The United States of America is not technically a democracy. We always hear people talking about promoting democracy, but in its final form democracy is just mob rule. America is a representative republic based on the Constitution as its foundational law.
Before the Constitution, of course, we had the Declaration of Independence, which created America as a nation separate from England. It begins with the famous sentence:
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.
That’s an interesting clause, “they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights.” Remember, if the state gives us our rights, then the state can rightfully abridge those rights. However, if rights are God-given, the state is out of line in attempting to take them away. They are unalienable. Nobody can rightfully put a lien on them outside of God’s law.
A few years after the American Revolution, the starving French lower classes revolted violently against an opulent and insensitive aristocracy. They boasted that, unlike America, their new republic could achieve the Brotherhood of Man without the Fatherhood of God as a prerequisite. Their version of republicanism flattered man into believing that his own intellect reigned supreme. Its proponents created a new secular religion, and evangelists of that godless religion, like Thomas Paine and others, brought their faith to our shores with missionary zeal.
As America was being founded, the church provided leadership. The new nation freed itself from British tyranny and went about daily life, and the republic enjoyed almost explosive prosperity as it took advantage of a vast new land with almost limitless natural resources. As prosperity rose, however, spirituality declined. Church ministers retreated from the simple message of the Gospel, preaching conditions for conversion that were so burdensome that many church goers despaired of ever joining the ranks of the redeemed.
Thus, when humanistic ideals from France landed on America’s shores, those ideas found ready ears. The majority of Americans were still Christians, but there was a weakness in the Church because the love of Christ had been neglected. Cynicism made astonishing inroads to the centers of American creative thinking and an anti-spiritual revolution rolled over the land.
As always, God raised up a few courageous men to make the counter attack. Methodist circuit riders were soldiers of the Lord who wanted nothing more than to carry the Gospel of God. Frontier Presbyterian and Baptist preachers carried on the battle, and God did shed His grace on America with a tremendous outpouring of His Spirit. This became known as the Second Great Awakening, and in the wake of this revival, amazing movements took place. Missionary societies were founded. Innumerable charitable institutions emerged on behalf of the deaf and the blind, the old and the destitute, the orphans and the mentally ill. Abolitionists shouted stalwartly against the evils of slavery.
These movements barely kept America out of the abyss. The North had become very industrialized, but wages were often poor and slums grew up along with all the vices of desperation and misery. The South, with its humidity and heat, was relegated primarily to the agricultural role, and the West grew as small farms sprouted up across the country. America was the land of opportunity, but it was still a land full of human beings with all their normal struggles and temptations. There were battles over slavery until the country finally erupted into war.
Without Christ, we are slaves to sin in more ways than one. It is through His blood that we are saved not only from the punishment for sin, but from the power of sin itself. Slavery is no longer legal in the United States, but there is an underground form of slavery still in existence today, one that is – in some ways – more insidious than the former kind. Human trafficking is a serious problem that would end if the hearts of Americans were healed. Traffickers are only able to make a business in human life because there are buyers. It’s all about supply and demand. If there were no demand for human wares, trafficking would end.
On that field outside Gettysburg, President Abraham Lincoln gave a short, but powerful speech that resounds in the minds of Americans more than 150 years later. The real matter at hand is our resolve that this nation remains one nation under God, that the government of the people, by the people and for the people shall not perish from this earth.
This is not a partisan issue, although it’ll appear to some like that. There is something far deeper going on, and we all need to prayerfully consider what our response should be. From the time of Columbus onward, there has been a struggle in America between the forces of light and the forces of darkness. From Columbus to the Pilgrims to the Puritans to the delegates at the Constitutional Convention, those who founded this country believed that God had a special plan for America. If they were aware of God’s plan, then the dark prince of our planet was also aware of that plan, and he has been working overtime to thwart the work that God is doing. Columbus wanted to bring the good news of salvation to the Indians. Other Spaniards came along and enslaved the Indians. Back at the beginning, there were enough committed Christians to get the job done and make self-government work, but even the Founding Fathers had intense disagreements.
Principalities and Powers
Self-government requires supernatural aid. It relies on the power of God to provide the continual spiritual renewal needed to inspire selfish men to be selfless. Self-government depends on Judeo-Christian ethics and a dedication to truth. The framers of the Constitution understood man’s fallen nature, and that’s why they created our unique system of checks and balances.
There is one more concept in all of this that I think we overlook. Daniel brought it to our attention in Daniel 10, and Paul brought it up again in Ephesians 6. There are spiritual forces at work in heavenly places.
In Daniel 10, the man Daniel prays and grieves for three weeks, and as he is praying a glowing and fiery-eyed angel appears to him. The angel lets Daniel know that God sent him immediately, as soon as Daniel started praying, but it took three weeks for him to get through because he encountered brutal resistance from the spiritual ruler of Persia. The angel finally reached Daniel because the archangel Michael – whom we discover in Daniel 10:21 and 12:1 is the spiritual prince and defender of Israel – came to the angelic messenger’s aid. In Daniel 10:20, the angel explains that he has to leave and go back to fighting the prince of Persia, but when he leaves the prince of Greece will come.
This is an interesting picture, and it’s one that we should really think about. Paul tells us clearly in Ephesians 6:12:
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
Make no mistake about it, there are spiritual forces at work. Not only this, but there appear to be spiritual powers in charge of countries. In Daniel’s time, there was an angelic prince of Persia who fought against Israel, and Michael was the angelic prince who stood in defense of Israel. There was also a prince of Greece, and it seems likely that those rulers of the darkness of this world, the spiritual wickedness in high places, are actual spiritual beings with authority and power. There are forces to be reckoned with. It’s reasonable to suggest that China has its spiritual leadership and so does Afghanistan and Denmark and Burkina Faso and Brazil. Each country has spiritual forces that are either aligned with God – or aligned against Him.
That raises an obvious question: who is the prince over America? Israel has Michael the archangel. Who is our prince? We have declared that we are one nation “under God.” Does that mean the prince over America is a righteous spiritual prince, like Michael? Or (and this is likely) is there a battle being waged over the spiritual territory that is our country? Are we currently up for grabs? Is the battling swaying one way or the other, and can we change the tide of the war?
This is a serious business. When we pray, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” I think we are praying for something real. This is not just a platitude. In the parable of the talents, the nobleman told his servants, “Occupy till I come.”1 In Ephesians 6:13, Paul urges us, “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”
Jesus will return one day and take His place on the throne of David, but He is not ruling on the earth right now. Psalm 115 tells us that God rules in the heavens, but the earth was given to the children of men.2 When we say, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” we are asking God to step into our domain. We are handing over our will to Him. We want His kingdom to be here. We want His forces to be the spiritual powers ruling over our homes and our families. We want Him to be the One in ultimate control of our towns, and we want His excellent ideas to be accomplished in our communities just as they are done in heaven. That’s what we want for our counties and our states and our entire nation of people.
We can pray, “Lord, may Your kingdom come. May Your forces be in charge of where we live. We have called ourselves one nation under God. We pray that is true, that the spiritual forces of evil that are battling for control of our country be stopped and that Your hosts will prevail. We hand ourselves over to you with all our hearts.”
Proverbs 29:18 says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.” You and I need to pray that men of vision will continually rise up in our culture, in our land, and that the President and his cabinet, our House of Representatives and our Senate, and the judges in our judicial system will have the guts to challenge the unrighteous tide that’s in front of us. God has blessed us from sea to shining sea, but every year and every decade it appears we float back out into dangerous waters. America was founded on the principle of religious freedom, but there is a constant battle, a tug-of-war in this country between righteous laws and religious freedom and the liberties of those who want to have the right to every evil thing.
You and I have a 24-hour hotline into the throne room of the universe, and we don’t simply reach the answering machine of some secretary intermediary. Our prayers reach right to the King of Eternity, and what is absolutely astonishing is that He is anxious to hear from us. The problem in America is us. It’s us.
The cynics will tell us that it’s too late, but that’s not true. There have been much darker times in history than what we see today. The good news is that our God is in the miracle business, and if one man praying can bring an angel through the enemy lines of the prince of Persia, then a multitude of us praying will bring a wave of spiritual blessings. We’ve all heard the famous verse from 2 Chronicles, but I want to end with it here.
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.
2 Chronicles 7:14
God doesn’t change, and I believe we can claim that principle just as ancient Israel did. The violent people of Nineveh did this very thing – they repented and sought God’s face, and the Lord forgave them. We as a nation have placed ourselves under the care of God Almighty. There may be contentious Supreme Court rulings, but Congress still opens every day with a prayer. “In God We Trust” is still on our currency. We still have a National Day of Prayer and Thanksgiving is still a national holiday. The sex and violence from Hollywood notwithstanding, the world still regards us as a Christian nation. We are called by His name.
Putting the nation aside, we individuals who call ourselves Christians have the Lord’s name attached to us. We represent Him. At least, we represent Him if anybody even knows we’re Christians. We’re supposed to be a light to the world and not hide our light under a basket. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t want a fish on my car, because my driving is too questionable. I also don’t want obnoxious people getting in my face and being annoying. It’s not good to be persecuted for being annoying. I do think it’s important that we are full of the Spirit of God and His love, and that people know where we stand. Ultimately, though, 2 Chronicles 7:14 applies to us who call ourselves by His name. It’s not the pagans who are the problem – it’s us. We are the ones who are supposed to seek His face and turn from our wicked ways. It’s our primary job to humble ourselves and repent and fall on our knees before Him, in the same way that we would seek reconciliation with our spouse. It’s that kind of close and personal, one-on-one relationship with God we want. If we do these things, the Lord promises that He will heal our land.
If you care about your children and neighbors, if you care about our heritage in this country, I plead with you to commit yourself to significant prayer on behalf of the spiritual needs of this country. There are a number of people willing to crawl out on their political limb and take some action, but their efforts will be meaningless unless we’ve bathed them in prayer. Through prayer they can overcome the isolation and villainization they will face in the public sphere; they can conquer the obstacles in their way. They need the ground support that we offer. And of course, as always, those prayers should begin with a recognition of God’s continual goodness toward us. He is faithful, and He always deserves our heartfelt thanks.
Heavenly Father, as we consider our national day of Thanksgiving, we come before Your throne with gratitude, because we recognize that every good thing we have comes from Your hand. We also come before You, Father, begging forgiveness for our sins of presumption and our sins of apathy, for the callousness we’ve had as our elected leaders run roughshod over Your sacred principles, through which You’ve richly blessed this country. Father, we have a responsibility for the mandate that You have provided us in this unique experiment in human liberty. Father, we confess as sin our lack of diligence in our stewardship. Please forgive us. We flee to your infinite mercy and ask that You would once again pour Your Spirit out on our nation, that we might turn to You as a whole.
At the head of our Thanksgiving list, we place the redemption that You’ve provided for each of us in Jesus Christ. We are completely grateful that the price has been paid. It’s been paid 100%, and we are grateful that You have allowed us to hear that message. We also ask that through Your Holy Spirit and through Your Word, You would illuminate for each of us the path that You have before us, that You would help each of us discover the unique ministry that You have for us during these strange days.
Father, please help us to be more diligent. Help us to be ever humbled before Your throne, and that You would continually call us to prayer. Father, we resolve to commit ourselves more to prayer and, above all, to seek Your face and so to know Your heart in all these matters, that we might be clean vessels used for Your purposes in the days ahead. We commit ourselves into Your hands, in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
