1 Timothy 2:1-4 “Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”
There are three practical ways to restore America today. (1) We have to pray for our representative government leaders that they carry out their civic duties in a godly fashion; morally and ethically right and wise in a reverential fear of Almighty God, their Maker and Sustainer. (2) We need to speak up for the lowly. Proverbs 31:8-9 tells us, “Open your mouth for the speechless, in the cause of all who are appointed to die. Open your mouth, judge righteously, and plead the cause of the poor and needy.” Start by looking around and being aware of people suffering from abuse, neglect or prejudice. Be a good neighbor and seek to meet the true needs of those around you. Jesus said in Matthew 25:31-36 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’”
(3) Christians have to be good examples to the secular world watching.1 Peter 2:11-12 instructs us, “Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.” The way to reclaim America for Christ is to win its people to Christ. No political party is going to restore this nation, because only God can restore this country by his mighty hand. We need to be good disciple and winning people to Christ by our example of a life lived in the love and power of Christ. If we don’t win people to Christ, we will not win this nation to Christ. That start with ourselves repenting of our sins because we have fallen short in a lot of ways. Then, be a witness for Christ by our testimony and the Gospel message to make disciples of all. That is discipleship.
(4) We have to encourage one another. It is our responsibility as the body of Christ. The Apostle Paul says in Philippians 4:4, “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!” Hebrews 3:13 says, “But encourage one another every day, as long as it is still called “today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” We are experiencing more and more, a strong and determined effort to whip God out of our national conscientiousness by atheistic secular humanist ideology. They’ve taken God and the Bible out of our schools and are working to remove God out of the nation’s Pledge of Allegiance, and change our National Motto “In God We Trust”.
Sincere Christians, who are concerned for their country and the downward path America is following, and calls for a return to God’s standard of right and wrong are branded as bigoted intolerant, ignorant, and haters today because we follow God, not man. This is not a time for Christians to stand on the sidelines as complaining spectators while godliness and lawlessness run this country. It’s time for us to get into the game and live up to our discipleship responsibilities as followers of the risen Lord and King of all as Christian citizen of this country. We need to pray as we seek God’s blessing and guidance as we vote, choosing into whose hands we are entrusting our nation. The future of America, which was founded as a Christian nation, is hanging in the balance of God’s judgment and wrath. The blame for the condition of this country’s slide from holiness lies in great part at the doorstep of the Christian church. America was founded on Christian principles and has degenerated to the secular humanistic state we find it today because the Christian church became comfortable and forgot our godly responsibilities of carrying out the Great Commission and of influencing this nation for godliness.
To be a great citizen is to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. America began as “one nation under God”, but assuredly have swung away from God. We can swing back to God and be an America that can honestly and fairly say “In God We Trust”. The three B’s of (bodies, buildings and budget) have distracted many of our Christian church to jettison their ministries of evangelism, discipleship and biblical literacy for trendy entertainment and ear-tickling message on relationships, prosperity and feeling good. Who is hearing abouit God’s Will for our lives, The Gospel of Jesus Christ for the salvation of souls, about making disciples of all nation and being good Christian citizens? The Christian church has got to preach the truth in love that the Truth be known. God is our hope.
God bless America.
In Christ, Brian
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