Sermon Transcript — June 30, 2007
This Wednesday is one of the most celebrated days of the year in our country. My family and I lived in Massachusetts; we really enjoyed immensely the two holidays of Thanksgiving and the Fourth of July. These were days in which the town parades took place, fireworks and numerous reenactments of the events that had occurred many years ago. Thanksgiving was especially wonderful when they would reenact down on. . .in Plymouth they would reenact the landing of the Pilgrims. And even the Fourth of July, you would see a lot of patriotism. You'd go into Boston on the Fourth of July; you go to Faneuil Hall and there are all sorts of reenactments, so it really is a very big holiday.
But it was on July 4 th 1776, that the Declaration of Independence was adopted by the Continental Congress meeting in Philadelphia. It was a slap in the face to the British, and it provoked a war, a war that lasted for five years. Officially, the war didn't come to an end until 1783 with the Treaty of Paris. But the Declaration of Independence is a primary document of our country. This document is actually quite well-written if you consider all of the elements that are here.
I'd like to begin this afternoon by reading a couple of segments from the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration begins with these words: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." They begin this very document by appealing to God as the Creator and Author of life and of rights.
The last paragraph of this document has this to say: "We, therefore, the Representatives of the Unites States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies solemnly publish and declare that these United Colonies are and of Right ought to be Free and Independent states." And then the very last line of the Declaration, probably one of the most famous lines of all quoted in many different books. It comes up to the point where it says: "And for the support of this Declaration with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor."
If you study this particular document, you begin to realize that there was a lot at work here. There was a lot going on. There were fifty-six signers to the Declaration of Independence. A fact that many people probably don't know is that there was one individual who would have signed the Declaration, was actually a member of a Sabbath-keeping group in Rhode Island. His name was Samuel Ward. He always signed his name, Sam Ward.
Samuel Ward was a delegate to the Continental Congress, and was there in Philadelphia in 1775 and into 1776. But a small pox epidemic swept through Philadelphia in 1776, and Sam Ward died within weeks of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. He signed what has become known as "the document of secrecy." This was a document that preceded the Declaration of Independence in which they declared that they would keep all proceedings secret so that the British would not know what was going on, and that they, of course, would not be disrupted in the work that they had to do, but Sam Ward had died. But fifty-six individuals did sign the Declaration of Independence. They clearly knew and appealed to the power of God, to the authority of God for what they felt was a God-given right in a God-given direction for what they were to do.
It's amazing when you study the history of this country as to how much our early documents, as well as our early history, is filled with statements about God, filled with examples of praying to God, filled with examples of men referring to God in public. You think of today, and then you think about back to that time, and it's quite a remarkable difference.
Here's a quote from the book, 1776, by David McCullough. This is a quote about the period of time, of course obviously 1776, when George Washington and the continental army had been defeated in New York, and had the British pursued the continental army, had they pursued George Washington just a little further across the river, they could have captured the entire continental army and by all historians estimates, the Revolutionary War would have been over in the very first year, 1776. It would have been done.
But a remarkable thing happened. This is a quote from McCullough's book. He writes about this event. He says, "Incredibly, yet again, circumstances, fate, luck, providence, the hand of God, as would be said so often intervened. Just at daybreak, a heavy fog settled in over the whole of Brooklyn concealing everything no less than had the night. It was a fog so thick, remembered a soldier, that no one could scarcely discern a man at six yards distance. Even with the sun up, the fog remained as dense as ever while over on the New York side of the river, there was no fog at all. In a single night, nine thousand troops had escaped across the river. Not a single life was lost. The only men captured were three who had hung back to plunder. The entire continental army was saved, not only from being captured and probably killed, but also the army was able to continue on." And of course, it wasn't the end at that point, but it could have easily been the end. Many people mark this particular event and this time as the turning point in the Revolutionary War.
Samuel Adams in a speech he delivered in Philadelphia on August 1, 1776, said this. He said, "There are instances of, I would say, an almost astonishing providence in our favor. Our success has staggered our enemies. It's almost given faith to infidels. So we may truly say it is not our own arm which has saved us. The hand of heaven appears to have led us on to be perhaps humble instruments and means in the great providential dispensation which is being completed."
Ben Franklin said this to the constitutional convention later on when this was being prepared. He said, "In the beginning of the contest with Great Britain when we were sensible of danger, we had daily prayer in this room for the divine protection. Our prayers, sir, were heard, and they were graciously answered. All of us who were engaged in the struggle must have observed frequent instances of a superintending providence in our favor. To that kind providence we owe this happy opportunity of consulting in peace and the means of establishing our future as well."
And then, finally, one more that I'd like to refer to is George Washington in his farewell address said something that is quite remarkable. George Washington had established the fact in his mind that patriotism, being patriotic, was simply not enough for a person, or for a country. In fact, he said, ". . .without religion and morality, patriotism is worthless. It is simply a misguided love for your homeland." And he was very strong in his final, his farewell address. Here are some of the words that he said. He said, "Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, Religion and Morality are indispensible supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of Patriotism who should labor to subvert these great pillars of human happiness, these firmest props of the duties of Men and Citizens. The mere Politician equally with the pious man, ought to respect and to cherish them. A volume could not trace all their connexions with private and public felicity. Let it simply be asked, Where is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation deserts the oaths, which are the instruments of investigation in Courts of Justice. And let us with caution indulge the supposition, that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of peculiar structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect, that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle." George Washington said patriotism alone is nothing. Patriotism without the fallback of morality and religion is of no value.
The founding fathers of this country felt very strongly that without God, and without guiding principles of religion, the fact that they loved their homeland, the fact that they were patriotic was of little value. It was of little value unless it was based upon those principles.
There are many other documents and many other things that you could listen to, that you could read and you would find some of the same principles. The religious aspect of these early documents was inescapable. And even later on, you get into the 1800s, like Katharine Lee Bates, a professor of English at Wesley College wrote the hymn, "Oh, Beautiful for Spacious Skies." It was a religious hymn. She wrote the hymn after visiting Pike's Peak and seeing the great majesty of God's creation. She wrote, "May God crown thy good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea." Later she wrote, or later in this hymn she wrote, " America, America, God mend thine every flaw. Confirm thy soul in self control, thy liberty in law." And, " America, America, may God thy gold refine, till all success be nobleness and every grace divine."
Francis Scott Key wrote "The Star Spangled Banner" as a hymn of deliverance. It is again inescapable that the founding fathers, those who were central as far as human beings are concerned in bringing about what we so appreciate today were filled with the concept of religion, morality, and these principles upon which patriotism must be based.
Flash forward to the year 2007. There's a much darker side to what we see in our country today. We no longer subscribe to the same Christian principles, by that I mean as a nation, not that you and I don't. We lead the world in violence and immorality. A large percentage of our population is in prison. It is an inordinate number of people in prison in the United States of America. I lived in Texas for about twenty years, and I can tell you there that the prisons are overcrowded. In 1974 they were so overcrowded that the federal government took over the prison system in Texas because of so many people at that time.
When I went to Texas in 1987, there were 30,000 prisoners in the state of Texas. When I left there were 187,000. These are male prisoners in the state of Texas. It is a dilemma in this nation that is actually growing much, much worse.
In the book written not long ago, The Day America Told the Truth, the author said this. He said, "There is absolutely no moral consensus in our country today. Religion plays almost no role in shaping most lives in America today." Now contrast that to what I read to you earlier. Religion plays virtually no role in shaping the lives in America today. "The results of a survey conducted by the authors of this book reveal that only thirteen percent of the population of the United States still believes in the Ten Commandments. Nine out of ten admit to lying regularly. Nearly one third of married Americans have had an affair. Twenty percent of the nation's children have engaged in sexual intercourse by the age of thirteen. One in seven Americans carries a handgun or has one in his vehicle. One in five women says she has been raped by a date. And for ten million dollars, seven percent of Americans say they would kill a stranger, twenty-three would be willing to become a prostitute, and twenty-five percent would be willing to abandon their families for ten million dollars. As Christians, we love our country, but it is a far different country than it was over two hundred years ago, and the principles are very different as well."
The title of my sermon today is, "Patriotism is not enough." Patriotism is not enough. This phrase is also found on a statue that I discovered a few years ago in Trafalgar Square in London. Now Trafalgar Square is a remarkable place to be. First of all, you look around and you see all of these huge houses, you know. You see the South African House, the Australian House, and you realize that from this small area most of the world was controlled and directed by the British. And it's just a remarkable thing to look around. And off from this square, there is another square called Leicester Square, and right at Leicester Square, there is a sort of a nondescript monument. And this monument has a nurse on the top of it. And it's a nurse dressed in a really, an old-time outfit, and you realize it's from a period of time many, many years ago.
At the bottom of this monument, the phrase is written – Patriotism is not enough. Patriotism is not enough. And that so intrigued me when I saw that, I had to study and find out – well, what does that mean? You know, I discovered the statue was of a nurse, Edith Louise Cavell, and something that she did in 1915. I'm going to come back to Edith Louise Cavell before I'm done today because what she did, and that one phrase – patriotism is not enough – strikes a chord with all of us as a part of the Church of God, and where we are today when we look at our country, and we look at where we are and who we are as Christians. It's a remarkable thing.
But first I'd like to go back and take a look at some of the scriptures. I want to help you grasp this afternoon the point of who we are, and where we are, and how we got there. If you'll open your Bibles to Genesis 17, these are scriptures that you've heard read many times. These are scriptures probably a few years ago in the church were probably spoken about and read maybe even more than they are today. It speaks to the beginning and the heritage of what we understand today as modern-day Israel. In Genesis 17, remarkable statements are made to a remarkable man at this time called Abram but about to have his name changed to Abraham.
Notice the words from God. I mean, to me it's so remarkable. We look at the Bible, and we read it as well, this is a book, and all of these things that took place, and yes, I understand that, but these are real events, you know. Our belief in the scripture is it's real. This is not a fairy tale. This is not some story made up, and there was really a man named Abraham. And this was a man who was so close to God he's the only one in scripture who's called – a friend of God. And you begin to see that God had a relationship with Abraham that was so remarkable that God made a promise to Abraham that is absolutely astounding because it sets the page of history in a direction that will not be reversed. As we're going to see, God's promises were irreversible, and we see today the end result of those promises.
Genesis 17:1 - When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, "I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless.
Verse 2 – "And I will make My covenant between Me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly."
Verse 3 – Then Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying:
Verse 4 – "As for Me, (behold,) beloved, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations." . . .a father of many nations. "As for me, behold my covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations.
Verse 5 – "No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations." Now what does that mean? . . .a father of many nations. God prophesied, or spoke directly to Abraham. You know, God makes things come to pass that He says. He's God. He tells this man, Abraham; He speaks directly to him; He is, you know, to me, it would take a lot to impress God, you know. You think of all. . .you think of what God is, who God is, it would take a lot to impress God. But it appears that God was impressed by Abraham, or certainly impressed by his obedience, his willingness to yield to God, his dedication, and so God said, ". . . You will be the father of many nations."
Now we're very early in human history; we're fairly early in human history, but to know that God from that point on is going to direct the lineage of Abraham to become many nations is an incredible point. Abraham was a wealthy man. Abraham had servants. Abraham, you know, had his wife, Sarah. Abraham had a lot. But God said that's nothing compared to what I'm going to provide in the future. So God makes this promise to Abraham. Continued on down, He says:
Verse 6 – "I will make you exceeding fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you.
Verse 7 – "And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you." So God makes a promise to Abraham, changes his name from Abram to Abraham, and that promise is a powerful, and it's unique in the history at this point in scripture. To whom has God made such a promise before, and to whom does God made such a promise afterwards? I don't know that we can fully understand the depth of this man, Abraham, and what God saw in him that was so remarkable to be selected and to be given this type of promise, but God did.
Genesis 22 , we find that these promises become, you know, they're no longer promises that have conditions. They become unconditional. Now there are conditions in a sense, but the promise itself now becomes unconditional because Abraham goes even further above and beyond. It shows his total and complete conviction to God, even his willingness to take his own son, as God had asked him to do up to the mountaintop and be willing to sacrifice his son. But you know the story. As Abraham was about to sacrifice his son, God sends an angel and stops him. Notice:
Genesis 22:12– And He said, "Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me."
Verse 13 – And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son.
Verse 14 – And Abraham called the name of the place, The-Lord-Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, "In the Mount of the Lord it shall be provided."
Verse 15 – Then the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven,
Verse 16 – and said, "By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son –
Verse 17 – "blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies.
Verse 18 – "In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice." So God reiterates His promises to Abraham, only now He says, "I know." We see at this point, the promises become unconditional. They are going to happen. And then notice
Genesis 28. These promises are then passed on to Isaac. Isaac is the son of Abraham who will receive these promises.
Genesis 28:1 – Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed him, and charged him, and said to him: "You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan.
Verse 2 – "Arise, go to Padan Aram, to the house of Bethuel your mother's father; and take yourself a wife from there of the daughters of Laban your mother's brother.
Verse 3 – "May God Almighty bless you, and make you fruitful and multiply you, that you may be an assembly of peoples;
Verse 4 – "And give you the blessing of Abraham . . ." So we see the blessing given to Abraham is now being given to Isaac, and of course Isaac will pass it on to Jacob. So we have Isaac having the blessing, having been given the blessing, and of course, in this case, he's now passing it on to Jacob. Isaac passes it on to Jacob.
Then turn to Genesis 48. Here we have the interesting story of where this blessing that was passed on to Jacob, this blessing that was given to Abraham, this promise that was given to Abraham, that is now unconditional has been passed on to Isaac, has now been passed on to Jacob, and Jacob is going to do a remarkable thing. God is obviously directing this. God has a point in mind. God has a direction for this to go. So we have God directing Jacob to cross his hands over his grandsons and to pass this blessing on through Joseph to his two sons Ephraim and Manasseh.
Genesis 48:14 – Then Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on Ephraim's head, who was the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh's head, guiding his hands knowingly, for Manasseh was the firstborn.
Verse 15 – And he blessed Joseph, and said: "God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has fed me all my life long to this day,
Verse 16 – "The angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; let my name be named upon them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac, and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth."
And of course, you know the story, Joseph questions, why is my father crossing his hands? Why is he doing that? Doesn't he know Manasseh is the oldest. He should receive the greater blessing, and Jacob responded to Joseph in Verse 18.
Verse 18 – And Joseph said. . ."Not so, my father, for this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head."
Verse 19 – "But his father refused and said, "I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his descendants shall become a multitude of nations.
Verse 20 – So he blessed them that day, saying, "By you Israel will bless, saying, 'May God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh!'" And thus he set Ephraim before Manasseh. You know, it was a blessing that he pronounced that you are going to be so great that the world is going to say, may. . .you know, that would be the greatest thing you could say about someone, may you become like Ephraim and Manasseh. That's how great and wonderful the promises that God gave to Abraham, to Isaac, to Jacob and now to Joseph's two sons. And then Genesis 49, we come to Jacob at the end of his days, and he prophesies, he gives a prophecy, Genesis 49:1 of what will befall the various sons in the end time, where it says, "the last days," what will befall them. Look at what is promised to Joseph. This is the promise of Abraham, that's gone to Isaac, that's gone to Jacob, that's gone to Joseph, and is now gone to Ephraim and Manasseh.
Genesis 49:22 – "Joseph is a fruitful bough, a fruitful bough by a well; his branches run over the wall.
Verse 23 – "The archers have bitterly grieved him, shot at him and hated him.
Verse 24 – "But his bow remained in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the Mighty God of Jacob (from there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel),
Verse 25 – "By the God of your father who will help you, and by the Almighty who will bless you with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lies beneath, blessings of the breasts and of the womb.
Verse 26 – The blessings of your father have excelled the blessings of my ancestors, up to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills. They shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers." These great blessings, this promise that God had given to Abraham, this remarkable man who walked this earth so many hundreds and thousands of years ago, who walked so close with God that God selected him, and God said, "Your people will be blessed. Those who come from you will be the most blessed people. There will be nations that will come from you. This promise will be passed on." And it was to Isaac, to Jacob, to Joseph, and to his two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. We established that thread, and we established the promise that God has given.
But you know, there is something interesting that has to be put into this mix. Turn with me to Deuteronomy 9. There's a tendency to look at the accomplishments of nations, for example, the nation of Israel. The nation of Israel waltzes into the promised land, and they are able to secure the promised land. They become a great nation. They have the great King David. They have the great King Solomon that's known all over the world of that day. Do they do all of this by themselves? Is this because they were such a wonderful people by nature? Is this because they were such a powerful and strong people? Were they so great and righteous that they deserved all of these things? Look at Deuteronomy 9:1:
Deuteronomy 9:1 - "Hear, O Israel: You are to cross over the Jordon today . . . " This is after the forty years in the wilderness. ". . . and go in to dispossess nations greater and mightier than yourself,. . ." They're not the greatest nation. They're not the mightiest nation. They're not the strongest people. There's an element here that must be understood. There's an element today that must be understood as to why we have what we have, as to how it is come about, and how you and I as Christians should react to it. It is easy when you are so powerful, when you have so much to think that well, you know, I got that myself. I'm the one that secured that. I'm a great person. I'm smart, you know; I'm intelligent; I did this by myself. First time or whenever you begin to think like that, you've already crossed over that barrier that God created when He says in Deuteronomy 9, "You're not the greatest nation, Israel. You're not the mightiest people. You're not the smartest people."
You know, in traveling in different places, you realize that there are people. . .I've traveled in places in Africa, and some of the most intelligent people, the people that have so much, you would think, going for them. The Africans when the Europeans arrived were strong. They were taller; they were bigger; they were more powerful than the Europeans. The Europeans were afraid of the Africans. Now they had guns, and the Africans had spears and arrows, so they were able to conquer them. But it took the British, it took the British years to conquer the Africans in the area of Ghana, the Ashanti Kingdom. And they had guns and weapons, and the Africans had bows and spears, but they were so afraid of them, they actually built in the castles where they kept the slaves, they built a very narrow opening and they made the Africans stand for two and three months at a time with no rest to weaken them so they could put them on the ships. They were afraid of them. And they would make them walk in a hunchback position so they could not lash out at the Europeans as they were putting them on the ships.
Powerful people, strong people, wealthy people, intelligent people, but they have so little to show for it. Why is that? Why is that? Are we so smart; are we so intelligent; are we so strong? Notice what God said to Israel.
Deuteronomy 9:1 - He said they are " . . .are greater and mightier than (yourself,) you, cities great and fortified up to heaven.
Verse 2 –"a people great and tall, the descendants of the Anakim, whom you know, and of whom you heard it said, 'Who can stand before the descendants of Anak?'
Verse 3 – "Therefore understand today. . ." Understand today. ". . .that the Lord your God is He who goes over before you as a consuming fire. He will destroy them and bring them down before you; so you shall drive them out and destroy them quickly, as the Lord has said to you.
Verse 4 – "Do not think in your heart, after the Lord your God has cast them out before you, saying, 'Because of my righteousness the Lord has brought me in to possess this land;' but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is driving them out from before you." It isn't because you're so great. It isn't because you're so powerful, you're so great, you're so intelligent, you know. It isn't because of that. It's because God is going to give you this land. Why? Because of Abraham.
Verse 5 – "It is not because of your righteousness or the uprightness of your heart that you go in to possess their land, but because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord your God drives them out from before you, and that He may fulfill. . ." And that He may fulfill, notice this, that ". . .He may fulfill the word which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob." God said, "I'm going to do this for you; I'm going to do it before you, not because you're so great."
You know there are several examples in the Bible, the one of Nebuchadnezzar comes to mind where he's walking around, you know, looking out at all of his gardens, and he says, "Oh, look at all that I have done." The scripture says, I think, the word was even still in his mouth when God struck him down. He didn't do that. You know, even in that case, it was because God allowed it and gave that to him. And to think that we have what we have because we deserve it, or because we earned it, or because we are so great, or so smart, or so intelligent is to deny the fact that we are blessed because of the promises of Abraham. Now that's not to diminish anything that anyone has accomplished. That's not to diminish anything that this nation has accomplished as a physical nation, but the blessings of Abraham are what make us who we are today.
Israel in ancient times also became a great nation. But it never become the great empire of like Babylon, or Persia, or Rome. So, while some have said, "Well, you know, the promises to Abraham were fulfilled when Solomon was king. It was the golden era of Israel, and it was. And it was quite an empire, or quite a kingdom when Solomon was king. But it was never like Babylon, Persia, Rome, or any of the other great empires. It was a very small part of the land that they controlled at that particular time.
But Israel had a problem. Israel had the same problem that so many nations and so many people have had over the years. With wealth and prosperity, along came a disillusionment, or a lack of reliance on God. Jeremiah 3 describes a warning that God gave to Israel. A warning about what was to come in the future, that they would be taken into captivity if they continued to reject God's law. Now remember, the title of my sermon is Patriotism is Nothing by Itself. Patriotism is Nothing by Itself. The fact that there was great patriotic love for their country; the fact that they were committed to their country was of little value once you reject God's values.
Jeremiah 3:8 – "Then I saw that for all the causes for which backsliding Israel had committed adultery, I had put her away and given her a certificate of divorce;" So the ten tribes are put away. ". . . yet her treacherous sister Judah did not fear, but went and played the harlot also." So this is documenting the fact of course that Israel and Judah both went and played the harlot, as it says here. And both are going into captivity. The ten tribes of Israel, and of course the story of the division of the ten tribes, Israel and Judah becoming two separate nations after Solomon, and the fact that the ten nations of Israel, or the nation called Israel, went into captivity in the eighth century. And as far as them returning as a nation, they did not. They did not return as a nation. And then the nation of Judah goes into captivity a hundred or so years later, a hundred and fifty years, or thereabouts later. And they did return. And they again became a nation in that particular area.
The struggles of Judah, the struggles of Israel over the years are well-documented and well-known. But when did Israel ever fulfill the promises made to Abraham? When did they ever become a commonwealth of nations? When did they ever become a great nation so that anyone in the world, if they heard this statement – Oh, may you be as Ephraim and Manasseh, it would mean that may you be blessed in the greatest possible blessing that anyone could ever imagine. That was the most significant thing you could say to someone. May you be as blessed, or may you be like Ephraim and Manasseh. Where is that? When did it happen?
I think you all know, of course, our understanding of prophecy, our understanding of how this has been fulfilled, but even from a historical and a point of logic, if you believe in Bible prophecy. Now if you don't believe in Bible prophecy, then, you know, all bets are off, I guess you could say. But if you believe in Bible prophecy, where and when has there ever been any one nation, or any group of nations, that have remotely fulfilled the promise that Jacob stated when he crossed his hands and put them on Ephraim and Manasseh. In the history of the world, when has there ever been two entities who were brothers, one a great nation and one a commonwealth of nations? Again, when has it ever happened? Where do you find that? You find solitary empires. You find the Babylonian empire. You have to find the Persian empire, the Greco-Macedonian empire, the Roman empire. You find these great, powerful empires, but where in the history of the world do you find two separate entities, both of which, or the two of which are brothers, clearly brothers, speaking a common language, having even common ancestry, where do you find that in all of history until you discover Great Britain and the United States? And of course, we believe that these two nations are the recipients of the blessings of Abraham.
I believe that as much as I believe anything that I believe. And when you travel around the world, you see it over and over again. You know, we were in a remote part of India. In India. because of the British influence, every afternoon at a certain time, they stop and have tea. Now these are individuals that don't look at all like the British, and yet tea is their national drink. And you go around and you see this building, and you see that building, well, that was built by the British, that was built by the British. I mean this is a nation, India is a nation of one billion people, and the British haven't controlled India for a long time, but their influence is still there, still easy to find, and you can find that in many other parts of the world. Where or when in the history of the world have there been two nations that more closely fulfilled what we read about in scripture of the promises that were given to Abraham.
Consider the greatness of Great Britain in the 1800s. The 1800s were clearly the British century. To their own astonishment, the people of the relatively tiny British Isles found themselves ruling over a mighty empire. As the nineteenth century, the1800s drew to a close, the British Empire was the largest empire in the history of the world comprising nearly a quarter of the land mass of the earth and a quarter of its population. The Roman Empire in its prime comprised of approximately one hundred and twenty million people in an area of about two and one-half million square miles.
The British Empire controlled thirteen point nine million square miles of this earth and had a population of four hundred and ninety-three million people under the control of the British Empire. And the brother to this particular group of people in 1803, the United States of America was vaulted onto the world scene of nations with the purchase of the Louisiana Territory from France. Some of the most fertile soil in all the world was bought for less than three cents an acre. Remarkable achievement and a remarkable moment in the history of our nation.
But it didn't stop there. The idea of manifest destiny came into being in the early 1800s. Manifest destiny simply said that God has given us this continent, and we will rule from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. It is our right, and America from the thirteen colonies on the east coast spread all the way until by the end of the 1800s, they were from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. And then to become the greatest, most powerful and most wealthy nation that the world has ever seen.
As we come now into the 1900s, what a remarkable, remarkable thing to have happen; what a remarkable thing to occur, even just looking skeptically, or as skeptics may look at it, how could that be? How could anyone have fulfilled so closely the prophecies that are found in the pages of the Bible? It is absolutely remarkable.
But now we come forward, and we look at today, and we see that we are Christians; we're Christians. We are followers of Christ. We have a nation that was founded upon some of those principles that we believe in very strongly, but a nation that today no longer attributes itself as much certainly as it did in its founding to those same principles. Where do we fit? Where do we fall as Christians? What is our obligation? What is our responsibility to our homeland, to the nation that we love so very much? Patriotism is important. But is it patriotism alone, or is there something much more?
Let's turn to the New Testament now, and I want to look at a few principles that are found here that speak to this particular issue as well. Look at John 18:36. Jesus Christ made a statement that we believe is true; we believe is what we should; we believe that we should follow this particular principle and statement that Christ gave.
John 18:36 - When He was challenged by Pilate as to whether His followers would erupt and would fight for Him, Jesus Christ said this: "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews, but now My kingdom is not from here." So we find that Jesus Christ lays down the groundwork and the foundation for Christianity. The foundational principle for Christianity is that My kingdom, the kingdom of God, is not of this world. Now that creates a dilemma for every Christian because as a Christian, you are called first and foremost a citizen of the kingdom of God. You are called a holy nation by the apostle Peter. So if we are first and foremost citizens of a kingdom that isn't in this world, then what is our relationship with the kingdoms that are in this world, our own country for example? What is our relationship? What is our commitment? What is our responsibility? Let's look at what Paul had to say. Turn to Philippians 3. The apostle Paul says this, Philippians 3:17.
Philippians 3:17 – Brethren, join in following my example, and note those who so walk, as you have us for a pattern.
Verse 18 – For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ.
Verse 19 – whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame – who set their mind on earthly things.
Verse 20 – For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Our citizenship is in heaven. Christ said, "My kingdom is not of this world." Paul said our citizenship is in heaven. II Corinthians 6, he says, "Come out of this world; beseparate." Don't be a part of this world. So a Christian has somewhat of a dilemma on his hands. He can love his country, support his country, but patriotism alone is of no value. And his priority is God and His values. And if God and His values become your priority, you find a dilemma to some degree. Yes, you can be patriotic; yes, you can love your country; yes, you can appreciate where these promises came from, where all of these blessings came from, and you can celebrate and you can be thankful, and you can pray and thank God for all of these things. But your commitment is to God, and your conviction is to God, and when Christ said, "My servants won't fight." Christ said, "My servants won't fight." A Christian has a dilemma.
Over the years as a pastor, I've counseled many young men dealing with military service. And sometimes it's very confusing. You know, "Here's my country. I love my country, and they're fighting a war, and I think this is a just war. Why can't I be involved?"
It doesn't take many questions to ask the young man until you begin to see a problem. "Well, can you keep the Sabbath and be a part of the military?"
"Well, no, they won't let me do that. Certainly not when I go off to boot camp, they're not going to let me do that."
"Well, can you keep the holy days?"
"Well, I can't do that either."
"Well, and you believe this is a just war, but what if a war comes along that isn't just? What do you do then if you're in the military? And also what happens when, you know, we have members of the church that are in Germany; we have members in the church that are in other countries. What if there was a war between Germany and the United States? You know, that's happened before. Should the members in Germany support their country?"
"Well, no, that wasn't a just war."
"Well, who's going to decide if it's a just war or not." And you walk down a series of questions, and before long, you begin to realize, well, there's a problem with this. If our conviction and commitment is to God first, and we believe what He says when He says, "My kingdom is not of this world," and you love your country, you appreciate it, and thank God for all that He's provided through this country, and you appreciate so much what has been accomplished. But if patriotism stands alone; if patriotism isn't backed up by commitment and conviction to God first, it is nothing more than misguided love for your homeland. It isn't what God would have us do.
These are the principles that God lays out. Romans 13, though, says something about how we conduct ourselves though as Christians.
Romans 13:1 – Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities . . . What would a Christian do? How does a Christian handle these things when he's subject to the governing authorities? For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. And the authorities that exist are appointed by God.
Verse 2 – Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. You don't break the laws of the land, you support, you keep the laws of the land. You follow them. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God. . .
Verse 3 – For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same.
Verse 4 – For he is God's minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God's minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil.
Verse 5 – Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience' sake.
Verse 6 – For because of this you also pay taxes, for they are God's ministers attending continually to this very thing.
Verse 7 – Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor. I mean, God makes it very clear that as Christians, our obligation and commitment is to God and His kingdom first and foremost. But we do not reject, you know, the laws of the governing authorities of where we live and where we grow up and where we're part of a society. You cannot be a part of society but yet you certainly abide by the laws of society. And that's what Paul points out in Romans 13.
I Timothy 2 says something else as well. The apostle Paul again writing about how we conduct ourselves as Christians, what do we do; how do we feel about things.
I Timothy 2:1 – Therefore, I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men.
Verse 2 – for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. Praying for the leaders of our country, praying for the leaders of this nation, the decisions that they will be making that it will not hinder the work of God, certainly, that we be able to do the work in a peaceful environment. We know one day it won't be possible, and we pray and thank God every day that it is possible. Every day that you wake up, and you live in a country where there is the freedom for us to preach the gospel, you should be thanking God for that opportunity because the gospel is the pearl; the gospel is the truth; the gospel is the message from Jesus Christ Himself to be preached to the world. And every day we have the opportunity to do that in peace is a day that we should thank God for.
When you travel and you come back to the United States, you know, sometimes you get a little bit bothered by the fact, you come up and here they have these long lines you come back through immigration and customs. Long lines for all of those who have an American passport, there's a huge line. And for all those who have other passports, there's just a small line.
So here we are in our country, and we have to stand in this long line in order to get through. But it also tells you the people who are traveling the world. You know these are people who are experiencing the blessings of Abraham. And they travel the world. They travel the world because of what God has given us.
We have a wonderful opportunity as Christians to set an example. We have a wonderful opportunity as Christians to be patriotic, to appreciate the country we live in, to love the country we live in, to pray for the leaders of our country, to obey the laws of the land. But whenever there is a conflict with God's way, we must choose God's way. We do not kill; we do not hate; we do not go to war. We pray every day for the kingdom of God to come to this earth, every day. And we will thank God every day, or we should thank God every day for the blessings we have through Abraham.
And on this Wednesday, on the Fourth of July, we have a special opportunity in one sense, it's just a day on the calendar, maybe. It's a day when a very special event happened. When a group of fifty-six men signed a document that said, "You know, we think God has something special in mind for us." It's as though they took a page out of the life of Abraham, and said, "You know, God said something special there, and we're the recipients of it." And they signed a document at threat of losing their lives at that particular point.
I said before I ended I would come back to this nurse, Edith Cavell. Edith Cavell, this is her statue that stands in Leicester Square just off Trafalgar Square in London. Edith Cavell was a nurse, one whose claim to fame is that on the early morning hours of October 12, 1915, she was tied to a stake in German occupied Belgium and shot as a traitor. Long before the war, she had for many years headed a nursing home in Belgium. And even after the war had broken out, she had remained at her post where together with her nurses, she gave care to injured soldiers regardless of nationality, whether German, French or English.
Miss Cavell was labeled a traitor by the Germans. She was labeled as an individual who was not patriotic to her country. She was labeled a traitor for the crime of assisting soldiers in their flight to neutral Holland. Determined to make an example of her, the Germans tried her under military law, under military tribunal and without adequate counsel, she was presumed guilty, found so and sentenced to death and executed within ten hours of the judgment. The whole episode was shrouded in vindictive haste and stealth.
The debate about the exact nature of her so-called crime has gone on for years, but there has never been any debate about the heroic nature of her death. And it was this that turned her into one of the true heroines of World War One. Her last moments and her final words are described as follows by an eye witness.
After receiving the sacrament and within minutes of being led out to her death, she said, "Standing as I do in view of God and eternity, I realize that patriotism is not enough. I must have no hatred or bitterness toward anyone." On the base of the London statue at Leiscester Square just off Trafalgar Square are carved these words: "Patriotism is not enough." As we celebrate in the most blessed of all countries this coming week, let's give thanks to the One who gave us these blessings. Bible prophecy predicts the fall of our society as clearly as it predicted the rise of our society, and as Christians our allegiance is to God and His kingdom which knows no race and no nationality. Let's praise God for all that we have and let's learn the lesson to never turn away from God, but worship Him with all our hearts. Indeed it is true, as the statue says, patriotism is not enough.