CAPITAL BIBLE CHURCH July 5, The Last Days Series. Will God Bless America? Genesis 12:1-3

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1 CAPITAL BIBLE CHURCH July 5, 2015 SERMON NOTES PASTOR BILL HAKEN 1. God will bless those who bless Israel The Last Days Series Will God Bless America? Genesis 12:1-3 Gen. 12:1-3 The LORD had said to Abram, Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father s family, and go to the land that I will show you. I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you. 2. God will bless nations whose God is the Lord Psa. 33:12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, whose people he has chosen as his inheritance. In 1831, France sent 26 year old Alexis de Tocqueville to the U. S. to study its penal system. But he observed much more about America than just its jails, and he is said to have wrote these words: I sought for the greatness and genius of America in her commodious harbors, and her ample rivers, and it was not there; in the fertile fields and boundless prairies, and it was not there; in her rich mines, and her vast world commerce, and it was not there. Not until I went into the churches of America, and heard her pulpits, aflame with righteousness, did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because she is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great. 3. God will bless righteous nations Proverbs 14:34 Righteousness/Godliness makes a nation great, but sin is a disgrace to any people. Righteousness, Biblically speaking, is simply a right relationship with God that produces righteous behavior. This verse tells us that such righteousness will exalt a nation. How does this happen? First, we must understand righteousness begins with the individual. the Source of True Righteousness, which is God Himself. Righteousness is not produced by man s attempts at being good or moral, which is probably why this verse does not say that religion (which is man s attempt to please God) makes a nation great, but righteousness makes a nation great (which is God s gift to man.) For many years in America there was an outward respect for God and the Ten Commandments - but no more. Sin or unrighteousness, ungodliness brings shame, reproach...

2 Turn to Romans 1 - Romans 1:18 But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness. Vs So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other s bodies. They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other. And the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved. Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done. You know what our country is like...we know something about the corruption, immorality, violence, pornography, the diminishing respect for human life, the increase in abortion, and now legalization of same sex marriage by the highest court in the land. John Stott, in his writing titled "Christians: Salt and Light," wrote, Whose fault is it? Let me put it like this: if the house is dark at night, there is no sense in blaming the house. That s what happens when the sun goes down. The question to ask is, "Where is the light?" If meat goes bad, there is no sense in blaming the meat. That is what happens when the bacteria are allowed to breed unchecked. The question to ask is, "Where is the salt?" If society becomes corrupt like a dark night or stinking fish, there s no sense in blaming society. That s what happens when fallen human society is left to itself and human evil is unrestrained and unchecked. The question to ask is "Where is the church?" -- John Stott, "Christians: Salt and Light," 4. What can we do to bless America? 1 Timothy 2:1-4 I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity. This is good and pleases God our Savior, Who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth. Pray continually - vs. 1, 2 The Bible teaches that in the last days before Christ s return our world would go topsy-turvy and become perilous. This is a perfect description of the time in which we are now living. It is during times like these that we need to become people of prayer prayer warriors. We are to pray for our needs and

3 the church s needs but our prayers are to extend far beyond the walls of our church. The call to prayer for our leaders and our nation is clear from the pages of God s Word. For everyone - all people. Why? God commands it and it helps! ILL- Samuel Chadwick said, "The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work and prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but he trembles when we pray." ILL- Andrew Murray said, "The man who mobilizes the Christian church to pray will make the greatest contribution to world evangelization in history." ILL- Charles Spurgeon said, "I would rather teach one man to pray than ten men to preach." Notice that not only are we to pray for all men in general but we are to pray specifically for kings, and for all that are in authority I Tim. 2:2 Now remember when Paul instructed Timothy to teach the church to pray for kings and political leaders Nero was on the throne in Rome. Nero having burned Rome in 64 A.D. & blamed Christian activists for the fire and had embarked on a campaign of brutal persecution against Christians. So the thought of praying for them had to be difficult if not repugnant to some. This means we are to pray for them - no matter how good or bad they are, no matter what political party they belong to (Democrat or Republican) whether they are conservative or liberal or whether they re moral or immoral, or how just or unjust they might be We should pray for those in authority because God put them there. Those in authority are there by the will of God and He will remove them as He sees fit to accomplish His ultimate plan. Daniel 2:21 "And he changes the times and the seasons: he removes kings, and sets up kings: he gives wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:" Romans 13:1 "Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God." We are to realize that the hearts of all leaders are in God s hands. Proverbs 21:1 "The king s heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turns it whither so ever he will." Ezra 6:21-22 " The children of Israel, which were come again out of captivity, and all such as had separated themselves unto them from the filthiness of the heathen of the land, to seek the LORD God of Israel, did eat, and kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with joy. For the LORD had made them joyful, and turned the heart of the king of Syria unto them, to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel."

4 George Washington ( ) our first President said, It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible. I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go. My own wisdom, and that of all about me, seemed insufficient for the day. - Abraham Lincoln ( ) Prayer is political action. Prayer is social energy. Prayer is public good. Prayer shapes more of our nation s life than is formed by legislation. That we have not collapsed into anarchy is due more to prayer than to the police. Prayer is a sustained and intricate act of patriotism in the largest sense of that word--far more precise, loving, and preserving than any patriotism served up in slogans. That society continues to be livable and that hope continues to be resurgent are attributable to prayer far more than to business prosperity or anything else. The single most important action contributing to whatever health and strength there is in our land is prayer. Live righteous lives - vs. 2 So that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity. We can be pretty good people at church most of the time, but God is very much interested in how we act and react outside the church. 1 Peter 2:12 "Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds (and your good life) and glorify God..." II Chronicles 7:14 "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." Matthew 5:14 You are the light of the world like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. 16 In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father. Witness everywhere - vs. 3,4 Romans 10:1 "Brethren, my heart s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved." Paul s prayer for Israel was not focused on national survival or deliverance from Roman occupation but for his people to come to a personal saving knowledge of and relationship with Jesus Christ. Matthew 9:38 "Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth laborers into his harvest." When you pray be prepared to be the answer to your prayer. ILL.- One time many years ago preacher Dwight L. Moody was criticized because of the evangelistic methods he used. Moody replied, "I like my way of doing it better than your way of not doing it."

5 The sad truth is most Christian people do little or nothing to present a witness for the Lord Jesus Christ. While the unbelieving world is shouting out its message, we go to church but do little outside the church to spread the message of Christ. And if all we re doing is saying "Amen" to the sermon inside the church and doing nothing outside the church to witness then we re not accomplishing much as far as evangelism is concerned. I have read that 95% of all Christian never try to lead anybody to Christ in their entire lifetime! That means that 5% of all Christian people do 100% of the work of evangelism. IN WHICH GROUP ARE YOU? The Lord doesn t expect us to do everything, but He does expect us to do something. He expects us to be more alert to the opportunities around us to witness for Christ. I Pet. 3:15 "In your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have..." ILL.- One Sunday as they drove home from church, a little girl turned to her mother and said, "Mommy, there s something about the preacher s message this morning that I don t understand." The mother said, "Oh? What is it?" The little girl replied, "Well, he said that God is bigger than we are. He said God is so big that He could hold the world in His hand. Is that true?" The mother replied, "Yes, that s true, honey." "But Mommy, he also said that God comes to live inside of us when we believe in Jesus as our Savior. Is that true, too?" Again, the mother assured the little girl that what the pastor had said was true. With a puzzled look on her face the little girl then asked, "If God is bigger than us and He lives in us, wouldn t He show through?" If God is on the inside of us, He will show through to the outside! If the fire of Christ is burning on the inside of us, then that fire will spread to the outside and to those around us. We must constantly look for opportunities to witness, to testify, to invite, to encourage, and point people to Christ! We must evangelize fervently! ILL.- When George Bush was our Vice President he represented the U.S. at the funeral of former Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev. Bush was deeply moved by a silent protest carried out by Brezhnev s widow. She stood motionless by the coffin until seconds before it was closed. Then, just as the soldiers touched the lid, Brezhnev s wife performed an act of great courage and hope. She reached down and made the sign of the cross on her husband s chest. Apparently, she hoped that there was another life, and that life was best represented by Jesus who died on the cross, and that the same Jesus might yet have mercy on her husband. Christ is the only hope for anybody and for any country! Including America! And we must do whatever we can to bless America and others with the love of Christ!