Righteousness Exalts A Nation
Righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people. So says the Bible in (Proverbs 14:34). But, rightly dividing the Scripture requires an understanding that this righteousness is not our own righteousnesses, which are as filthy rags before God; this righteousness refers to the righteousness of God, which none can hope to obtain without the newness of life of being born again of the Spirit of God, and being filled with (and following the leading of) the Holy Ghost.
It has become a favorite (and filthily lucrative) passtime of many preachers today to organize protests in the streets over some new law or ordinance or incident. These preachers are willingly ignorant of the fact that such action is largely pointless. Why? Because getting laws changed, or expressing outrage over some community ill is not going to bring anyone into the righteousness of God, but bringing others into God's righteousness will bring about newness of life without law. Righteousness cannot come by an act of congress, it comes by an act of God!
In a midwestern city, the local authorities recently passed a law permitting the sale of alcohol on Sunday. Now, I don't think any Saint of God needs to be drinking at all, and certainly the Bible makes drunkeness and revelry a sin. Still, a local preacher, more famous for his protests than for the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, organized a "civil action" outside a local liquor store to protest this new ordinance. His rationale was that this is contributing to the crime and other evils in that area. Probably he was right, but what's the point? People who drink are used to simply waiting until Monday to buy liquor, or stocking up on Saturday. We need not agree to having liquor sold on Sunday (or any other day), but protesting it isn't going to do anything of any lasting value; all it's going to do is garner this preacher a little more notoriety and influence. Why not protest on the other days? Because the truth is, drinkers are not going to stop drinking, the ordinance is not going to be rescinded, and more importantly, no one will likely be saved because the protesting of such an ordinance is NOT the Gospel! So nothing eternal or edifying to the Body of Christ will take place.
If preachers are going to do anything in the streets, why don't they just preach the Gospel? Paul said he wasn't ashamed of the Gospel because it is the power of God unto salvation. The Bible tells us that it is by the foolishness of preaching that God will save them that believe. Righteousness cannot be legislated by the laws of men; it can only come through the saving, heart-changing power of God. It is the Gospel that brings this power. Preachers who substitute social issues for the Gospel or who seek recognition from news media through demonstrations packing around poorly-written signs and candles instead of just preaching the Gospel are blind.
You give a drug addict the saving power of God and he won't need a rehab center nor a protest against the local drug dealer or against police who are powerless to stop that dealer. Give prostitues the power of the Gospel and there will be no need to protest in front of adult entertainment establishments. Introduce a homeless person to Christ's saving glory and you won't have to worry about him tapping on your car window begging for change. All these worldly activities, for what good they might have done in the past, are now ineffective and too little attention ios paid to them to be as effective as say, when M. L. King was doing them. Many preachers today are just profiting from what King did. The Gospel never gets old, it never loses it's power; it just needs to be brought out of the closet and preached with the conviction of those who have really experienced it's power for themselves, and not just have been taught about it in Seminary School.
If we long for righteousness, let us put the Gospel to work and watch the nation become exalted by the righteousness of God.
It has become a favorite (and filthily lucrative) passtime of many preachers today to organize protests in the streets over some new law or ordinance or incident. These preachers are willingly ignorant of the fact that such action is largely pointless. Why? Because getting laws changed, or expressing outrage over some community ill is not going to bring anyone into the righteousness of God, but bringing others into God's righteousness will bring about newness of life without law. Righteousness cannot come by an act of congress, it comes by an act of God!
In a midwestern city, the local authorities recently passed a law permitting the sale of alcohol on Sunday. Now, I don't think any Saint of God needs to be drinking at all, and certainly the Bible makes drunkeness and revelry a sin. Still, a local preacher, more famous for his protests than for the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, organized a "civil action" outside a local liquor store to protest this new ordinance. His rationale was that this is contributing to the crime and other evils in that area. Probably he was right, but what's the point? People who drink are used to simply waiting until Monday to buy liquor, or stocking up on Saturday. We need not agree to having liquor sold on Sunday (or any other day), but protesting it isn't going to do anything of any lasting value; all it's going to do is garner this preacher a little more notoriety and influence. Why not protest on the other days? Because the truth is, drinkers are not going to stop drinking, the ordinance is not going to be rescinded, and more importantly, no one will likely be saved because the protesting of such an ordinance is NOT the Gospel! So nothing eternal or edifying to the Body of Christ will take place.
If preachers are going to do anything in the streets, why don't they just preach the Gospel? Paul said he wasn't ashamed of the Gospel because it is the power of God unto salvation. The Bible tells us that it is by the foolishness of preaching that God will save them that believe. Righteousness cannot be legislated by the laws of men; it can only come through the saving, heart-changing power of God. It is the Gospel that brings this power. Preachers who substitute social issues for the Gospel or who seek recognition from news media through demonstrations packing around poorly-written signs and candles instead of just preaching the Gospel are blind.
You give a drug addict the saving power of God and he won't need a rehab center nor a protest against the local drug dealer or against police who are powerless to stop that dealer. Give prostitues the power of the Gospel and there will be no need to protest in front of adult entertainment establishments. Introduce a homeless person to Christ's saving glory and you won't have to worry about him tapping on your car window begging for change. All these worldly activities, for what good they might have done in the past, are now ineffective and too little attention ios paid to them to be as effective as say, when M. L. King was doing them. Many preachers today are just profiting from what King did. The Gospel never gets old, it never loses it's power; it just needs to be brought out of the closet and preached with the conviction of those who have really experienced it's power for themselves, and not just have been taught about it in Seminary School.
If we long for righteousness, let us put the Gospel to work and watch the nation become exalted by the righteousness of God.
posted by The Preacher at 10:39 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home