HOW CAN WE HEAL AMERICA-Not Through Half-Repentance. Today, I am going to show you that America, like much of the West has been sinning, following false idols, and only half-repenting. When we put away as opposed to eliminate the things in life that distract us from God, we become “As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool repeats his folly"- (Proverbs 26:11)
NOTHING HAS CHANGED IN 3000 YEARS
Like Proverb 26:11, we find Israel, in the book of Judges returning over and over to their sin and judgement. The book of Judges was written over 3000 years ago between 1050-1000 B.C. Today we are going to look at Judges chapter ten as one of many examples of Israel’s relapsing found in the Book of Judges.
Below, starting in verse 6, I provided a sample of the many times that God’s people forsook God, repented and repeatedly went back to their sin of Baal worship before being judged by God and crying out for His help-starting the sinful cycle all over again. In judgement, What is God’s judgment? It means that God gave or “sold” them over to their enemies. Better yet, God allowed them to buy their own destruction. You can’t forsake God and expect His blessing, provision and protection anymore than you can buy a car on credit without having to make payments. Let’s jump right in and read for ourselves, picking up in verse Judges 10:6.
“6 The people of Israel AGAIN did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and served the Baals and the Ashtaroth, the gods of Syria, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites, and the gods of the Philistines. And they forsook the Lordand did not serve him. 7 So the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of the Philistines and into the hand of the Ammonites, 8 and they crushed and oppressed the people of Israel that year. For eighteen years they oppressed all the people of Israel who were beyond the Jordan in the land of the Amorites, which is in Gilea” (Judges 10:6-8).
GOD’S PEOPLE-THE ISRAELITES REPENT…KIND OF
“13 Yet you have forsaken me and served other gods; therefore I will save you no more. 14 Go and cry out to the gods whom you have chosen; let them save you in the time of your distress.” 15 And the people of Israel said to the Lord, “We have sinned; do to us whatever seems good to you. Only please deliver us this day.” 16 So they put away the foreign gods from among them and served the Lord, and he became impatient over the misery of Israel” (Judges 10:13-16).
GOD OFTEN GIVES US WHAT WE ASK OF HIM
In verses 12-13, God gives the Israelite what they asked for in that that worshipped false gods-so go to those gods and ask them to help you. I find this most interesting. Why would God’s people the worship false gods and then come to the real God of the universe to save them? The answer is that God’s people more often than not want it both ways-they want to live life with their man-made idols and still lean on God as an escape button. Not too long ago, I had a friend whose wife was having an affair on him and wanted to keep the marriage going while she was having the affair. She wanted it both ways. This example is an excellent analogy of the infidelity to the bride and groom we find in the Bible speaking of God’s people and Jesus as bride and groom.
SAME STUFF-DIFFERENT DAY
Today, we are basically in the same situation. We want to keep all the false gods of materialism and spiritual idols while receiving God’s protection from other hostile nations and His blessings upon us for a great economy. This insatiable lust on our part to feed our passions and desires while going to church with God as a side note as opposed to living our faith biblically and visibly in a fallen world is no longer being tolerated by God. This is why we are suffering and why we will suffer even more-until we repent, call upon the Lord, and learn to live within the lines of Word and ways of God. Capitalism is the best system-only when lived out in accordance to the Word of God.
Looking ahead to verse 15, the Israelite confess that they have sought false gods and asked God to do whatever HE SEES fit to do but to please deliver them from their enemies. I find this ironic in that to ask for what God sees fit to do or give to them was already at hand-and to deliver them was quite the opposite in that it would not be what God sees fit in delivering them once again.
THE KICKER-WHY DID THEY SIMPLY PUT AWAY THEIR FOREIGN GODS?
16 “So they put away the foreign gods from among them and served the Lord, and he became impatient over the misery of Israel” (Judges 10:16).
Why did the Israelites only “put away” their idols? This perplexes me. Does the alcoholic in rehab simply put his or her liquor away in the cabinet or thrown it out? Here, the Israelites failed to burn and destroy their idols! They simply “put them away”. I don’t know about you, but when I want to eliminate something sinful from my life, I get totally rid of it. When I want to “return” to something or retrieve it later in time, I store it on a shelf, in a closet or in a drawer. God is a loving God in that “He became impatient with their suffering”. The Israelites ought to have completly destroyed, melted down or burned their false god-idols.
IN APPLICATION FOR YOU AND I
I believe this why God is allowing America and the West in general to experience loss of freedom, free speech, value of the U.S. dollar as the world default currency and U.S. military dominance. WHY? Because we have only “put away” our idols and false gods. Looking in the rear-view mirror it becomes clear that we are guilty of manufacturing a self-sustaining self-made god like outlook on life. W find God’s warning signs in and through the September -1, 2001 attacks, through the financial crash of 2008, godless national leadership, from the president to congress, and the list goes on. So now, God will strip us of the very things that have given us a false dependence on the temporal things that have no real power in life or eternity.
THE GOOD NEWS
Is there really any good news? Of course there is. When we return to God, He will restore us to a new way of life that is much lesson clouded by the artificial things of this world. Right now we mourn the loss of material wealth and national power that is quickly eroding in America. It’s important that we own this as a nation in that the consequences of our sin is of our own making. We departed from God a very long time ago and we now scratch our heads, wondering why He has abandoned us and why he has taken His hand of blessing and protection from us, allowing us to literally be taken over by our enemies.
OUR HOPE
God eventually restored Israel and God will eventually restore America in one form or another. Let’s focus on becoming what God wants and not wanting what was in our sinful ways in recent past.
CONCLUSION AND WHERE WE CAN START
Let’s not be like the dog depicted in Proverbs 26:11. “As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool repeats his folly"- (Proverbs 26:11). Remember, NOTHING HAS CHANGED IN 3000 YEARS. Like Proverb 26:11, we find Israel, in the book of Judges returning over and over to their sin and judgement. Where can WE start in helping turning things back around and right side up? By opening our drawers and closet and destroying the idols of over abundance, distorted affluence if it has misled us, and the self-dependence that has led us astray from God to begin with. Verse 16 tells us what to do: “So they put away the foreign gods from among them and served the Lord, and he became impatient over the misery of Israel” (Judges 10:16).
By being in God’s Word daily, and living our lives in accordance with God’s ways through Prayer, Bible reading and fellowship with authentic Christians willing to take action and not just talk about the state of the country and world in apathy. Lastly, by repenting our own, honest sinful idols that have added to the problem as opposed to help resolve it. We are all affected if honest. Once we do this, God will hear our cries and become impatient with our calling out to Him. And at that time, He will restore us, our nation-His people.
