R1644 A Christian Response To a Nation in Crisis, PT.2

God has an encouraging word for you today.

God has an encouraging word for you today. Number three, the theorists. Number four, the humanists. Number five, the atheists. Those all impact my Christian faith as an American citizen.

There are many more, I'm just going to say. Why do I need to ask God to help me to know how to respond as a Christian man to the abortionists? Why? What's that got to do with God, with my faith?

Very simple. Does the abortionists take life given by God? God owns life. It concerns me. It affects me. It speaks to the soul of America. Well, what about the activists? By the way, there's a lot of activism that's very good.

Don't just dump everything out the window. A lot of activism that is very good. But what is it about activism that is anti-Christian that would cause me to say, Lord, how do I respond to activism in the United States of America?

And why is it important? Because activism that is anti-God threatens the order of God. Activism threatens the life of God. Activism that is anti-Christ threatens the order. God is a God of order.

He made the world. Activism that is anti-God breaks up God's order and says it doesn't work that way. This is what I say.

This is what it's going to be. And because we feel this way, therefore this is the way we're going to live. Well, a third one is the theorists. Well, many of you have studied philosophy and got into all kinds of theories, but anti-Christian theorists are being let loose in the United States.

So I mentioned just one of them. Critical race theory, in my opinion, is anti-Christian. It cannot be accepted.

And when it is forced upon even our children, that cannot be permitted. That this theory is going to be pushed and taught and propagandized into the hearts of searching minds. Now, you say to me, why? Why is that the case? Because at its heart, the critical race theory ignores the image of God. Now, what does that mean? At its heart, it deals with the fundamental issue of racism.

Everybody watch me. Racism is sin against God, pure and simple. It is wrong in the eyes of God. Critical race theory denies and ignores the image of God.

What does that mean? Because I'm a Christian, I know, I believe that I am, you are created in the image of God. That's what the Bible tells me, which means that when you and I were created before sin came into the world, we were created to look like God in his image, to love like God in his image, and to live with God in his image.

And what happened? Somebody tell me, what happened to man? Sin came in. And when sin came in, what happened to the image of God? Mankind, men and women could no longer look like God, but very importantly to critical race theory, you and I could no longer love like God. Jesus said, by this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

Racism, which is hatred towards somebody because they are different, they are of another skin, they are of another ethnicity, has got absolutely nothing to do with where I was brought up or what ethnicity I have. It has everything to do with the fact that I'm sinning against the holiness and the righteousness of God, and God says it is wrong. Now listen folks, where are we?

How do I respond as a Christian? You've got to think God thoughts. Don't get caught up in the very thing that you say the world's getting caught up in.

Social media. Don't get thrown into a tailspin because you turn on the media and it's this group or it's that group. Don't find yourself pledging into depression over the helplessness because you've heard this and you want that. You and I have got to go into the presence of a holy and a righteous God and we've got to do business before God as Christian people. That's what God says.

Popular in America. Are you kidding me? You mean that preacher said? God said? Who cares what God said? What about the humanists?

Why is that a biblical issue? Because humanism at its heart negates the sovereignty of God. Humanism. What is humanism? What does a humanist believe? If I was a humanist, it means that I believe that I am intrinsically capable of solving my own problems. A humanist denies the sovereign ability of a sovereign God in everything my God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we could ask or even think. So as a Christian, I denounce any form of humanism because it points to the human heart. And by the way, America, you really think our human abilities have solved the problems of this country?

Come on. How many more people do we need to elect? How much more money do we need to make? How many more rockets do we need to send to Mars? How many more motor cars do we need to build? How many more armies do we need to raise? We can't do it.

We've demonstrated that. And we're looking at a world without Christ and God is saying to us, when you hand your life over to me, I am going to give you peace, which passes all understanding. I'm going to give you hope.

I'm going to show you where to go. Why the atheists? Well, it's probably the most logical because atheism denies the very existence of God.

I totally reject that. God is everything. He's the in the beginning God. It's in him, God, that we live and move and have our being. So here it is and I'll bring it all together.

You ready? Who are we? Well, we're the United States of America going back to the Declaration of Independence a few years back. Where are we now? We're blessed beyond reason. But we're also facing great, great challenges. So what is our response? So these people, they turn to the Lord. You know, you can do that in every crisis.

You may be facing a crisis in your family right now. You know, I spoke to a friend yesterday, his 24 year old nephew, the most wonderful young man, fell in love with his girl and they went out four wheeling. Have you ever been on a four wheeler?

I have. They went out four wheeling, just having the best time. Problem was they took a corner too sharply. That four wheeler flipped. It went up in the air and it came down right on the face of this young 24 year old man and killed him instantly. So how does a Christian respond to a crisis?

This fits into the totality of life, but today is July 4th and we are Americans and we are both blessed and we're facing an unprecedented onslaught. So here's what happened to Jehoshaphat and the people. Just give you the points.

You ready? Here they are. Number one, they acknowledged God.

That was their starting point. Verse 6. Look at chapter 20 verse 6. Not one of these points I'm telling you.

I'm not giving them to you. God is. Bible says Jehoshaphat stood up like I'm standing up.

People gathered like we're all gathering. Number one, acknowledged God. There it is. Oh Lord, God of our fathers, are you not the God?

You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Got to acknowledge God. If you don't start with God, that's like playing baseball from the second base.

Doesn't work folks. You can go and stand at the second base for the entire game waiting to hit the ball. It'll never be pitched to you.

Now don't ask me how I figured that out, but am I right Jordan? You stand at second base and look impressive. You can wear the right uniform and get the right bat. You can be an ex-cricket player and even hold it right. You can have home run written all over your face. You can have practiced. You got it really, kapow, it's going out the ballpark and the crowds are going to go wild.

They'll never pitch the ball to you because you're in the wrong place to begin with. Some of you are trying to solve issues and you not on first base. Acknowledge God. Number two, stay steady.

Verse nine, look at verse nine. If calamity comes upon us, I love this question America, if calamity comes upon us, we're the sword of judgment or COVID or, sorry I didn't mean COVID, I mean plague or famine. Whatever happens to us, we will stand.

I want everybody just to listen to this. I'm not preaching on end times, but I'm going to tell you something. Are you ready?

You young guys ready to hear this? Over the next five, ten years, there are going to be quite a lot of people who are Christian people that you believe are Christian people in the church. They're going to leave the church. It's already started.

COVID gave a segment of our world an excuse to stop coming and they took it. But the Bible says it's going to happen. And the worse a crisis goes on in the community and the more the roar of public opinion, the more you are going to see a falling away in the church. You are going to hear fellow Christians getting so incensed over these things. They're going to leave the church and they're going to go out. They're going to actually join the social agenda, not the biblical agenda. Whether the social agenda be right or wrong is not the issue. I pray it would be the right one.

Listen guys, guys, you listen to this. The church's one foundation is Jesus Christ, the Lord. This is not a social platform. Do you know in Great Britain, back at the turn of the last century, the church was powerful, man, powerful. And they started to bring social gospel into the pulpit. And for the next 40 years, when people came to church, they got social gospel agenda. You're not having to the church.

Go and have a look. You know, every second church in Great Britain is a bingo hall. They're little pockets of believers. Do you know that there are once great, great denominations that I will not name here in America that were very great evangelical denominations and they started to social agendize the pulpit and the church. And as the weeks and months go on, the people, God's people get a steady appetite of social agenda. Then they have to go and respond to it, but they've got no foundation to stand on. So they work out the problem from a social agenda, not from God's agenda.

And the church disintegrates. You're listening to Dr. Don Wilton, our teacher here on The Encouraging Word, and we'll be back in just a moment with more on this powerful message. But Dr. Don wants you to know we're here for you, ready to talk and pray with you, whether it's keyboard to keyboard on our website at T E W online.org, or this phone number 866-899-WORD.

That's 866-899-9673. Now back to today's great teaching with Dr. Don Wilton. Sounds like I'm picking on young people here. You students have got such an incredible ministry. You are so powerful, man.

You college students, you senior high school, you are powerful. I've just spent time with you in Kentucky. I've just seen what God does. I watch you on the ball fields. Watch out, man. You start church hopping in one, out the other, looking for entertainment and who's going to say, have the best social agenda. You have got a serious problem on your hands.

You'll become a spiritual dropout rate in a heartbeat. This is what they're talking about you. This is powerful stuff. Stay steady. Hold the line.

Be committed. Number three, call the spade. Verse 11, call the spade. You ever heard the phrase call a spade a spade?

Call it what it is. Verse 11, the Bible tells us there quite clearly in verse 11, he says, look at them. Look how they're repaying us. Do you know the very people who are given license to be people will take license to make people like their people.

That's as old as the generations. Nations don't collapse ordinarily from the outside. Satan wants to collapse America. It's going to happen from the inside. We don't need Russian tanks rolling around you. We've got the armor. We'll blow them back into the water. Not Russian tanks, that's our threat.

Not cyber security. It's spiritual conviction that's under attack. Call the spade. Number four, admit inadequacy.

About to close here. Verse 12, admit inadequacy. The Bible says, we've got no power to face this army. Do you know what I did early this morning? You know, God's been working on this message on me for about six weeks. About six weeks, man, I've been, Lord, you know, tell you this morning I just got on my knees, I said, Lord, I can't do this. And then I say, Lord, what right do I have to say anything? You know, like I'm a world authority or something. You know, we kicked the King of England in the pants, said we don't need him. I mean, so what have I got to say? I got on my knee.

I said, Lord, I can't do this. You know, you look at our world today, guys. I promise you, if you haven't felt this, you're going to start feeling a feeling of almost like hopelessness. And sometimes it'll come from the smallest little group. Do you know that sometimes the loudest noise comes from the cheapest seats? Not always the case. Do you know sometimes the most vocal people in the local church are the people who don't give one dime to their church? Did you know that?

Do you know sometimes on the ball field, the man who goes ballistic and shouts most and just about murders the referees and the umpires, he's the guy that sits in the top, in the cheapest seats possible, who's probably never played a game in his life before, and he's got the most to say. And I love him. Admit your inadequacy. And then finally, depend totally. The Bible says our God will do this. How do you depend totally?

It's got a four point, depending totally. Number one, listen. Just listen. Listen to what God said. All God's asking you to do today is like we read here in the scriptures in verse 15. He said, excuse me, King Jehoshaphat, listen. Listen. Just listen to what God's saying.

Number two, engage. Verse 16 says, get down there. Let me tell you how this works.

You ready to tell you how this works, folks? When it comes to the church, the church's foundation is Jesus. In the church, we need to do everything teaching. My mandate is to preach the word. Preach the word.

Be instant in season and out of season. I'm asking God with all of this going on, please do not let me lose my mandate and my focus to teach and preach the word of God. Focus on the word of God.

We, in our life groups, camp in the city with our children, with our boys and girls, in recreation. It's the word of God. We're teaching the word because the word is the lamp and the light unto our pathway. Now here's what happens.

When we as a church come together and you hear the word of God and you hear God, the spirit of God takes over and the spirit of God takes us. Where do you think we're all going to be this week? All over the place. We're out in the world. We're in business. We're in politics.

We're in schools. Activate. Engage.

That's what the Bible says. Engage as a Christian. You don't be silent on these things as a Christian, but you've got to do it like Jesus and God will use you in a powerful way. Listen, engage.

The third one is to concede. Bible says in verse 17, powerful verse says, you know, take up your positions, but you've got to concede to God because God's going to fight for you. I don't know how to do, you know, it's like you get dressed for battle and you go out and you prepare and you listen and you go out and you engage and you just know in your heart, you know, our God will fight for us.

He's got us. As God has stirred your heart and my heart, perhaps there's something that needs to be adjusted, a change necessary. Before we get away, you've heard from Dr. Wilton preaching and teaching from the pulpit, but as he steps into the studio, open your heart to what he wants to share next. Are you ready to give your heart and life to the Lord Jesus Christ? Why don't you pray this prayer with me right now? Dear God, I know that I'm a sinner and I know that Jesus died for me on the cross. Today, I repent of my sin and by faith I receive you into my heart. In Jesus' name, my friend, I welcome you today into the family of God.

This is exciting news. If you've given your life to Jesus or rededicated your life, we have free resources we want you to have if you'll call 866-899-WORD. That's 866-899-9673 or meet us online at TEWOnline.org. Did you know that you can listen to Weekly Words of Encouragement written by Dr. Don Wilton on YouTube? Follow us each week as Dr. Wilton brings you Words of Encouragement for the week ahead. Just type in YouTube's search bar, Weekly Words of Encouragement, Don Wilton Devotional. Again, discover more online at TEWOnline.org and know that we're ready to pray with you anytime 24 hours a day at 866-899-WORD.