He grew up before him like a tender shoot,
and like a root out of dry ground. Isa. 53:2
and like a root out of dry ground. Isa. 53:2
Israel, God’s “first born,” and Jesus, “His only begotten” grew up before the Lord without the usual or customary support. In Isaiah 53 the "Suffering Son" is likened to a plant which pushes itself out of the ground despite the fact it lacks water and/or friable soil. It is always difficult for plants to survive the conditions of hard dry soil. Many will fail to live and most cannot thrive in those conditions. But our faith reveals two startling exceptions. Israel thrived while enslaved to Egypt, Jesus grew up during Roman occupation, and both survived sojourns in death dealing wildernesses. Israel survived forty years of desert wanderings and entered into the Land which flowed with milk and honey. Jesus, with little support from anyone for the idea that he was sent to be the savior of the world grew in wisdom and stature before God and men and fulfilled his God-given mission! His mission was punctuated by being sent by the Holy Spirit into the desert wilderness for forty days where he survived with the Word of God, prayer, fasting, and the help of his Father’s angels.
When we consider these two examples, we understand what it means to live with all the props removed. For hundreds of years we in the United States have lived with the props of American Religion which promoted “Nature’s God,” a god whom the founders believed would unite us instead of bringing division. This “popular faith” has many times carried us comfortably and has shielded the people of God from many possible desert experiences. Though this public faith in God was never made a State or National Religion, our building inscriptions, coins, songs, and various oaths made us believe it was one and the same as the very faith proclaimed from pulpits across the land. It never was that officially. For many years, the invocation of God’s name by a president or senator rang familiar in the hearts of the faithful follower of Christ, even though he or she was often calling upon a fairly vague American God and not the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It is indeed becoming clearer that the use of “in God we trust” means many different things to many different people and does not bring with it a guarantee that the god of the inscription is your God.
What does it mean for the church? It means for one that our training wheels have been taken away and we need to balance ourselves and increase our peddling efforts. We should expect the current trends to continue and possibly worsen as far as national faith and morality are concerned. The war for “Christian America” has been lost. We now await the terms of peace which will undoubtedly be costly. Secondly, oft neglected prayer should once again be the currency in the economy of the Kingdom of God for His people. We have too often counted on the good will and favor of American Religion instead of bowing before the God of the Armies of Heaven. Thirdly, we must minister with newfound humility, patience, and boldness (not to be confused with being obnoxious) as we encounter more resistance and antagonism toward the gospel. Personal autonomy has replaced both Christian and national unity, and we find that we are being looked at in prejudicial ways. Many of the props which have protected us no longer will.
For Christ followers in America, there are props that we need to be reminded of and which continue to aid us in our service to God. One prop that is welcome is the number of churches which are made up of God fearing and God honoring people. Where I live it is hard to fall down without someone coming to help you stand and offering prayer for your well being! We help each other. However, it must be noted that we don’t often take advantage of this favorable environment because of labels used to distinguish ourselves from others (partly owning to the sin of pride). The seas we are sailing on are storm tossed and all will be lost if we don’t in some ways abandon the little boats and climb into the ship. Then, with all hands on deck and every oar manned we will be able to reach our destination. Secondly, our government continues to extend tax exempt status to churches without which we would have tremendous difficulty as we now operate. While I don’t expect these to stand forever, I am thankful for them today! Thirdly, God has not revealed to his people that he has finished with the church in America. It must be spiritually cleansed, have its God inspired mission reconfirmed, and recommit itself to America’s God, instead of the American God, but that is achievable!
Everything is not so bad with the changes that are coming. We will find that a sifting will occur in the church which will reveal followers who are convinced by the truth of our faith and not by its popularity or societal benefits. This will make us stronger in our pursuit of the things of God and the mission of Jesus Christ. So, as much as we lament the waning of Godly influence in America, we must understand that these events have not taken God by surprise and that our spiritual DNA is that of Israel and Jesus Christ. He made them to stand alone and prosper in a place thought too hostile for life and prosperity and he will do the same for His people today.
