America the Beautiful?

“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He chose for His inheritance.”

- Psalm 33:12

Saturday was the Fourth of July—Independence Day. And even though home firework displays exploded all across the Victor Valley, the truth is, many Americans have been wondering whether America is worth celebrating. Many of our neighbors don’t think that America is beautiful at all. Are they right?

The United States of America has long been called the land of opportunity. Over the past 244 years, millions of immigrants have flooded into our ports of entry to pursue the American dream. Every year around 900,000 immigrants become U.S. citizens, making the United States number one in the world for receiving immigrants. In fact, we have more than four times as many foreign-born citizens as any other country in the world. Why do so many people want to immigrate to America?

We’re told that our government and justice system are steeped in institutional racism. We’re told that our law enforcement is corrupt. If America is as bigoted as some people say it is, immigrants should be heading for the hills. Instead, America continues to be a magnet for people around the world seeking freedom from persecution because of their religion, ethnicity or social status. While most countries around the world have been stifling freedoms, America has been extending them: freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom to bear arms, freedom to vote, and, of course, the freedoms of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. And few countries can match the freedoms we have in this country to pursue economic opportunities.  

On Independence Day, I’d like you consider how blessed we are to live in this country. Our founding fathers recognized that our freedoms and opportunities in life weren’t given to us by man—they were given to us by God. As Psalm 33:12 says, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He chose for His inheritance.”

Our country has been in such a desirable position because God gave us that desirable position. He gave us that position because for the better part of those 244 years, we have proclaimed God as our Lord. Our founding fathers wanted America to be a great nation—and they understood that if America was going to be great, America would have to be good. And in order for America to be good, its citizens would have to submit to the authority of God. They knew that if this nation was blessed, it would be blessed because God blessed it.

Proverbs 13:34 tells us, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people.” Remember that the word “righteousness” is just a fancy way of saying “right-ness.” When a nation does what God says is right, that nation will be exalted. But when a nation does what God says is wrong, that nation will be disgraced. So, has our nation been doing what is “right” or what is “wrong” in God’s eyes? The answer is: BOTH.

In 1964, the Civil Rights Act put an end to our nation’s racist Jim Crow laws. That was a God-honoring change that needed to happen, and I believe it exalted our nation. In 1989, we played a role in the fall of Communism in the USSR. And in recent decades, the U.S. has provided financial assistance and disaster relief to dozens of nations around the world including Haiti, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, and Kenya.

However, during these same 60 years, a growing number of our nation’s leaders and citizens have chosen to push God away and do what is biblically and morally disgraceful. In 1962 prayer was taken out of public schools. The following year the Bible was taken out of classrooms. In 1973, abortion-on-demand became legal. In the 1970s, no-fault divorce laws were passed throughout the nation. In 1980, the Ten Commandments were removed from classrooms. And in 2015, gay marriage was legalized.

These are just a few examples of the disgraceful things we have been doing. Our nation has continued to sing “God Bless America,” but our actions have—to a large extent—said, “God, we don’t want You in America.” We as a nation have become arrogant, and much of what we have been doing has been a disgrace in God’s eyes. If America continues in its arrogance and rebellion and refuses to repent, then we should fully expect that in the days to come God will remove His hand of blessing from our nation.

And when it comes to transforming our nation—turning it from disgrace to righteousness--the Church is the key, because the Church proclaims Jesus Christ, the only one who can fix all the mess in our nation. Remember what God says in 2 Chronicles 7:14: “If My people [that’s the Church] who are called by My name will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

Our country is far from perfect. But I believe that America’s founders were guided by God to form a nation and a government that is more biblically-based and less prone to corruption than just about any other government in the history of the world. No, America is not perfect. It’s always had its fair share of ugliness. But it continues to be beautiful in many different ways. And that beauty can and will grow if you and I will lead our nation back to Christ.

Dane Davis is the Pastor of Impact Christian Church. Please join us for our LIVE outdoor worship services Sundays at 8 a.m. or 9:30 a.m. at 17746 George Blvd. in Victorville. Or, join us online at 10 a.m. at Live.GreaterImpact.cc, on our YouTube channel (Impact Christian Church) or on Facebook.

What is God’s Answer to Hatred and Racism?

“God does not show favoritism but accepts men from every nation who fear Him

and do what is right.” - Acts 10:34-35

America is hurting. We’ve just spent two and a half months on lockdown. Our favorite restaurants have been closed. Our kids’ schools have been closed. High school graduations were cancelled. Even the “Happiest Place on Earth” was shut down. Churches across America had to move their services online. And 36 million Americans lost their jobs.

Our nation is hurting—and less than three weeks ago, the pain only intensified. We were horrified by the image of a rogue police officer in Minneapolis choking the life out of George Floyd as three other officers stood by and let it happen. Then, we were further horrified by the images of Mom-and-Pop stores in cities across America being vandalized, looted and set on fire.

Many of us thought that race relations in America had come a long way. But these past three weeks have made us realize that we still have a long way to go. There is still far too much distrust, resentment and hatred between Americans of different skin colors. Our politicians can’t fix the problem. Our public schools can’t fix the problem. Even the social justice warriors can’t fix the problem. They can’t fix the problem, because the underlying root of the problem isn’t political, psychological or systemic. The root of hate and racism is spiritual. That being the case, the only lasting solution to hatred and racism is found in God’s Word.

The Bible makes it clear that God has compassion and love for EVERY person He has made. We read in Romans 2:11: “God does not show favoritism.” Peter proclaims in Acts 10:34-35: “God does not show favoritism but accepts men from every nation who fear Him and do what is right.” 1 Timothy 2:3-4 says, “God our Savior wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.” And in Proverbs 6:16-19 we find a quick reference list of seven things God hates. Those include: hands that shed innocent blood; a heart that devises wicked schemes; and feet that are quick to rush into evil.

So, if there’s any doubt in your mind about God’s stance on what has happened in our nation over the past few weeks, allow His Word to remove all doubt. God is a loving and compassionate God, and He hates it when people shed innocent blood. George Floyd might have deserved to be arrested, but he did NOT deserve to be tortured and killed. God hates what was done to George Floyd. But because God hates it when people devise wicked schemes and rush into evil, God also hates what vandals, looters and arsonists have been doing to businesses and church buildings under the cover of protest. Those who are destroying things aren’t “protestors.” They’re criminals. They’re self-centered opportunists. And their actions are detestable to God.  

Because God is love, He hates…hate. Because God is love, He hates racism. Because God is love, He hates the violence in our nation today. And because of that, I believe that God wants to make three simple but profound pleas to us.

God’s 1st Plea: Let My Word change your thinking. “From one man He made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth” (Acts 17:26). Every human being on earth is a descendent of one man and one woman: Adam and Eve. God didn’t create a black Adam and a white Adam. He didn’t create a Chinese Eve and a Mexican Eve. Every single ethnic group on earth—every nation, every person is a descendent of that one Adam and one Eve. We all have the same great-grandparents. So, when someone asks, “How many races are there?”, the Biblical answer is ONE. There is only one race: the human race. PERIOD!

God’s 2nd Plea: Let My Son change your heart. “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure” (Jeremiah 17:9). We want to believe we are basically good. But God sees the truth: Our hearts are harder than we’ve realized. And there is nothing here on earth that can soften them. A hater can’t be taught to stop hating and start loving. Just as you can’t teach someone with blocked arteries to stop having a heart attack, you can’t teach someone steeped in hate and racism to stop having a hard, sinful heart. The only cure is to receive a heart transplant—and God’s Son Jesus Christ is the only One who can perform the operation. So, God says to you and me today: Let my Son change your heart, because hatred and racism are sins of the heart. Racism is not a SKIN problem; it’s a SIN problem.

God’s 3rd Plea: Let My spirit change your actions. “My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don’t show favoritism” (James 2:1). God doesn’t treat rich people better than poor people, or men better than women, or whites better than blacks. Neither should we. So, take time to PRAY with your brothers and sisters who look different than you. Take time to LOVE and SERVE your brothers and sisters who look different than you. And take time to LISTEN to your brothers and sisters who look different from you. When a black brother or sister feels that black lives in our country are being cheapened and cries out, “Black lives matter!”–it doesn’t help to shout back, “All lives matter!” Your black sister or brother needs you to empathize with their hurt and pain. This is the time to listen—and mourn with those who mourn.

In Luke 10, Jesus tells the story of a Jewish man who was beaten within an inch of his life and left to die at the side of the road. A brother Jew—a priest—saw him and ignored him. Another one of his neighbors—a Levite—did the same. Finally a foreigner—a Samaritan—rode by, had a gut-wrenching compassion for him, and got down off his high horse to help him. Jesus turns to you and me and says, “Christians, it’s high time for you to get down off your high horse and do likewise.”

Dane Davis is the Pastor of Impact Christian Church. Please join us for our LIVE outdoor worship services Sundays at 8 a.m. or 9:30 a.m. at 17746 George Blvd. in Victorville. Or, join us online at 10 a.m. at Live.GreaterImpact.cc, on our YouTube channel (Impact Christian Church) or on Facebook.