Turn - Max Lucado [3]
BUT WE CAN BE SURE OF THIS: NO ONE RULES WITHOUT HIS PERMISSION.
HE DETERMINES NATIONAL LEADERS. AND, EQUALLY IMPORTANT, GOD DISTRIBUTES NATIONAL BLESSINGS.
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above.
(JAMES 1:17, NKJV)
Every national privilege can be traced back to the hand of God. If we have liberty, we can thank the One who came to “proclaim liberty to the captives…to set at liberty those who are oppressed” (Luke 4:18, NKJV). If we enjoy a robust economy or a high tide of justice, we don’t limit our thanks to senators or the Supreme Court; we thank God.
Tally this up. God makes the boundaries. He determines the leaders. He dispenses the blessings. And America exists by the power of God. Can we afford to forget this—can we afford to sever this single, silver strand that supports the whole framework of our republic?
ONLY AT A TERRIBLE RISK.
“If you ever forget the LORD your God and follow other gods, worshiping and bowing down to them, you will certainly be destroyed.”
(Deuteronomy 8:19, NLT)
“America,” God says, “you exist by My power.” That’s the first reminder. But God doesn’t stop there. A second reminder commands our attention.
America, You Exist for My Glory
God’s name matters to God. His primary concern is His reputation. “If my people, who are called by my name” (2 Chronicles 7:14. italics mine). God jealousy guards His name. No one will mar or defame His glory. “Before all the people,” He declares, “I will show my glory” (Leviticus 10:3, The Message). David reminds us that “the heavens declare the glory of God” (Psalm 19.1). God speaks of “every man, woman, and child whom I created for my glory” (Isaiah 43:7. The Message).
God’s primary concern is not our name, but His. Not our glory, but His. Not our comfort, but His cause. God’s ultimate commitment is to His reputation, not ours. Everything, including nations, exists to promote His cause
Recall what God said through the prophet: “I will demonstrate my glory among the nations” (Ezekiel 39:21, NLT).
God does not need the United States in order to advance His cause. He lobbies no country and depends on no government. “No, for all the nations of the world are nothing in comparison with him. They are but a drop in the bucket, dust on the scales. He picks up the islands as though they had no weight at all. The nations of the world are as nothing to him. In his eyes they are less than nothing—mere emptiness and froth” (Isaiah 40:15, 17, NLT).
WE MAY THINK GOD EXISTS TO BLESS AMERICA. BUT ACCORDING TO SCRIPTURE, AMERICA EXISTS TO BLESS GOD.
Suppose—just suppose—God’s glory became America’s prayer and priority: “Not to us, O LORD, not to us but to your name be the glory” (Psalm 115:1). Suppose our elected officials daily asked. How can we honor God in our decisions? How can this school introduce students to God? How can this army promote the name of God?
What if America resolved to simply bless God?
“You’re pipe-dreaming, Max. Why we have legislators who disavow Scripture and mock morality. A nation that exists for the glory of God? We can’t make it happen.”
NO, BUT GOD CAN.
Remember, who manages the hearts of rulers? Who prompts the decisions of kings? God does. With an arch of an eyebrow 1 le can open the coffers of Egypt, alter the policies of Babylonia, bring down a wall of communism. God can change a nation.
For that reason, we must pray—pray with all our hearts—that America would turn back to God.
Help us, O God our Savior, for the glory of your name; deliver us and forgive our sins for your name’s sake.
(Psalm 79:9)
Dare we apply the filter of I Corinthians 10:31 to our government? “Do it all for the glory of God.” Manage budgets for the glory of God. Determine homeland security for the glory of God. Elect officials for the glory of God. Not for the glory of Democrats, Republicans, or Independents. Not for the glory of my crusade or your cause, her race or his gender, but for the glory of God.
WHEN WE PRAY SUCH A GOD-CENTERED PRAYER,