To heal, we must kneel
On one hand it is legal to kill babies – heartbeat and all, piece by piece, no less – but on the other it is immoral for the sovereign United States to protect her borders. On one hand it is ok to ignore the past sexual sins of our leaders, but on the other we expect capitulation for racial sins from 1984. On one hand we expect soldiers to serve for a pittance and suffer lifelong debt for it, while on the other we give free college to DREAMers and invite them into the halls of Government.
Help, Lord, for no one is faithful anymore; those who are loyal have vanished from the human race. Everyone lies to their neighbor; they flatter with their lips but harbor deception in their hearts. May the Lord silence all flattering lips and every boastful tongue—those who say, "By our tongues we will prevail; our own lips will defend us—who is lord over us?" (Psalm 12:1-4, NIV)
The Bible is replete with instances where humanity falls short of God's divine plan. We are flawed, every one of us, in every way. After thousands of years of trying, God sent his Son to fulfill the law for us, in that we could not – ever. Even now, more than two-thousand years after that divine event, we still resemble Psalm 12 more than Luke 9.
Then he said to them all: "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self?" (Luke 9:23:25, NIV)
So, rather than rail against the continuing and rapidly worsening State of our Union, I will acknowledge our failure to our Father and seek His face. It is long past time to turn from our wicked ways and repent. Only then can God forgive us our sins and heal our land.
We deserve this President because we ignore our own "small" sins in light of the greater good we do. It's not a competition and God is not holding the Scales of Justice. One sin – unrepentant, unforgiven – is more than enough to destroy our relationship with God. One.
We deserve the legislation drafted by the representatives we elected. We failed to discover who they really are before voting, and we continue failing to hold them accountable as representatives of our constituency. We ignore their lies as we justify the lies we tell ourselves. We are faithful to our tribe, to our party, and to our version of freedom, and have forsaken loyalty to the only tribe that matters – that of Jesus Christ.
And like Israel, we deserve the loss of our borders, our walls, our people, and our wealth. We have placed our faith in idols, sacrificed relationship on the altar of fame and fortune. We deceive ourselves, citing our own power and popularity as our American Idol. All the while we ignore the signs as the enemies of God amass from within. Walls and armies cannot defeat an enemy we ourselves elected.
Reader, Christian, Repentant Sinner, our only recourse is to lean on the one true and holy God. Last week I gave you a call to arms: This week I give a call to knees. Lest we forget every promise is like a coin and each has two sides.
"...if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land." (2 Chron 7:14, NIV)
"But if you turn away and forsake the decrees and commands I have given you and go off to serve other gods and worship them, then I will uproot Israel from my land, which I have given them, and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. I will make it a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples. This temple will become a heap of rubble. All who pass by will be appalled and say, 'Why has the Lord done such a thing to this land and to this temple?' People will answer, 'Because they have forsaken the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who brought them out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them—that is why he brought all this disaster on them.'" (2 Chron 7:19-22, NIV)
–Mark Klages is an influential contributor, a former US Marine and a lifelong teacher who focuses on applying a Christian worldview to everyday events. Mark blogs at https://maklagesl3.wixsite.com/website under the title "God Provides where Hate Divides," with a heart to heal social, political, relational, and intellectual wounds through God's divine love and grace. Mark can also be found on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-klages-04b42511/.