Sermon Tone Analysis

I. Introduction

I have a question for us to consider this morning: Do you love your country?

Better yet: Is it OK to love your country?

In 2019 Woke Pastor Shane Claiborne wrote: “The problem with patriotism is that it's just too small.

God invites us to love bigger than biology or nationality.

The Bible does't say "For God so loved America" but it says "For God so loved the world."

Our love doesn't stop at borders.

No wall can hold it back.”

In 2021 the week before the Fourth of July, an Episcopal Priest named Tim Schenck wrote “Dreading the nationalistic heresy that will surely get preached in many churches next Sunday on the Fourth of July.”

That had become the standard here lately.

Certain pastors consider themselves to be more evolved or intellectual than others because they reject any semblance of anything patriotic.

And unfortunately, that is becoming very common place.

In 2011 a Pew Research poll was taken, it said that 48% of Americans believe the United States is the greatest country in the world and 42% believe it is one of the greatest countries in the world…but that was Americans as a whole…when the MIllennial generation was interviewed, the results were much different:

Just 32% of Millennials believe the U.S. is the greatest country in the world.

That number progressively increases among the Gen X (48%), and Baby Boomers (50%).

In fact today, we see a generational gap in anything patriotic.

Anything patriotic is now referred to as Christian Nationalism.

What are we doing?

Where are we headed in a world that tells us now that America is a bad place....and that whether it is or isn’t, Christians have no place loving it?

Well I want to take us back to an old Hebrew hymn...

a. Scripture: Psalm 33

I’m going to ask you to stand with me, if you are able, as we read from God’s Holy, Perfect, Sufficient and inerrant Word.

<Pray>

Thank you, and you may be seated.

The world tells us that we shouldn’t even have this flag up here on the stage....that it is idolatry and state worship to have a love for your country....that it is somehow a distraction from the Gospel....Well Morningside, I want to tell you this morning a few reasons why it is perfectly OK to love America.

II.

Major Points

God Loves America

America Is Pretty Good

We are Instructed to

III.

Point #1: God Loves America

Explanation

Now I want to be clear here....God loves us.

I’m not saying that He love sus anymore than He loves any other country, but He does love US.

Period.

That, in and of itself, is reason enough to celebrate this country.

Look, there have been times where God removed His favor from other countries because of their paganism, idolatry, and celebration of sin.

While we aren’t perfect, and I’ll talk about that some more in a few minutes, we do have God’s love, and personally, I believe that God has blessed this country in so many ways.

What we read earlier in Psalms says “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord...” Now that verse gets thrown around a lot....so to be clear: The Psalmist isn’t specifically talking about America there....specifically, he is writing about Israel…THEY were the nation that worshipped the Lord.

THEY were the chosen people…This was a Psalm of praise to their God.

So as much as I’d like to say that verse is specifically about Israel, it just isn’t.

However…even though in context, that verse has nothing to do with the United States of Americs, there is an application there, none-the-less....and it is this: God DOES bless obedience…amen?

When people are obedient, God is faithful and blessings follow.

Jesus said as much in Luke 11:28

Luke 11:28 (NASB95)

“...blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.”

I believe the statement is applicable in this way too: If people who are obedient invite God’s favor and blessing....and nations are made up of people....then NATIONS who obey God’s Word also invite God’s …what?....favor and blessing.

You see, we may not be Israel and that verse in Psalm 33 may not specifically be about us, but the application is still totally valid for us today?

So what does that mean for us today in America?

Illustration

Now look....we can sit here and talk about how evil the world is....we can talk about how evil our government is....how evil our culture has become....how wokeism, intersectionality, Critical Race Theory, and Post Modernism have made their way into our school text books and curriculum....but yall, I’m going to be really honest with you this morning: That....is cheap.

The world, is going to be the world....that’s why when they do stuff like that, we call it “worldly.”

It should not surprise us one bit that the world embraces evil.

So you know what, the church can’t focus on what evil people do, because we can’t do much about it.

Oh yeah, we can vote certain ways and try to get people in office who make decisions that we believe would honor God.

We can preach truth to the darkness....we can continue to try to reach out to the darkness....but the world is going to be the world....period.

So standing up here hooping and hollering about the evil of the world isn’t very productive at all.

But what IS helpful is this:

Application

Instead of focusing on the evil of the world, let’s focus on the evil of the church.

Oh you heard me right....the evil in the church....the disobedience in the church.

Wait a minute Bro.

Vic....”we’re supposed to talk about the bad guys”…well tell Jesus that!

Jesus defended the protestitute, told her to turn from her sin, and then chewed out the religious folks!

You know why?

Because WE are supposed to know better.

If we want the Lord’s continued blessing on this country, there’s a whole lot the church can focus on itself beyond worrying about whether or not you can get an abortion in this state folks.

Listen....Roe v. Wade being overturned did NOT outlaw abortion....all it did was send it back to the states.

That means that it’s going to be hard or impossible to get one in Georgia, and that’s great, but guess what?

It’s going to be pretty easy to get one in New York.

So what CAN we do?

Here’s a few things we need to do inwardly:

We can be evangelistic....

In Acts 1:8, Jesus commanded us to share the Gospel with all nations.

Folks that wa s a COMMAND....not a suggestion.

If we aren’t sharing the Gospel, we are being disobedient....why would the Lord bless a nation of people that won’t share Jesus…period?

So when I say that let me personalize it: You’re an American…when’s the last time YOU shared the Gospel?

Look, it doesn’t start with Congress or the President....it starts with the church....and YOU are the church....so if you want this country to be blessed, get out there and share Jesus.

Tell people they need a Savior and they can find Him in Christ....

2. We can be the church....listen folks, the second part of Acts 1:8 is that we make DISCIPLES of all nations....we share the Gospel…we get saved and we get them saved....but then we learn from Him.

We do that together at church and in His Word.

We seek holiness and try to live pure lives before God and the world.

Folks, people who used to go to church 3-4 times per month before COVID are half as likely to go as before COVID.

People who only came occassionally (once per month or less), there is less than a 10% chance.....folks....how can we be disciples if we won’t show up?

We aren’t being obedient even in that in America....why would God bless us?

3. We can show love.....folks listen to me....I am totally against abortion.

I am…no question about it.

We say “oh those poor little babies”....and then we celebrated when Roe was overturned....but what about all those thousands of babies who will be born and abandoned?

You see that is the response of the liberals.

They say “look at the Christians....they scream at the top of their lungs about the unborn....but they refuse to take care of the born.”

So what can we do?

I’ll tell you....we can adopt some of those kids....and you say “oh no…not me.”

Let me tell you something....there were 213,964 in 2020.

What are we doing about it?

“Well I sure hope somebody ELSE steps up and takes care of those youngins”....that’s about it....and yall that’s pitiful.

The church USED TO take care of folks....did you know in the early 1900s, 100% of the hospitals in America were either church owned or charity owned.....in 2021, only 30% are church or charity owned.... we have outsourced loving the world to the government and to corporations....and then we try to tell the world that Jesus loves them....but the church does little to help folks.

Now I’m not saying everything should be free to everybody....but the church used to help people.

There are churches who take this commandment to love literally....I’ve seen it!

Over in Claxton, Georgia....The Tattnall-Evans Baptist Association has 30 member churches....just a few more than the 24 churches in the Emanuel Baptist Association that we are members of here at Morningside…earlier this year they pooled their resources and opened a rural healthcare clinic.