And all God's people said, Amen. Thank you so much choir and orchestra for leading us this morning.
If you have your Bibles, I want you to turn to Deuteronomy chapter 6.
Deuteronomy chapter 6.
Well, the world has come to America recently to see the World Cup.
I don't even know where it is.
But soccer is not the main sport around here, but it is in the rest of the world, or football.
And I have had fun listening to people's impressions of America as they visit it for the first time.
It is something that Americans need to listen to, quite honestly.
A Scottish fan described Bucky's as a, quote, gas station mixed with Disney World wrapped in a gift shop.
Freddie from Germany called Taco Bell the Holy Land.
Elsa from Sweden tasted ranch dressing and said, I won't ever be able to live without it.
And I will tell you that I always ask missionaries what they need and what we can bring.
And many times I'll take an extra suitcase full of stuff that they can't get overseas, but they can get here.
Many times they ask for dry ranch dressing because it is not available anywhere else around.
It really, it's a rarity.
Kenny asked for ibuprofen.
And he said, can you find me 500 caplets of ibuprofen?
And we took him 1,000, praise God.
So anyway, over and over again, European visitors are shocked at the vastness of our country and the friendliness of Americans.
I saw a South African that was amazed at a truck stop did not have an armed guard and had bottled water and an ice machine on the sidewalk in front of the store and nobody was even taking it.
I didn't tell him the rest of the story.
But anyway, that's what he thought.
One Scottish fan woke up his Bostonian neighbors playing the bagpipes at 630 a.m.
And he was greeted with breakfast and gifts.
Another Bostonian said of the Scottish, he said, the Tartan Army is the best thing in Boston since Tom Brady.
Listen, friend, I love to travel the world.
I do, and I'm thankful for the opportunity to go and serve the Lord in Dublin and to be able to see some things along the way.
But I'm telling you, I love to come home.
We live in the best country in the world, period.
And for those that don't believe it, you are welcome to leave.
And for those of us who stay, I want you to know we've been entrusted with much.
We must protect it.
We must preserve the good of our country and root out the bad.
A month ago, Dawn and I gave our oldest daughter away in marriage, and it served as a stark reminder to me that every generation eventually hands the future over to the next generation.
I'm not the only one who understood that.
Moses understood that.
And he shared that.
And we still need to keep it before us.
May this ring in our ears, our hearts, our minds, as strong as it did in those that heard it for the first time in person.
Deuteronomy chapter 6, beginning verse 1 says,
Now this is the commandment, the statutes, and the rules that the Lord your God commanded you to teach you.
That you may do them in the land to which you're going over, to possess it.
That you may fear the Lord your God, that you may fear the Lord your God, you and your son and your son's son, by keeping all of his statutes and his commandments, which I command you, all the days of your life, and that your days may be long.
Hear, therefore, O Israel, and be careful to do them, that it may be well with you, and that you may multiply greatly as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has promised you in a land flowing with milk and honey.
Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might.
These words that I command you today shall be upon your heart.
You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.
You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.
You shall write them on the doorposts of your house, and on your gates.
Those words that I just read once could not be read because a man's hand was lying on top of it.
Whose hand was that?
George Washington.
Upon his swearing in, George Washington placed his hand on an open Bible and made an oath to the Lord as his fingers touched this very scripture.
Now, does that surprise you?
I'm sure that the forefathers of our nation did not intend for our laws to be interpreted as they are today.
Today, the men that founded this nation were not like many of the men and the women that lead our nation today.
The few good, godly leaders we have are in a fight, folks.
How do we protect what we have and prepare the next generation for what's to come?
I believe we have to look in three directions.
One is I think we have to look back.
My great, great, great, great grandpa was the chief justice of the South Carolina State Supreme Court
and a governor of the state of South Carolina.
He was voted down by the Senate when he was recommended by Washington to take John Jay's place as chief justice of the Supreme Court.
That's what happens when you say dumb stuff days before a vote.
My great, great, great grand uncle was the youngest to sign the Declaration of Independence
and was also a governor of South Carolina.
I got Rutledge in my blood.
Do you know that some of the men who signed our Declaration of Independence
declaring our commitment to break ties with Great Britain
were also men of God that were responsible for founding the American Bible Society,
the American Tract Society,
as well as the Philadelphia Bible Society.
Many times our founding fathers are made out to be deities.
In other words, those that believe that God was the creator,
but that he does not value a relationship with us,
or that we need not value a relationship with him.
They don't think it's possible.
They believe that after creation that God took his hand off the earth.
A deist believes that we can't commune with God,
that we have no relationship with him,
that he is simply a cosmic creator
with no relation or concern for our world.
I want to ask you this morning to begin with,
do you think these men sound like deities?
Patrick Henry said,
it cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often
this great nation was founded not by religionists,
but by Christians.
Not on religions,
but on the gospel of Jesus Christ.
John Adams,
when speaking of the general principles
of which the fathers achieved independence said,
I will avow that I then believed and now believe
that those general principles of Christianity
are as eternal and immutable
as the existence and attributes of God
and that those principles of liberty
are as unalterable as human nature.
End quote.
They believed our leaders
ought to be men of Christ.
Benjamin Franklin said,
he shall introduce into public affairs
the principles of Christianity
that will change the face of the world.
John Quincy Adams,
our sixth president,
said the highest glory
of the American Revolution was this,
it connected with one indissoluble bond
the principles of civil government
and the principles of Christianity.
Sadly,
at least in my perspective,
that bond seems to have dissolved somewhat
in our society.
Noah Webster,
as in Webster's Dictionary,
said this,
the religion which has introduced civil liberty
is the religion of Christ and his apostles,
which enjoins humility,
piety,
and benevolence,
which acknowledges in every person
a brother,
a sister,
a citizen with equal rights.
This is the genuine Christianity.
And it is to this Christianity
that we owe our free constitution of government.
Eat that up,
ACLU.
These wise men understood
that liberty is all about Christ.
You can't separate it.
In 1796,
the Supreme Court of Maryland ruled,
by our form of government,
the Christian religion
is the established religion,
and all sects and denominations of Christians
are placed under the same equal footing
and are equally entitled to protection
in their liberty.
All denominations of Christians,
is what Maryland said.
In reality,
the First Amendment was added
to make sure that one Christian denomination
didn't rise above other Christian denominations.
And the assumption was
that Christianity was a given.
In the beginning of the nation,
there was no conflict with the First Amendment
and having Washington lay his hand on the Bible
open to Deuteronomy 6.
There was no conflict with the First Amendment
and having chaplains of Congress
lead the worship service
that concluded Washington's inauguration.
There was no conflict with the First Amendment
to be supporting ministers and missionaries
with federal money,
listen to this,
for the first 100 years of our nation.
My!
Times have changed.
In 1781,
a publisher petitioned Congress
for permission to print Bibles.
And Congress approved of it
and stated this,
the Congress of the United States
approves and recommends to the people
the Holy Bible
for use in schools.
End of quote.
When it was challenged,
the Supreme Court responded,
why not the Bible,
and especially the New Testament,
be read and taught
as divine revelation in the schools?
Where can the purest principles of morality
be learned so clearly
or so perfectly
as from the New Testament?
The state of Delaware's Constitution,
1776 stated,
everyone appointed to public office
must say,
listen to this,
I'm going to repeat this,
the state of Delaware,
the Constitution of 1776,
stated,
everyone appointed to public office
must say,
I do profess faith
in God the Father
and in the Lord Jesus Christ,
His only Son,
and in the Holy Ghost,
one God,
blessed forevermore.
And I do acknowledge
the Holy Scriptures
of the Old and New Testament
to be given
by divine inspiration.
End of quote.
John Jay,
the first Chief Justice
of the U.S. Supreme Court
and one of the many contributors
to the Constitution
stated this,
Providence,
when he spoke of God,
has given to our people
the choice of their rulers
and it is the duty
as well as the privilege
and interest
of our Christian nation
to select
and prefer Christians
for their rulers.
He went on to write,
the right to hold office
was to be extended
to persons
of any Christian denomination.
That's a lot, folks.
That's the foundation
of our nation.
And I say that today
because that's not information
that you're going to find
in your typical history book.
You're not going to hear that.
These truths
have to be preserved
and carried on
to the next generation.
But I don't think
we only look back.
I believe we also
look up.
Scripture says,
Hear, O Israel,
the Lord our God,
the Lord is one.
The issue is not
simply
what our founders
believed,
although it needs
to be known
and I believe
it needs to be celebrated.
the issue today
is what we believe.
The issue today
is what we're going
to do about it.
George Washington
may have placed his hand
upon Deuteronomy
chapter 6,
but the greater question
today is if Deuteronomy 6
is in our hearts.
Placing your hand
on something
is one thing.
Placing God's word
in your heart
is another thing.
Verse 6 of Deuteronomy
chapter 6 says,
And these words
that I command you today
shall be upon
your heart.
God's word
in our hearts
is what really
changes
a nation.
Having a burden
for God's word
to be paramount
in all that we do
will lead
God's people
to pray.
And when we pray
as we're instructed
to pray,
God moves.
1 Timothy
chapter 2
verse 1 through 4
says this,
First of all,
then I urge you
that supplications,
prayers,
intercessions,
and thanksgivings
be made
for all people,
for kings
and all who are
in high positions,
that we may lead
a peaceful
and quiet life,
godly and dignified
in every way.
This is good
and it is pleasing
in the sight of God
our Savior
who desires
all people
to be saved
and to come
to the knowledge
of the truth.
Christians,
we need to pray
for those that lead us
and pray
for our lives
will not get
in the way
when God
wants to do
a work
in us
and through us.
We need to pray
that we are
peaceful.
What a difference
it makes
when we pray
for God's
leadership
in our land.
Friend,
it is time
we throw up
our hands,
but not in disgust,
but we throw up
our hands to God
in prayer.
That we
look up
to Him.
That we turn
to Him.
That we don't
get sour
on the changes
that have happened
in our world
and in our nation.
It's not really
about that.
It's got more
to do with
how that's
affected us.
Are we salt
and light
in the world
in which we live?
What are we doing
for the cause
of Christ
in the way
in which we live?
in the way
in which we talk?
In the places
in which we go?
What are we
to do?
I think we look
up.
But not only
that,
but I also
think that we
look ahead.
For Deuteronomy
chapter 6
verse 7
says,
teach them
diligently
to your
children.
And I talk
a lot about
this.
It was
Deuteronomy
chapter 6,
the Shema
is a key
part of
Jewish life.
It was
central to
what they
stood for
in the days
of the Old
Testament.
It is
central in
Judaism
today.
They look
back to
this passage
of Scripture.
Scripture.
It is key.
It teaches
us what our
home ought to
be like.
Jesus said
in Matthew
28,
18 through
20,
that we need
to make
disciples in
Jerusalem,
in Judea,
in Samaria,
and the
uttermost.
We have a
story to
tell.
And that
story starts
at home.
To trust
the power
of the
gospel and
share that
gospel.
Share it
faithfully
at home.
Share it
as you go.
pray that
God will
convince you
that what
America needs
and what
this world
needs is a
godly
generation that
is protecting
our freedoms
and sharing
our love
for what we
can be in
Christ to
our children.
I want you
to hear me
today.
Every
generation is
only,
excuse me,
every nation
is only one
generation away
from forgetting
what made
it great.
Every nation
is only one
generation away
from forgetting
what made
it great.
And that's
why Moses
in Deuteronomy
chapter 6
wasn't talking
to politicians.
He was talking
to parents.
He was talking
to grandparents.
He understood
that what happens
in the living
room today
determines what
happens in the
nation tomorrow.
The future
of America
will not
ultimately
be determined
in Washington,
D.C.
It'll be
determined in
our homes.
It'll be
determined around
our kitchen
tables.
Listen to me,
church.
It'll be
determined in
our churches
and in our
hearts
that love
the Lord
their God
with all
of their
heart,
all of
their soul,
all of
their mind.
It'll be
determined by
people that
look back
to see how
God led us
to this
point.
and who,
let me add,
trains their
children in
that knowledge.
If the
history books
don't tell
it that we
use in
schools,
then let's
buy some
different books
and do it at
the house
so they'll
know it
anyway.
it'll be
determined
by people
that make
sure the
truth is
known.
It'll be
determined by
people who
look up to
the Lord
and bless
this country
with their
prayers for
not only its
greatness,
but also pray
for its
godliness.
Amos
chapter 5
verse 24
says,
The future
of America
is determined
by those
that look
ahead and
invest in
the gospel,
invest their
lives in
godly
character,
invest in
godly
principles in
the coming
generation.
My prayer
is, oh
dear God,
may we be
found faithful
in doing
all we
can do
to reach
as many
as we
can and
to make
this nation
as great
as we
can.
My friend,
that's where
we came
from.
Let's do
everything we
can to
get back
to that
and live
it out
in every
aspect of
our lives.
Before we
point fingers
at everything
else that's
wrong in
the world,
let's seek
God's face
at what's
wrong with
us.
Let's
get that
right.
When that's
right,
may God
by the
power of
his Holy
Spirit
influence
those around
us more
than we
could ever
imagine.
Amen?
Amen.
Let's pray.