234 Years

Hello everyone and welcome back to Deeper Waters where we are diving into the ocean of truth. Lately, we’ve been going through the doctrine of God but as many would suspect by now, today is a special day. Here in America, we are celebrating 234 years of existence as a nation and the freedom that we have. Today, I’d like to write out some thoughts to keep in mind on this special day and we can continue looking at the doctrine of God tomorrow.

I will begin by stating flatly that this is a Christian nation founded on Christian principles. That does not mean that Christianity is an official religion, but that it is the dominant shaping force, or at least was, in America. It is because we’re Christian that we have freedom of worship. Muslims, Buddhists, Jews, Hindus, and those of non-faith are free to exercise their religious beliefs here provided they do so in legal means. For those who want more information on the founding of America being Christian, I recommend visiting wallbuilders.com, the ministry of David Barton. I also recommend going to the following links all by my good friend J.P. Holding of Tektonics ministries:

http://www.classicapologetics.com/special/americaclassics.html

http://www.classicapologetics.com/special/4th.html

http://www.classicapologetics.com/special/godtrust.html

That having been said, I have a saying that the gospel does not need America, but America needs the gospel. This nation is founded on the principles of Jesus Christ and without those principles, we cannot survive. The further we move away from the gospel, the more our country will slide away towards oblivion as we become more and more self-focused. We have abortion now legal for instance, in which a mother may allowably take the life of the innocent child that is in her womb. A selfish act indeed and one of the most anti-feminine of all as it denies several women the right to exist and denies the woman the great privilege she has of being able to give birth.

We have homosexuals seeking to marry one another coming on the scene. Once again, we are dealing with a selfish act that says we need to change the very nature of marriage itself just in order to bring about the happiness of some people. I could writer further on my problems with the homosexual lifestyle, but that would be another blog. Needless to say, I share the Christian worldview that says that homosexual activity is immoral.

Our policies today are quick fixes designed to handle things for our generation and not looking ahead to what the future will hold. There are long-term consequences to all our actions and if we just look at how it affects us today without considering our children and our grandchildren, we will do them a disservice. We need to keep that in mind as this is their nation to, or at least we hope it will be.

That having been said, I am thankful however that this is a nation that I can enter my church freely on Sunday and worship. I can have a Bible in my home and I don’t need to fear the government coming in and taking that away from me. There are many nations where such a privilege doesn’t exist.

I truly believe we can still be a city on a hill, for whatever happens in America shapes the rest of the world. We have maintained a constitution for 234 years. In a class I was in recently after the health-care bill passed, a bill that I opposed and still do oppose, one student said “234 years. It was a good run.” I do believe that the bill is damaging to the fabric of our country, but I don’t believe it’s the end of it. America has not been about giving up. America has been about standing up in the face of opposition.

There is much in America and we have extreme potential to be a force for good in this world. Keep in mind like Esther that the gospel will survive just as the Jews would. However, if America doesn’t provide, help could come from another place and our nation could exist for such a time as this. Not only could it exist for such a time, you and I could exist for such a time.

If you are an American, what are you going to do today to return America to her principles? If you are not, celebrate for those who are and if possible, be proud of your own country and seek what you can do to bring the gospel to that country more and more. America can be an example of what can be done.

We shall continue our look at the doctrine of God tomorrow.

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