God's Personal Message to America # 3

God's Personal Message to America # 3

3. Sin is Ungrateful Actions. The final meaning of "sin" is "an outright transgression, rebellion." Daniel (9:11) "Yea, all Israel have transgressed thy law, even by departing, that they might not obey thy voice; therefore the curse is poured upon us...because we have sinned against Him." (1 John 3:4) "Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law; for sin is the transgression of the law."

IV. The Reproach of a Nation  "...as a reproach..."

The first mention of the word "reproach" in our English Bible can be found in Genesis 30:23: "And she conceived, and bare a son; and said, God hath taken away my reproach." Eve had borne a son whom she expected to be the promised Messiah. Her "reproach" was the curse that God placed on her because of Adam's sin. Sin brings a reproach, whether it is in the life of the individual or in the timeline of a nation. Again we examine the different meanings of our text.

1. Disgraced. One definition of reproach is "to be brought low, to go from the heights to the depths." In Nehemiah 1:3, Nehemiah reported, "The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down and the gates thereof are burned with fire." Israel's sin had caused them to go into captivity and now their capital city stood in ruins. The remnant was brought low by their sin. We too, have been brought from the heights to the depths by the sins of our people. God is bound to judge sin. He will not turn a blind eye to America's folly. As He judged Israel and the heathen nations, He will also judge us.

2. Dishonored. Another definition of "reproach" is "to be ridiculed, to rail on, to revile." In 1 Samuel 17:26 young David said, "...What shall be done to the man that killeth this Philistine, and taketh away the reproach from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?" Israel was powerless in the face of Goliath and the Philistines. Certainly they were ridiculed and reviled by their inability. Goliath mocked the army of Israel and the whole nation. America knows something about such disgrace. We are the richest and most developed nation in the world, but we are reviled by much of the world. The Muslim nations and Communist China have little respect for our system of government or our culture. We were reviled and ridiculed by the former Soviet Union until God brought them low. Don't think that the same thing cannot happen to us.

3. Defeated. The final definition of "reproach" means "to pluck or strip away all that is good." Our culture is in the process of doing just that. Our defeat has not come at the hands of a foreign invader. It has come at our own hands. The "silent majority" that Richard Nixon spoke of years ago has been splintered into competing special interests. Politicians pit one group against another to keep us divided. Ai was a little speck on the map of the Israelite army. After the great victory at Jerhrico, Ai would be a simple campaign, a "mopping up" exercise. But the sin of one man brought defeat. I believe that the sin that is defeating America is found in the church rather than the culture. Yes, our culture is rotten; our society is eaten up with evil. But the Christian Achans are hoarding up the world's gold and garments and allowing the gospel witness to fall silent.

Conclusion: America has been great because of God. If we fall, it will be because of our failure to honor God as our Sovereign Authority and Lord. Must we watch our beloved land become mired in the slough of compromise and fearfulness? It is the Christian that must stand up for what is right! We must not fear the wrath of man or the condemnation of sinners. They hated Jesus, so if we are the light which exposes their evil, they will hate us as well. What would God's personal message to America be if He spoke to us audibly in this day? I believe He would say, Righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people. Let us pray for our land and resolve to do our best to make America great again. If we achieve anything, it is God which must accomplish it!

~Robert L. Cobb~

(The End)