Blessed is the Nation

I begin on a personal note—

This past Sunday our 250th Anniversary/Independence Day Celebration Event and Worship Experience turned out to be a Great Day in the life of our church. Though many of our people were out of town, understandably w/ family for the July 4th Holiday, still there was a really large crowd of enthusiastic worshipers and excited participants, along with many family members and viable prospects for our church. I am so thankful for our talented Leadership Team and for so many who made such a solid contribution to this activity. This was a fun day & a meaningful time for all ages…and it gave me the opportunity to remind us of some important things. Such as—

The Strength of a Nation is derived from its devotion to God. “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD” (Psalm 33:12).
 
Our Founding Fathers possessed an understanding of this and it influenced so much of their words and actions. You see this in the Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights…” They believed God had given humankind certain rights. The government does not grant rights. The government does not have rights to give. God gives the rights. The government protects these rights. But, make no mistake about it, they are God-given rights.
 
Of first importance among these rights was that of Religious Liberty. Thus, the First Amendment to our United States Constitution, in the Bill of Rights, was Freedom of Religion. As I mentioned Sunday, John Leland, a Virginia Baptist pastor, fought successfully for the 1st Amendment to the Constitution, “Congress shall make no laws respecting the establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”
 
Our Forefathers understood that the expression of Religious Faith is to be supremely regarded and highly protected. So this came first in their list of protected rights because of its utmost importance.
 
George Washington, at the Continental Congress, sat in the balcony and someone famously asked which one was he and the person answered, “When Congress goes to pray he will be the tall one who gets on his knees.” Our nation was born with such reverence to Almighty God and the continuance of our blessings are dependent on our devotion to God. The exercise and expression of such must be vigilantly protected.
 
Our Founding Fathers also understood another important truth—
 
The Strength of a Nation is dependent on the character of its people. “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people” (Proverbs 14:35).
 
As I reminded us on Sunday, scripture teaches the indispensable importance of character, integrity, and virtue in our lives. The strength of our nation does not begin in the White House but in your house. It begins where you live. It begins with the kind of character you possess in your life and that you instill in your children. On this 250th Anniversary of our nation, we remind ourselves that it is righteousness that exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people.
 
Remember these things!
 
Devotedly yours,
Pastor Ron