Pray for America

Click on the camera to view the full message video

Over the last few decades there has been a lot of discussion about the separation of church and state. While I don’t believe a pastor should direct the congregation to vote for a specific candidate, I also don’t think that the church should stand idly by and allow corruption and immorality to govern our nation.

Dr. Adrian Rogers once said, “the church and state should remain separate institutionally, but the church should be the conscience of the state.

The church is supposed to be the moral compass of the nation; unfortunately, the church has largely compromised with culture to gain acceptance and numbers. As a result, the church has lost the authority to be the voice of morality. Churches and Christians see themselves as poor victims, a weak and marginalized minority. But Jesus said in Matthew 5:14, “You are the light of the world…” As Christians and as the church, we are Christ’s ambassadors, sent to represent Him in all spheres of life. When we do not represent His heart and morals, Satan continues to destroy this nation.

Great nations rise and fall. The people go from bondage to spiritual truth, to great courage, from courage to liberty, from liberty to abundance, from abundance to selfishness, from selfishness to complacency, from complacency to apathy, from apathy to dependence, from dependence back again to bondage.” (Alexander Tytler 1747 to 1813)

Looking for Saving in All the Wrong Places

In 1 Samuel 8, the nation of Israel was going through a leadership transition. The great prophet Samuel was old, and the people began asking for a king. Under Samuel’s leadership, the nation had expanded, their enemies had been subdued, and the nation was at peace. But the people were not satisfied; they wanted a king. God gave them what they desired.

The Israelites saw the nations around them and asked for a king so they could be  like those nations (1 Samuel 8:5). The people were crying out for a savior. They thought that an earthly king  would prevent and solve all their problems. On the surface, the request for a king seems reasonable. Israel was coming of age as a nation and needed to fit the mold of a successful nation. But this request upset Samuel because he realized that the people had rejected God as their King. They were looking for an earthly leader to take His place (see 1 Samuel 8:7).

Israel was once again turning their back on God. God’s chosen people, the people of the promise to Abraham, the same people of the covenant that God made with Moses on Mt Sinai, wanted to settle for an earthly king to rule over them. Israel had forgotten who they were; they had lost their moral compass.

Sadly, in America today we are not much different; we look to a president or the leaders in Washington to solve our problems instead of turning to the only one who can solve the problems of this nation and the world – Jesus Christ.

Receiving What We Ask For

In response to their request, God tells Samuel to warn the nation that a king will do them harm. He would tax them heavily and require their sons and daughters to serve in his army and in his courts. Despite this heavy burden, they still demanded a king. God gave the children of Israel what they wanted. God in His severe mercy and sovereignty gives nations what they ask for because ultimately He uses the leaders of nations for His purposes.

God chose Saul, a Benjamite, to be the first king of Israel. It seemed that Saul was the right man for the job; he had amazing leadership skills and potential to be a powerful king. Unfortunately, Saul became a bad king and, just as God had said, the nation became Saul’s slaves. Bad leaders enslave their people, and that is what Saul did.

We need to prayerfully consider the choice of the election ballot; as a nation, God will give us the president we ask for. 

Finding Wisdom in the Word of God

As believers we have a divine voting guide—the Word of God. Don’t be misled for one minute into thinking that the Word of God does not apply to your choice on November 5; it has everything to do with it (see Psalm 119:105 and Proverbs 29:2).

Our nation is facing some incredible challenges. As Christians, who are we looking to? If we place our hope in the next president, whomever that may be, we will be disappointed. The day after the election, God will still be on the throne, ruling and managing the world’s affairs. God has never needed a king or a president; he raises them up and he puts them down for his purposes.

There are so many issues we can identify in the world that need fixing. There is no human leader who can possibly solve all of our nation’s problems. Our only hope is in Jesus Christ, the King of Kings, the Word of God.

Keeping an Eternal Perspective

There is nothing wrong with being involved in politics or voicing our frustrations with the leaders of our country, but we must view everything from an eternal perspective. As followers of Jesus, this world is not our home; we must put our trust in Him and in no one else. 

Some Christians are more afraid of their candidate losing the election than they are afraid of their friends and loved ones spending eternity in hell. 

Sometimes we get so anxious about the temporal kingdoms here on earth that we forget about God’s eternal Kingdom (1 Peter 2:9-10).

Do you have an eternal perspective?

Join with me in praying for our nation to turn back to God in repentance.