1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:15,860 Welcome to Walk in the Truth podcast. How do we know where to find answers to the toughest 2 00:00:15,860 --> 00:00:21,060 questions in life? While the simplest answer is the Bible, where do we start this search 3 00:00:21,060 --> 00:00:27,300 and how do we discover this truth? Today, in this teaching podcast, John Meador, lead 4 00:00:27,300 --> 00:00:32,440 pastor of Cross City Church, takes a specific text of the Bible and helps us find truth 5 00:00:32,440 --> 00:00:40,840 for the life we're searching for. We're so glad that you're with us this morning. 6 00:00:40,840 --> 00:00:46,040 If you have your Bibles, please take them and turn to Psalm 33 today. Psalm 33. We'll 7 00:00:46,040 --> 00:00:51,040 spend some time in Psalm 33 and then walk through a number of texts today. As I answer 8 00:00:51,040 --> 00:00:56,720 the question, how does God bless a nation? How does God bless a nation? How would God 9 00:00:56,720 --> 00:01:03,520 bless America, for example? Or how has God blessed nations over the years? It's a fair 10 00:01:03,520 --> 00:01:08,960 question to ask. It's also a difficult question to ask and answer in a day when you know a 11 00:01:08,960 --> 00:01:13,120 nation is not perfect. You know it's far from that. Lots to be grateful for, as we've 12 00:01:13,120 --> 00:01:17,640 said. Lots to be grieved about. How does God bless a nation though? This is part of our 13 00:01:17,640 --> 00:01:23,120 series of first message in our Dear God series. It's a series of tough questions that people 14 00:01:23,120 --> 00:01:28,080 have today that maybe we haven't answered or maybe we don't know the answer to and need 15 00:01:28,080 --> 00:01:33,680 to spend some time with. For example, next week we'll look at questions like, where is 16 00:01:33,680 --> 00:01:41,960 God when evil happens around us? Where was God during the Holocaust? How does a good 17 00:01:41,960 --> 00:01:47,320 God allow bad things to happen to good people? Those are great questions all centered around 18 00:01:47,320 --> 00:01:52,360 that main theme I just mentioned about that tough question. We'll talk about transgenderism 19 00:01:52,360 --> 00:01:57,080 and gender dysphoria in three or four weeks down the road. How does a Christian approach 20 00:01:57,080 --> 00:02:04,240 that? What does the Bible say? How do we lovingly lead and speak truth in a culture that is 21 00:02:04,240 --> 00:02:09,120 not listening to truth? Those are some tough questions that God has answers to in the Word 22 00:02:09,120 --> 00:02:14,320 and he has every answer that we can ever need in the Word, which I believe is all sufficient 23 00:02:14,320 --> 00:02:20,320 for us. So today, how does God bless a nation? Would you stand with me as we read Psalm 33 24 00:02:20,320 --> 00:02:27,320 together beginning in verse 6 of Psalm 33? You need to know right away that Psalm 33 25 00:02:27,320 --> 00:02:33,760 as was all the Old Testament was written to the people of God Israel in the Old Testament 26 00:02:33,760 --> 00:02:39,040 era. Some of the things that you read in the Old Testament are direct promises to the nation 27 00:02:39,040 --> 00:02:44,920 Israel, God's chosen people. But at the same time, there are many principles in the Old 28 00:02:44,920 --> 00:02:49,920 Testament that apply to us today exactly in our circumstance and situation. This is one 29 00:02:49,920 --> 00:02:54,840 of those chapters that apply to us, those spoken to Old Testament Israel. 30 00:02:54,840 --> 00:02:58,720 Psalm 33 beginning in verse 6 starts in a really familiar spot, the creation of the 31 00:02:58,720 --> 00:03:04,600 world. It says this in verse 6, by the word of the Lord the heavens were made and by the 32 00:03:04,600 --> 00:03:09,840 breath of his mouth all their lights. He gathers the water of the sea to gather as a heap. 33 00:03:09,840 --> 00:03:15,200 He puts the depths in the storehouses. Let all the earth fear the Lord. Let all the inhabitants 34 00:03:15,200 --> 00:03:21,200 of the world stand in awe of him. For me that is not hard to do. When I look up at the sky 35 00:03:21,200 --> 00:03:27,400 every morning and look at the God who created all this, it is all inspiring for me to remember 36 00:03:27,400 --> 00:03:35,880 that. Verse 9, for he spoke and it was done. He commanded and it stood firm. The Lord nullifies 37 00:03:35,880 --> 00:03:40,320 the plans of the nations. He frustrates the plans of the people. The plans of the Lord 38 00:03:40,320 --> 00:03:46,160 stand forever. The plans of his heart from generation to generation. Blessed is the nation 39 00:03:46,160 --> 00:03:52,120 whose God is the Lord, the people he has chosen for his own inheritance. The Lord looks from 40 00:03:52,120 --> 00:03:57,080 heaven. He sees all the sons of mankind. From his dwelling place he looks out on all the 41 00:03:57,080 --> 00:04:02,400 inhabitants of the earth. He who fashions the hearts of them all, who understands all 42 00:04:02,400 --> 00:04:07,560 their works. The king is not saved by a mighty army. The warrior is not rescued by great 43 00:04:07,560 --> 00:04:12,760 strength. The horse is a false hope for victory. Nor does it rescue anyone by its great strength. 44 00:04:12,760 --> 00:04:19,080 Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him, on those who wait for his faithfulness 45 00:04:19,080 --> 00:04:25,240 to rescue their soul from death, to keep them alive in famine. Our soul waits for the Lord. 46 00:04:25,240 --> 00:04:32,040 He is our help and our shield. Our heart rejoices in him because we trust his holy name. Let 47 00:04:32,040 --> 00:04:38,840 your favor, Lord, be upon us just as we have waited for you. What a song. What a word of 48 00:04:38,840 --> 00:04:43,600 encouragement for us today. It basically says when you wait on the Lord, when you look to 49 00:04:43,600 --> 00:04:50,080 the Lord, God will bless those around you through you by your relationship with him. 50 00:04:50,080 --> 00:04:55,240 Father, in Jesus' name speak to us today answering the question, how would you bless 51 00:04:55,240 --> 00:05:02,960 a nation? And that question really begins with how would you bless us? Father, I pray 52 00:05:02,960 --> 00:05:08,760 that you would give us a place at this space, at this time to know what our role is in the 53 00:05:08,760 --> 00:05:13,440 nation that we live in. And Father, I pray that you would move in a powerful way in our 54 00:05:13,440 --> 00:05:20,160 hearts for us to grab hold of our responsibility and our opportunity in a day like this. Father, 55 00:05:20,160 --> 00:05:23,920 thank you for all you've done and all you're going to do. We ask this in Jesus' name. 56 00:05:23,920 --> 00:05:31,600 All God's people said. Amen. Please be seated if you would. Well, this is Independence Weekend. 57 00:05:31,600 --> 00:05:36,480 Most of you are doing some sort of celebrating. I don't know what you do with fireworks. You 58 00:05:36,480 --> 00:05:41,440 may go somewhere where fireworks go off. I was raised in a small town where we're fortunate 59 00:05:41,440 --> 00:05:45,640 to have all of our fingers because we could pop all the fireworks we wanted to pop on 60 00:05:45,640 --> 00:05:50,080 July 4th weekend. We could eat all the barbecue we wanted to eat. And I grew up celebrating 61 00:05:50,080 --> 00:05:56,640 July 4th in a really, really big way. I love America. I really do. I was brought up to 62 00:05:56,640 --> 00:06:03,360 have a fascination and be grateful for all the freedoms that we have in America. There 63 00:06:03,360 --> 00:06:06,760 was a couple of television shows my dad and I used to watch regularly when we were growing 64 00:06:06,760 --> 00:06:11,480 up. We would lay on the floor, this hardwood floor. We would watch a black and white television. 65 00:06:11,480 --> 00:06:15,280 And it's not that the TV was black and white, but the picture was for some of you that don't 66 00:06:15,280 --> 00:06:22,280 know what the difference is. And we would watch the Dallas Cowboys lose to every opponent 67 00:06:22,280 --> 00:06:26,080 that they played when Don Meredith was the quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys. How many 68 00:06:26,080 --> 00:06:30,120 of you know who Don Meredith is? Raise your hand. Okay, some of you know that. A world 69 00:06:30,120 --> 00:06:36,720 begun era, a horrible era in cowboy football. We would also watch war movies. My dad was 70 00:06:36,720 --> 00:06:42,000 a Navy pilot and a mechanic in the Korean conflict years ago. And so we would watch 71 00:06:42,000 --> 00:06:47,480 war movies in black and white television. And I gained an appreciation for the sacrifice 72 00:06:47,480 --> 00:06:54,320 that was made around the world for the freedoms that people enjoy. I love America. I love 73 00:06:54,320 --> 00:07:00,080 the fact that I can be grateful for so many things that God has done in America. It's 74 00:07:00,080 --> 00:07:04,560 very evident to me that part of the reason that God has blessed this nation is because 75 00:07:04,560 --> 00:07:09,600 many of the founders and many of the laws that went into the making of America had great 76 00:07:09,600 --> 00:07:15,360 Christian and biblical values. Not all of them. Certainly America had its dark places. 77 00:07:15,360 --> 00:07:21,280 It had its dark laws. It had its dark movements as well. But God has blessed America. I think 78 00:07:21,280 --> 00:07:25,400 it's undeniable that He has. And it's really, really important for us to know what our role 79 00:07:25,400 --> 00:07:30,200 in America is today. Because America is not the same America that it was even five years 80 00:07:30,200 --> 00:07:35,880 ago and ten years ago and thirty years ago and certainly not a hundred years ago. How 81 00:07:35,880 --> 00:07:40,680 many of you remember that old hymn, that old song, God Bless America? Who hasn't heard 82 00:07:40,680 --> 00:07:44,840 that? And when you hear that song, I don't know what it evokes in you, but I went back 83 00:07:44,840 --> 00:07:49,480 into some study of God Bless America a number of years ago. Irving Berlin was the one who 84 00:07:49,480 --> 00:07:54,520 wrote that song. And he wrote it back during the 20s. It wasn't released until 1938. But 85 00:07:54,520 --> 00:08:01,360 it was a song that was written to be a prayer for America. It wasn't a song of expectation 86 00:08:01,360 --> 00:08:06,000 that God ought to bless America just because we're America or because we just want Him 87 00:08:06,000 --> 00:08:12,280 to. But it was a song that basically says in 1938, with all the rise of Nazi Germany 88 00:08:12,280 --> 00:08:17,320 and fascism in Europe and all the wars that were happening and taking place that were 89 00:08:17,320 --> 00:08:22,760 almost unstoppable at the time, it was a prayer, a song that was a prayer that said, God, please 90 00:08:22,760 --> 00:08:28,440 bless our nation. Please help us go the right way. Please help us make the right decisions 91 00:08:28,440 --> 00:08:34,680 while saying, God bless America. I think about those kinds of thoughts. But it also begs 92 00:08:34,680 --> 00:08:40,240 the question, how can God bless America? I mean, I remember preaching a message years 93 00:08:40,240 --> 00:08:46,080 ago when I was a young pastor and the title of the message was, why should God bless America? 94 00:08:46,080 --> 00:08:50,240 Because there were so many things about our country that were in conflict with truth and 95 00:08:50,240 --> 00:08:55,480 with the Bible and with God and with good. And I wondered, why should God bless America? 96 00:08:55,480 --> 00:09:00,120 And I've come to realize that God can bless America, but not just because of America, 97 00:09:00,120 --> 00:09:05,240 not because of its national interest. God will bless a nation. God will bless any nation 98 00:09:05,240 --> 00:09:14,000 when those who follow Him in that nation allow them to be a blessing through them. And that's 99 00:09:14,000 --> 00:09:20,200 really the heart of what I want to share with you today. Everything in Psalm 33 talks about 100 00:09:20,200 --> 00:09:25,600 how individuals, all of us, look to God and ask God to work in our lives as we obey Him, 101 00:09:25,600 --> 00:09:33,120 as we follow Him. And through that, God blesses those around Him. Sometimes people find Old 102 00:09:33,120 --> 00:09:37,080 Testament passages referring to Israel and say, well, God ought to bless America because 103 00:09:37,080 --> 00:09:42,160 He wrote those words. But America is not Israel, as you know. But the Bible does teach that 104 00:09:42,160 --> 00:09:49,360 God can bless any nation through those who hope and fear Him in a healthy way. Part of 105 00:09:49,360 --> 00:09:56,040 Psalm 33 is this verse, verse 18. Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, 106 00:09:56,040 --> 00:10:02,200 on those who hope for His loving kindness. Now, can I just make a statement to you today 107 00:10:02,200 --> 00:10:06,880 that's important to keep in mind? As much as we may talk about a nation, as much as 108 00:10:06,880 --> 00:10:11,880 we may talk about America on any given day, there is a bigger kingdom coming, and I hope 109 00:10:11,880 --> 00:10:16,760 you keep that in mind. There's a bigger kingdom coming and a bigger king coming, a monarchy, 110 00:10:16,760 --> 00:10:21,440 and His name is Jesus Christ on the throne. And no matter how much we talk about the here 111 00:10:21,440 --> 00:10:27,000 and now, we also have to keep in mind there is a kingdom coming that is undefeated and 112 00:10:27,000 --> 00:10:32,120 always will be, and Jesus Christ is on the throne. So have this perspective with me. 113 00:10:32,120 --> 00:10:39,120 We are duly citizens of earth and of heaven at the same time. We've got to live in the 114 00:10:39,120 --> 00:10:44,920 here and now, while at the same time watching for the eternal to come. Paul wrote to the 115 00:10:44,920 --> 00:10:50,840 church at Rome under heavy Roman rule of the time. Now, he wrote to that church and said 116 00:10:50,840 --> 00:10:55,360 this, for our citizenship is in heaven. No matter how bad it gets for you on earth, our 117 00:10:55,360 --> 00:11:01,600 citizenship is in heaven, which also we eagerly wait for a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. 118 00:11:01,600 --> 00:11:07,360 So I know my king hasn't arrived yet. I know the one that I worship and trust in is not 119 00:11:07,360 --> 00:11:11,680 yet here physically on the earth, and at the same time, even though things sometimes seem 120 00:11:11,680 --> 00:11:16,640 dark in our nation and dark in other nations in the world, it's important to remember that 121 00:11:16,640 --> 00:11:23,520 God is sovereign and God is on the throne. That's why I'm glad we're dual citizens, 122 00:11:23,520 --> 00:11:30,520 citizens of earth and citizens of heaven. So how do we live in a day and time like this? 123 00:11:30,960 --> 00:11:37,480 Max Locato explains God's omniscient sovereignty in this way. He said, it's like doing a movie 124 00:11:37,480 --> 00:11:43,400 after you've read the book. When something bad happens, others may be disturbed, but 125 00:11:43,400 --> 00:11:49,320 you're not disturbed because you know how the story ends. Just like the song we've been 126 00:11:49,320 --> 00:11:53,320 singing a few moments ago. I read the Bible, I know how the story ends. I know the king 127 00:11:53,320 --> 00:11:57,800 is coming and the king is undefeated and the king is King Jesus. I know that's going to 128 00:11:57,800 --> 00:12:02,000 happen someday. So no matter how bad it gets, no matter how good it gets, I don't get too 129 00:12:02,000 --> 00:12:07,520 excited or too dismayed because I know this is not the final story and I know the way 130 00:12:07,520 --> 00:12:14,360 the story ends and that story ends well. So how then do we live in the middle of that 131 00:12:14,360 --> 00:12:21,360 story until the story ends well? How would God use people to bless their nation? Well, 132 00:12:23,200 --> 00:12:27,120 I took a journey all the way through the Old Testament and then coming back into the New 133 00:12:27,120 --> 00:12:32,840 Testament and I've identified five different ways that I want to share with you today. 134 00:12:32,840 --> 00:12:37,160 And I know that you will each pick up at least one or two of these ways that God can bless 135 00:12:37,160 --> 00:12:42,640 those around you through your walk, through your obedience with the Lord Jesus Christ 136 00:12:42,640 --> 00:12:48,020 himself. And the way God will bless those around you is through your faithful walk with 137 00:12:48,020 --> 00:12:53,040 him. And I want you to take note of these five things because these five things are 138 00:12:53,040 --> 00:12:58,560 ways to live that make a difference around us. So first of all, we'll start with the 139 00:12:58,560 --> 00:13:05,560 man named Daniel. Daniel prayed. Daniel prayed. I mean that's the first point, Daniel prayed. 140 00:13:08,400 --> 00:13:13,080 Here's the man Daniel that most of us know a lot about in the Old Testament. It's a phenomenal 141 00:13:13,080 --> 00:13:18,880 book, the book of Daniel. Daniel prayed while in Babylon in exile. In other words, he was 142 00:13:18,880 --> 00:13:24,160 carried out of his homeland into Babylon and served the king, King Nebuchadnezzar, as a 143 00:13:24,160 --> 00:13:31,160 subject of that kingdom. And God through Daniel intervened in the life of that nation. In 144 00:13:31,560 --> 00:13:37,160 fact, those kings and that nation were radically different after Daniel's presence and after 145 00:13:37,160 --> 00:13:42,200 Daniel's prayers than they were before. That is such an incredible encouragement. And we 146 00:13:42,200 --> 00:13:46,920 can talk a lot about Daniel. Daniel 1 talks about Daniel being a man without compromise. 147 00:13:46,920 --> 00:13:52,200 He drew a line and he said, I will not compromise. I will not give in to the king's commands 148 00:13:52,200 --> 00:13:57,820 to do something contrary to what my God wants me to do. We saw him being a man of courage. 149 00:13:57,820 --> 00:14:03,600 We saw Daniel's life being one that he heard from God and interpreted dreams. So many things 150 00:14:03,600 --> 00:14:08,720 we could say about Daniel. But the overriding character of Daniel's life is that Daniel 151 00:14:08,720 --> 00:14:14,640 prayed. Daniel's prayer life was the subject of conversation in that kingdom. Ultimately 152 00:14:14,640 --> 00:14:18,880 it sent him to the lions den. We'll talk about that in just a moment. But Daniel's life was 153 00:14:18,880 --> 00:14:24,200 a life of prayer. It was a foundation for everything else he did. In Daniel chapter 154 00:14:24,200 --> 00:14:29,640 2, verse 20, Daniel prays this way. He says, May the name of God be blessed forever and 155 00:14:29,640 --> 00:14:36,640 ever for wisdom and power belong to him. It is he who changes the times and the periods. 156 00:14:36,640 --> 00:14:42,320 Now take note of that. God changes the times and the periods. He removes kings and appoints 157 00:14:42,320 --> 00:14:49,320 kings. He gives wisdom to wise men and knowledge to people of understanding. That's the God 158 00:14:49,920 --> 00:14:54,960 we pray to. The God who spoke and the world came into existence is the same God who can 159 00:14:54,960 --> 00:15:01,960 appoint kings and remove kings at will. Daniel's praying to this God under heavy rules and 160 00:15:02,080 --> 00:15:06,560 epic measure. God, we know you can change things. We know you can radically change this 161 00:15:06,560 --> 00:15:10,440 man's life, this king's life, and you can change this nation even though I'm just a 162 00:15:10,440 --> 00:15:17,160 prisoner here. Now maybe you recall the story of how Daniel prayed for Nebuchadnezzar and 163 00:15:17,160 --> 00:15:22,040 for that kingdom Babylon and how everything changed all of a sudden. If you remember the 164 00:15:22,040 --> 00:15:26,040 story of Nebuchadnezzar, he became proud of all the accomplishments he had done and one 165 00:15:26,040 --> 00:15:30,600 day stood at the wall of a city looking out and said, I'm so proud of everything I've 166 00:15:30,600 --> 00:15:34,200 built. Look at all the kingdoms that I've taken over. Look at the big buildings and 167 00:15:34,200 --> 00:15:40,120 projects I've completed. And he was at the pinnacle of pride and God struck him down. 168 00:15:40,120 --> 00:15:44,760 You may also remember that Nebuchadnezzar ended up crawling on the ground like an animal 169 00:15:44,760 --> 00:15:50,200 for a long space of time until he came to himself. All the time Daniel was praying while 170 00:15:50,200 --> 00:15:55,080 God was taking Nebuchadnezzar through that period of time. I'm convinced that Daniel's 171 00:15:55,080 --> 00:16:02,080 prayers had a great deal to do with Nebuchadnezzar's fall and later his repentance. By his own 172 00:16:02,080 --> 00:16:07,140 testimony Nebuchadnezzar eventually said, I raised my eyes towards heaven and my reason 173 00:16:07,140 --> 00:16:16,920 returned to me and I blessed the most high. What a prayer for a pagan king. Daniel prayed 174 00:16:16,920 --> 00:16:22,200 and this pagan king sounded like a worshiper on the front row of a worship service. I came 175 00:16:22,200 --> 00:16:30,800 to myself. I put my eyes on God. That didn't just happen once in Daniel's time in Babylon, 176 00:16:30,800 --> 00:16:37,000 it also happened with another king, Darius. Some of the counselors of Darius wanted Daniel 177 00:16:37,000 --> 00:16:41,480 to be punished because of his prayer life. His prayer life was vivid, it was regular, 178 00:16:41,480 --> 00:16:46,280 he would pray while opening the windows of his housing quarters and people would see 179 00:16:46,280 --> 00:16:50,560 him pray. They feared his prayer. They wanted his prayers to stop because he was such a 180 00:16:50,560 --> 00:16:55,400 praying man. And some amazing things happened as a result of his prayer. So they issued 181 00:16:55,400 --> 00:17:01,680 an edict, a law, and eventually threw him into the lion's den. Now you know the story 182 00:17:01,680 --> 00:17:07,440 of Daniel in the lion's den and that story was a great story. We know the end of it because 183 00:17:07,440 --> 00:17:12,480 we've read the Bible. But his praying saved him in the midst of that lion's den and brought 184 00:17:12,480 --> 00:17:18,640 about another revival in Babylon as he prayed from the lion's den. You know I think we 185 00:17:18,640 --> 00:17:23,080 have to be in positions of power. We just have to know who is in a position of power, 186 00:17:23,080 --> 00:17:29,720 our God. Daniel prayed and Babylon changed. I've seen God do some amazing things through 187 00:17:29,720 --> 00:17:34,360 prayer but the Bible gives us over and over the examples of the fact that we must be a 188 00:17:34,360 --> 00:17:39,600 people of prayer for our nation and when we pray for our nation, when you pray for America, 189 00:17:39,600 --> 00:17:45,360 God can work in America like never before. You must believe that. I talked to someone 190 00:17:45,360 --> 00:17:50,320 the other day who expressed difficulty in praying for our country and I get it, it's 191 00:17:50,320 --> 00:17:56,000 hard sometimes to pray for our country but don't stop praying for America. Like Daniel, 192 00:17:56,000 --> 00:18:01,440 we can do nothing well until we pray and we must pray steadfastly for our nation and for 193 00:18:01,440 --> 00:18:10,920 the world around us. Daniel prayed, be a Daniel, be a Daniel. Let God use you as you call out 194 00:18:10,920 --> 00:18:19,900 to Him to change the world around you. Daniel prayed. Well as I read my Bible, I found yet 195 00:18:19,900 --> 00:18:25,120 someone else that God used to bless the nation and that's the man named Joseph. Through Joseph's 196 00:18:25,120 --> 00:18:31,960 leadership, Egypt was blessed. Babylon was blessed through Daniel's prayers and now Joseph 197 00:18:31,960 --> 00:18:39,200 was used to bless Egypt. Now we know the story of Joseph and we know the favor that his father 198 00:18:39,200 --> 00:18:43,600 gave him, the story of the many-colored colts, the resentment of his brother. We recently 199 00:18:43,600 --> 00:18:49,920 walked through a message or even a message series about that. We remember his rises and 200 00:18:49,920 --> 00:18:55,120 falls, all the circumstances in his life and eventually he ended up being placed as second 201 00:18:55,120 --> 00:19:02,040 in command to the leader of Egypt, Pharaoh. And he interpreted Pharaoh's dreams in such 202 00:19:02,040 --> 00:19:07,280 a way where Pharaoh says, okay, nobody else has interpreted it like that. Through Joseph's 203 00:19:07,280 --> 00:19:11,960 prayer life, God gave him the interpretation and it was going to be seven years of plenty 204 00:19:11,960 --> 00:19:18,080 followed by seven years of famine. And as a result of all that God did in Joseph's life 205 00:19:18,080 --> 00:19:24,200 and placing him there as a result of his prayer life and his insights from God, he was promoted 206 00:19:24,200 --> 00:19:32,480 to second in command in all of Egypt. A phenomenal kind of rise. In Genesis chapter 41 verse 207 00:19:32,480 --> 00:19:38,160 39, the Bible says, so Pharaoh said to Joseph, since God has informed you of all this, there 208 00:19:38,160 --> 00:19:42,600 is no one as discerning and wise as you are. You shall be in charge of my house and all 209 00:19:42,600 --> 00:19:49,640 my people shall be obedient to you. And Daniel, I mean Joseph did exactly what God told him 210 00:19:49,640 --> 00:19:55,240 to do. Seven years of plenty, set aside food for the storehouses. The seven years of famine, 211 00:19:55,240 --> 00:20:02,320 everybody was fed in Egypt and everybody in Israel also was fed. So God used this man, 212 00:20:02,320 --> 00:20:09,920 Joseph, not only to bless Egypt, but to bless Israel all because of his faithfulness to 213 00:20:09,920 --> 00:20:15,800 God. Listen, God can use any one individual to change the course of a nation just like 214 00:20:15,800 --> 00:20:20,400 we read in the scripture a moment ago. And he wants to do it in your life in some ways. 215 00:20:20,400 --> 00:20:25,160 Well, what about Queen Esther? Queen Esther was in a very similar role as Joseph. She 216 00:20:25,160 --> 00:20:32,280 was placed in an unusual series of events to be the queen to the king, the hazardous. 217 00:20:32,280 --> 00:20:37,960 She was in a position of rescuing all of Israel. We all know this famous line in Esther chapter 218 00:20:37,960 --> 00:20:43,560 four, verse 14. It's where Mordecai says to her, you've been placed in this amazing position 219 00:20:43,560 --> 00:20:48,240 of influence. And he says, and who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time 220 00:20:48,240 --> 00:20:55,200 as this. Now you and I may not be a Joseph and you and I may not be an Esther. We may 221 00:20:55,200 --> 00:21:00,440 not be a king or a queen. We may not be second in command anywhere at all. We don't have 222 00:21:00,440 --> 00:21:04,480 the freedom of walking into a throne room and saying, this is what someone needs to 223 00:21:04,480 --> 00:21:09,360 do, but we do have freedom to run for office. We do have freedom to be in a position of 224 00:21:09,360 --> 00:21:15,640 leadership. We do have freedom to vote for the things that are morally valuable and truth 225 00:21:15,640 --> 00:21:25,240 that God has given us to do it. I always encourage people who are in our nation vote, run for 226 00:21:25,240 --> 00:21:31,480 office. Let the truth that you know or God's truth to come through you. God's truths are 227 00:21:31,480 --> 00:21:38,960 good for everybody, not just for you. It was Tim Keller that said something a few years 228 00:21:38,960 --> 00:21:44,360 ago that was so important. He said, Christians cannot pretend that they can transcend politics 229 00:21:44,360 --> 00:21:49,160 and simply preach the gospel. Those who avoid all political discussions and engagement are 230 00:21:49,160 --> 00:21:54,800 essentially casting a vote for the status quo. American churches in the early 19th century 231 00:21:54,800 --> 00:21:59,960 that did not speak out against slavery because that was what would be now called getting 232 00:21:59,960 --> 00:22:06,280 political were actually supporting slavery by doing so. To not be political is to be 233 00:22:06,280 --> 00:22:12,280 political Tim Keller said. What about the voice God has given us? What about the truth 234 00:22:12,280 --> 00:22:18,080 he has placed inside of us? It has to be spoken. It's important to vote. It's important to 235 00:22:18,080 --> 00:22:23,200 run for office. Lead the way by exercising all the freedoms we have in our nation and 236 00:22:23,200 --> 00:22:29,160 God may well bless our nation through you and through your service. It wasn't so long 237 00:22:29,160 --> 00:22:35,680 ago, just a few months ago, that a local school board was considering and actually practicing 238 00:22:35,680 --> 00:22:40,800 some very objectionable things to parents. Objectionable because of some of the radical 239 00:22:40,800 --> 00:22:45,960 truths that were being shared in public school classrooms that thousands of kids were being 240 00:22:45,960 --> 00:22:52,080 exposed to. After realizing what was going on, several individuals including a few from 241 00:22:52,080 --> 00:22:59,360 this church actually began to publicize what was happening and found a leader that would 242 00:22:59,360 --> 00:23:05,440 run for election. They elected that leader and overturned some of the worst things that 243 00:23:05,440 --> 00:23:10,080 were happening with our school. There's a lot of activists out there today, a lot of 244 00:23:10,080 --> 00:23:14,760 political activists that would like to promote things that are contrary to God's word. It's 245 00:23:14,760 --> 00:23:20,140 so important for God's absolute truths to be represented in our nation today because 246 00:23:20,140 --> 00:23:25,520 here's the deal. When a nation moves away from the truths and the ways of God, all of 247 00:23:25,520 --> 00:23:31,240 us will feel the judgment of God on that nation and God has a history of judgments, nations 248 00:23:31,240 --> 00:23:36,680 that turn their back on him. We won't all be worshipers in the same way but we can all 249 00:23:36,680 --> 00:23:42,220 respect the truths that God has given us in the word of God. We need some pretty salty 250 00:23:42,220 --> 00:23:46,300 people to be able to stand up during those difficult times against really aggressive 251 00:23:46,300 --> 00:23:52,160 political activists today in order to keep our communities closer to absolute truth than 252 00:23:52,160 --> 00:23:59,160 the relative meandering that often happens. God will never bless that kind of thing unless 253 00:23:59,160 --> 00:24:04,240 we align with his truths. It's so important for us to realize we all have a different 254 00:24:04,240 --> 00:24:09,480 role and it's not going to be the same as the other. But what we do have is that opportunity 255 00:24:09,480 --> 00:24:15,640 to lead like Joseph led. We have the opportunity to lead like Esther led and you and I can 256 00:24:15,640 --> 00:24:24,440 help be a blessing to those around us by doing those things. So Daniel prayed, Joseph and 257 00:24:24,440 --> 00:24:33,160 Esther led, Jonah preached. Jonah's this little book in the Bible, four chapters, and it doesn't 258 00:24:33,160 --> 00:24:38,240 take long to read the book of Jonah but man what a great, great story Jonah is. It's really 259 00:24:38,240 --> 00:24:43,320 the story of one of the greatest revivals in history where a whole city, Nineveh, in 260 00:24:43,320 --> 00:24:49,520 the nation of Assyria was under the judgment of God. God was going to destroy Nineveh and 261 00:24:49,520 --> 00:24:56,480 this reluctant prophet named Jonah was called to go and preach that gospel, that repentance 262 00:24:56,480 --> 00:25:01,520 if you would, to the city of Nineveh. Many of you know Jonah because he's associated 263 00:25:01,520 --> 00:25:06,320 with the whale that swallowed him. And I love the story, the way it unfolds, it's so fun 264 00:25:06,320 --> 00:25:10,640 to read because it says this man was running as fast as he could away from God and God 265 00:25:10,640 --> 00:25:15,640 sends a big fish to swallow him up and the Bible says, actually in the Bible it says 266 00:25:15,640 --> 00:25:20,440 that the fish hurled him out onto the shore. I love that the Bible uses the word hurl, 267 00:25:20,440 --> 00:25:26,320 don't ask me why, I just like it, on the seashore right where he needed to be in order to preach 268 00:25:26,320 --> 00:25:33,760 to Nineveh. God has a way to place us in the right places at the right time to bless a 269 00:25:33,760 --> 00:25:40,400 nation that we may be reluctant to bless but that was the life of Jonah. And even though 270 00:25:40,400 --> 00:25:45,320 he was reluctant he marched through the city of Nineveh and preached repentance. He told 271 00:25:45,320 --> 00:25:51,440 the people that they should turn to God and when they did that God saw and relented. Let 272 00:25:51,440 --> 00:25:57,080 me read the result of that, Jonah 3 10 says, when God saw their deeds that they turned 273 00:25:57,080 --> 00:26:01,160 from their wicked way then God relented concerning the calamity which he had declared he would 274 00:26:01,160 --> 00:26:08,440 bring upon them and he did not do it. Now if you're tracking with me, you're watching 275 00:26:08,440 --> 00:26:17,600 someone like Daniel causing blessing to happen to Nebuchadnezzar and to Babylon. You're watching 276 00:26:17,600 --> 00:26:23,680 a Joseph cause blessing to go to Egypt. You're watching Jonah cause blessing to go to the 277 00:26:23,680 --> 00:26:29,680 city of Nineveh in Assyria. Are you getting the pattern here? When people are faithful 278 00:26:29,680 --> 00:26:35,080 to God, when people obey God and God can use them, he blesses those around them, sometimes 279 00:26:35,080 --> 00:26:42,800 whole cities, sometimes whole nations because of the obedience of one. What has God caused 280 00:26:42,800 --> 00:26:50,760 you to do? Jonah preached. You know we're all preachers in some sense of the word and 281 00:26:50,760 --> 00:26:56,920 we preach the gospel everywhere we are. While under Roman rule the Apostle Paul reminded 282 00:26:56,920 --> 00:26:59,880 the church that praying and preaching were two of the most important things the church 283 00:26:59,880 --> 00:27:05,160 could do. In fact, 1 Timothy chapter 2, those first four verses are really really important 284 00:27:05,160 --> 00:27:10,040 at this time of a year where we think about our nation, we think about the responsibilities 285 00:27:10,040 --> 00:27:15,160 that we have with that nation. Here's what Paul said, first of all I urge that in treaties 286 00:27:15,160 --> 00:27:19,760 and prayers, petitions and thanksgiving be made on behalf of all men and then he gets 287 00:27:19,760 --> 00:27:27,900 very specific, for kings and all those who are in authority. That's why every sitting 288 00:27:27,900 --> 00:27:34,440 president has a place on my prayer list. I pray for Joe Biden all the time. I pray for 289 00:27:34,440 --> 00:27:39,440 Trump before then and I pray for all the presidents before then for years and years and years. 290 00:27:39,440 --> 00:27:43,640 Why? Because of this command right here, pray for kings and all who are in authority. It 291 00:27:43,640 --> 00:27:48,520 goes on and says so that we might lead a tranquil and quiet life and all godliness and dignity. 292 00:27:48,520 --> 00:27:53,520 This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior who desires all men to be saved 293 00:27:53,520 --> 00:27:57,920 and to come to the knowledge of the truth. Prayer and preaching, preaching and prayer, 294 00:27:57,920 --> 00:28:04,920 that's what Paul said to those in the church during Roman rule time. Now you preach everywhere 295 00:28:04,920 --> 00:28:09,960 you go. You say, pastor when do we preach? I'm not talking about preaching like from 296 00:28:09,960 --> 00:28:15,040 a pulpit right now. I'm not talking about preaching like Jonah preached as he marched 297 00:28:15,040 --> 00:28:20,120 through the city of Nineveh, but you preach everywhere you go. We preach everywhere where 298 00:28:20,120 --> 00:28:26,520 shining light and sprinkling salt. Did you know that? We preach when we're in our neighborhoods 299 00:28:26,520 --> 00:28:33,040 and we reach out and help hurting friends. We preach in our community ministries when 300 00:28:33,040 --> 00:28:38,060 we feed someone that's hungry, we clothe someone that's poor and can't put clothing on themselves. 301 00:28:38,060 --> 00:28:43,080 We preach to those looking for answers with unplanned pregnancies or solutions to challenges 302 00:28:43,080 --> 00:28:48,760 in the home. We preach in public schools when we enter into those schools and teach kids 303 00:28:48,760 --> 00:28:53,640 the scripture in after school ministry time. We preach wherever we're a witness to the 304 00:28:53,640 --> 00:29:00,320 hurting and our message is Jesus is the answer. The world's not the answer, the government's 305 00:29:00,320 --> 00:29:07,320 not the answer, the community's not the answer, Jesus is the answer. Jonah preached, we should 306 00:29:07,440 --> 00:29:13,280 preach and wherever we preach and wherever we pray, God may well use us to bring blessing 307 00:29:13,280 --> 00:29:20,280 not only to those immediately around us but to those in our community and our world. Daniel 308 00:29:20,280 --> 00:29:27,280 preached, Joseph, Esther led, Jonah preached, I mean Daniel prayed I should say, then Jonah 309 00:29:28,320 --> 00:29:34,720 preached and then the apostles stood firm. By the time you get to the New Testament, 310 00:29:34,720 --> 00:29:41,720 the apostles began to be key leaders in the movement of the kingdom of God and as they 311 00:29:41,720 --> 00:29:47,000 began to be those key leaders, they began to be opposed at every turn. Now you have 312 00:29:47,000 --> 00:29:52,960 to remember the church was born in the midst of the Roman Empire under Roman rule and as 313 00:29:52,960 --> 00:29:57,840 a result it ended up being quite persecuted during the first hundred to two hundred years 314 00:29:57,840 --> 00:30:03,680 of the church. Most of the time, most of the time when historians compare nations at different 315 00:30:03,680 --> 00:30:10,680 eras, they compare modern day America with ancient Rome in the first century or two. 316 00:30:10,680 --> 00:30:16,040 We're very much alike in so many different ways. Early Rome was a republican country 317 00:30:16,040 --> 00:30:22,120 just like America is a republican country, a representative form of government. Ancient 318 00:30:22,120 --> 00:30:28,640 Rome was blessed with great material wealth, so is America. Ancient Rome eventually turned 319 00:30:28,640 --> 00:30:35,440 its back on truth and reality and began to pursue all kinds of pleasurable things apart 320 00:30:35,440 --> 00:30:41,000 from the help to the nation. In the same way, so has America in so many ways, so many comparisons 321 00:30:41,000 --> 00:30:48,000 there. By the New Testament, apostles were walking out the ministry of God in early Rome. 322 00:30:49,840 --> 00:30:54,680 Often they were commanded to be silent about Jesus. I mean, the Roman government didn't 323 00:30:54,680 --> 00:31:01,680 want to hear a lot about Jesus and the Israeli leaders, the Judaism leaders didn't want 324 00:31:01,680 --> 00:31:06,460 Jesus to be preached. Many of the scribes and the Pharisees had actually helped put 325 00:31:06,460 --> 00:31:13,300 him to death under the hand of Rome, wanted Jesus' name not to be mentioned. And so as 326 00:31:13,300 --> 00:31:19,820 you read the book of Acts, you see these important moments where the apostles stood firm against 327 00:31:19,820 --> 00:31:25,100 the pressure and the persecution that was coming. For example, in Acts chapter four, 328 00:31:25,100 --> 00:31:30,380 verse nineteen, the Bible says, in answer to those who were told to be quiet about the 329 00:31:30,380 --> 00:31:34,780 name of Jesus, the apostles said, whether it's right in the sight of God to listen 330 00:31:34,780 --> 00:31:40,120 to you rather than God, make your own judgment, for we cannot stop speaking about what we 331 00:31:40,120 --> 00:31:45,740 have seen and heard. In other words, Jesus has made such a huge difference in our lives, 332 00:31:45,740 --> 00:31:50,820 we're not going to be quiet. And as a result of those, many were coming to faith in Christ 333 00:31:50,820 --> 00:31:56,140 in spite of the persecution. Now there are times in history where Christian followers 334 00:31:56,140 --> 00:32:00,620 of Christ just have to stand firm, where they can't make much progress this way or that 335 00:32:00,620 --> 00:32:05,340 way, but they just have to stand firm sometimes in the face of persecution. And I fear we're 336 00:32:05,340 --> 00:32:10,740 moving that way in America today, where it's costly to own your faith in Jesus Christ, 337 00:32:10,740 --> 00:32:17,740 but it's still the way of blessing. In Acts chapter five, verse twenty-nine, Peter and 338 00:32:18,100 --> 00:32:24,820 the apostles answered, we must obey God rather than man. In other words, it doesn't matter 339 00:32:24,820 --> 00:32:28,460 what you say and doesn't matter what you try to shut down in the way of our message in 340 00:32:28,460 --> 00:32:33,660 our life and the fact that we follow Jesus Christ, we're going to obey God rather than 341 00:32:33,660 --> 00:32:38,340 man. And the New Testament church was focused solely on living out the Christian principles 342 00:32:38,340 --> 00:32:45,340 of the kingdom of God. Now I want you to hear this, this is interesting. The New Testament 343 00:32:45,540 --> 00:32:52,540 church numbered about 1,000 people by 100 AD in Rome, and Rome was growing rapidly. 344 00:32:52,540 --> 00:32:59,540 By 350 AD, there were 33 million believers in Rome. They went from 2% of the population 345 00:33:02,700 --> 00:33:09,380 to over 50% of the population in 300 years. And most of those 300 years were years in 346 00:33:09,380 --> 00:33:14,100 which oppression and persecution was taking place. Tens of thousands of believers were 347 00:33:14,100 --> 00:33:19,780 put to death just because of their faith in Jesus Christ. In spite of the persecution, 348 00:33:19,780 --> 00:33:25,580 more and more people came to follow Jesus because those apostles stood firm. And here's 349 00:33:25,580 --> 00:33:30,780 what I want you to hear today. The New Testament church birthed in persecution, birthed in 350 00:33:30,780 --> 00:33:37,780 a difficult kind of nation in which you can live and be inspired and yet it thrived in 351 00:33:38,180 --> 00:33:43,780 the face of opposition. If the New Testament church can thrive in ancient Rome's heavy 352 00:33:43,780 --> 00:33:49,900 hand, you and I can thrive in America. If ancient Christianity was able not only to 353 00:33:49,900 --> 00:33:53,860 survive but to impact people and bring them to salvation through the preaching of the 354 00:33:53,860 --> 00:33:58,460 gospel, through the praying to this amazing God that answers our prayers, then today and 355 00:33:58,460 --> 00:34:03,180 this day and time, you and I do not need to be pessimistic about the influence we have 356 00:34:03,180 --> 00:34:09,620 in our country today. We're still the church. God is still God. Governments will be governments, 357 00:34:09,620 --> 00:34:16,620 but the reality is we are called to stand firm. I'm calling you to stand firm. So Daniel 358 00:34:23,740 --> 00:34:30,740 prayed, Joseph and Esther led, Jonah preached, the apostles stood firm, Jesus focused. In 359 00:34:30,740 --> 00:34:37,740 one of the most riveting moments of Jesus' trial before Pilate at Praetorium, he was 360 00:34:43,180 --> 00:34:48,420 asked, are you a king? He was being mocked. He was being ridiculed in so many different 361 00:34:48,420 --> 00:34:55,420 ways. And so Pilate said, are you a king? And Jesus answered with this answer, my kingdom 362 00:34:55,420 --> 00:35:00,980 is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would be fighting 363 00:35:00,980 --> 00:35:06,380 so that I would not be handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not of this 364 00:35:06,380 --> 00:35:13,380 realm. Jesus' focus wasn't on political upheaval, but on personal repentance and redemption. 365 00:35:14,180 --> 00:35:20,020 He walked it all the way out, died on the cross to pay for our sin. And he knew that 366 00:35:20,020 --> 00:35:25,400 building the kingdom of God would flavor and influence not just that nation, but any nation 367 00:35:25,400 --> 00:35:29,820 as it does today, just as it did in the Old Testament times and all those examples of 368 00:35:29,820 --> 00:35:36,820 all those different nations, just as it does today. A coming kingdom, which will come one 369 00:35:36,900 --> 00:35:43,260 day, will close it all out. And we should never lose sight of that hope, but until then 370 00:35:43,260 --> 00:35:50,260 we trust that God can bless those around us by us being obedient and faithful to God. 371 00:35:50,260 --> 00:35:56,660 You know, the movie that we're watching hasn't ended yet. We talked about that a few moments 372 00:35:56,660 --> 00:36:01,860 ago. And you may feel like you're in crisis, but the reality is God is not worried. He's 373 00:36:01,860 --> 00:36:07,780 not concerned. One day we'll see how it all ends and it will end well. James Dennison 374 00:36:07,780 --> 00:36:12,540 recently shared an excellent quote. He said, there's not a square inch in the whole domain 375 00:36:12,540 --> 00:36:18,020 of our human existence over which Christ, who is sovereign over all, does not exclaim 376 00:36:18,020 --> 00:36:25,020 mine. I want you to remember that when things look out of control. But I think maybe the 377 00:36:25,860 --> 00:36:31,020 most important question is one that James Dennison poses as well. Can he say the same 378 00:36:31,020 --> 00:36:37,420 thing of your life and your obedience today? In Christ, look at your life and say, they 379 00:36:37,420 --> 00:36:44,420 are mine. And I'll be the one that wants to tell you today, if you belong to Christ, 380 00:36:44,420 --> 00:36:51,420 Christ can bless those around you and even your nation through you as you allow him to 381 00:36:52,020 --> 00:36:57,540 do that. God blesses people and nations through individual believers who know how to follow 382 00:36:57,540 --> 00:37:04,180 him and fear him. It's God blessing others through your life. It's very simple. He blesses 383 00:37:04,180 --> 00:37:08,420 others like Daniel's praying and Joseph's leading and Jonah's preaching and the apostles 384 00:37:08,420 --> 00:37:15,420 standing firm and Jesus focused. We all have a place, but are you his? Are you his? In 385 00:37:16,780 --> 00:37:21,220 just a moment, we'll give an invitation and really the most important invitation today 386 00:37:21,220 --> 00:37:28,220 is asking and answering the question, am I his? Do I fear the Lord? Do I honor the Lord? 387 00:37:29,860 --> 00:37:35,340 Do I obey the Lord? Because if I do that, then wherever I am, I'm going to be a blessing 388 00:37:35,340 --> 00:37:40,700 to those around me. And whatever nation I'm a citizen of will be blessed because I am 389 00:37:40,700 --> 00:37:45,020 literally walking out the kingdom agenda, the kingdom priorities, the focus that God 390 00:37:45,020 --> 00:37:51,660 has for me. But are you his? Have you given your life to Christ? Have you given your life 391 00:37:51,660 --> 00:37:58,340 to him and have you become faithful to him above all other agendas, above all other priorities 392 00:37:58,340 --> 00:38:03,420 that you may hear about in your lifetime? Are you giving him the first place in your 393 00:38:03,420 --> 00:38:07,860 life? In just a few moments as we close, my invitation will be for you to stop by the 394 00:38:07,860 --> 00:38:14,220 decision station and ask that question and find that answer. Am I giving my life to Jesus? 395 00:38:14,220 --> 00:38:16,700 Am I letting him be Lord and Savior of my life? 396 00:38:16,700 --> 00:38:21,340 I have a second invitation for you today as well. I know it's a holiday weekend, but 397 00:38:21,340 --> 00:38:25,500 I'd love to spend just a few moments with you after the worship service in the guest 398 00:38:25,500 --> 00:38:30,300 reception room. Stop by, just let me share a little bit about Cross City Church and what 399 00:38:30,300 --> 00:38:35,020 God is doing here. And thirdly, invite someone to come back with you next week. We have invite 400 00:38:35,020 --> 00:38:39,220 cards that are out there. I'm going to be answering the question, where is God when 401 00:38:39,220 --> 00:38:43,920 bad things happen that are unexplainable in any other way? Would you stand with me as 402 00:38:43,920 --> 00:38:50,920 we close in prayer today? Father, today I want to thank you so much for these examples 403 00:38:52,420 --> 00:38:58,940 of those that have walked the walk of faith that you've used in such a powerful way. It 404 00:38:58,940 --> 00:39:05,940 astounds me that people like Jonah and people like Daniel can be the cause of blessing in 405 00:39:05,980 --> 00:39:11,540 some of these clearly pagan nations, clearly wicked agendas, and yet somehow God you've 406 00:39:11,540 --> 00:39:16,380 used these individuals. Today my prayer is that you'll help us be inspired to be those 407 00:39:16,380 --> 00:39:22,340 kinds of individuals, the kind of people that God uses around and affects people around 408 00:39:22,340 --> 00:39:27,620 him. Father, today for those that have never given their lives to you, I pray that that 409 00:39:27,620 --> 00:39:33,380 question could be answered today. They step forward to talk about their faith, their personal 410 00:39:33,380 --> 00:39:37,860 faith in you. Lord, let them know that they are loved, that you have a plan for their 411 00:39:37,860 --> 00:39:44,940 life, that you can forgive sin, that you can restore lives. Today we pray for those decisions. 412 00:39:44,940 --> 00:39:48,500 Thank you Father for the great things we can say about our country, but we also pray and 413 00:39:48,500 --> 00:39:55,260 give to you those grievous things, asking you to bring the change that needs to be brought 414 00:39:55,260 --> 00:39:59,540 to us and to those around us. We ask this in Jesus' name, amen.