The urgent need for national repentance

This year on St Georges Day (23rd April) many Christians attended prayer vigils across the UK, focusing in particular on the state of the Nation. Nationally we are in a mess, socially, morally, politically, economically and spiritually. We have driven the Lord Jesus out of our culture, out of our government and out of the education of our children and the result has not been peace and harmony but turmoil and discontent. Many people are frightened not just by world events but they are also frightened by what they see happening here on our own soil and in our own society. Each day, many watch the news with a certain sense of trepidation wondering “What has happened now?” It is against this backdrop that numerous Christians across the country met up to pray.

In Psalm 107v34 it states “A fruitful nation will become impoverished because of the sinfulness of those who dwell in it,” and in Proverbs Ch14v34 it adds “Righteousness will exalt a nation, but sin will destroy any people.” With this teaching in mind, they prayed that people in this Country would really come to understand why we are in such a mess and that this insight would then be followed by a spirit of true repentance.

Some time ago I came across a story which clearly explains this Biblical truth. Several years ago a certain woman had a strange dream. In her dream she found herself wandering around some shops in a large shopping centre. All of a sudden she noticed a particular shop which took her fancy. She wandered in and found the Lord Jesus behind the counter. Jesus then said, “You can have anything your heart desires.” Astounded, she immediately asked for “peace, joy, happiness, wisdom and freedom from fear”. Then she added, “And not just for me, but for the whole of the Country.” Jesus smiled and then said, “I think you misunderstand Me. We don’t sell the finished product, we only sell the seeds.”

In Galatians Ch 6v7 it warns “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked, for whatever a man sows that he will also reap.” This verse could just as easily read, “For whatever a nation or society sows, that it will also reap.” God wants to bless our nation and our individual lives; He wants us to enjoy good things. He wants to deliver us from the misery of sin and to give blessings of protection and deliverance. The problem is that over many decades we have refused to plant, tend and nurture the seeds which would have grown into these blessings. Instead, there has been an increasing neglect of His Church and His Laws; the very things which would have brought blessings.

As a people we have sown “the wrong seeds”. We have gone our own selfish ways, let ourselves become
consumed by greed and materialism and ignored God’s will for our personal lives. What message does this give to Almighty God, Who so loved us, that He sent His own Son to die on the Cross for our sins? Was the Cross some trivial thing? Was the sending of His Son some minor act of no great consequence? The Bible describes God’s Gift of His Son as being so stupendous it is “indescribable”. In spite of this, since the end of the Second World War, our Nation as a whole has rejected God’s Gift and while God would love to shield and deliver us from trouble, we have consistently refused to obey those very Laws and Commandments which would have brought blessings of peace and protection. As a nation and as a society we are now reaping what we have sown.

Many politicians and economic experts have come up with all sorts of packages and ideas on how to sort out the problems confronting our Country– but this is really just tinkering with the symptoms, not dealing with the cause. The root cause of the problems we have is a spiritual one – and being spiritual, then only a spiritual solution will solve it.

Today I read from an ancient source of wisdom which gives the answer to all our problems. This ancient source goes back many millennia and has been passed down from generation to generation. Previous generations who followed its teaching in the UK used to be very much in the majority, but in this present age they are temporarily very much in the minority. These people know the real answer to our national problems. The Ancient Book is of course the Bible, and those who follow its teachings are devout Christians who genuinely take Almighty God and His Commandments seriously.

Scripture teaches that the solution to our national decline and the disintegration of our society is wholehearted “National Repentance”. There needs to be a genuine and widespread change of heart, whereby the people of this Country repent of their disobedience, selfishness and greed, and start obeying the Laws of God, both in their hearts and in their daily lives. Instantly, this would allow God to bless, protect and prosper us, as He did so in previous generations. Almighty God regularly intervened to help previous generations and He can do exactly the same for our generation, provided there is a true spirit of repentance and change of heart regarding His Commandments.

When Britain was close to defeat during the Second World War, and the entire British Army was trapped at Dunkirk, in desperation King George 6th called for a National Day of Prayer to be held on 26th May 1940. In a national broadcast he called for the people of the UK to turn back to Almighty God in a spirit of repentance and plead for Divine Intervention. Literally millions of people across the British Isles responded to his call and flocked into churches humbly praying for deliverance.

Two events immediately followed. Firstly, a violent storm arose over the Dunkirk region grounding the Luftwaffe which had been killing thousands on the beaches. And then secondly, a great calm descended on the Channel, the like of which hadn’t been seen for a generation, which allowed hundreds of tiny boats to sail across and rescue 335,000 soldiers, rather than the estimated 20-30,000. God’s response to the National Day of Prayer was so clear and so dramatic, people referred to it as “the miracle of Dunkirk”. Sunday June 9th was officially appointed as a Day of National Thanksgiving.

National Days of Prayer where held at several crisis points throughout the War and after each one, God responded with His blessing and protection. Looking back at these events the Bishop of Chelmsford Dr H.A. Wilson wrote, “If ever a great nation was on the point of supreme and final disaster, and yet was saved and reinstated it was ourselves…it does not require an exceptionally religious mind to detect in all this the Hand of God.”

What God dramatically did for that generation, He can also do for ours. Our Nation urgently needs His help and protection. May we, like the Wartime generation before us, turn to God in a true spirit of repentance and plead for Divine help. In 2nd Chronicles Ch7v14 He promises, “If people humble themselves and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and forgive their sin and heal their land.” If our Nation, once again sought God’s help as it did during Wartime, now, just as then, miracles of blessing and protection would begin to happen.

Take God seriously

Recently I read of an unnerving experience which happened to a pastor and his wife who were flying back from a Christian conference. The conduct they witnessed teaches us a great deal about human behaviour and attitudes.

They were flying from Portland back to Los Angeles and all seemed to be going well. All of a sudden while food was being served, the plane banked sharply. Moments later, flight attendants took back all the trays of food and they could be seen quietly whispering among themselves. There was clearly something very wrong. The pilot then came on and said “We have a slight mechanical difficulty. We are going to fly back to Portland.”

When the plane touched down at Portland airport a flight attendant announced “Listen carefully everyone. As soon as we come to a stop, you’ll hear the emergency siren. At that moment, take the closest escape route you can. Some of you will need to use the slides.” Then she added “There is a bomb threat. Take nothing with you, just get out!”

To the sheer amazement of the pastor and his wife, instead of panic and people running for the doors, quite the opposite happened. Most people first started reaching for their belongings under their seats and one person actually insisted on getting his brief case from the overhead locker. It was clear that many people simply didn’t take the warning seriously.

In the Bible, there are many examples of people who treated Divine warnings about their conduct and life style with a similar casual attitude. Every one of them eventually discovered however, that those warnings to repent where absolutely true. All these examples have much to teach us, but the story of what happened to a certain King of Judah when he rejected the warnings of God’s Word is particularly worth relating.

Around 600BC, during the ministry of the Prophet Jeremiah, there was a King of Judah called Jehoiakim. This King rejected Almighty God and His Commandments so the result was moral and religious decay throughout the nation. Interest in God and obedience to His will declined to such a degree that the Lord gave Jeremiah a Divinely inspired warning which was to be read out to the leaders and people. The warning was stark. Unless the nation repented and turned back to the True God, they would be invaded by a foreign power and destroyed.

Courtiers read this to King Jehoiakim while he was staying at his winter palace. The account in Jeremiah Ch36 relates that a fire was burning on the hearth and as the King heard the Word of God being read out, he cut the scroll into pieces and burnt them on the fire. He utterly refused to take the warnings of God seriously and because he didn’t like the message, he destroyed it. His behaviour and contempt for the Word of God brought terrifying consequences. Shortly afterwards the entire nation was invaded and severe judgement fell upon him personally as well as his family.

As shocking as his behaviour was, it is sadly little different from the way many people treat the inspired Word of God today. They pick and choose the verses they like in Scripture and just like Jehoiakim reject the parts which they find personally and morally challenging. No wonder they don’t feel God close to them. Salvation, intimacy and closeness to the Lord is a blessing reserved only for those take all of His will seriously. It is not for pickers and choosers who behave like a modern day Jehoiakim.

The writer Francois Fenelon gives a moving description of what this intimacy and closeness means in practise. “You can tell God all that is in your heart, just as one would unload one’s heart, its pleasures and its pains to a dear friend. You can tell Him your troubles and He will comfort you, you can tell Him your longings and He will purify them, you can tell Him your dislikes and He will help you to conquer them. Talk to Him of your temptations and He will shield you from them, show Him the wounds of your heart and He will heal them. Honestly lay bare your indifference to good, your depraved tastes for evil and your instability. Tell Him how self-love makes you unjust to others, how vanity tempts you to be insincere and how pride disguises you to yourself and others.”

“When you pour out to Him all your weaknesses, needs and troubles there will be no lack of what to say. You will never exhaust the subject and you will have no secrets from Him. Blessed indeed are those who have such a familiar, unreserved and intimate relationship with God.”

And such people are easy to recognise. They have a genuine passion and thirst for the Lord, with an
unquenchable enthusiasm and drive to stay close to Him. It can be seen in their lives that the Spirit of God resides in their hearts. They display an inner joy and peace which radiates out for all to see. Eternal life has already begun for them and the joy of the Lord is upon their countenance.

Those who refuse to fully submit to the Word of God are denied all this joyful intimacy and owing to the deceitful nature of sin may not even be aware of their true spiritual condition. Like King Jehoiakim they may actually feel quite comfortable and confident with their pick and miss views. They might take some, or perhaps none, of God’s Commandments and warnings seriously and feel very positive about rejecting and ignoring the rest. Scripture often makes references to such people and states that they are deceiving themselves and deceiving those around them. All of God’s Commandment’s and all His warnings revealed in Scripture, are to be taken seriously and acted upon; none of them can be ignored.

The Bible further adds that some of these self-deceivers will even have a certain religious persona about them and perhaps even have the appearance of being spiritual. In 2nd Timothy Ch3v5 it describes people who “have a form of Godliness about them, but deny its power.” In Matthew Ch15v8 it says “These people draw near to Me with their mouth and honour Me with their lips but their heart is far from Me.” They feel quite comfortable about attending church services and singing God’s praises, but in their heart of hearts they do not have a relationship with Him because they refuse to fully submit to and accept His revealed will. As it warns in Matthew Ch7 vs22-23 “Many will come to Me on that Day and say ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your Name, cast out demons in Your Name and done many good works in Your Name?’ And I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you. Depart from Me; you who practise lawlessness. ‘”

There is a certain plant in South America which starving people will chew, because it gives them the enjoyable sensation of having been fed. Through its influence all desire for real food departs and the starving person is spared from the painful gnawing of hunger. The leaf contains a drug but no nourishment. It satisfies a man’s craving but it does not provide for his needs. It is a plant of deception. He feels he has had food, but in reality he is dying for lack of it. So likewise are those who pick and mix from the Bible, choosing for themselves what moral teaching to take seriously and what to reject. They take enough of it to make them feel good, satisfying the inner craving of their religious nature, but reject the morally challenging parts which would have fed and saved their souls. They feel they are spiritually alive and in “good standing” with the Lord, but in reality they have deceived themselves. Unless they take seriously all of His moral teaching as revealed in Scripture, they will never belong to Him and never be one of His children.

Self-deception is so easy that St Paul urges every person to examine their heart, in order to check that they really do belong to the Lord. As he puts it in 2nd Corinthians Ch13v5 “Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves.” Let us learn the lesson of Jehoiakim and not be deceived and punished as he was. Provided we take all the teaching and warnings of Scripture seriously, and sincerely endeavour to submit our lives to His will, then when He comes or calls, He will say “Well done good and faithful servant,” rather than “Depart from Me because I never knew you.”

True repentance

Shortly before his death, Albert Einstein wrote a letter to a friend saying that he believed that the greatest need for the world was to listen to God. As we look at the state of the world today, this statement could not be truer. And what is it that God is saying to the human race? What remedy does He give for the state we are in? It is one simple but profound word “Repent”.

The key teaching of John the Baptist, the forerunner to Our Lord was “Repent”. After the Baptism and Temptation of Our Lord we are told that His key message was “Repent”, stating in Matthew Ch4v17, “From that time on Jesus began to preach to the people and say ‘Repent’”. When He sent the Disciples out to preach in the towns and villages their main theme was to be “Repent”. (Mark Ch6v12). And on the Day of Pentecost and from then on, the main message of the Apostles and the Early Church was once again “Repent”.

The word “Repent” is used more than 50 times in the New Testament, meaning that God’s main message to the human race is that people should repent of their sins. Indeed, it is so profoundly important, that being a Christian and being right with God is actually dependent upon a person having repented of their sins.

So what does repentance mean? Some time ago a Sunday School teacher asked her class this very question. One lad answered “It means being sorry for your sins.” However, after a few minutes of discussion a girl thoughtfully added, “It means being sorry enough to stop doing them.”  And this indeed is precisely what true repentance really means. A converted soldier put it like this. “The Lord said to me ‘Halt! Attention! Right-about-face! March!’” True repentance is being so sorry for one’s sins that one stops committing them and involves a complete change of attitude, conduct and behaviour. It means letting the Lord into one’s life, rather than keeping Him away at arm’s length.

Repentance isn’t merely a kind of general “sadness” or “regret” at the things one has done wrong, it is much deeper. A surgeon dressing a wound will probe it in all directions so as to cleanse it thoroughly. So likewise it is with true repentance. It involves a thorough exploration of the heart with a searching minute examination to discover what needs to be changed. Along with this will develop a new sense of the Holiness of God and an increasing awareness of the sinfulness of sin.

True repentance is the only key which will unlock the door to forgiveness and getting to know the Lord personally. While an individual remains unrepentant a barrier exists between them as a sinner and an infinitely Holy God. When however, genuine repentance occurs, this barrier is removed, forgiveness is obtained and the door is opened to experiencing a real and personal relationship with the Lord as our very Best Friend. Until an individual is willing to repent and obey the Lord, there will always be a barrier between them and the Almighty.

And the signs of this barrier in a person’s life are easily recognisable. A person will complain, “Oh I pray to God, but I don’t feel He is listening.” “Oh I don’t feel my prayers are getting through.” “Oh I don’t feel God is close to me”. “Oh, He doesn’t seem real to me.” “Oh I have been seeking the Lord but I can’t find Him.” “Oh I have many questions but I never seem to find satisfying answers.” “Oh I want a deeper experience of God but I just feel dry and empty inside.” All these different symptoms are but a manifestation of this self-imposed barrier and the solution to them is always the same; truly repent. Approach God on His terms of true repentance and the barrier will be instantly removed. As the Lord said in Isaiah Ch 59vs1-2 “Behold the Lord’s hand is not shortened that it cannot save; nor His ear heavy that it cannot hear. But your iniquities separate you from God and your sin hides His face from you so that He will not hear.”

In 2nd Peter Ch3v9 it reminds us that “The Lord is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” Indeed His love and desire for individuals to repent and get to know Him personally is so strong that He sent His Son to die on the Cross for our sins. (John Ch3v16). However, unless an individual is willing to truly repent and submit to the Lord’s will, the barrier between them and God will remain. The following two stories illustrate this truth very clearly.

Sometime ago a man came to his Vicar with a long list of questions about the Bible and about how to live the Christian life. He talked to the man for a while to find out about his character and background. As the conversation unfolded the Minister sensed that the reason for the list of questions wasn’t due to the man being a heartfelt searcher wanting answers, but something very different. In 2nd Timothy Ch3v7 it describes individuals who are “forever learning but never able to come to an acceptance of the truth.” He felt that this was a fitting description of this man. Finally the Vicar said, “I’ll gladly go through all your questions and answer them one by one. I often do this with enquirers, but in your particular case before I do, I want you to do one thing first. I want you to repent of your sins and turn to following Christ, questions and all.” The man went off looking very thoughtful.

Several days later he returned looking quite radiant. “Where are your questions?” asked the Minister. “I don’t really have any major questions now” said the man. “After much soul searching I took your advice and decided that I should indeed first start to follow the Saviour and while following Him deal with my questions along the way. The strange thing is that the moment I committed myself to Him, I found answers to most of them and the others now appear so insignificant that no answer is really necessary.” The Minister had correctly perceived that in this case, the root cause of the man’s lack of faith and list of questions was due to his unwillingness to truly repent and obey the Lord. No amount of answering these questions would have solved this issue because the real problem lay, not in finding answers, but in finding repentance and obedience of heart.

This incident shows how a person may seek after God and may learn this or that about Him, but unless it is done with a genuine heart, approaching God on His terms, a barrier will remain. It is not primarily by having questions answered that will open the door to God; it is not primarily by praying or by reading the Bible; it is not primarily by attending church or by going on retreat. As important as all these things are, unless they are done in a spirit of repentance with a sincere willingness to submit to the will of God, they will be to no avail in removing the barrier.

If an individual wants to make “real contact” with God; if they want to have a close and personal relationship with Him and have Him as their Best Friend, then the first step beginning this relationship is true repentance. And as we shall see from this second story, it is also the vital ingredient which maintains and preserves this relationship.

Many years ago a backslidden member of Dr Philips Brooks’ church called at his house in order to get his name removed from the church membership roll. The man explained that he didn’t feel God close to him anymore and that he felt dry and empty inside. He felt disappointed that neither God nor the church satisfied him in the way that they once did. Dr Brooks pleaded with the man to reconsider but he was insistent. What happened next was remarkable and can only have been the result of God’s timing.

Just as Dr Brooks finished pleading with the man, a poorly dressed boy came to the door with a note. It was an urgent request for the Minister to visit a sick and needy woman in a poor part of town. Dr Brooks was just leaving to conduct a funeral and so he couldn’t respond to the request. Suddenly however, he had an idea. He knew that the man wanting his name removed from the membership roll had drifted from God by allowing sin back into his life and he also knew that the sick woman was a devout Christian. He wondered if her influence might make this man acknowledge the real truth as to why God was distant from him.

Dr Brooks explained to the man that he was leaving for a funeral and wondered if he would be so kind as to go on his behalf, to supply whatever the poor woman needed. The man readily agreed, assuming that he would have to provide her with some food or medicine. He followed the lad down narrow streets and then down a dark alley. Finally he came to a shack whose half-open door was held by one hinge. He was led into a darkened room. As he entered, the sick and partially sighted woman greeted him with great thanks, “Oh Dr Brooks, I knew you would come. You are God’s man. You always come to the call of trouble. I am sick and hungry, but first I want you to pray for me. Please pray!” Her plight was so desperate and her pleading so sincere, the man didn’t have it in his heart to say he wasn’t Dr Brooks. As he hesitated she pleaded with him again to pray.

He got down on his knees beside her bed. The whole situation seemed so surreal. In an instant, her devotion and love for God deeply struck his conscience. Confronted and challenged by her faithfulness he was forced to see that the real reason for God’s distance from him was his own fault by allowing sin back into his life. As he started to pray, he began by asking the Lord’s forgiveness and then went on to pray for the woman and her condition.

After he finished praying he explained that he had come on behalf of Dr Brooks and that he had been deeply challenged and convicted by her love for the Lord. They talked for some time and later he got her some much needed food, fuel and medicine. As they parted he thanked her for how her faithfulness to God had influenced and helped him. The man later contacted Dr Brooks and asked for his name to be kept on the church roll. He said to the Minister “I am all right now sir. I am all right.”

A repentant spirit begins our relationship with the Lord, but it also sustains and maintains it. Every time an individual feels that they are no longer in close fellowship with the Lord, the reason is always the same. They have allowed sin back into their hearts. Numerous times I have encountered people who were once close to the Lord but who then began to feel empty and dry inside. The inner joy that once was theirs had gone. “What has happened?” they ask and “What is the solution?” The reason is always the same; they have drifted away from the Lord by allowing sin back into their hearts and lives. Instead of growing in spiritual maturity by actively working at their faith, they have gone backwards. (Some will also have begun to neglect the three mainstays of the Christian life namely prayer, Bible reading and church attendance. It is impossible to have a growing and developing spiritual life if these three are no longer given a priority). The only solution is heartfelt, sincere and genuine repentance, fully submitting once again to the Lord’s will for their lives.

In Acts Ch17v31 it states God “has appointed a Day when He will judge this world in righteousness and He has given assurance of this by raising Christ from the dead.” A Day will come when individuals will be judged for their every thought, word and action. At great Personal Cost, due to God’s deep love, the penalty for our sins has been paid in full on the Cross, but this forgiveness is conditional upon true repentance. Today we live in a world which has lost its fear of God. We live in a world which has lost its awareness of God’s infinite Holiness. Many people see no reason or need to repent and live a God fearing life. How profoundly wrong they are! As it warns in Hebrews Ch2v3 “How shall we escape if we neglect so wonderful a salvation?”

At the moment wickedness abounds on the face of the earth exactly as Scripture predicted (Matthew Ch24v12, 2nd Peter Ch3vs 3-4), however, this situation will not last indefinitely. Just as Scripture warned about these troubled times so likewise it predicts that they will end in Judgment; “Behold I Am coming as a thief in the night. Blessed is he who watches and keeps his garments lest he should be naked. My reward is with Me to give to everyone according to his work. Blessed are those who obey My commandments…” (Revelation Ch 16v15 and Ch22vs12-14). As the hymn says “Repent and obey for there is no other way.”

The results of disobedience

The more one watches the news about the state of our nation, and indeed about the troubles of this world in general, the more apparent it is that most of these problems are caused by human greed and selfishness. The Bible describes such attitudes with one simple word; "disobedience". All our national problems of civil strife, social breakdown, disharmony and on a wider scale, the problems of nations refusing to live at peace with other nations are all caused by this very simple but profound word "disobedience".

No matter who we are or where we live God has given every individual a "moral compass" called a conscience so they can tell right from wrong. We can all tell if we are being selfish or greedy and we can all sense when we are being disobedient to the standards of conduct God has set which would bring peace, prosperity and social order. The Ten Commandments are acknowledged as being "the guide par excellence" to attitudes, conduct and behaviour and written on every human heart is a general understanding of what is morally right and what is morally wrong. Due to this God given implanted conscience, St Paul actually wrote in Romans Ch 1 that the human race is "without excuse" for its disobedience. Humanity knows what is morally wrong, but continues to go down the path of immoral behaviour causing untold suffering and trouble to an untold number of people along the way.

One religious commentator recently lamented about the state of UK saying "Just how bad must things get for this country before our people learn that disobedience to the laws of God brings nothing but trouble? Did a World War teach us? It didn't. Did a second World War? It didn't. What about the disintegration of family life and society or indeed the break up of the British Empire? It didn't. What about the destruction of the mightiest naval force on earth. It didn't. What about the end to the wealth of our mines and the destruction of all the industries upon which the wealth of our nation was based such as shipbuilding, steel making and the wholesale destruction of our economy. It didn't."

And on a more global scale, what about 9/11 and the chain of events which it has now unleashed on the world? Has it made the human race "sit up and think" that this is one almighty "wake up call"? It clearly hasn't. People are still as greedy, still just as selfish, churches continue to close through sheer apathy and lack of interest and the commonsense morality outlined in Scripture continues to be ignored, ridiculed or redefined. No wonder those whose hearts are right before God ask "What does it take to make people see that things always go wrong when God and His laws are defied"?

When someone sees an instruction on their electric fire saying "do not touch" they obey in the knowledge that the sign is there for their own safety. It's the same with God's moral laws of conduct and behaviour. They are there for our benefit, safety and social order. Just as the universe has the physical laws of chemistry and biology so equally there is a spiritual principle upon which the whole of creation is governed; namely that if God's laws are broken, then trouble ultimately follows. It cannot and never will be any other way.

Many years ago Chinese farmers theorised that they could eat their big potatoes and keep the small ones for seed. Consequently they ate the big potatoes and planted the small ones. As a result of this unwise practise, after many years the Chinese farmers made the startling discovery that nature had reduced all their potatoes to the size of marbles! Through bitter experience they learned that they could not always take the best things of life for themselves and use the leftovers for seed. The law of nature decreed that the harvest would reflect the planting. This physical law cannot be overcome and the spiritual law governing the universe is just the same and just as certain - we reap what we sow.

Many people today take the big things of life for themselves and plant the leftovers. In other words instead of putting God first in their hearts and lives, they make Him last. They put their house, job, family, friends, hobby or whatever first and if by chance they have a spare slot of time, (provided all these other things remain unaffected), God then gets a look in. God is put last, yet He is the very One Who gave them all these things, (including life itself) in the first place! On top of all this, they expect by some crazy twist of spiritual law that their selfishness will be rewarded with further prosperity and when things go wrong they can't understand why! They wonder why the nation is in a mess, they wonder why they don't feel happy and they wonder why life seems to slip passed without their questions being answered about why we are here. They wonder why everything seems so pointless. Here today gone tomorrow.

A doctor demands total obedience from his patient regarding all the things that are necessary for his treatment. This will cover medicine, dosage, diet, rest and exercise. The doctor gives orders concerning these things not because he is being awkward but because it is absolutely necessary for health of his patient.

In the same way, Scripture describes Jesus Christ as being the Great Physician and He has indeed provided a prescription for the ills of our society (and indeed the ills of the world in general). The prescription He orders people to take is for their benefit and welfare and its called "Godly obedience". Can you imagine how our society and nation would be transformed, if say overnight everyone wholeheartedly started to live by the Ten Commandments?! Imagine the healing that would take place in broken homes across the land, imagine the feeling of safety people would experience as they walk the streets, imagine an end to corruption, greed and selfishness and the economic blessings that would follow.

"Godly obedience" is the cure for all our social and national ills. The Great Physician has provided the prescription; its now up to individuals to take it! Did you follow your Doctor's orders today by obeying Him in your thoughts and words and actions? Did you follow His instructions to read the Bible and pray? Did you sit quietly listening to your conscience in case the Doctor has some specific instructions concerning the day's events? None of these things are hard to do and the health of ones soul depends on it. As the Great Doctor says in Deuteronomy Ch 30 vs 11,15,18 "These commandments which I have given you are not too hard for you to understand. See I have set before you the choice between life and good, death and evil. Keep My commandments and I will bless you but if you turn away from them I warn you that you will surely perish."

Let us choose life! Always obey Doctor's orders!

What is happening to our nation?

Here is a question you may not have thought about. “Does God reward good behaviour?” I’m not referring to the reward of individuals in heaven; I am relating this question to countries and nations. In other words does God reward and bless a nation which takes His laws seriously, or doesn’t it matter how a nation behaves?

The Bible gives an emphatic answer. Many passages of the Bible show that just as God rewards individuals in the next life, He likewise blesses nations or countries that follow Him. Perhaps it doesn’t need to be stated but of course the reverse is also true – ie God withdraws His blessing and protection proportionate to how far a nation ignores His laws. Many sections of Scripture teach this eg Psalm 107:34 “a fruitful nation will become impoverished because of the wickedness of those who dwell in it.”  Proverbs 14:34 “righteousness will exalt a nation but wickedness will destroy a people,” and of course there is the whole of Deuteronomy  28 which lists one example after another explaining the practical problems and troubles that will befall any nation or society that rejects the laws of God.

Our country is lurching from one crisis to another and it is not difficult to recognize that God is neither blessing our nation nor protecting it. The following sad statistics perhaps highlight some of the reasons why:

‘Britain has the worst record in Europe (excluding Ireland) for pilfering.’ (5/10/05)
‘Britain is now the card fraud capital of Europe.’ Classic FM Radio (21/11/06)
‘Britain is the single parent capital of the world.’ Daily Telegraph (23/3/05)
‘London is the abortion capital of the world.’ Evening Standard (7/8/07)
‘Britain’s youngsters are the most destructive in Europe.’ Classic FM Radio
‘Britain has one of the highest rates in the world of youngsters dropping out of education’
‘Britain has the highest rate of school truancy since records began.’ (21/9/05)
Between 1969 and 2005 an average of one church closed down every 8 days!

How can a righteous God bless and protect a nation which clearly wants nothing to do with Him, His church or the Ten Commandments He gave? Our society has lost touch with the reality of sin and the consequences it brings. For some this may seem an old fashioned message – a message that sits uncomfortably with their own personal agenda of ‘me first selfishness’ but to such people I would ask the following “if liberalism is so good, why is everything going bad?”

Our country is now developing an unprecedented level of debt, but more borrowing and spending cannot fix the problems caused by too much borrowing and spending! Money will not save us. Our national salvation lies instead in addressing the spiritual crisis which is the root cause of our national ills. A sane, spiritual revival which changes the hearts and minds of our people is what is really needed!

There is a famous incident which occurred during the reign of Queen Victoria which illustrates this. On one occasion she was asked by a prince from India to explain the secret of Britain’s power. For her answer the Queen picked up a Bible from the table and said “This is the secret.” The secret was that as the nation took the laws of God seriously and people applied the Commandments to their own personal lives, God’s blessings flowed.

It is easy to forget just how great Britain was and how recently. At the turn of the 20th Century our wealth and power was unmatched. Our country was the world’s number one or two producer of petroleum, coal, steel, pig iron, gold and every other precious metal. The Royal Navy, by law larger than the world’s next two largest navies combined, provided a presence around the globe. We made sure we were reliant on no other country for defence! At its peak The Royal Navy had almost 900 warships. Currently we have 22 and only a third of these can operate at any one time.

Our once prized military self sufficiency in arena after arena has gone – we are forced to trust on the goodwill of other nations for our military needs. Put another way we now rely on other countries for our defence and liberty. People may hold various views about Britain’s past but this doesn’t change the fact that a country which not long ago governed one out of every four people on the planet, is now having trouble governing its own children and has become a fractious nation full of infighting! Our society has done away with God’s “thou shalt nots” which were intended for our benefit and blessing and the consequences of this rejection can be seen all around us. These consequences are outlined in detail in chapter 2 of ‘A call to the Nation’ which can be downloaded free from this website.

As uncomfortable as it may be, what we need to hear loudly and clearly are hard truths about repentance and living a life that is pleasing to God. As Abraham Lincoln stated, “It is the duty of nations as well as of individuals, to recognize their dependence upon the overruling power of God, and to acknowledge the sublime truth taught in Holy Scripture and proven by all history that those nations only are blessed whose God is the Lord.”

I urge you to pray for our nation and that closed minds may be opened. The following prayer was written by Thomas Jefferson, a former President of America. It is a useful guide regarding how we should pray.

A prayer for the nation

Almighty God, Who has given us this good land for our heritage, we beseech Thee that we may always prove ourselves a people mindful of Thy favour and glad to do Thy will . Bless our land with honourable industry, sound learning and pure manners. Save us from violence, discord and confusion; from pride and arrogance and from every evil way. Defend our liberties and fashion into one united people the multitudes brought hither out of many kindreds and tongues. Endow with the spirit of wisdom those to whom in Thy name we entrust the authority of the government,  that there may be justice and peace at home, and that through obedience to Thy law, we may show forth Thy praise among the nations of the earth. In the time of prosperity, fill our hearts with thankfulness and in the days of trouble, suffer not our trust in Thee to fail.