Rev. David Holwick N Current Controversies #3
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
April 17, 2005
Deuteronomy 28:1-13
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I. It's a grand old flag.
A. Route 80's flag overpass near Rockaway, New Jersey
1) They fly till they are tattered.
2) Local soldiers are highlighted with signs.
3) Every time I drive under it, I think of 9-11.
B. Patriotism runs high in our land.
1) It is different in Europe, where patriotism is seen as
a root cause of belligerence and war.
2) Even Canadians feel uneasy waving their flag.
a) Perhaps it is due to a sense of self-preservation.
b) A Canadian who winters in Clearwater, Florida, put up
a Maple Leaf flag in his yard on Canada Day.
He put an American flag beside it, but a local retired
U.S. Marine still threatened to punch him out.
II. Assessing patriotism.
A. Patriotism has its place.
1) The Bible says God establishes nations.
2) We are to honor our political leaders.
3) The Apostle Paul himself was proud of his Roman citizenship.
a) It actually saved his skin once. Acts 22:25-28
B. Patriotism has its dangers.
1) For some, pride in their country becomes a sort of religion.
a) It may start out saying, "God and country."
b) It can end up saying, "God is my country."
2) God and country must stay separated.
a) European Church failed to oppose World Wars and Hitler.
b) Current secularism in Europe probably owes much to this.
1> Their reasoning is, if the church was wrong on
these big issues, how can it be trusted on the
little stuff?
3) Love America and ask God to bless it, but don't make it
into an idol.
At the start of the Iraq war, a sign appeared along a
country road in Tennessee.
It was an Ichthus (the fish symbol Christians put on
their cars) with an American flag inside it.
Underneath it had the phrase "JesUSAves" with the USA
capitalized.
The meaning is ambiguous - is he a Christian patriot,
or is he equating Christianity with America?
#17597
C. All nations will answer to God.
1) Americans see ourselves as different - better.
a) "American exceptionalism" has been used a lot lately.
b) Manifest Destiny: God's will for us to stretch from
"sea to shining sea."
c) "City on a Hill" mindset of Pilgrims. America must set
an example for the rest of the world to emulate.
2) The proof is in the pudding.
a) We take pride in our past achievements, but God cares
about what we are doing right now.
b) As the French historian Alexis de Tocqueville put it,
America will be great as long as America is good.
III. How God blesses a nation. Deuteronomy 28
A. The blessing is comprehensive.
1) Fertility, prosperity and security.
B. The blessing is conditional.
1) It hinges on obedience to God's law.
2) When we drift from God's law, curses replace the
blessings.
C. The blessing is limited.
1) Ultimately, it is intended for Israel only.
2) In that Israel's blessing will filter down to every
nation (Genesis 12:3), we can claim it for ourselves.
IV. In the world but not of it.
A. Christians have a dual allegiance.
1) We are in the world, and cannot shirk our responsibility
to be involved in secular affairs.
2) We are not of the world, and should not expect politics or
governments to give us fulfillment or solve our problems.
B. What we can support in America.
1) The principle of freedom.
a) Of worship, speech, etc.
b) It is not the place of government to make people moral
or spiritual.
1> Governments are responsible for providing a safe
environment where citizens can make these
decisions on their own.
2) The value of inclusion.
a) All of us came from somewhere else (Indians, too).
b) The melting pot is still valid.
1> I think it is valid for America to have control
over its borders.
2> That said, I personally know Americans who are
descended from illegal aliens, and we are better
off for having them here.
3> Most of those who come here are motivated to
improve their lives. The bums stayed home.
C. What we must challenge in America.
1) Moral decline will always be a concern.
a) Christians have been at the forefront on issues
like marriage and the sanctity of life.
b) We have failed in other areas.
1> Rampant materialism is tolerated by Church.
2> Successful marriage and family life needs to be
exhibited by us.
3> Acceptance of outsiders.
2) Uphold personal responsibility.
a) Sue McDonald's because we are fat?
b) The government should not be expected to solve all
our personal problems.
c) Key factor in collapse of Roman Empire - they lost
their civic-mindedness.
1> John F. Kennedy is credited for saying,
"Ask not what your country can do for you -
ask what you can do for your country."
But it was really his ghostwriter, John Kenneth
Galbraith, who wrote it.
And Galbraith may have lifted the idea from
Oliver Wendell Holmes.
Holmes wrote, "We... recall what our country has
done for each of us, and to ask ourselves what
we can do for our country in return." [1]
2> Whoever gets the credit for it, it is true!
3) Oppose the pandering of politicians.
a) To survive, nations must be farsighted.
1> Democracies have a tendency to cater to the
squeaky wheels and ignore the "Big Picture."
2> A little pain in the short run can pay huge
benefits in the long run.
b) Deficits and budgets need to be controlled.
D. What we can change in America.
1) Every political campaign claims to be able to fix America.
a) It cannot be fixed by politicians alone.
2) An example from the past.
The French culture of the early 1700's was in the process
of decay.
The King had a motto: "After me the deluge."
He was absolutely right.
The deluge came at the end of the century as France was
ripped apart by the French Revolution.
Just 20 miles across the channel, the English culture had
the same rot.
Historians have described at length the moral corruption
of the English culture.
And yet England did not go through a revolution.
What spared it?
Its mighty navy?
Its crafty diplomats?
Its politicians?
No.
The country was spared, as historian and president Woodrow
Wilson insisted, because in 1703 a man named John Wesley
was born in England.
In his early years Wesley became a Christian.
Together with his brothers Samuel, who wrote hymns, and
Charles who wrote music, he spent a lifetime reaching
and winning others for Christ all over England.
Hundreds of thousands of people came to Christ through the
Wesley's open air meetings held in the working class
cities.
John Wesley was not content with merely winning converts,
however.
He understood that Jesus' command was to make disciples, so
he organized his converts in weekly home meetings.
Average people became energized by God to change their
lives, and then they began to change their communities.
So the guillotine never came to England.
The safety of our nation does not depend on the strength of
our army or the power of our politicians.
It depends on the character of our people.
Throughout history, civilizations have fallen like decaying
trees.
The outward push may come from an enemy, but the country
falls because of inward rot.
That same country can be saved by inward renewal.
#1259
V. God and Caesar.
A. Jesus defends the legitimacy of government.
1) He also limits it.
2) There is one area the government has no claim - your soul.
B. Ultimately, our citizenship is in heaven.
1) It is the only kingdom that will never end.
2) Even the gates of hell cannot prevail against it.
His political journey began in the town of Nowa Huta,
Poland.
The town had been designed as a living monument to communist
utopianism.
When the people demanded a church, a Polish priest and a
few workers nailed together two rugged beams as a
makeshift cross, marking the site of the chapel they
would build.
The communists angrily tore it down.
But when the sun rose the next morning, another cross had
been raised in its place.
This went on for years as the people gathered at their
cross, singing and celebrating Communion.
The people's faith became strong as steel.
In the end, they got their church.
And the man who was planting the crosses?
Karol Wojtyla (voy-tilla), later bishop of Krakow, and
still later elected pope, taking the name John Paul II.
#29274
C. Where is your citizenship?
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SOURCES FOR ILLUSTRATIONS USED IN THIS SERMON:
[1] Taken from SermonCentral.com's website.
# 1259 "Salt and Light," a sermon by Rev. Jim Pocock (Baptist), preached
September 17, 1995.
#17597 "Thoughts on 'JesUSAves'" by Todd Brady, Baptist Press,
http://www.baptistpress.org/, July 30, 2003.
#29274 "The Planter Of Crosses: The Life And Death Of Pope John Paul II,"
BreakPoint Commentary by Charles Colson, April 4, 2005.
These and 25,000 others are part of a database that can be downloaded,
absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html
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