|
|
|
Independence Day 2004
Today is a glorious Day. It
is the Birthday of our Nation, which has experienced much glory. I would venture
to say that this Day borders on the Holy, because, for those, who take time to
think, it brings to mind with great appreciation, the many victories of the
battles and struggles sustained, which made it the greatest and most powerful
Nation on earth. During the past couple of
generations, the complete separation of Church and State has especially been
greatly stressed. Yet, and for this we must be proud, that even though there is
this separation, essentially we Americans of various Ethnic backgrounds, are a
religious and God-loving Nation! We must always remember,
that it is this fact, above anything else, which has imbued character in our
statesmen, courage to our soldiers, justice in our government, and conscience to
our people. All over the walls of our Republic, we find the handwriting of God. We find it written in the
State papers, in the words of our statesmen, on our currency, in the literature
that has been written, and surely in the aspirations of our people. In the
preamble of our Constitution we pledge our allegiance to "....One Nation
under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all!" However, -and with much
sadness, we cannot but agree that some of our main pillars are slipping. I
mention firstly, that our theistic faith has become ambiguous. With this, I do
not mean that our population has suddenly discarded its faith in God. But there
is an ambiguity about what is meant by God; - how we describe Him, and what our
responsibility is to Him. As a result of this
ambiguity we seem to set aside the accepted eternal values of right and wrong,
as explicitly put forth in God's Commandments. This is one of the
unfortunate marks of our present generation and unfortunately it is having a
poisonous effect on our youth. Young people look around
them, only to witness the institution of marriage collapsing, and the home
disintegrating. They go to the newsstand, and find, openly displayed,
publications dedicated to the overt expression of the erotic and hedonistic
philosophies of human conduct. And of course, the lion's share of the blame for
this deleterious effect on society, belongs to the medium of TV, which has had a
profound influence not only on our youth, but even to grownups as well. Experiences reserved for
maturity and marriage, are now so very common to adolescents. - In short, our
youth are the victims of the total, or even partial disregard of the moral law
by their elders.Our youth are further scandalized, and I may say even
poisoned, by the lack of morality, of integrity and of dignity among our
nation's leaders. Thus, it seems that we do
not have a clearly defined national purpose. What can we say is our national
purpose today? And the question is, why should it be different than it was a
couple of generations ago, when the eternal values were generally espoused by
the citizens?- What can we say regarding the mission the United States should
have in the world today? Is it our purpose to serve the world, merely with the
mechanical gadgets and our superior technical know-how? Have our material and
technical achievements, unbelievable only a few years ago, have these kept
abreast with our spiritual wellbeing? Unfortunately not, because it seems that
we have forgotten, that we are composed not only of body but of soul also. - No matter how great our
attainments, - if these, are not interwoven with the human spirit, rest assured
that we definitely will feel empty,- sterile,- fragmented and unfulfilled,
regardless of how great our achievements. In the 11th Psalm, verse 3,
the Psalmist David asks: "If the foundations are destroyed, what can the
righteous do?" This is a very natural question. But,- while our foundations
are not destroyed, and God forbid that they will ever be, it is true, that there
is the feeling, that these foundations are not as sound, as they were in days
gone by. To make these foundations stronger and unshakeable, we must look to
ourselves, - to our standards, -and note the kind of example we are to the
world. We truly must take the time
to cultivate the things that really matter in this life. We must especially take
time for worship -time for individual prayer - time to be quiet, - time for our
children, - time to be of service to our fellow man and the Community, - and
time to know, and how to always apply the eternal truths in our life.. We must above all else, open
up our lives to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and to the energy, which God
can put within us, to give us the strength and the power to stand undaunted
amidst the complexities of our surroundings. We must not be passive, cold
statues, - but rather purposeful persons, - at work, at home and in society,-
hour by hour, -- day by day, and month by month.
so many people surely need to build their lives anew, on the
foundations that God has prescribed, based on the eternal moral Law! As citizens of the greatest
Country in the world, let us not for a moment take our Country for granted. Let
us be inspired by our great National heroes, such as Abraham Lincoln, who had
stature, even before he gained status. He grew high, when times were low. He was
tall in magnanimity, when there was no unanimity. Just as I was putting these
few thoughts for Independence Day together a couple of days ago, my youngest
son, without any knowledge of what I was doing, sent me the Fax I will read to
you, and which coincidentally corroborates some of the conditions, of which we
spoke today.- He totally agreed with what the Minister had to say in prayer. Therefore, I will conclude
today's sermon with the FAX I received, and which begins with the Rev. Joe
Wright, who was asked to open the new session of the Kansas Senate. Everyone was
expecting the usual generalities; - but instead, what they heard, was a very
stirring Prayer, passionately calling our Country to repentance and
righteousness. The response was
spontaneous. A number of Legislators walked out in protest during the Prayer.
Within 6 weeks after this prayer was delivered, the Central Christian Church in The Prayer reads as follows: HEAVENLY FATHER, we come
before you today, to ask for Your forgiveness, and to seek Your direction and
guidance. We know Your Word says: "Woe to those who call evil, good!"
But, that's exactly what we have done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium,
and reversed our values. We confess that: # - We have ridiculed the
absolute truth of Your Word, and called it pluralism! # - We have worshipped other
gods, and called it multi-culturalism! # -We have endorsed perversion, and
called it an alternative lifestyle! # - We have exploited the
poor, and called it the lottery. # - We have neglected the
needy and called it self-preservation! # - We have rewarded laziness, and called
it Welfare! # - We have killed our
unborn children, and called it a choice! # - We have shot abortionists, and
called it justifiable! # - We have neglected to
discipline our children, and called it building self-esteem! # We have abused
power, and called it political savvy! # -We have coveted our
neighbor's possessions, and called it ambition! # - We have polluted the air
with profanity and pornography, and called it freedom of expression! # -We have ridiculed the
time-honored values of our forefathers, and called it enlightenment! Search us, O God, and know
our hearts today; cleanse us from every sin and set us free. Guide and bless
these men and women, who have been sent to direct us, to the center of Your
will. I ask this, in the Name of
Your Son, the Living Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen." Indeed this prayer could
constitute a powerful spiritual awakening for so many in our Great Country.. With the Lord's help, may
this prayer sweep our Nation, and wholeheartedly become the road to return to
the eternal values, so that once again, we can be called a Christian Nation,
that fears the Lord! |
|
Back to home page
Send mail to
epantaz@yahoo.com with
questions or comments about this web site.
|