The Only Way God Can Bless America
Introduction
After the tragedy of September of 11th, I remember sitting down to watch a telecast of a baseball game from Yankee Stadium in New York City. In between one of the innings, noted Irish tenor, Ronan Tynan came onto the field and began to sing the song, “God bless America.” I watched that night as a stadium full of New Yorkers, who are not usually known for their religious zeal, began to sing along with Tynan. As far as I could tell, the entire stadium, believers and infidels alike were asking God to bless our country. I must confess that it was a moving scene, because I too want God to bless America. Unlike some Americans in Hollywood and elsewhere, I truly love my country.
I still say the pledge of allegiance, including the words “under God”, with a great deal of pride. I am deeply grateful and indebted to every man and woman that now serves, or has served in the military.
I do not take lightly the freedoms that I enjoy as an American. I know those freedoms have been bought and defended by the sacrifice of many brave soldiers.
While I love my country, and I desperately want God to bless her, I am not naïve enough to think that America is presently in any condition to receive God’s favor and blessing.
The reality is that right now, the blessing of God upon America is very unlikely. Regardless of how many people call upon God to bless us, chances are that their cry will fall upon deaf ears.
John MacArthur says something interesting about this prayer for God to bless America. He says, “While people reject the God of Scripture as their Sovereign, they still claim Him as their servant. For some people, that is all they mean by ‘God bless America’.”
What we must realize is that God is not our servant. We are supposed to be His servants. Merely asking or telling Him to bless America in no way means that He will.
In Proverbs chapter 14, we find a verse of Scripture that reveals to us what brings about the blessings of God upon a nation. Solomon says, “Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.”
By examining this verse, we realize that there is really only one way in which God can and will bless our nation. There are three truths I want us to look at from this Scripture. Notice them with me, and by God’s grace, may we no longer ask God to bless what we are doing, but may we do what God is blessing. Notice first of all:
I. We Must Recognize Depravity Of Our Nation
Verse 34 is made up of two contrasting statements. For our purposes, I want us to look first at the second half of this verse.
Solomon says, “…sin is a reproach to any people.” Note that word “sin”. It is translated from a Hebrew word that literally means to miss the mark, or to fall short.
The opposite of this word is found in Judges 20:16, where we are told that the warriors of the tribe of Benjamin were able to “sling stones…and not miss.” They were able to hit their target.
The word translated “sin” in Proverbs 14:34, means the opposite of hitting the target. It reminds us of Romans 3:23 where we are told that, “All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”
There is much that is good about America, yet what good there is, by no means makes up for the sin of America. I think you would agree that America has “missed the mark”, and “fallen short” of the glory of God.
The reality is that America is a sinful, depraved nation. The first step to receiving God’s blessing is simply being honest, and recognizing the sinful state of our nation.
Notice a couple of things about the sin and depravity of our nation. Notice first of all:
A. The Abundance Of Sin In America
You don’t have to be a theologian to see that America has become exceedingly sinful. The news reports are enough to point to that fact.
Today, 25% of Americans will die from some form of substance abuseii, such as alcoholism and drug addiction.
According to a national survey, 31% of all high school students admitted to abusing alcohol, and not surprisingly, alcohol is the leading cause of death among teenagers.iii
In 2000, the Center for Disease Control reported that 857, 475 abortions were legally conducted in the United Statesiv, murdering the most innocent members of our society before they ever entered the world. 52% of all those abortions were performed on women under the age of 25.v While our nation has suffered several natural disasters in recent years, crime still accounts for more deaths, injuries, and loss of property than all natural disasters combined. These statistics are more than just data. These statistics tell the story of a nation and a people sick with sin. America is looking more and more like the description the prophet gave of Israel in Isaiah 1:He called them, “…a sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers…”
We may love America, but we must recognize her depravity by acknowledging the abundance of sin that exists in our nation. Notice something else about the depravity of our nation. Notice not only the abundance of sin in America, but another evidence of her depravity is found in:
B. The Acceptance Of Sin In America
Not only has the amount of sin continued to rise in our country, but the acceptance of that sin has risen as well.
An evidence of this is what we allow in our homes through television. Did you know that the most popular broadcast-network television show among children ages 9-12 is ABC’s Desperate Housewives?vii In case you didn’t know, Desperate Housewives is a raunchy chronicle of sexual immorality and infidelity set in a wealthy suburban neighborhood.
Gone are the days of I Love Lucy, and Ozzie and Harriet. Now we have MTV’s Real World, and Spike TV’s The Man Show, which help to make up a programming guide in which 1 out of every 7 programs includes a portrayal of sexual intercourse.
In 1950, divorce was seen as a black mark, and the divorce rate was only 11%. Today, divorce court is more crowded than traffic court, and the divorce rate is rapidly approaching 60%.ix
Again, these statistics are more than just data and numbers. They point to a national moral decline, and they give evidence of a nation that is growing more and more comfortable with their sin.
The sad truth is that for most American’s sin isn’t looking so sinful anymore. As Vance Havner so aptly put it in the title of one of his most famous sermons, we are “getting used to the dark.”
The problem with the abundance and acceptance of sin in our country is that while our views of sin have changed, God’s have not! Sin is still a rebellious fist in the face of a holy God!
We may call on Him to bless our nation, but the fact remains that our prayers are hampered and hindered by the depravity of our nation.
Notice a second truth we learn from this verse of Scripture. We see not only that we must recognize the depravity of our nation, but notice also secondly that:
II. We Must Realize The Danger To Our Nation
Look again at Solomon’s words in verse 3He said, “…sin is a reproach to any people.” Take special notice of that word “reproach.”
The Hebrew word that is translated “reproach” in this verse is a very interesting word for Solomon to use in this context.
When we study this word, I believe it will point us to the danger that we as a nation now face as a result of our sinful state. Let me show you what I mean. Notice with me a couple of truths about the danger that our sin has posed to our nation. Notice first of all:
A. Where Sin Leaves A Nation
I want us to look closely at this word “reproach” in verse 3I must confess I had a hard time understanding what Solomon meant here once I looked at the Hebrew word that is translated as “reproach” in this text.
The word that is translated “reproach” here is a fairly common word in the Old Testament. However, almost every time we find it, it is used in a positive way. For instance, in Psalm 136, this same Hebrew word appears 26 times, and is translated as “mercy”.
At other times, the word is translated “kindness”, as in Jonah 4:2, where the Lord is described as being “…slow to anger, and of great kindness…”
Can you understand why I would be confused by this? We know that sin is certainly not a “kindness” or a “mercy” to any people, so what is the Word of God saying here in Proverbs 14:3
I think the answer is found in the one occasion where Job uses this same Hebrew word. In Job 6:14, the word is translated as “pity.”
When you look at it in this light, our text begins to make more sense. Let’s read it this way: “…sin is a pity to any people…”
Is that not an accurate statement? Have you ever seen someone’s life tattered, wrecked, and ruined by sin, and realized how truly pitiful they are?
As Americans, we would rarely consider ourselves to be pitiful. We would think of the starving masses in Africa, or the poor of Central America as being pitiful. “The United States is the envy of the world”, someone might say.
While most of the world does envy us, and while millions are crossing the borders to get their piece of the American dream, the reality is that in the eyes of God, we are not to be envied.
As a result of our depravity and sin, America is a pitiful place. Sin has become our reproach, and left us pitiful in the eyes of a holy God. If we understand the text correctly, then America the beautiful has without a doubt become America the pitiful! You see; that is part of the danger of sin, it always leaves people in a pitiful condition! Notice something else about the danger our nation faces. Notice not only where sin leaves a people, but notice also further:
B. Where Sin Leads A People
If there is one thing that is clear from the Word of God, it is that sin will not and cannot go unpunished. “The wages of sin is death.” “The soul that sinneth, it shall surely die.”
God cannot overlook sin and still be the just God He claims to be in the Bible. Because of that fact, America’s sin is leading her on a collision course with the judgment of God.
Part of what makes our nation so “pitiful”, as described in our text, is the fact that right now our nation is like a criminal standing before a judge, awaiting our sentencing and punishment.
The question of our guilt is not in doubt. The only thing that remains to be seen is how severely God will judge our wickedness. If you doubt the fact of God’s judgment, read Genesis chapter 19, and observe the carnage and destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.
I don’t want to sound like a “doomsday preacher”, but I know that if an individual or a nation continues in sin without repentance and confession, they will ultimately be judged by God!
On October, 29, 1993, Bill Clinton’s newly appointed czar over the Presidential Committee on AIDS, a lady named Kristine Gebbie, told the Washington Press about her wishes to help overcome America’s traditional views of morality, particularly regarding homosexuality. Gebbie herself is an open lesbian. She felt that America’s view of homosexuality as a sin needed to change. In her address that day she said, “I can help a little bit with my job, just standing on the White House lawn talking about sex with no lightning bolts hitting my head.” I would say to Ms. Gebbie that just because lightning hasn’t struck you doesn’t mean that God’s judgment isn’t coming. The reality is that our sin as a nation has endangered us. We are a pitiful people, staring down the barrel of God’s righteous judgment.
If that were all we learned from this text, then this would be a sad and hopeless verse. The reality is that there is hope in this verse. God can bless America. For that happen, notice the third truth we find here. Notice not only that we must recognize the depravity of our nation, and that we must realize the danger to our nation, but notice also that:
III. We Must Remember The Deliverance For Our Nation
The second half of this verse is an ominous warning to our country, and to any country that continues in its sin. However, the second half of this verse is preceded by a wonderful, hopeful statement.
Look at it again. Solomon says, “Righteousness exalteth a nation…” While sin will destroy a nation, there is something that can deliver a nation as well. It is righteousness.
Before we leave this text, let’s notice a couple of truths about righteousness. Notice first of all:
A. How Righteousness Is Revealed
It is very important that we do not confuse righteousness with morality. There are many today who feel that if we can just develop morality in our nation, we will right the ship.
They believe that if we can close the abortion clinics, conquer the drug problem, and better legislate television, that we will have cured America’s ills.
The only problem is that morality does not exalt a nation; righteousness does. Morality is a product of righteousness, but it is worthless apart from righteousness.
Morality is very often a synthetic or man-made righteousness. The Bible is very clear about man’s righteousness. Isaiah says that “all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags”.
Morality masquerading as righteousness has never impressed God. In fact, the Bible teaches us that true righteousness can only come from God.
Righteousness is something God does for man, not something man does for God! The Word of God reveals that righteousness is a work of God, not a work of man!
In Romans 4:6, Paul talks about this. He is referring to the words of David and says, “Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works,”
The only deliverance for America is righteousness, and the Word of God reveals that righteousness is something that God must do for us. That leads us to next truth about the deliverance for our nation. Notice not only how righteousness is revealed, but notice also further:
B. How Righteousness Is Received
If righteousness is the only hope for America’s deliverance; and if true righteousness can only come from God; how do we as a nation receive God’s righteousness?
The answer is found at the cross of Calvary! At the cross, the Lord Jesus Christ stood in the place of sinners, and offered His righteousness on their behalf.
2 Corinthians 5:21 says, “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”
The answer to America’s problems is not electing a new politician, or adopting a new set of laws. Our problems can’t be fixed by a government.
The heart of the problem is a problem of the heart. The hearts of Americans must be regenerated by the saving grace of God, and men and women around this country must trust only in the righteousness of Christ.
When we as believers understand this truth, we will stop arguing over politics and lobbying for moral legislation, and we will run to our neighbors and tell them about Christ!
America needs the gospel! Her only hope for deliverance is the salvation of the Lord Jesus Christ! The cross is the only medicine that can deliver our country from the terminal disease of sin!
When the thirteen original colonies were on the verge of declaring their independence from Britain, and interesting saying developed across this infant land. As the British officials would go around collecting taxes for the king, the colonist began to say to them, “We have no king but Jesus.”
I want God to bless this great land again. I want revival to sweep from “sea to shining sea” and purge away the filth and stench of sin.
The only way God can bless America, however, is for her people to once again realize that there is no king but the King of Kings.
Therefore, if we as believers want God to bless our nation, then we must open our mouths and declare with boldness that there is no salvation apart from Jesus, “for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)
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- Can God Bless America?; MacArthur, John; p.vi
- http://www.robertperkinson.com/alcoholism_statistics.htm; accessed 6/28/2007
- iii http://www.marininstitute.org/Youth/alcohol_youth.htm; accessed 6/28/07
iv http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss5212a1.htm; accessed 6/28/07 v Ibid
- http://www.disastercenter.com/crime/; accessed 6/28/07
- http://www.parentstv.org/PTC/facts/mediafacts.asp; accessed 6/28/07 viii Ibid
ix http://www.geocities.com/peterpaulmin//1950vs2000.html; accessed 6/28/07 x www.sermonillustrations.com; accessed 6/29/07