Hey, podcast listeners. Thanks for streaming today's podcast from Pathway to Victory. You know, Pathway to Victory is a non-profit ministry featuring the Bible teaching of Dr. Robert Jeffress. And right now, your generous gift will have twice the impact thanks to the In God We Trust $1.5 million matching challenge, active now through July 5th.
To give a special matching challenge gift, go to ptv.org/slash donate or follow the link in our show notes.
Now, here's today's podcast from Pathway to Victory. Hi, this is Robert Jeffers and I'm glad to study God's Word with you every day on this Bible teaching program on today's edition of Pathway to Victory. On July 4th this year, we are recognizing the 250th birthday of our country. And yes, it's a time for celebration, but it's also a time for solemn acts of devotion to the God who has so richly blessed America. Can America survive another 250 years?
That's what we're going to talk about today. Welcome to Pathway to Victory with author and pastor Dr. Robert Jeffers. America has been uniquely blessed by God from the beginning. but as we celebrate 250 years as a nation, How do we ensure that blessing continues?
Today on Pathway to Victory, Dr. Robert Jeffers shares four practical steps Christians can take right now to stand for righteousness, support our nation. and extend God's blessing on America. But first, let's take a moment to hear some important ministry updates. Thanks, David, and welcome again to Pathway to Victory.
Well, this coming Saturday, Americans will celebrate our 250th birthday as a nation. But I believe God is calling us to do more than celebrate, He's calling us to wake up. And so today I'm going to share what Bible prophecy reveals about America's future, why our greatest days may be behind us, and four things every believer can do right now to make a difference. Then, bear in mind on Sunday night, July 5th, We'll be wrapping up our exciting In God We Trust matching challenge. Several friends of Pathway to Victory have created a matching challenge of $1.5 million so that every dollar you give today will be doubled in size and impact.
We will channel your gift into broadcasting the truth through Pathway to Victory all across the country we love. When you give your gift to the matching challenge, you're ensuring that the Christian voice remains a powerful force for good in shaping the future of our nation. And when you give your generous gift today, I'm going to send you our 250th commemorative edition of America is a Christian Nation. This is more than a book. It's a keepsake, a treasure for your family that celebrates America's 250th anniversary and reminds every generation that this nation was built on the Word of God.
We'll say more about this fabulous book in the matching challenge later, but right now let's open our hearts and our Bibles together. I titled today's message, America at the Crossroads. Can we survive another 250 years? What does the future hold for our country? I wish I could give you an encouraging word, but the future does not look encouraging.
I want to suggest to you that as I look through God's word, I see three different components that could contribute to the demise of America. First of all, the moral disintegration of our country. There's a second component, and that is military confrontation. Military confrontation. Listen to me: the next event on God's timetable is the rapture of the church.
Paul describes it in 1 Thessalonians 4. He says, For on that day, the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first, and then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up, harpozoed, snatched away to meet the Lord in the air. Thus we shall always be with the Lord. What does that have to do with God's judgment that America will face? I want you to consider the implications of the rapture.
I'll confess to you, I really had not given it that much thought until this past week. Think of the effects. Think of the economic impact of the rapture on our country. Think about the effect the rapture will have on our military protection. Think about the effect on the military.
Now, Only 2% of those in the military register as atheists or agnostics. That doesn't mean the rest were Christians, but nevertheless, we had the highest concentration of Christians in the military of any nation in the world. The greater percent of our military are Christians than in any other army in the world. Think of the impact of every Christian man and woman being removed from the military. Think what our nation will suffer as a result of that.
I believe that's going to play a major role in the demise of America. But there's a third component of that demise of America that we're already starting to see right now, and that is Israeli isolation. There is no other way to say it than this. Americans' support for Israel is plummeting. Did you know a survey in July of 2025 by Pew Research found that.
59% of Americans right now have an unfavorable view of the Israeli government, which is up from 51% the year before. It is going down. Nearly two-thirds of Americans disapprove of the Israeli leadership. The Bible predicts that in the last days, every nation in the world, including the United States, will turn her back on Israel. It's easy to see how that's going to happen.
Interestingly, turning our back on Israel. Will result in the decimation of every country, including the United States, but it will have no impact on Israel. Did you know Israel is the only nation in the world that has the promise of endurance? Because Israel was a nation created by God. Israel is the nation that is the apple of God's eye.
And yet, in spite of that, America will turn her back on Israel. Don't forget, regardless of what the polls say, regardless of what the politicians say, God made a covenant with Israel. In Genesis 12, 3, he said to Abraham, I will bless those who bless you and your descendants. I will curse those who curse you and your descendants. I believe, I believe, one reason God has so uniquely and richly blessed America has been because of our historic support of Israel.
Whether we're talking about moral disintegration, military confrontation, Israeli isolation, America is moving away from God's blessings.
Now, you may be thinking right now, this is the most depressing patriotic message I have ever heard. Does this mean we're to be fatalistic? Does it mean we're just supposed to sit on our hands until the end comes? No, we've talked about America's past. You can't change it.
We've talked about America's future. It's already set. You're not going to change it. But I want to talk about America's present. What we can do to prolong God's blessing on our country, even if it's a temporary time.
We're going to talk about America's present. And our present is a time of choice. What can we do to make the right choice for America's president? I'm gonna suggest four action steps for every believer who truly loves his God and loves this country. Number one, take a stand.
Take a stand. Remember, we are the restrainers of evil, but that means we have to push back against the flood of evil that is trying to envelop our world right now. That means you need to take a stand wherever God has placed you. Maybe it's a school board meeting. Maybe it's a city council meeting.
Maybe it's a neighborhood association. Maybe it's your school. Maybe it's your work when an employer tries to force an ungodly practice on the workforce. Whatever it is, we need to stand up and push back. We need to say no.
We need to take a stand, especially take a stand against those who would seek to diminish our freedom of worship. What others have called the first freedom found in the Constitution, our right to worship and practice our faith. Anybody who tries to curtail that freedom needs to be stopped. I remember so well many years ago when our oldest daughter, Julia, was eight years old. She was very evangelistic back then, just as she is right now.
And she was passing out water bottles to her classmates that had a Bible verse printed on them, John 4:14, that says, Whoever drinks of the water I give will never thirst. And so she was sharing her faith, giving out those water bottles.
Well, she was told by the school administrator that she couldn't do that because that violated school policy. And so she asked me what she should do. And I decided it's time for a civics lesson. And so I called our good friend Kelly Shackelford at First Liberty Institute, got some information about recent court rulings, about similar actions. I brought Julia into my study and we called the administrator.
And by the way, he was a godly good man. He was just misinformed. And so I thanked him, first of all, for what he was doing for our family. For what he did to our community, but then brought up this ruling. And I said, I know it violates your school policy, but your policy violates the Constitution.
And here's why. And we need you to reinstate her right. And surprisingly, he agreed and understood.
Now, that's not a major legal victory that you'll read about in the news. It did not have the standing of a Supreme Court ruling. I understood that. But in that West Texas town, we decided to take a stand where we were at that time to push back against those who would violate the Constitution. I'm saying if we're going to be restrainers of evil, we need to take a stand.
Secondly, If we care about America, we need to cast a vote. Cast a vote.
Now, I know some of you are saying, well, where is that in the Bible? Where is anything about voting? Honestly, nowhere. But there's a reason it's not found in scripture. In biblical times, you didn't get to choose your leader, they didn't send around ballots.
I'd like for emperor so-and-so. No, you didn't get to choose the emperor, that was imposed upon you. But John Jay, who is a great Christian and the first Supreme Court justice in the United States, said this: He said, In this Christian nation, By the way, isn't that interesting? The first Supreme Court Chief Justice said America is a Christian nation. He'd be accused of being a Christian nationalist today.
But he said, without doubt, in this Christian nation, God has given us the privilege of choosing our leaders. We get to choose our leaders. Every time we go into the voting booth, we get to cast a vote. We're casting a vote for righteousness or unrighteousness.
Now I know. There are no perfect Candidates, there are no perfect leaders, there are no perfect pastors. That's not the issue. When we go to vote, we ought to ask. Who is best equipped?
To fulfill God's purpose for government. Which candidate? That's what we ought to be asking. You see, we need to remember: God didn't just create one institution, the church. He actually created three institutions to accomplish His purpose on earth.
First of all, He established the family in Genesis 2. The family was first created by God. Then in Genesis 9, He created government to bring order to society. And then in Acts chapter 2, He created the church of Jesus Christ to share the gospel. And people get all mixed up when they try to confuse those responsibilities.
God has not called on government to lead a revival in America. God has not asked government to raise our families. God has not asked the church to enforce discipline against those outside the church. Every institution has its own responsibility. What is God's responsibility for government?
The Bible says there are two things we elect leaders to do. When choosing a leader, two responsibilities government has. The number one responsibility of government is to protect citizens from evildoers. It's to protect citizens from evildoers. Romans 13:4 says, for government does not bear the sword for nothing.
Now, what does that mean? To bear the sword means to execute. to kill somebody. God has given government the right to bear the sword. That means capital punishment.
If somebody takes another person's life, government has the right to take that person's life. That went back to Genesis 9, 6. God has authorized government to do that. God has authorized government to stop evildoers, doesn't matter where they are, to keep evildoers from practicing evil. And we need to remember that in this present situation.
What Iran is doing, ladies and gentlemen, is evil. It is evil to kill 45,000 of your citizens for being dissidents. That is absolute evil. And we need to call it what it is. And make no mistake about it, the leaders of Iran want to destroy every one of us in this room.
They will not stop until they have succeeded in doing that. Remember the words of the Islatollah Khomeini back in 1979? He called America the great Satan. He called Israel the little Satan, and he said, both of us need to be wiped off the face of the earth. And I want to say this as clearly as I know how.
I've said it to him privately. I said it publicly at the White House. Thank God we have a president who understands he not only has the God-given right, but the God-given responsibility to protect this nation from those who would destroy us. God help him as he does that. That is the function of government.
And when we're looking for a leader, we're not asking who's going to be the best Bible school teacher. We're not asking who's qualified to be pastor. We're saying who's going to do what is government's right and responsibility, and that is to protect us. The second function of government is to protect citizens' right to practice their faith. Where do you find that?
In Scripture, very clearly. 1 Timothy 2, verses 1 and 2. Paul said, Let's pray, prayers and entreaties and thanksgiving be made for kings and all those who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life in all godliness and dignity. You know what he's saying? Pray for government.
that they might leave us alone to practice our faith. We don't expect a revival from them. That's the church's responsibility. But government needs to leave us alone so we can have quiet and tranquil lives in all godliness and dignity. And when we cast a vote, those are the things we ought to consider: who's best to execute the purposes of government.
Thirdly, in addition to taking a stand and casting a vote, we need to say a prayer. Or maybe more than one prayer for our country and those who inhabit it. There's a verse you may not be familiar with. Jeremiah 29, verse 7. God was speaking to those who were about to be sent to Babylon into exile.
He was talking to the Jews and he was instructing them how to handle their surroundings, what to do for the city and the nation to where they're going to be sent. And notice Jeremiah 29, verse 7. God said, seek the welfare of the city where I've sent you into exile and pray to the Lord on its behalf. For in its welfare, You will have welfare. Christians, again, are confused about this.
They think they're supposed to isolate themselves from the culture. Stay in their holy huddle and hope nothing bad happens to them. No, he said, be involved in the welfare of the city. That word welfare, shalom in Greek, means peace. Seek the peace of the city.
It also means prosperity. Seek the prosperity of the city. For in its welfare, in its peace, in its prosperity, you will have peace. We're to be concerned about the world into which we're sent, the nation in which we live. And of course, the best way we seek welfare for those around us is to lead them to faith in Christ.
And that ought to be our prayer for them. Remember 2 Chronicles 7, 14, if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, I will forgive their sin and I will heal their land. John Adams said it this way: the American Union will last as long as God pleases. It is the duty of every American citizen to exert his utmost abilities and endeavors to preserve the country as long as possible and to pray. We need to seek the welfare of the city, and one of the best ways we do that is to pray for our country.
Take a stand, cast a vote, say a prayer. And number four, the most important thing we can do is share the gospel. Ladies and gentlemen, the only way we're going to change America is by changing the hearts of Americans. And no political party can do that. The Democrat Party and the Republican Party are corrupt and spiritually bankrupt.
They have no answers for our country. Only the church of Jesus Christ has the answer. And if we want to see God's blessing on this country, we must do everything we can to share the gospel with as many people and as quickly as possible. And that's the mission of First Baptist Church Dallas: transforming the world with God's word one life at a time. And you know, we're seeing that happen.
Every day of every week, we hear from people around the world, in our country and around the world, who are coming to faith in Christ, who are rededicating their lives to Christ because of the word they've heard preached from this pulpit. I was getting a hamburger Friday and I was on the way out of the restaurant, and a man stopped me. He said, Could I take a selfie with you? I said, I can't imagine why he'd want to, but I said yes. And he explained about himself.
He said he was from Romania, and he said he has friends in Romania that talk about our church and pathway to victory and our message. And he said it would be such an encouragement for them to see this picture. We hear that all the time. The best investment you can make, and the investment you are making, is in this church that has the power through God's word to transform the world.
So, thank you for doing that. You know. When I was uh Little boy growing up in this church, I remember we had a week-long revival at Southern Methodist University on the SMU campus, McFarland. auditorium. It was an evangelistic outreach.
And our guest preacher for the week was a man named Dr. Angel Martinez. He was known for having memorized all of the New Testament, but he was a powerful preacher. And I remember those meetings. But what I remember even more than the meetings were the weeks of spiritual preparation our church went through to prepare for that great evangelistic effort.
And during that time, we learned a little chorus we sang in every worship service. It came from the Old Testament book of Habakkuk. I bet some of you know the chorus. It went like this. Lord, Send a revival, Lord.
Send a revival. Lord, send a revival. And let it begin with me. Sing it with me. Lord, send a revival.
Lord, send the revival. Lord Cinder revival. And where did begin? With me. Back in 1976, when our country was celebrating its bicentennial, our 200th birthday.
I look back to see what was preached here from our church during the bicentennial. And Dr. Chriswell, our former pastor, preached a message entitled, Turning America Back to God. And this is how he closed the sermon. I am part of a nation.
Maybe a small part, but I am part of the nation. and the nation cannot repent. Until I repent. The nation cannot believe. Unless I believe.
The nation cannot be baptized. Unless I am baptized. The nation cannot turn to God. unless I turn to God. The nation cannot be saved.
unless I am saved. The devotion and the fire and the flame must start with me. Lord, send a revival. and let it begin with me. That's the prayer.
That's the hope of every Christian. who loves God. and loves America. America's future will be shaped by what happens in the hearts of Americans, one life at a time. And that starts with you and me.
One of the most powerful ways you can put that conviction into action today is through the In God We Trust matching challenge. Every gift you give right now will be matched dollar for dollar, multiplying your investment in taking the gospel to more people in more places than ever before. Let me tell you a quick story. Benjamin Franklin stood before the Constitutional Convention in 1787 and he said, I have lived a long time and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see that God governs the affairs of men. My friend, let me be very clear.
Though our country is in chaos, God has not abdicated his throne. And right now, he is inviting you to be part of something significant. The In God We Trust matching challenge is active right now, and so every dollar you give today will be doubled. But time is running out to act. And to thank you for your generous gift today, I'm going to send you several wonderful resources.
The first is an inspirational keepsake for the whole family. It's a coffee table book called The 250th Commemorative Edition of America is a Christian Nation. And then, as a bonus, I'll also include the In God We Trust DVD and a patriotic music disc. My friend, this is your moment. Step forward in faith, move with urgency, and trust the only one who governs the affairs of men.
Here's David to tell you more. When you give a generous gift to support the Ministry of Pathway to Victory, You're invited to request the brand new 250th commemorative edition of America is a Christian Nation. In addition to the book, you'll also receive In God We Trust, a brand new two-disc set featuring music performances by the First Baptist Dallas Choir and Orchestra, and teaching from Dr. Robert Jeffress. To request these resources, call 866-999-2965, visit ptv.org, or text ptv to 78800.
And when you give $100 or more, we'll also send you the America and the Bible Message Series on DVD video and MP3 format audio disc set. And remember, because of the In God We Trust matching challenge, your gift to pathway to victory will be matched and therefore doubled in impact. but the deadline is quickly approaching on July 5th at midnight.
So be sure to get in touch with us today before it's too late. One more time, call 866-999-2965 or go online to ptv.org. You can also send your donation by mail right to P.O. Box 223-609-Dallas, Texas 75222. Again, that's P.O.
Box 223-609, Dallas, Texas, 75222. I'm David J. Mullins, inviting you to join us for a special presentation from First Baptist Dallas, the In God We Trust Freedom Sunday, that's coming up next time on Pathway to Victory. Pathway to Victory with Dr. Robert Jeffress comes from the pulpit of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas.
You made it to the end of today's podcast from Pathway to Victory, and we're so glad you're here. Pathway to Victory relies on the generosity of loyal listeners like you to make this podcast possible. And right now, your ministry gift will be matched and therefore doubled in impact thanks to the In God We Trust $1.5 million matching challenge. Take advantage of this opportunity to double your impact before the deadline on July 5th. To give toward the matching challenge, go to ptv.org slash donate.
or follow the link in our show notes. We hope you've been blessed by today's podcast from Pathway to Victory.
