Thank God for America. I'm grateful for the goodness of the Lord. I was thinking of a little course that Brother Roloff used to sing. He'd say, I just heard from Heaven and this one thing I know, my sins are all forgiven for He washed me white as snow. I'm grateful that He did. Amen. Amen. I'm glad that God allowed me to be born in America. I've lived long enough to see a lot of changes that hasn't been good changes. And I want to praise the Lord for His faithfulness to us. Though all the world go in the wrong direction we have a faithful God. 1 Thessalonians 5.24 He said, Faithful is he that calleth thee who will also do it. I'm grateful for His faithfulness to us. book of John chapter 12 I believe it is verse 26 he said, "'If any man serve me, him will my Father honor.'" I was thinking about, I'm not going to preach on that, but I was thinking about the fact of how does He honor us? If we are faithful to Him how does He honor us? Well I believe He is faithful to reveal His Word to us. It's not the commentary, it's the Lord Jesus. He reveals, hey, he was the one who revealed to me that I was lost without God and without hope, amen. I'm grateful that he revealed to me that he paid my price in full at a place called Calvary, that I might have life and have it more abundantly, amen. He's faithful. to reveal His Word to me, but He is faithful to reveal His will to me. I'm grateful that He is a faithful God. The Psalmist said, He hearkened to me and heard my cry, and He brought me up out of a horrible pit. He didn't help me up. He didn't send me up. He brought me up. I say, blessed is His holy name. I'm grateful that He's the same yesterday, today, and forever. He's my God and your God. Amen. Let me have a word of prayer and then I want to share some thoughts that the Lord's impressed my heart with. I'm grateful for this book. I'm thankful that I have the Word of God in the entirety. And that's what God honors. It's his word. Would you pray with me? Heavenly Father, I love you. I thank you for your amazing grace that saved our soul. Thank you for the call of God upon our life. Lord, I'd certainly like to be a blessing and help to others, but I realize I'm not sufficient of myself to thank anything as of myself, but my sufficiencies of God. And I pray that he, the Holy Spirit, might fill us today. You said, If ye being evil know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your heaven Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him? And we're asking you Lord, Lord for a demonstration God's power and presence in our midst. I pray that you might help us to recall those things we've studied and I pray that you might emphasize the truths that you want to emphasize. Dear Lord I pray that you would get maximum glory. I pray this morning for our country. Lord that you would have mercy upon America. I do pray that you would deal with the leaders of our country that they might turn to God to I pray, dear Lord, that you might bless Israel. I pray for the peace of Jerusalem. I pray that you might do what men cannot do. We'll praise you and thank you for all you will do. In Jesus' name I pray, amen and amen. The Bible said, blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord. Our nation was founded upon Christian ethics. It was when our nation's founding fathers gave us the documents such as the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the Declaration of Independence, they had to lean upon a common understanding of law, government, social order, and morality. And that understanding came to them sprang from their common acceptance of what has come to be known as the Judeo-Christian ethic, which is a system of the moral and social values that originated in both the Old Testament and the New Testament in the Word of God. And whether each one of those founding fathers was a believer or no, I say to you, their writings, their statements, and their votes was evidence that the fact that the majority of them embrace the great principles as the basis of civilizations, our civilized nation. And so let me give you just, I'm just going to mention, I'm not going to preach on this, but I wanted to give you my way of introduction. They believed in the dignity of human life. and America's coming far away from where it started. Listen, if people and nations do not grant ultimate respect and protection for both the born and the unborn, all the other professed morals and values are meaningless. I'm saying to you, I believe that life begins at conception. And I believe that abortion is murder. I pastored in a church in Tallahassee, Florida, and I had a deacon that argued with me that abortion was not murder. I still believe that abortion was murder. Our nation's been given that for years and years and years. And could I say the dignity of human life is not just a principle of the Bible, but it is a principle of any civilized society. And then again, they believed in their traditional family. These founding fathers believed in traditional families, their traditional marriage, their traditional family. And listen, I say to you this morning, it is a backbone of a healthy family. The Bible tells us about that in Genesis chapter two. It's recognized as a holy union between one man and one woman. I'm saying to you, and by the way, there's only two genders, male and female. Don't have any problem about that. But America's gotten to the place where they don't know which bathroom to use. I'm saying, God have mercy upon our country. And listen, I'm reminded that the traditional family out of that union comes children born into a home with a father and a mother to do what? To nurture them and to teach them that they might become a healthy, productive and responsible citizens. We've gone far from that as a country. The plan of God, the nature and common sense is a man and a woman producing children within the institution of the marriage. The Bible did say in the book of Hebrews chapter 13 and verse number four, that marriage is honored and all, and the bed undefiled, but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge. And remind that God defines marriage, God defends marriage, and God denounces marital infidelity. And when that plan is lost, marriage and family becomes meaningless, and the nation and its people follow the road to ruin. And so in world history, as is proven over and over again, preserving the traditional family is vital to the future of any great nation. And then the matter of the national work ethic. We're living in a day where folks are being promoted and encouraged and rewarded for not working. But I read my Bible in the book of 1 Thessalonians and the Bible said, 2 Thessalonians chapter 3 and verse number 10, that if a man doesn't work neither shall he eat. And so listen, we've come far from that. And then the right to a God-centered education. The Bible said that we're to bring our children up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. And then the Abrahamic covenant. I'm fearful today that America's made some bad, bad choices about their non-support of Israel. And then the matter of just common decency. I'm saying, and then the personal accountability to God, all that was involved on the minds and the hearts of our founding fathers, but America has come far away from that. I want you to look with me, if you would please, in the book of Zephaniah, in the book of Zephaniah chapter number three, Zephaniah chapter number three. I want to read Zephaniah chapter three verse one and verse number two. And we're living in a society that has gone way from God. I'm grateful that God is long suffering. Somebody said, I believe God's gonna judge America. Could I tell you, I believe God's already judging America. And when you defy God and when you take God's word out of government, listen, you have no government. In the book of Zephaniah chapter three, verse two, he said, woe to her that is filthy. and polluted to the oppressing city. She obeyed not the voice. She received not correction. She trusted not in the Lord. She drew not near to her God. Zephaniah was a messenger of God. to Jerusalem just prior to the captivity. And in verse number one, he enlarges upon it in verse number two, and he gave four reasons for the catastrophe that was before him that was awaiting them, awaiting that city because of sin. I'm gonna say to you, it does not pay to sin, and America's left her moorings. She's gone far away from God. And I want to say, I believe you would agree with me that America is in a crisis this morning. I'm grateful that there's hope not in the Pope, but there's hope in our God. There's hope not in Washington, but there's hope at the throne of grace and God is still on the throne and God still cares for America and God can change America. Notice with me, he's given four reasons for the catastrophe that's awaiting the city of ruin. He said, here's the reason, she obeyed not his voice. And so the voice of God speaking within her through the prophets, which had been sent to her through the truth that she had received through the prophets, I'm saying, but she rejected that. I'm telling you, listen, when you discard the word of God, when you take the word of God out of the school system, out of government, you have a crisis. A chaos, but I'm saying, here's a reason why judgment's coming. She obeyed not the voice of God. I say again, and the Bible said, she received not correction. What correction? Our instruction, positive instructions, which came through the word of the prophets. And again, the word of the prophets pointing out their folly and teaching her the way back. But she did what? She received not correction. They're saying, we'll not have this man to reign over us. It was Jerry Nadler in the Senate that said, God has nothing to do with the work of the Senate. I'm telling you what, here's a man that's got a vast empty space between his ears. Something bad wrong. Listen, we need God in government. We need God in our home. We need to acknowledge God and submit to God. She received not correction, but he said, she trusted not in the Lord. Which Lord? The Lord Jehovah. The Lord of the covenant relationship, which had made her that great and wonderful city. Once a joy, the whole earth. And now she's trusting foreign powers. Oh God have mercy upon us. The Bible said, she drew not near to her God. The sanctuary was neglected. The life of worship within was abandoned. And the very vessels of the sanctuary were soon to be carried away to Babylon, to the pagan places of that, which was in a far off land. And what an indictment. What an indictment, the solemn judgment of God. I believe God's judging America because of the embracing of the sodomites. That's becoming acceptable even in the minds of some so-called fundamental Bible believers. but it's still abomination in the sight of God. And the Bible said, righteousness exalted the nation, but sin is reproached to any people. And he said, the wicked shall be turned into hell and all nations that forget God. Has America forgotten God? It appears that way. I'm saying she obeyed not the voice that consciousness refused. She received not instruction, truth is rejected. She trusted not in the Lord, faith is shunned. And she drew not near to her God, communion was slighted. And there's one indictment, one indictment, but four separate things are related. The voice of consciousness refused, she obeyed not the voice of God. And by the way, it's just a little leaven that leaveneth the whole loaves. Amen. I thank God we still have liberty to preach the Word of God. I'm grateful for the truth of the Word. When the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed. Amen. We're no longer in a condemnation. We pass from death unto life. We're not going to hell. We're going to heaven. Why? Jesus bore our sins on the cross of Calvary. And so she obeyed not as well as God's finger is on the spot. And when you disobey God, it brings paralysis upon your life and also your service. When you disobey God, that conscious is that safety valve of the moral and spiritual life. No man, are you listening? No man can refuse to hear and escape the consequences. And we see this, it's like the conscience is seared like with a hot iron and it ceases to function. And because of the persistent sin. And listen, a saved man's conscience deliberately tuned as a servant of the Holy Spirit, our conscience is one of the finest assets we have. But be careful, don't let your conscience be your guide because it will lead you in the wrong way. But it's a matter of realizing if there's something on your conscious, some debt that's not paid, and some secret habit that's not yet been forsaken, or some duty you should have done, is there some sin on your conscious today? I'm telling you what, America's gone far away from her moorings. But when I was in school, grade school, junior high, high school, we read the Bible in the public classroom every morning. We prayed. We saluted the flag. We were unashamed to do that. That's a part of our education. But that's all been taken out. That's all been taken out of the school system. And they, listen, they've defied the interest of anything that resembles God or God's Word. And so we're reaping today. We're reaping today what's been sown in years gone by. But I'm telling you, there's still hope. Our hope was built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and His righteousness. And so they rejected the Word. She received not the Word. The instructions was given, but they cast it away. How many times has the Word of God been preached and the Spirit of God has pricked our heart, put His finger upon that area of our life, and we rejected the truth. And so we're reaping today in our homes, in our families, in our society today because we rejected the Word of God. God's judgment's coming upon a city because, listen, because they've been warring after and they've set aside and they've refused and they've ignored the Word of God. It was D.L. Moody who said, today you carry your Bible, but the day will come when your Bible will carry you. America needs to turn to God, but you can't turn to God and deny His Word. No, no, it's the Word of God that makes a difference. Listen, what would it be like if we had representatives and senators and presidents and those in a place of leadership that love the Word of God and love and sought counsel from the God of the Word? But listen, they've ignored that, they've cast it aside, and so we're reaping today. And so we're in a crisis today. in America. Is there some word of truth that you've been rejecting? God speaks to our heart and the word is truth. And you did not want The Word of God would not take the Word of God because the Word of God cut against it. Somebody said, well, you know, that kind of preaching, I don't like that kind of preaching. By the way, could I tell you, they said, well, sinners feel uncomfortable. They ought to feel uncomfortable if they're not saved by the grace of God. We're not preaching down to them, but except by the grace of God, all of us would be in hell this morning. But I'm saying to you, thank God he brought me out. He brought me out. And again, God has spoken and we cast it aside. You don't want to be named, don't want sin to be named in the presence anymore. I've had folks complain, said, well, you're just too plain. You can't be any more plain than the word of God. Word of God will stand on its own base. and America could have revival. I believe America could have revival. So I said, I don't believe that. Well, I believe the Bible and the Bible's written for believers anyway. And so you'll not have the truth. And God says no more until you take heed of what he's already said. And so God and somebody said, I'd like to hear from heaven. Well, if you haven't got a recent word from God, then go on the last word you got from God. and that will work in your life and it'll work in my life. God says no more until you take heed to what he has already said. So he said righteousness exalted the nation. He said sin is reproached to any people. He said blessed is a nation whose God is the Lord. I thank God for America and I thank God for who he is. And so truth rejected means God remains silent. When they knew God, they glorified him not, as God neither were thankful. And they became vain in their imagination, and their foolish heart was darkened. And we read that in the book of Romans chapter one. Is there any truth that we are rejecting? And so then the rest of faith is shunned. She trusted not in the Lord. Trusted not in the Lord. What have it? When you cease to believe God. Listen, behavior reflects that some have ceased to believe in God. I'm not talking about the liberal church down the road. I'm talking about our church. I'm talking about my life, your life. And then the place of prayer was slighted. She drew not near to her God. This is the heart of the problem. That is the problem of the heart. She drew not near to God. And so, I'm telling you, James 4, he said, draw nigh to God, he'll draw nigh to you. But if you're gonna draw nigh to God, there has to be a beginning place. I decided to follow Jesus. I'm determined that I'm gonna hold the bloodstain banner high. I'm not gonna dip the colors. I'm not gonna change my position. I'm gonna keep on keeping on what God has honored in the past. God will honor in the future what God's done in centuries past. God's still well able to do today. And so we come back, the blaze of prayer was lighted. Draw nigh to God, there's a beginning place, but anytime there's a beginning, there'll be always a battling place. And the devil, the world and the flesh and the devil will battle you in the matter of your desire to get closer to God. And by the way, I believe if the local church, your church, my church, Your home, my home, your life, my life. If we had revival, we could make an impact upon a country that's on a toboggan sled toward hell under the judgment of God, if we as God's people would set the right example. So it comes back to this. We understand, we understand that here's a prayer of Hezekiah as he, as he, in a time of crises, I underline this in the book of II Kings chapter number 19 and verse number 15. And the Bible said now that this is time of crises and he said, and Hezekiah prayed before the Lord and said, O Lord God of Israel, which dwelleth between the cherubims. Thou art the God, even Thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. Thou hast made heaven and earth. And so here's Hezekiah's prayer. He prayed before the Lord and said, O Lord God of Israel, which that dwelleth between the cherubims, Thou art God alone, and all the kingdoms of the earth Thou hast made heaven and earth. And so unlike most rulers of nations today, Hezekiah prayed to the Lord earnestly when crises came. He teaches us how to honor God if we want God to honor us. and answer our prayers in a crisis. So in the text Hezekiah begins his prayer by honoring God in a fourfold way. I'm gonna mention that and I'll be done. He speaks of God being the God of the country. Oh Lord God of Israel, this is acceptance of Jehovah God. Other nations had their gods. And Hezekiah stated who Israel's God was. This was a good way of approaching God for Psalms 33, 12. He said, blessed is a nation whose God is the Lord. And so Israel needed God's blessings and Hezekiah wisely went to God who has blessed the nation. And would to God that we had a president or leaders in our country that would bow down to Almighty God and accept Him as God of our nation, but they prefer to keep Him out of any of their affairs of our nation, to keep Him out as much as possible, which says they do not want Him as their God. And they're blinded, and they're resistant to the fact. And so they're saying, we don't want this man to reign over us. And so he said, here's my request. He said, he's God. He's talking about God. He's the God of the country. But then secondly, he said he's a God of compassion. He said, which dwelleth between the cherubims. This refers to the fact that God said he would dwell above the blood-sprinkled mercy seat of the ark between the cherubims of the mercy seat in Exodus 25. The emphasis is the fact that God is a God of mercy. I'm grateful that in a time of crisis, we need to plead for mercy. Dear God, have mercy upon America. Have mercy. And by the way, I still believe God can change men and God can change society. And then again, the third thought he said, he's a God of crowns. He said, God, even thou alone of all the kingdoms of the earth, Hezekiah was being attacked by the nation of Assyria, but Israel's God was also God of all the nations. This we need to submit to His commands if we wish to benefit from His rule. Man often thinks that he's in charge of things, but I want to remind you, he's not in charge. God's in charge. It's not a political party that's in charge. God's in charge. And so for a long, long time I've been praying that God would expose the corruption of America and deal with it according to His will. And by the way, I believe God is answering prayer. But America's in a crisis this morning. He's a God of crowns. He said, Thou art God, even thou alone. And when men refuse God's rule in their lives, they only bring more problems And if we want God's help in a crisis, we need to acknowledge that he is a God of all. He is a God over all. And then he mentions this statement. He said, thou hast made heaven and earth. He's a God of creation. And so we're reminded that Hezekiah recognized God as a creator. There's many so-called intellects today that do not recognize the fact But that does not change the fact. It only makes a fool of those who refuse to believe. God created the world. God created man in his likeness. God breathed into man his nostrils a breath of life and man became a living soul. Don't believe man evolved from a tadpole. Don't believe he's the descendants of a monkey. Although I have seen some folks that made me wonder. God created man and God created the heaven and the earth. But schools continue to teach evolution and offer like creeds and they do so because they reject God. However, if you want God to help you in your crises, You need to honor Him as the creator of the universe. He created man in His likeness. He created the world and the existence. And so we're saying, thank God for America. Thank God for our heritage. Grateful that I was not born in a communist country. Thankful that we still have some freedom. We still have the liberty to serve the Lord. And the Lord said, if any man serve me, Him will my Father honor. And I'm telling you, it'll be worth it all when you see Christ. Just keep your hand on the plow, your eyes on the goal, singing, I've decided to follow Jesus. No turning back, no turning back. Still salute the flag, still stand for the Star-Spangled Banner, still, I'm saying, I still believe that God is able to meet our needs and the crises. Our faithful God, He's faithful to us. I want to be faithful to Him. And be reminded of this, our God is a sovereign God. It doesn't have anything to do with Calvinism. But our God is a sovereign God. He's a supernatural God. He's omnipotent God. He's an omnipresent God. And He's your God and my God. This God is our God forever and ever. And He'll be our guide even unto death. So our numbers might not be as strong as they used to be, but I'm gonna say to you, God's still in charge. And I humbly bow in submission to Him And I submit to his lordship in my life. And he still leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. I'm grateful for who He is, what He's done for the prayer of Hezekiah, for the plea of Zephaniah, God's messenger for a people that has forsaken the Lord. May God help us.