November 11 is Remembrance Day in my adopted land, Australia, and Veteran's Day in the land of my birth, America. As we celebrate these special days of remembrance, it would be good to stop for a moment and take stock of the blessings of freedom God has given the citizens of both nations and to remember the sacrifices of those who purchased these freedoms with their blood.
We who have attended the dawn services and marched in parades with our fellow returned service men, have watched the faltering steps of those honored men who have served their country in many conflicts. We have seen the tears fall freely upon the cheeks of stooped and graying men, as they have wept openly for their fallen comrades in arms. We have heard again and again the poignant words, “Lest we forget,” issue from the lips of those who hold the memory of the fallen so dear. We have heard the mournful notes of the last post or taps; played in remembrance of those who lie in graves on faraway fields. Such observances should move us to once again thank God for those who have gone before us.
God has richly blessed Australia and America. Both are beautiful countries with rich and abundant natural resources. Both have good forms of government based upon a Judeo-Christian heritage and British Common Law. Citizens of these two great lands enjoy freedoms that most of the citizens of other lands can only dream about. This is confirmed each year by the thousands of those who risk life and limb to seek safety, security and prosperity in these nations.
There are no concentration camps in either nation. People are not executed for seeking to flee these lands. There are no dreaded knocks in the middle of the night. There are no mass graves filled with the bodies or those who have been killed by despotic dictators and godless regimes. Every person in these nations has a free voice and a free vote.
In governmental matters, the voice of the people can reflect the way and will of God. There is freedom of religion and speech. Pastors can still speak freely from their pulpits. There is yet no law that can muzzle such free expression. Although it seems clear that certain forces are active in both nations to change this.
Mark Twain once said, “…a Christian’s first duty is to God. It then follows, as a matter of course, that it is his duty to carry his Christian code of morals to the polls and vote them. … If the Christians .... could be persuaded to vote God and a clean ticket, it would bring about a moral revolution that would be incalculably beneficent. It would save the country — a country whose Christians have betrayed it and are destroying it...Christianity...is on trial now. And nothing important is on trial except Christianity.” He said this a century and one-half ago. How much greater are the weight of his words today!
Henry Blackaby wrote in Fresh Encounter: “Christians should not be surprised by the spiritual darkness around us. That is all it can be. Darkness is dark. The greater problem is not with the darkness. The problem is with the light. When light shines, it dispels darkness. We face a growing spiritual darkness in our land because the light is not shining brightly.”
On this Remembrance Day and Veterans Day, let us praise God for His past blessings upon our nations and pray He will continue to bless. But at the same time let us remember that if we are to expect His continuing blessings, we must recognize our need for Him in our national life today. We must be willing to meet His conditions for such continuing national blessings. Conditions that are made crystal clear in His word: “If my people, which are called by my name, shall 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.” (II Chronicles 7:14)"
We who have attended the dawn services and marched in parades with our fellow returned service men, have watched the faltering steps of those honored men who have served their country in many conflicts. We have seen the tears fall freely upon the cheeks of stooped and graying men, as they have wept openly for their fallen comrades in arms. We have heard again and again the poignant words, “Lest we forget,” issue from the lips of those who hold the memory of the fallen so dear. We have heard the mournful notes of the last post or taps; played in remembrance of those who lie in graves on faraway fields. Such observances should move us to once again thank God for those who have gone before us.
God has richly blessed Australia and America. Both are beautiful countries with rich and abundant natural resources. Both have good forms of government based upon a Judeo-Christian heritage and British Common Law. Citizens of these two great lands enjoy freedoms that most of the citizens of other lands can only dream about. This is confirmed each year by the thousands of those who risk life and limb to seek safety, security and prosperity in these nations.
There are no concentration camps in either nation. People are not executed for seeking to flee these lands. There are no dreaded knocks in the middle of the night. There are no mass graves filled with the bodies or those who have been killed by despotic dictators and godless regimes. Every person in these nations has a free voice and a free vote.
In governmental matters, the voice of the people can reflect the way and will of God. There is freedom of religion and speech. Pastors can still speak freely from their pulpits. There is yet no law that can muzzle such free expression. Although it seems clear that certain forces are active in both nations to change this.
Mark Twain once said, “…a Christian’s first duty is to God. It then follows, as a matter of course, that it is his duty to carry his Christian code of morals to the polls and vote them. … If the Christians .... could be persuaded to vote God and a clean ticket, it would bring about a moral revolution that would be incalculably beneficent. It would save the country — a country whose Christians have betrayed it and are destroying it...Christianity...is on trial now. And nothing important is on trial except Christianity.” He said this a century and one-half ago. How much greater are the weight of his words today!
Henry Blackaby wrote in Fresh Encounter: “Christians should not be surprised by the spiritual darkness around us. That is all it can be. Darkness is dark. The greater problem is not with the darkness. The problem is with the light. When light shines, it dispels darkness. We face a growing spiritual darkness in our land because the light is not shining brightly.”
On this Remembrance Day and Veterans Day, let us praise God for His past blessings upon our nations and pray He will continue to bless. But at the same time let us remember that if we are to expect His continuing blessings, we must recognize our need for Him in our national life today. We must be willing to meet His conditions for such continuing national blessings. Conditions that are made crystal clear in His word: “If my people, which are called by my name, shall 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.” (II Chronicles 7:14)"
No comments:
Post a Comment