Paul Moreland
Lately my Bible reading had been taking
me
on a tour of the Old Testament again. It
has been interesting to trace the rise and
fall of the diverse kings of Israel and Judah.
Last week brought me to the story of Josiah
and how he sought the God of his forefather
David with all of his heart. The plot thickens
and gets REALLY interesting when they discover
the "book of the law" in the temple
18 years after Josiah began to reign at age
8. So as a man of 26 years of age he comes
face to face with God's promises to the "children
of Israel". The scriptures don't specify
which portion was read before the king, but
I highly suspect it was the portion we find
in Deuteronomy chapter 11. When Josiah heard
about the blessing and the CURSE which was
written in the book of the law, he tore his
clothing and humbled himself before God for
he knew that God would keep His Word and
that trouble lay ahead of the people because
of the sins they had committed. You can find
the story of Josiah in II Chronicles 34.
His heart was right before God, even though
he didn't have the Book of the Law to guide
him.
What does this have to do with us today?
Well, my reflections took me on a tour of
US history. It took me back to when the colonies
were working on a Constitution for the new
nation and how they were unable to agree
on anything until they took time to pray
and ask God to guide them. It is my steadfast
belief that He did guide them and that is
the reason they were able to come up with
such an outstanding document, one which has
guided our nation over 200 years. As one
reads things which the founding fathers wrote,
it is clear that their intention was to establish
a Christian nation. Not a country dominated
by some denomination or other, but rather
a land governed by the basic tenets and principles
of morality taught in the collection of books
known as the Bible. This foundation was recognized
as late as 1890 when the Supreme Court of
the United States of America stated that
the US was a "christian state".
In fact, one of the greatest deceptions practiced
by the enemies of Christ in the United States
is the wresting out of context of a passage
from a letter written by Thomas Jefferson.
In that letter Jefferson stated that the
"wall of separation of church and state"
was to high to allow for a certain denomination
to become the official religion. This "separation
of church and state" was not an absence
of Godly influence in the government of the
nation, but rather the absence of denominationalism
which had caused so much death and destruction
in "merry old England" and Europe.
According to Jefferson, this would never
come to pass in the United States because
the first amendment prohibited Congress from
enacting any law "respecting an establishment
of religion". Jefferson must be spinning
in his grave because of the way his words
have been twisted.
What is the future of our land? What will
come to pass? When Josiah heard what the
"Good Book" said, he humbled himself
and sought the will of God. Because of this
his land was spared from destruction. If
we will humble ourselves and seek God, perhaps
our nation too will once again turn to Him
and so spare itself from His certain wrath.
How about you? Are you ready to seek Him?
Are you ready to do His will and to forsake
the pagan ways which are being forced upon
us? Are you one of those "whose knees
have not bowed before Baal and whose lips
have not kissed him", or have you allowed
yourself to become like those who turn their
backs on the Creator?
Let us take to heart these words from Deuteronomy
11: 18-22
18Therefore
shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind
them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between
your eyes. 19And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them
when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way,
when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. 20And thou shalt write
them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates: 21That
your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land
which the LORD sware unto your fathers to give them, as the days of
heaven upon the earth. 22For if ye shall diligently keep all these
commandments which I command you, to do them, to love the LORD your
God, to walk in all his ways, and to cleave unto him;
King James Version |
That is what it will take for us to take
back this land for Him who established it.
We HAVE to know His word and teach it to
our children and our children's children.
It must invade each aspect of our lives,
every facet of our being. It must be on our
hearts and our minds, as we work, as we play
and in each and every part of our families
and being. So I end with these words which
Joshua spoke in Joshua 24:15 and a paraphrase
after them:
15And if
it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye
will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the
other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye
dwell: but as for me and my house,
we will serve the LORD.
King James Version |
If you choose not to turn back to God who
created you and established this nation,
then choose which path you want to follow,
the path of those who say "there is
no God" or the path of those who say
"all roads are the same", but as
for me and my house, we will follow God the
Creator and His Son, Jesus the Christ and
the Holy Spirit, our seal unto the day of
redemption.
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