the only one who loves you enough to have given His life for you. Run to the only one that was always in the fox hole with you, always in the sand with you, always in the mud with you, and was with you every time you pulled a trigger. Run to Jesus, for He knows what it is to give His life for others to free them from tyranny. He did it 2000 years ago for you. He planned it since the beginning of time. Turn to God, run to Him, run to His Son, fight again to free our nation from the tyrannical sin that is Satan. Pull the trigger on your faith and turn loose the power that is God.
But you need to be armed. There is only one weapon, and only one type of armor, that can defeat or repel Satan. You must put on the armor of God in Ephesians 6, and use the Word of God as your weapon. You must hide His word in your heart to fight with Satan. Memorize scriptures, put the rounds in your mind to fire back at those who fight against God and your nation. You detested going out on the battle field with empty magazines, yet many veterans persist today to try to fight for a nation without the only weapon capable of changing man and the United States of America – the scriptures. You want to put rounds downrange, but you have nothing to shoot. Commit God’s word to your mind and arm yourself with the most potent ammunition man has ever known.
When we humble ourselves, when we pray, when we seek God’s face, and when we turn from wickedness, God promises He will accept us into fellowship.
II. Acceptance and Fellowship (14f)
My fellow veterans, it will take our sacrificing again. We have to sacrifice the pleasures of this world. We have to turn away from the bars, turn away from the frivolous rendezvous, from the prostitutes in our lives. We have to turn away from materialism and our personal wants. We have to give up our hate for the way we are ignored and treated. We have to sacrifice again, and turn ourselves around to serving God. We have to stop killing one another as our nation kills infants in the womb. We have to stop killing one another because we are different colors, speak differently, or because we hate one another. We have to stop kids from killing other kids and their teachers. Veteran teachers need to permit kids to pray in school, they need to permit them to draw about Jesus and God in our classrooms. Veterans need to fight by permitting the freedoms we fought for to prevail, and limit the effect of those who would curtail them. Only then, only when we give it all to Him and join the most perfect armed force ever developed – the army of God – will He hear us in Heaven, forgive our sins, and heal this land of ours.
You will be shot at, but that should not be new to you. You may be injured. You will not receive a Purple Heart this time, but you will be able to rejoice (1 Pet 1:6; 4:13). God commands us to overcome evil with good (Acts 7:60; Rom 12:21; 1 Pet 3:9). There will be hard times, but throughout you will be joyous and, especially in the end, you will find true joy in your heart (Jn 16:20).
You sacrificed for a nation that in so many ways does not honor your service. Why not sacrifice now for a God who will honor your faithfulness? Instead of a lifetime of grief concerning your treatment, you can now look forward to an eternal life with God in Heaven. That, my brothers and sisters in arms, is a winning proposition. Turn from your wickedness.
Our nation needs healing. It will not get it from any program. It will not come by spending money.
When we consider these scriptures in light of today’s national events, we see the great need for a humility that is not currently present in our nation. Step back for a second to 2 Chronicles 7:13. Before God tells Solomon that the people must be humble, prayerful, seeking God, and turning from wickedness, He first tells Solomon that they will be judged. Verse 13 clearly states, “if” as an expectation. God is saying, as it were, “Do not worry Solomon. Your kingdom will not be in danger. I may have to shake things up a little bit with drought, plagues of locusts, and pestilence; but if they humble themselves, if they pray, if they seek my face, and turn from wickedness I will hear their pleas, forgive them, and heal the land.” God is essentially saying, “Solomon, you too have to maintain your faith.” Healing from sin takes time folks. Man has chosen a hard path for himself in this nation, but veterans can speak out for the purity of our national identity. We can speak out for the humility of our leadership. We can speak out for the people of this nation to pray, to seek God, and to repent, turning from their wicked ways. Speak out and be heard! The fight is not over! Fight for freedom once again!
Thank you for your service. God be with you all.
[1] Peck v. Baldwinsville School District is a 10 year old open case of censorship of a kindergarten student’s poster which included a picture of Jesus in an art project. The child was punished and required to redo the poster. When the poster was re-drawn in an obviously coerced fashion (a globe with cut out figures and other things including children holding hands surrounding the globe) it was accepted. However, because the child included a robed, bearded man kneeling in prayer, it had to be folded in half to conceal the image. Both the principal and the teacher were “afraid” that people might think their school taught religion. Their admitted fears required that a child’s freedom of expression be censored. Court documents can be found at http://www.scribd.com/doc/6366931/Peck-v-Baldwinsville-Central-School-District.” The child claimed the man was Jesus, so it could not be shown.
