|
About Jesus - Steve Sweetman A
Careless Culture Under Fire Tucked
away in a well debated prophetic passage God declared that He would
"send fire on Magog and them that dwell carelessly in the isles"
(Ezekiel 39:6 KJV). Who these
careless dwellers in the islands are has been debated for years.
I won't debate that here. I
will, however, speak to the fact that whoever these people are, they are
living carelessly, and they appear kind of familiar to me.
The
Hebrew word "betach" is translated as "carelessly" in
the KJV Bible and "safely" or "securely" in newer
translations. The idea this
Hebrew word conveys here is that these people are living in a prideful
arrogance that gives them a false sense of security, and thus the reason
for them living carelessly. I
think these careless people resemble those of us living in much of the
western world, including North America, and especially, if I might be so
bold, those living in the United States. Of course, I am speaking in
general terms of Traditionally
speaking, and by its own admission, America
has been the leader of the free world.
Many of us living outside of the
America
has been the leading nation in
exporting the gospel throughout the world and for that it has been
blessed. America, however, is now a world leader in exporting violent forms of
entertainment, pornography, and social media insanity. It
was America
that exported the 2008 economic recession that deadened the economy of
much of the western world, a recession based on careless greed.
From an outsider's vantage point who enjoyed living in the United States
in the 1980's I sadly suggest that In
many areas of American culture, which the rest of the West is eagerly
imitating, America
has become careless. Whether
it's in the world of entertainment, social media, art, law, finance,
education, government, or religion, a prideful arrogant self-sufficiency
has been creating a false sense of security over the years that has caused
the current national carelessness. The
president, who should be setting a high standard of excellence, is no
exception to this prideful arrogance.
His thoughtlessly and carelessly worded tweets have no productive inspirational value. They do
little to encourage other nations to follow America's lead in matters of international importance.
If Am I being too hard on America? I don't think so.
As the leader of the free world America
is obligated to act with integrity, an integrity that is based on the
Biblical principles it once embraced.
Has America
forgotten what the Bible says about prideful arrogance?
Has it forgotten that pride precedes destruction and a haughty
spirit before a fall (Proverbs 16:18)?
Has it forgotten that God hates pride, arrogance, and perverse
speech (Proverbs 8:13)? Has it
forgotten that pride is disgraceful (Proverbs 11:2)?
Has it forgotten that where there is pride there is strife
(Proverbs 13:10)? Has it
forgotten that a fool's mouth lashes out prideful words (Proverbs 14:3)?
Has it forgotten that pride brings a man down low (Proverbs 29:23)?
Am I mistaken in thinking that these quotes from the NIV Bible have
significance for
I
am not being too hard on America. I am simply speaking the prophetic
word of warning, much like Billy Graham proclaimed when he
warned I
am not saying that America
is the careless nation of Ezekiel 39:6.
I am saying that whether it's In each generation the Lord has those who speak the prophetic word of warning to the nations. It's never an easy word to speak and it's seldom received and acted upon. Nevertheless, it remains the Word of the Lord.
It is God who causes nations to both rise and fall (Daniel 2:21).
He is the Sovereign Lord over all nations (Daniel 4:25).
As Christians, you and I must set forth the standard of Biblical
excellence as we humbly but steadfastly proclaim the prophetic word of
warning. We must never be so
Biblically lax that we deceive ourselves into thinking our nation can't
fall from the fire of judgment.
|