"Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people” (Proverbs 14:34).The Word of God commands strict separation from the practices of this world and the deceptions of the “god of this world.” To be separate from the practices of this world and the sinful, Hedonistic deceptions of the “god of this world” means more than merely not involving one’s self in such things, but to completely extricate these practices from one’s life or from being influenced by them. Separation is to view these practices and influences through the eyes of God and to learn to hate these practices and influences as God hates them. These practices and influences are an abomination to God.
Proverbs 14:34 states two irrevocable spiritual principles that apply to any nation of people.
1. “righteousness exalteth a nation;” simply stated, this means that a nation governed by and living according to the moral and judicial dictates of God will make that nation honorable in the eyes of God and will be able to raise that nation to prominence and entrust it with power and blessings; the point is that God will lift up such a nation as an example before the other nations of the world. The people of such a nation can live in optimism of God’s blessings.
2. “sin is a reproach to any people;” simply stated, this means that a nation governed by and living against the moral and judicial dictates of God will make that nation to be pitied and held in contempt by other nations provoking God to act against them and provoking other nations to overthrow them. The people of such a nation should live in pessimism of God’s curse and their own destruction.
The United States of America began as a unique experiment in government that was patterned after Biblical principles. The U.S.A. was a nation governed by the absolute dictates of the Creator of Heaven and earth through a republic “of the people and by the people” based upon something very similar to local church congregational polity. The preamble to the Declaration of Independence states, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” In a Republic, righteousness governs the nation. That righteousness is an unchanging constant defined by the Word of God. That was the basic premise of Constitutional Law and the basic foundation of this new Republic call the United States of America. God exalted that nation!
Other than the nation of Israel, never before in the history of the world was such an experiment tried. From its very inception, this new Republic has been under satanic onslaught with continual attempts to move it back to European despotism with their State Churches. This satanic attack has been against the principle of righteousness in the Rule of Law. Isaiah 5:18-23 specifies four of six woes in Isaiah chapter 5 (two others in verses 8 and 11) upon individuals or groups of people trying to move a people away from the principle of divine righteousness.
“18 Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart rope: 19 That say, Let him make speed, and hasten his work, that we may see it: and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come, that we may know it! 20 Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! 21 Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight! 22 Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink: 23 Which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him” (Isaiah 5:18-23)!
The Hebrew word translated “woe” in this Isaiah chapter 5 is used to express God’s public condemnation of certain practices that carries with it the denunciation of His pending wrath in judgment. The word “woe” might be said to express the direct opposite of a blessing in that judgment and wrath are promised in the place of blessing. We must always remember that God sees all sin as an attack against His holiness and as a crime against humanity in that whatever practices a society condones or tolerates are perpetuated as an injustice against its citizenry. Human government is ordained to enforce and perpetuate God’s inspired and revealed principles of righteousness. A society cannot be said to be just in the eyes of God that does not enforce God’s inspired and revealed principles of righteousness. Throughout the Word of God and the history of the world, we find an historical constant of God’s judgment upon every nation, culture, or human government that failed to enforce and perpetuate God’s inspired and revealed principles of righteousness. This historical constant of God’s judgment can be found in the rise and fall of every great society or empire since the beginning of time.
We find another historical constant throughout the Word of God: although God is longsuffering, when His longsuffering has ended, there is absolutely no mitigation of His wrath; He has been unmerciful in His judgment. This is where the world is at right now in the end of the Church Age. The United States of America is the last nation on earth that continues to offer any real resistance to the onslaught of satanic abominations. The USA is rapidly becoming the OBAMA-NATION under the leadership of our new administration!
“19 Also thou shalt not approach unto a woman to uncover her nakedness, as long as she is put apart for her uncleanness. 20 Moreover thou shalt not lie carnally with thy neighbour’s wife, to defile thyself with her. 21 And thou shalt not let any of thy seed pass through the fire to Molech, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the LORD. 22 Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination. 23 Neither shalt thou lie with any beast to defile thyself therewith: neither shall any woman stand before a beast to lie down thereto: it is confusion. 24 Defile not ye yourselves in any of these things: for in all these the nations are defiled which I cast out before you: 25 And the land is defiled: therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land itself vomiteth out her inhabitants. 26 Ye shall therefore keep my statutes and my judgments, and shall not commit any of these abominations; neither any of your own nation, nor any stranger that sojourneth among you: 27 (For all these abominations have the men of the land done, which were before you, and the land is defiled;) 28 That the land spue not you out also, when ye defile it, as it spued out the nations that were before you. 29 For whosoever shall commit any of these abominations, even the souls that commit them shall be cut off from among their people. 30 Therefore shall ye keep mine ordinance, that ye commit not any one of these abominable customs, which were committed before you, and that ye defile not yourselves therein: I am the LORD your God” (Leviticus 18:19-30).
We find numerous sexual perversions and the murder of innocent children in these few verses of Scripture that usually accompanied the practices of idolatry, paganism, and Hedonism. God tells us that when a nation begins to allow, tolerate, or endorse any one of these practices that He considers an “abomination,” God will consider that nation an abomination before Him. The whole nation is defiled and deserving of His wrath. The idea is that such a nation should no longer be expecting God’s blessing or protection. Such a nation should be expecting God’s judgment.
What has been the vehicle for the rapid dissemination of these abominations through our nation? This is not a difficult question to answer unless you have been asleep for the last 50 years. Satan’s tools have been the public airways in the spread of immorality through the music industry, the movie industry, the publishing industry, public/secular education, and through the falsehoods of science. Many of these satanic tools have been first tolerated, then endorsed, and finally promoted by liberal Christianity and New Evangelicalism. It is not uncommon for many professing Christians to have an open door policy to these satanic forms of corruption right in their own homes. I think we can go as far as to say that there is very little separation practiced regarding these corrupting influences amongst most Christians today. God has warned us about allowing such things into our homes and God has instructed us how we should treat these influences.
“25 The graven images of their gods shall ye burn with fire: thou shalt not desire the silver or gold that is on them, nor take it unto thee, lest thou be snared therein: for it is an abomination to the LORD thy God. 26 Neither shalt thou bring an abomination into thine house, lest thou be a cursed thing like it: but thou shalt utterly detest it, and thou shalt utterly abhor it; for it is a cursed thing” (Deuteronomy 7:25-26).
The Seal of the United States of America portrays an eagle carrying a ribbon with the words, E PLURIBUS UNUM inscribed upon it. These words simply mean, “Out of many, one.” On the back of the seal are inscribed the words, Annuit cœptis. These words simply mean, “He {God} approves {or has approved our} undertaking{s}.” Also on the rear of the seal are the words Novus ordo seclorum, which literally translated means, “New Order of Generation {Creation}.” Although we should understand that the founding fathers were most likely thinking that the United States was going to be the beginning of the Kingdom of God on Earth (Theonomy), anyone with a basic understanding of theology should understand that the foundation of this new nation called the United States of America was definitely to be CHRISTIAN (although no particular denomination of Christianity).
The Melting Pot notion of the United States was never intended to be the merging of pagan religious practices to make a new religion. There was the expectation of the blending of various cultures and the toleration of all types of religious views. However, the Rule of Law of this new Republic was the absolute Law of God strictly interpreted and enforced upon every citizen by the courts of the Land. This was patterned after God’s national promises to Israel. God had warned the nation of Israel against the blending and merging of pagan ideas with God’s absolutes. The founders of the United States of America understood this and established the Rule of Law (Republican government) to counteract these kinds of influences upon the new society. If we read the writings of the founding fathers, we can be confident they understood these principles.
“29 When the LORD thy God shall cut off the nations from before thee, whither thou goest to possess them, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their land; 30 Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou enquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise. 31 Thou shalt not do so unto the LORD thy God: for every abomination to the LORD, which he hateth, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods. 32 What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it” (Deuteronomy 12:29-32).
What then are the practices, that God calls “abominations,” that define the Obama-nation?
1. Evil is called good and good is called evil (Isaiah 5:20).
2. The “light” of God’s revelation is replaced with the “darkness” of evolution, secular humanism, and Neo-pantheism (Isaiah 5:20).
3. Human knowledge (science) has become the final authority for determining truth (Isaiah 5:21); “21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, 23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things” (Romans 1:21-23).
4. The “wicked” are justified “for reward” (bribery) and “righteousness of the righteous” is “taken away” in the sense of allowing righteousness the influence it should have in a society (Isaiah 5:23).
5. Human elicit sexuality is promoted, encouraged, and endorsed without restraint including pornography, adultery, fornication, Homosexuality, Lesbianism, Transgender, Transvestite, Unisex (Deuteronomy 22:5), and even Beastiality (Leviticus 18:19-30).
6. Abortion (the murder of unborn children) is promoted as an acceptable form of birth control, population control, and family planning. This is nothing more than the sacrifice of the sacrifice of the innocents to Neo-paganism (Leviticus 18:20; Jer. 2:34, and 19:4-5).
7. Many forms of idolatry such as Materialism (Avarice or Mammonism), Self-worship (Secular Psychology), Pleasure-worship (Hedonism), Pluralism, Eastern Mysticism, and Neo-Pantheism are all culturally accepted as equally viable expressions of religion (Deuteronomy 7:25-26 and 12:29-32).
“1 Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things. 2 But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things. 3 And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God? 4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? 5 But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; 6 Who will render to every man according to his deeds: 7 To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: 8 But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, 9 Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; 10 But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile: 11 For there is no respect of persons with God” (Romans 2:1-11).
Audio available: The Obama-Nation
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Dr. Lance Ketchum serves the Lord as a Church Planter, Evangelist/Revivalist.
He has served the Lord for over 40 years.
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