How Can We Know For Sure?
I heard a sermon today by John McArthur that held the audience spellbound. There was not a sound to be heard as he preached a most sobering sermon about America and God's wrath against it. He is one of the most respected and sought after speakers and theologians today and one that I admire as well. He says it straight, and I like that. He's not afraid to stand up and speak the truth, and his wisdom, I believe, is God given as he loves and preaches nothing other than the word of God. Anyhow here's what I heard to the best of my recollection today as I paraphrase some of his thoughts..
In the book of Judges we read about the strongest man that ever lived, Samson. We read one of the saddest commentaries surrounding him when we read this in 16:20b:
"And he knew not that the Lord was departed from him."
There's nothing sadder in the whole world than a God who has abandoned this people. During these times of the Judges, the children of God were constantly chasing after foreign gods. In fact, prior to Samson recognizing God's hand was no longer upon him, we read in Chap 10 that God was through with them. He gave them up to their heathen gods telling them to let their foreign gods save them from their troubles.
Hosea wrote of this in 4:17:
"Ephraim is joined to idols, let him alone."
After Jesus conftronted the Pharisees in Matthew 15, he went on to describe them as the blind leading the blind....let them alone he said. When God lets you go, it's serious.
Then John went on to say that God has abandoned America and one can see this clearly from the scripture. In Acts 16:15 Paul was preaching to the nation pleading with them to turn to the living God, the creator of all the earth. He said in verse 16:
"Who in times past allowed all nations to walk in their own ways."
This is not the first nation to go down nor will it be the last. We are heading as in times past walking in our own ways. We see a cycle of history as Paul describes in Romans 1:18 to the end of the chapter. This is what it says:
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. 20For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 21because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. 24Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, 25who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. 26For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. 27Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due. 28And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; 29being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, 30backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, 31undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; 32who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.
There are five different manifestations to God's wrath that we see in scripture.
1. Eternal Wrath-unbelievers will experience this, being forever totally separated from God
2. Eschatological Wrath-This wrath is end of the earth wrath against the earth described in Revelation-yet to come
3. Calamitous Wrath-One in which a great calamity was allowed by God . An example of this would be the world wide flood.
4. Consequential Wrath-Patterns and results oriented. We reap what we sow sort of thing.
5. Abandonment Wrath-This is where He lets us go in the direction of our own sinful choices and desires.
This last one is what is at play in our society today. How do we know?
We see by the above passage that the wrath of God is revealed from heaven. We can see clearly the reasons for this wrath and beginning with v24 can see the description of this wrath. Three times it says he gave them over which is "Paradidomi" and means to "give or hand over" give or deliver up" as to a prison or judgment.
Basically he's handing us over as a society to be sentenced. Somebody said, "The history of the world is the judgment of the world." This wrath of abandonment is a result of men's willful, deliberate rejection of God.
So we now are being deprived of God's restraining grace as a nation. How do we know? We see that God gave them over to the lusts of their heart. The first thing that happens to a nation that no longer has the hand of God upon them is sexual perversion. Just for starters.....we can't even begin to count the millions of pornographic sites out there today. Before the internet , man had to go out to satisfy his sexual perversion by purchasing magazines or videos outside one's home . It was a shame and an embarrasing thing to go to a store or video store to purchase such material. So it was somewhat controlled or held at bay, but now the industry's exploded with the easily accessible way to porn by secrety obtaining such materials over the net. We can go back to the sixties and Hugh Hefner and see it's gone like a flood since then.
Sin is characterized by lust from the inside. The thoughts come from the heart and mind and the wickedness gets manifested through the body as a demonstration of what's going on inside. That's why Christ said it's what's inside that defiles a man, not what's outside. James says lust conceives, brings forth sin, and sin brings forth death. Right thinking precedes right living.
There are three steps to determine if God has let go of a nation. The first step is that every form of sexual immorality is accepted by society. The second step is when lesbian sex is celebrated by a society. It's unnatural and unthinkable in God's eyes. So first we see the sexual revolution followed by the homosexual revolution. We see here in the above passage that the women are picked first here. When the women start leading the sexual parade God removes his restraint. Look at verse 27. It's amazing. Right here we can see the consequential wrath along with the wrath of abandonment, but they keep on doing it anyway. When it starts coming, it's like a flood. Nothing outside of God can stop this.
The last step we see in verse 28 is that God gave them over to a depraved mind. A depraved mind is non functional; useless; can't think; can't comprehend; and is out of control.
We now can even see this line of thinking in churches today. This perversion is rampant, out of control. Society is rushing to acceptance and we are heading towards massive moral disaster. Can't somebody stand up and speak up? We read in Corinthians that man by his own wisdom cannot know God and with Satan all too willing to blind us we have a compound blindness here. We can't seem to allow anyone to take a strong position against such perversion and rally around it. Human wisdom is not getting us anywhere.
God has given this country over to a depraved mind. Whether you agree or not, it's something we need to think on seriously. Where are we heading? Is it too late to turn our country around?
Stay tuned."