Divine Judgment and Wrath in the Age of Grace
Why I believe the “little g” gods of America are Soon to be Humbled
Pastor David A Crisp, 2015
Right now I am in the midst of a sermon series at our church entitled, “Divine Judgment and Wrath in the age of Grace.” It’s a hard subject to wrap your brain around and develop a good sound biblical doctrine about! How does God’s wrath and judgment work in this age of grace?
Now that Jesus has come and taken all our sin, guilt and punishment upon himself, is God’s wrath currently active or just waiting, being “stored up” (Rom. 2 :5) for the day of judgment? It is clear from scripture that in the end God will judge all individuals and all the nations. Thankfully, those in Christ will not be judged for their sins, since Jesus already paid for those. Those who are in Christ will be judged at the Judgment Seat of Christ and give an accounting for what we each did with the salvation that was freely given us - did we spend our talents, time and treasure for the kingdom, (gold, silver precious jewels) or did we use our lives, even every casual conversation or careless word on ourselves, (wood, hay and stubble)? What we have done will pass through the fire and its worth revealed. (See 2 Cor. 5:10, 1 Cor. 3:11-13 and Matt. 25:14-30) However, everyone else - all those individuals whose names are not written in the Lamb’s book of life - will be judged at the Great White Throne judgment (Rev. 20: 11-15) and they will be judged for their sins and eternally punished. This should give us all pause for a moment as we think about our great salvation and the great responsibility that comes with it to fulfill the great commission! But what about judgment and wrath BEFORE the end? Is God’s wrath active now? Is it ever poured out on individuals? And what about the judgment of the nations?
Rom 1:18 says that “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness.” That’s a present tense, continuing action verb: “is being revealed.” So it appears God’s wrath may indeed be active now, before the end. Rom. 2:5 states that “But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed.” This speaks of the future manifestation of God’s wrath against the same evildoers – a wrath that awaits them at the end. We know how the future wrath of God will be manifest - the fires of hell! But how does God’s wrath manifest in the present? Romans 1:24, 26 and 28 contain a repeated phrase which reveals the way God’s wrath is being poured out in the present: “God gave them over.” God’s wrath is being revealed in the present by God “giving over” the evildoer to the “sinful desire of his heart” (v. 24) and the result is the “due penalty” (1:27) which is received now in the present. This “due penalty” is the natural consequences of sin taking their toll in the lives of individuals who rebel against God. These consequences are described in Rom 1:28-32: “Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, and no mercy. Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.”
It is clear from scripture that those whom God has saved are not subject to the wrath of God, present or future. (see: Rom. 8:1-2, 1 Thes. 5:9, 1 Thes. 1:10, I John 1:9- 2:2, 1 John 4:17-18. Please look these up and read them!) Why are we no longer subject to God’s wrath, even though we deserve it? Because God punished Jesus- poured out His wrath on Jesus- for our sins! (See: Is. 53:4-6, 2 Cor. 5:21) We are saved from wrath by faith alone in grace alone! Therefore, anyone who rejects the free gift of salvation in Christ, remains culpable and guilty, “condemned already” (John 3:18) receiving God’s wrath now as the natural consequences of sin overtake him in this life and awaiting the wrath of God is the future as he stores it up for himself on the day of judgment.
This, then, is how divine judgement and wrath work in age of grace in the lives of individuals, but what about nations?
Jesus tells us that in the end he will judge the nations. (Matt. 24:31-32) Since nations cannot be judged for salvation, (since Jesus did not die to save nations but to save people) how will nations be judged? On what basis will they be rewarded or condemned? According to the Lord’s own word, it will be on the basis of how the nations treat “the least of these, my brethren.” Who are the Lord’s brothers? The answer is two-fold. First, Jesus’ brothers are those who belong to the true church, for Christ is the “firstborn of many brothers.” (Rom 8:29) Secondly, Jesus is also, through blood and an eternal covenant, a brother to those who belong to the house of Israel. God promised to judge the nations in Gen. 12:3 on this same basis: “I will bless those who bless you (Abraham) and curse those who curse you.” Over and over throughout scripture and history we have seen God “make good” on this promise. Numerous times God has judged national Israel herself, never revoking her eternal covenant of “ownership” of the land he promised, but driving her out, temporarily revoking her “occupancy permit” due to her sinful rebellion against God. The gentile nations will be judged according to how they treated God’s covenant people, the apple of his eye: the “grafted in” church and Israel. We see that God will judge nations in the future at the end, but we also see that God has in the past judged nations, and even in our day as well.
We read many examples of God’s judgment and wrath falling on nations in the Bible: Noah’s flood, hail and fiery brimstone destroy Sodom and Gommorah, the “sin of the Ammorites” (the inhabitants of Canaan) reaches “full measure” and God uses the Israelites to destroy them, God commands first Joshua, then generations later Saul, to destroy the Amalekites for their sins against God’s people, (a job which he fails to do , nearly resulting in Israel’s destruction as recorded in the book of Esther), judgments first prophesied then fulfilled upon Egypt, Ninnevah (Assyria), Babylon, Medo- Persia, Greece, Rome... and one might include other kings and kingdoms not mentioned in the Bible who have been removed and/or destroyed after harming God’s covenant people: Hitler, Hirohito, Stalin, Mao… and list goes on, with some who have yet to experience their come-uppance. “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction.” (Gal. 6:7-8) And lest we think that these kings and kingdoms rose and fell merely as a result of earthy circumstances and human wills, we have these words from the prophet Daniel, the words of an angel from heaven, and words from the mouth of one of the deposed and restored gentile kings himself, Nebuchadnezzar! “Then Daniel praised the God of heaven and said: “Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are his. He changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and raises up others.” (Daniel 2:19b-21) “The decision is announced by messengers, the holy ones declare the verdict, so that the living may know that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of people.” (Daniel 4:17) “Even as the words were on his lips, a voice came from heaven, “This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you. You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like the ox. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes.” (Daniel 4:31-32) “Then I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever. His dominion is an eternal dominion; his kingdom endures from generation to generation .All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: “What have you done?” (Daniel 4:34-35) Indeed, the Bible is clear, God is sovereign over the nations!
The famous story of the “handwriting on the wall” gives particular insight into God’s judgment of nations. God first brings Judgment upon Nebuchadnezzar, at the height of his pride, (Dan. 4:29-30) by striking him with insanity for 7 years. Nebuchadnezzar eventually humbles himself and is restored as he acknowledges that God is sovereign over the nations. (Dan. 4:31-37) His grandson Belshazzar is not as wise. In Daniel 5 we read of the final judgment and end of the glorious Babylonian kingdom coming on the night of a great banquet. The hand of God appears writing a pronouncement on the wall, “Mene Mene Tekel Parsin.” Later that night Daniel interprets the cryptic words, “God has numbered the days of your reign and brought them to an end. You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting. Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.” As Daniel is giving the interpretation he charges Belshazzar with a particular crime, Daniel first recounts to the king the tale of his grandfather Nebuchadnezzar, (Dan. 5: 18-21) then Daniel makes it clear that the kingdom will fall because Belshazzar did not humble himself before God, “even though you knew all this.” Belshazzar was “weighed on the scale” and came up short. What scale was he weighed on? He was weighed on the scale of God’s standards for kingdoms - how they treat God’s covenant people - but Belshazzar also had the added guilt of knowing the story of what happened to his grandfather and not heeding its historic warning to humble himself before God. He did not need to know God’s Word, (although he had Daniel right in his own court!) he only needed to look to his own family history and that of his country to clearly see what God required of him. That very night Belshazzar is slain and the kingdom falls just as was predicted, a graphic illustration of the principle contained in Romans 1:18-20 “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.”
This is why I believe God’s judgment is now coming to America. We have been weighed on the scales and found wanting, and even though we know our own history, we have disregarded its warning and plunged headlong down the path of rebellion against God both in the formation of our laws and policies which codify and celebrate sin and in our treatment of God’s covenant people - the “least of these, my brothers.”
At our nation’s inception, we failed to deal with a grave sin, the sin of slavery. In fact, we legalized it in our own constitution. We allowed it to continue over the next two generations, even though we knew it was wrong. Eventually the consequences of our sin caught up to us and God “gave us over” to a civil war that cost 600,000 American sons -fully 2% of our population at that time. (A modern equivalent ratio would be 6 million lives today!) John Brown predicted that this grievous sin would exact a terrible price, “There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth in a million homes, and grief and sorrow will sit with every family in the land.” He was right. Now generations later, Just like Belshazzar of old, even though we knew what happened when our forefathers sinned and faced judgment, we have done the same things again and again, rebelling against God, enshrining sin in our laws and mistreating “the least of these,” placing our nation in a precarious place, calling down God’s judgment and wrath upon ourselves.
In 1973 the Supreme Court forced all 50 states to legalize the detestable practice of infanticide known as abortion, a ruling which has to-date taken the lives of over 50 million pre-born children – truly the “least of these, my brethren.” In ancient times God abhorred the practices of the worshippers of the Canaanite idol-god known as “Molech” who required followers to sacrifice their infant children by throwing them into the fire. Today Molech lives in the abortion mills of America. I have often wondered why God has not severely judged America for this sin as he did with slavery. One reason is that God is so very patient! (see 2 Peter 3:9) But I believe there has been two other reasons God’s just wrath for America has been forestalled.
The first reason has been America’s support for Israel, qualifying the United States for the protection that comes from God’s promise of “blessing those who bless” Israel. The year the Supreme Court legalized abortion, another major event happened which had repercussions in the Spirit realm, a short-lived war known as the ‘73 Yom-Kippur War. Israel was attacked by multiple armies and within just a few days, Israeli ground forces were overrun. Israel was in danger of losing Jerusalem and all the land that had been captured in the ‘67 Six-Day War. Without immediate re-supply of aircraft and arms, Israel was in real danger of complete defeat and annihilation. American President Richard Nixon, despite being an irreligious, foul mouthed and not overly moral man, remembered the words of his devout Christian mother who had once warned him that “above all else he must protect and defend Israel.” Over the objections of Sec. of State Henry Kissinger and most of his cabinet and advisors, Nixon ordered a massive airlift of supplies and aircraft to Israel, which by all accounts turned the tide in that war.
(read about it here) https://www.commentarymagazine.com/article/thirty-six-years-ago-today-richard-nixon-saved-israel%e2%80%94but-got-no-credit/
I believe this action to support Israel when she desperately needed help, and many others like it taken by the United States over the years by administrations from both sides of the aisle have kept God’s judgment from falling heavily upon us, not because we don’t deserve it, but because of God’s faithfulness to his promise to Abraham 4,000 years ago!
In addition, God has given his people a means of intervening - a “prescription,” if you will - for His people to apply in intercession on behalf of their sinful country when judgment and wrath are justly in store. In 2 Chronicles 7:14, God gives this promise to Solomon: “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”
I believe I have seen this promise fulfilled at least once in my lifetime. By the fall of 1997, the legalized sin of abortion has been plaguing our land for 24 years. Now a hidden sin was taking place. President Bill Clinton was engaging in sexual immorality, fornication and adultery with a young intern named Monica Lewinski - some of it taking place right in the Oval Office! The leader of our country was engaging in the same types of behavior which were used by the pagans in their idol worship of sex goddesses in the temples of Ephesus and Corinth 2000 years ago - only now it was happening literally in the actual highest seat of power inside the White House. This was happening secretly during the fall of 1997 and would not become known publically till the spring of 1998. But something else happened that fall that once again, in my opinion, forestalled the just wrath of God. On Oct. 4, between 1.5 million and 3 million (there are no official counts just estimates) Christian men descended on Washington DC for an event that was called “Promise Keepers - Stand in the Gap. ” I was there that day. Millions of Christian men filled the mall area packed as tight as sardines from the capitol steps stretching east to beyond the Washington Monument.
(see pictures here) http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=stand+in+the+gap+photo+oct+1997&qpvt=stand+in+the+gap+photo+oct+1997&FORM=VDRE#view=detail&mid=09A797184382997B6A3E09A797184382997B6A3E )
We came fasting and praying, confessing and repenting, asking God for mercy. And once again because of God’s faithfulness to His word, despite the arrogance, sins, and lack of repentance by our leaders, judgment was withheld, at least for a little while. Although Bill Clinton himself was impeached, he was not convicted or removed from office and served out the remainder of his term until Jan. 20, 2001, albeit under the shadow of the scandal. (Although now he is held in high regard by millions.)
Then came the horrific events of Sept. 11, 2001. Many noted Christian speakers and authors wondered out loud if this was “judgment from the Lord.” It was then that I personally began to wrestle with this question of how divine judgment and wrath operate in the age of grace. My opinion at that time was that the 9-11 attack was, as with all crimes, simply the result of wicked men doing evil things in a fallen world.
Nevertheless, we know and have seen that God is sovereignly moving, “setting up kings and deposing them” and that God has said, “Behold, I Myself have created the smith who blows the fire of coals And brings out a weapon for its work; And I have created the destroyer to ruin.” (Is. 57:16) Those of you who have read Rabbi Jonathan Cahn’s book, “The Harbinger” know that there is a strong biblical case to be made that the 9-11 attack was indeed God speaking a loud word of warning to America to repent and return to Him. In the fifth chapter of Isaiah, God speaks a parable through the prophet describing how and why judgment was to fall upon the nation of Israel in Isaiah’s day:
“I will sing for the one I love, a song about his vineyard: My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside. He dug it up and cleared it of stones and planted it with the choicest vines. He built a watchtower in it and cut out a winepress as well. Then he looked for a crop of good grapes, but it yielded only bad fruit. “Now you dwellers in Jerusalem and people of Judah, judge between me and my vineyard. What more could have been done for my vineyard than I have done for it? When I looked for good grapes, why did it yield only bad? Now I will tell you what I am going to do to my vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it will be destroyed; I will break down its wall, and it will be trampled. I will make it a wasteland, neither pruned nor cultivated, and briers and thorns will grow there. I will command the clouds not to rain on it.” (Isaiah 5:1-7)
God holds the nation responsible for its rebellion (bad fruit) and its guilt is even more pronounced, since this nation had been given so much by God, (“What more could i have done?) a principle reinforced by Jesus’ words in the New Testament, “The servant who knows the master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what the master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” (Luke 12:47-48) Back in Isaiah 5, God details his “writ of indictment” against Israel, listing their numerous sins including this timely charge, “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight.” (Isaiah 5:20-21) In other words, judgment is coming because you thought you were smarter and “more enlightened” than God Himself! You redefine what God has clearly marked evil, calling it “good.
Now we arrive at 2015. Once again the Supreme Court legalizes sin. Once again the United States forgets her past, thumbing her nose at Holy God, this time adding the abomination of Sodom, to slavery and abortion on the list of evil things that we have called “good.” Only now there is something else in play. As a nation, with our policies and practices, we no longer “bless” Israel. Just mere days after the “gay-marriage” ruling that was celebrated by bathing The White House in rainbow-colored floodlights, a deal is reached - pushed by the American President - that gives Israel’s enemies access to nuclear weapons. We have shifted from blessing Israel to cursing her, which in turn moves America from blessings to curses. We have been given warning after warning. Now what will the outcome be?
God revealed his pattern in Isaiah 5, first the removal of the hedge, “Now I will tell you what I am going to do to my vineyard: I will take away its hedge…” a removal of divine protection allowing enemies to attack. Then the judgment moves from God allowing enemies to attack, to God Himself striking the land, “I will break down its wall, and it will be trampled. I will make it a wasteland, neither pruned nor cultivated, and briers and thorns will grow there. I will command the clouds not to rain on it.” In this case, it was a devastating drought which ruined their agrarian economy. Finally, because the nation persists in its rebellion, God calls for a foreign invader to be his instrument of wrath, “Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away, his hand is still upraised. He lifts up a banner for the distant nations, He whistles for those at the ends of the earth. Here they come, swiftly and speedily! Not one of them grows tired or stumbles, not one slumbers or sleeps; not a belt is loosened at the waist, not a sandal strap is broken. Their arrows are sharp, all their bows are strung; their horses’ hooves seem like flint, their chariot wheels like a whirlwind. Their roar is like that of the lion, they roar like young lions; they growl as they seize their prey and carry it off with no one to rescue. In that day they will roar over it like the roaring of the sea. And if one looks at the land, there is only darkness and distress; even the sun will be darkened by clouds” (Isaiah 5:25-30) That day came for Israel, just as Isaiah had predicted, with Babylon answering the Lord’s beckoning whistle. Jerusalem was destroyed and Israel carried to exile.
When God sends judgement he does so with a purpose. His purpose is redemptive and revelatory. He will use judgement as a tool to turn people to himself in order to save as many as is possible. He also uses it to reveal that He is the one true God and that the idols of any nation are worthless and powerless. If God sends judgement to America it will accomplish these purposes. “So is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11)
I believe the “Isaiah 5” pattern of judgement reveals what has happened, what is now happening, and what will continue to happen in America as long as we continue on a national path of rebellion against God’s ways both in our laws and in our policy towards Israel. First, a removal of protection, (as happened on 9-11) then repeated blows to our economy. Certainly no one can argue that the false “god” of America is money - so much so that we all use a familiar figure of speech, calling money, “the ALMIGHTY dollar!” (Say that over to yourself a few times as see if it doesn’t resonate in your spirit as blasphemy.) Every day our financial system’s vulnerabilities to cyber-attacks seem to be exposed. Each day the markets teeter precariously propped up by economically unsustainable infusions of Federal Reserve cash. Our staggering national debt, unfunded liabilities such as Medicare and Social Security, what a Mid-East war would do to the price of oil - these things and an untold number of other devastating “droughts” stand poised to wreck our economy.
Finally, if there is no turning away from sin, if America continues to arrogantly enshrine and celebrate evil in its laws, continues to kill the innocent “least of the these,” and if America continues to turn its back on God’s covenant people Israel and persecute His church, we may see a day when God “whistles” for a foreign power, perhaps the black flags of ISIS, or Iran, China or Russia or some yet unknown power to be used as his blacksmith’s forge, His destroyer wreaking havoc.
If God did not spare national Israel, (and later Babylon and the rest) from His judgment and wrath, is there any reason to think it will be different for America now. The Lord is the same yesterday today and forever. At this point, I do not see anything in scripture that precludes this kind of judgement from falling on nations. Our nation has certainly been given much by God and so, much will be required from us. The Apostle Peter writes, “ For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)— if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment. This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the flesh and despise (God’s) authority.”
So, what should we do? Jesus warned his followers to be “interpreters of the times.”
“ He said to the crowd: “When you see a cloud rising in the west, immediately you say, ‘It’s going to rain,’ and it does. And when the south wind blows, you say, ‘It’s going to be hot,’ and it is. Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don’t know how to interpret this present time? (Luke 12:54- 56)
Christians in 2015 America must begin to live like Christians always have at all times throughout history and all places around the world in cultures hostile to God, His word and His people. We are told to expect it:
“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me.” (John 15:18-21) “Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because whoever suffers in the body is done with sin. As a result, they do not live the rest of their earthly lives for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do—living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. They are surprised that you do not join them in their reckless, wild living, and they heap abuse on you. But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead…. Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. “ (1 Peter 4:1-5, 12-14)
We are also told what to do:
“Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells. So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. (2 Peter 3:11-14) “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart”. (Hebrews 12:1-3)
“When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." (Luke 12:28)
Continue to pray, continue to intercede in a 2 Chronicles 7:14 manner, as the prophet Joel has said, “Even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.” Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. Who knows? He may turn and relent and leave behind a blessing.”(Joel 2:12-14)
“But whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you.” (Philippians 1:27-28)
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Why I believe the “little g” gods of America are Soon to be Humbled
Pastor David A Crisp, 2015
Right now I am in the midst of a sermon series at our church entitled, “Divine Judgment and Wrath in the age of Grace.” It’s a hard subject to wrap your brain around and develop a good sound biblical doctrine about! How does God’s wrath and judgment work in this age of grace?
Now that Jesus has come and taken all our sin, guilt and punishment upon himself, is God’s wrath currently active or just waiting, being “stored up” (Rom. 2 :5) for the day of judgment? It is clear from scripture that in the end God will judge all individuals and all the nations. Thankfully, those in Christ will not be judged for their sins, since Jesus already paid for those. Those who are in Christ will be judged at the Judgment Seat of Christ and give an accounting for what we each did with the salvation that was freely given us - did we spend our talents, time and treasure for the kingdom, (gold, silver precious jewels) or did we use our lives, even every casual conversation or careless word on ourselves, (wood, hay and stubble)? What we have done will pass through the fire and its worth revealed. (See 2 Cor. 5:10, 1 Cor. 3:11-13 and Matt. 25:14-30) However, everyone else - all those individuals whose names are not written in the Lamb’s book of life - will be judged at the Great White Throne judgment (Rev. 20: 11-15) and they will be judged for their sins and eternally punished. This should give us all pause for a moment as we think about our great salvation and the great responsibility that comes with it to fulfill the great commission! But what about judgment and wrath BEFORE the end? Is God’s wrath active now? Is it ever poured out on individuals? And what about the judgment of the nations?
Rom 1:18 says that “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness.” That’s a present tense, continuing action verb: “is being revealed.” So it appears God’s wrath may indeed be active now, before the end. Rom. 2:5 states that “But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed.” This speaks of the future manifestation of God’s wrath against the same evildoers – a wrath that awaits them at the end. We know how the future wrath of God will be manifest - the fires of hell! But how does God’s wrath manifest in the present? Romans 1:24, 26 and 28 contain a repeated phrase which reveals the way God’s wrath is being poured out in the present: “God gave them over.” God’s wrath is being revealed in the present by God “giving over” the evildoer to the “sinful desire of his heart” (v. 24) and the result is the “due penalty” (1:27) which is received now in the present. This “due penalty” is the natural consequences of sin taking their toll in the lives of individuals who rebel against God. These consequences are described in Rom 1:28-32: “Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, and no mercy. Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.”
It is clear from scripture that those whom God has saved are not subject to the wrath of God, present or future. (see: Rom. 8:1-2, 1 Thes. 5:9, 1 Thes. 1:10, I John 1:9- 2:2, 1 John 4:17-18. Please look these up and read them!) Why are we no longer subject to God’s wrath, even though we deserve it? Because God punished Jesus- poured out His wrath on Jesus- for our sins! (See: Is. 53:4-6, 2 Cor. 5:21) We are saved from wrath by faith alone in grace alone! Therefore, anyone who rejects the free gift of salvation in Christ, remains culpable and guilty, “condemned already” (John 3:18) receiving God’s wrath now as the natural consequences of sin overtake him in this life and awaiting the wrath of God is the future as he stores it up for himself on the day of judgment.
This, then, is how divine judgement and wrath work in age of grace in the lives of individuals, but what about nations?
Jesus tells us that in the end he will judge the nations. (Matt. 24:31-32) Since nations cannot be judged for salvation, (since Jesus did not die to save nations but to save people) how will nations be judged? On what basis will they be rewarded or condemned? According to the Lord’s own word, it will be on the basis of how the nations treat “the least of these, my brethren.” Who are the Lord’s brothers? The answer is two-fold. First, Jesus’ brothers are those who belong to the true church, for Christ is the “firstborn of many brothers.” (Rom 8:29) Secondly, Jesus is also, through blood and an eternal covenant, a brother to those who belong to the house of Israel. God promised to judge the nations in Gen. 12:3 on this same basis: “I will bless those who bless you (Abraham) and curse those who curse you.” Over and over throughout scripture and history we have seen God “make good” on this promise. Numerous times God has judged national Israel herself, never revoking her eternal covenant of “ownership” of the land he promised, but driving her out, temporarily revoking her “occupancy permit” due to her sinful rebellion against God. The gentile nations will be judged according to how they treated God’s covenant people, the apple of his eye: the “grafted in” church and Israel. We see that God will judge nations in the future at the end, but we also see that God has in the past judged nations, and even in our day as well.
We read many examples of God’s judgment and wrath falling on nations in the Bible: Noah’s flood, hail and fiery brimstone destroy Sodom and Gommorah, the “sin of the Ammorites” (the inhabitants of Canaan) reaches “full measure” and God uses the Israelites to destroy them, God commands first Joshua, then generations later Saul, to destroy the Amalekites for their sins against God’s people, (a job which he fails to do , nearly resulting in Israel’s destruction as recorded in the book of Esther), judgments first prophesied then fulfilled upon Egypt, Ninnevah (Assyria), Babylon, Medo- Persia, Greece, Rome... and one might include other kings and kingdoms not mentioned in the Bible who have been removed and/or destroyed after harming God’s covenant people: Hitler, Hirohito, Stalin, Mao… and list goes on, with some who have yet to experience their come-uppance. “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction.” (Gal. 6:7-8) And lest we think that these kings and kingdoms rose and fell merely as a result of earthy circumstances and human wills, we have these words from the prophet Daniel, the words of an angel from heaven, and words from the mouth of one of the deposed and restored gentile kings himself, Nebuchadnezzar! “Then Daniel praised the God of heaven and said: “Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are his. He changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and raises up others.” (Daniel 2:19b-21) “The decision is announced by messengers, the holy ones declare the verdict, so that the living may know that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of people.” (Daniel 4:17) “Even as the words were on his lips, a voice came from heaven, “This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you. You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like the ox. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes.” (Daniel 4:31-32) “Then I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever. His dominion is an eternal dominion; his kingdom endures from generation to generation .All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: “What have you done?” (Daniel 4:34-35) Indeed, the Bible is clear, God is sovereign over the nations!
The famous story of the “handwriting on the wall” gives particular insight into God’s judgment of nations. God first brings Judgment upon Nebuchadnezzar, at the height of his pride, (Dan. 4:29-30) by striking him with insanity for 7 years. Nebuchadnezzar eventually humbles himself and is restored as he acknowledges that God is sovereign over the nations. (Dan. 4:31-37) His grandson Belshazzar is not as wise. In Daniel 5 we read of the final judgment and end of the glorious Babylonian kingdom coming on the night of a great banquet. The hand of God appears writing a pronouncement on the wall, “Mene Mene Tekel Parsin.” Later that night Daniel interprets the cryptic words, “God has numbered the days of your reign and brought them to an end. You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting. Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.” As Daniel is giving the interpretation he charges Belshazzar with a particular crime, Daniel first recounts to the king the tale of his grandfather Nebuchadnezzar, (Dan. 5: 18-21) then Daniel makes it clear that the kingdom will fall because Belshazzar did not humble himself before God, “even though you knew all this.” Belshazzar was “weighed on the scale” and came up short. What scale was he weighed on? He was weighed on the scale of God’s standards for kingdoms - how they treat God’s covenant people - but Belshazzar also had the added guilt of knowing the story of what happened to his grandfather and not heeding its historic warning to humble himself before God. He did not need to know God’s Word, (although he had Daniel right in his own court!) he only needed to look to his own family history and that of his country to clearly see what God required of him. That very night Belshazzar is slain and the kingdom falls just as was predicted, a graphic illustration of the principle contained in Romans 1:18-20 “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.”
This is why I believe God’s judgment is now coming to America. We have been weighed on the scales and found wanting, and even though we know our own history, we have disregarded its warning and plunged headlong down the path of rebellion against God both in the formation of our laws and policies which codify and celebrate sin and in our treatment of God’s covenant people - the “least of these, my brothers.”
At our nation’s inception, we failed to deal with a grave sin, the sin of slavery. In fact, we legalized it in our own constitution. We allowed it to continue over the next two generations, even though we knew it was wrong. Eventually the consequences of our sin caught up to us and God “gave us over” to a civil war that cost 600,000 American sons -fully 2% of our population at that time. (A modern equivalent ratio would be 6 million lives today!) John Brown predicted that this grievous sin would exact a terrible price, “There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth in a million homes, and grief and sorrow will sit with every family in the land.” He was right. Now generations later, Just like Belshazzar of old, even though we knew what happened when our forefathers sinned and faced judgment, we have done the same things again and again, rebelling against God, enshrining sin in our laws and mistreating “the least of these,” placing our nation in a precarious place, calling down God’s judgment and wrath upon ourselves.
In 1973 the Supreme Court forced all 50 states to legalize the detestable practice of infanticide known as abortion, a ruling which has to-date taken the lives of over 50 million pre-born children – truly the “least of these, my brethren.” In ancient times God abhorred the practices of the worshippers of the Canaanite idol-god known as “Molech” who required followers to sacrifice their infant children by throwing them into the fire. Today Molech lives in the abortion mills of America. I have often wondered why God has not severely judged America for this sin as he did with slavery. One reason is that God is so very patient! (see 2 Peter 3:9) But I believe there has been two other reasons God’s just wrath for America has been forestalled.
The first reason has been America’s support for Israel, qualifying the United States for the protection that comes from God’s promise of “blessing those who bless” Israel. The year the Supreme Court legalized abortion, another major event happened which had repercussions in the Spirit realm, a short-lived war known as the ‘73 Yom-Kippur War. Israel was attacked by multiple armies and within just a few days, Israeli ground forces were overrun. Israel was in danger of losing Jerusalem and all the land that had been captured in the ‘67 Six-Day War. Without immediate re-supply of aircraft and arms, Israel was in real danger of complete defeat and annihilation. American President Richard Nixon, despite being an irreligious, foul mouthed and not overly moral man, remembered the words of his devout Christian mother who had once warned him that “above all else he must protect and defend Israel.” Over the objections of Sec. of State Henry Kissinger and most of his cabinet and advisors, Nixon ordered a massive airlift of supplies and aircraft to Israel, which by all accounts turned the tide in that war.
(read about it here) https://www.commentarymagazine.com/article/thirty-six-years-ago-today-richard-nixon-saved-israel%e2%80%94but-got-no-credit/
I believe this action to support Israel when she desperately needed help, and many others like it taken by the United States over the years by administrations from both sides of the aisle have kept God’s judgment from falling heavily upon us, not because we don’t deserve it, but because of God’s faithfulness to his promise to Abraham 4,000 years ago!
In addition, God has given his people a means of intervening - a “prescription,” if you will - for His people to apply in intercession on behalf of their sinful country when judgment and wrath are justly in store. In 2 Chronicles 7:14, God gives this promise to Solomon: “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”
I believe I have seen this promise fulfilled at least once in my lifetime. By the fall of 1997, the legalized sin of abortion has been plaguing our land for 24 years. Now a hidden sin was taking place. President Bill Clinton was engaging in sexual immorality, fornication and adultery with a young intern named Monica Lewinski - some of it taking place right in the Oval Office! The leader of our country was engaging in the same types of behavior which were used by the pagans in their idol worship of sex goddesses in the temples of Ephesus and Corinth 2000 years ago - only now it was happening literally in the actual highest seat of power inside the White House. This was happening secretly during the fall of 1997 and would not become known publically till the spring of 1998. But something else happened that fall that once again, in my opinion, forestalled the just wrath of God. On Oct. 4, between 1.5 million and 3 million (there are no official counts just estimates) Christian men descended on Washington DC for an event that was called “Promise Keepers - Stand in the Gap. ” I was there that day. Millions of Christian men filled the mall area packed as tight as sardines from the capitol steps stretching east to beyond the Washington Monument.
(see pictures here) http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=stand+in+the+gap+photo+oct+1997&qpvt=stand+in+the+gap+photo+oct+1997&FORM=VDRE#view=detail&mid=09A797184382997B6A3E09A797184382997B6A3E )
We came fasting and praying, confessing and repenting, asking God for mercy. And once again because of God’s faithfulness to His word, despite the arrogance, sins, and lack of repentance by our leaders, judgment was withheld, at least for a little while. Although Bill Clinton himself was impeached, he was not convicted or removed from office and served out the remainder of his term until Jan. 20, 2001, albeit under the shadow of the scandal. (Although now he is held in high regard by millions.)
Then came the horrific events of Sept. 11, 2001. Many noted Christian speakers and authors wondered out loud if this was “judgment from the Lord.” It was then that I personally began to wrestle with this question of how divine judgment and wrath operate in the age of grace. My opinion at that time was that the 9-11 attack was, as with all crimes, simply the result of wicked men doing evil things in a fallen world.
Nevertheless, we know and have seen that God is sovereignly moving, “setting up kings and deposing them” and that God has said, “Behold, I Myself have created the smith who blows the fire of coals And brings out a weapon for its work; And I have created the destroyer to ruin.” (Is. 57:16) Those of you who have read Rabbi Jonathan Cahn’s book, “The Harbinger” know that there is a strong biblical case to be made that the 9-11 attack was indeed God speaking a loud word of warning to America to repent and return to Him. In the fifth chapter of Isaiah, God speaks a parable through the prophet describing how and why judgment was to fall upon the nation of Israel in Isaiah’s day:
“I will sing for the one I love, a song about his vineyard: My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside. He dug it up and cleared it of stones and planted it with the choicest vines. He built a watchtower in it and cut out a winepress as well. Then he looked for a crop of good grapes, but it yielded only bad fruit. “Now you dwellers in Jerusalem and people of Judah, judge between me and my vineyard. What more could have been done for my vineyard than I have done for it? When I looked for good grapes, why did it yield only bad? Now I will tell you what I am going to do to my vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it will be destroyed; I will break down its wall, and it will be trampled. I will make it a wasteland, neither pruned nor cultivated, and briers and thorns will grow there. I will command the clouds not to rain on it.” (Isaiah 5:1-7)
God holds the nation responsible for its rebellion (bad fruit) and its guilt is even more pronounced, since this nation had been given so much by God, (“What more could i have done?) a principle reinforced by Jesus’ words in the New Testament, “The servant who knows the master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what the master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” (Luke 12:47-48) Back in Isaiah 5, God details his “writ of indictment” against Israel, listing their numerous sins including this timely charge, “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight.” (Isaiah 5:20-21) In other words, judgment is coming because you thought you were smarter and “more enlightened” than God Himself! You redefine what God has clearly marked evil, calling it “good.
Now we arrive at 2015. Once again the Supreme Court legalizes sin. Once again the United States forgets her past, thumbing her nose at Holy God, this time adding the abomination of Sodom, to slavery and abortion on the list of evil things that we have called “good.” Only now there is something else in play. As a nation, with our policies and practices, we no longer “bless” Israel. Just mere days after the “gay-marriage” ruling that was celebrated by bathing The White House in rainbow-colored floodlights, a deal is reached - pushed by the American President - that gives Israel’s enemies access to nuclear weapons. We have shifted from blessing Israel to cursing her, which in turn moves America from blessings to curses. We have been given warning after warning. Now what will the outcome be?
God revealed his pattern in Isaiah 5, first the removal of the hedge, “Now I will tell you what I am going to do to my vineyard: I will take away its hedge…” a removal of divine protection allowing enemies to attack. Then the judgment moves from God allowing enemies to attack, to God Himself striking the land, “I will break down its wall, and it will be trampled. I will make it a wasteland, neither pruned nor cultivated, and briers and thorns will grow there. I will command the clouds not to rain on it.” In this case, it was a devastating drought which ruined their agrarian economy. Finally, because the nation persists in its rebellion, God calls for a foreign invader to be his instrument of wrath, “Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away, his hand is still upraised. He lifts up a banner for the distant nations, He whistles for those at the ends of the earth. Here they come, swiftly and speedily! Not one of them grows tired or stumbles, not one slumbers or sleeps; not a belt is loosened at the waist, not a sandal strap is broken. Their arrows are sharp, all their bows are strung; their horses’ hooves seem like flint, their chariot wheels like a whirlwind. Their roar is like that of the lion, they roar like young lions; they growl as they seize their prey and carry it off with no one to rescue. In that day they will roar over it like the roaring of the sea. And if one looks at the land, there is only darkness and distress; even the sun will be darkened by clouds” (Isaiah 5:25-30) That day came for Israel, just as Isaiah had predicted, with Babylon answering the Lord’s beckoning whistle. Jerusalem was destroyed and Israel carried to exile.
When God sends judgement he does so with a purpose. His purpose is redemptive and revelatory. He will use judgement as a tool to turn people to himself in order to save as many as is possible. He also uses it to reveal that He is the one true God and that the idols of any nation are worthless and powerless. If God sends judgement to America it will accomplish these purposes. “So is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11)
I believe the “Isaiah 5” pattern of judgement reveals what has happened, what is now happening, and what will continue to happen in America as long as we continue on a national path of rebellion against God’s ways both in our laws and in our policy towards Israel. First, a removal of protection, (as happened on 9-11) then repeated blows to our economy. Certainly no one can argue that the false “god” of America is money - so much so that we all use a familiar figure of speech, calling money, “the ALMIGHTY dollar!” (Say that over to yourself a few times as see if it doesn’t resonate in your spirit as blasphemy.) Every day our financial system’s vulnerabilities to cyber-attacks seem to be exposed. Each day the markets teeter precariously propped up by economically unsustainable infusions of Federal Reserve cash. Our staggering national debt, unfunded liabilities such as Medicare and Social Security, what a Mid-East war would do to the price of oil - these things and an untold number of other devastating “droughts” stand poised to wreck our economy.
Finally, if there is no turning away from sin, if America continues to arrogantly enshrine and celebrate evil in its laws, continues to kill the innocent “least of the these,” and if America continues to turn its back on God’s covenant people Israel and persecute His church, we may see a day when God “whistles” for a foreign power, perhaps the black flags of ISIS, or Iran, China or Russia or some yet unknown power to be used as his blacksmith’s forge, His destroyer wreaking havoc.
If God did not spare national Israel, (and later Babylon and the rest) from His judgment and wrath, is there any reason to think it will be different for America now. The Lord is the same yesterday today and forever. At this point, I do not see anything in scripture that precludes this kind of judgement from falling on nations. Our nation has certainly been given much by God and so, much will be required from us. The Apostle Peter writes, “ For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)— if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment. This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the flesh and despise (God’s) authority.”
So, what should we do? Jesus warned his followers to be “interpreters of the times.”
“ He said to the crowd: “When you see a cloud rising in the west, immediately you say, ‘It’s going to rain,’ and it does. And when the south wind blows, you say, ‘It’s going to be hot,’ and it is. Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don’t know how to interpret this present time? (Luke 12:54- 56)
Christians in 2015 America must begin to live like Christians always have at all times throughout history and all places around the world in cultures hostile to God, His word and His people. We are told to expect it:
“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me.” (John 15:18-21) “Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because whoever suffers in the body is done with sin. As a result, they do not live the rest of their earthly lives for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do—living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. They are surprised that you do not join them in their reckless, wild living, and they heap abuse on you. But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead…. Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. “ (1 Peter 4:1-5, 12-14)
We are also told what to do:
“Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells. So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. (2 Peter 3:11-14) “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart”. (Hebrews 12:1-3)
“When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." (Luke 12:28)
Continue to pray, continue to intercede in a 2 Chronicles 7:14 manner, as the prophet Joel has said, “Even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.” Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. Who knows? He may turn and relent and leave behind a blessing.”(Joel 2:12-14)
“But whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you.” (Philippians 1:27-28)
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
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