Today’s devotional fell flat on my ears so I looked at the other daily devotions on my computer. One that is short and without much Scripture said this:
The Constitutional Convention was in a heated deadlock over how both large and small states could be represented equally. Some delegates even left, giving up hope. Then, on this day, June 28, 1787, the 81 year-old Benjamin Franklin spoke, and shortly after the U.S. Constitution became a reality. As recorded by James Madison, Franklin stated: “In the… Contest with Great Britain… we had daily prayer in this room for Divine protection. - Our prayers, Sir, were heard, &… graciously answered…. And have we now forgotten that powerful Friend? or do we imagine we no longer need His assistance?” (from Federer, Bill. American Minute. St. Louis, MO: Amerisearch, Inc., 2003.)
The news tells me that this nation, and most all nations have forgotten “that powerful Friend” who is the Lord God. In turning our backs on spiritual truths, even on the very existence of God, has God also turned His back on us?
Two passages come to mind, the first from the OT that describing how God responds to those who shake their fist in His face:
Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against his Anointed, saying, “Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.” He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying, “As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill.” I will tell of the decree: The Lord said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.” Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. (Psalm 2:1–12)
Later, the psalmist adds, “The wicked plots against the righteous and gnashes his teeth at him, but the Lord laughs at the wicked, for he sees that his day is coming.” (Psalm 37:12–13) Forgetting God? He does not forget. He blesses those who trust Him and has the opposite plan for those who rebel against Him. Taking God lightly is folly. He warns the nations. He warns me.
The other passage from the NT begins with commendation for those who trust Him, then says of those who reject Him:
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools . . . . Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
It goes on to describe the slippery slope of believing lies and self-serving . . .
And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them. (Romans 1:18–32)
PRAY: Jesus, I see all this on the news, in my city, my country, our world. My prayers for the nations are splashed with tears as the effects of rejecting You become more evident. I pray for change, revival, but also for Your return to make all things right. Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven . . . .
PONDER: Only God can make a nation great. It is time to remember Him and to always ask for divine assistance.
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