We all recognize there is something wrong with the world and mankind. Our news channels never fail to keep us up to date on all that is destructive, harmful, or corrupt in society. If they are not telling us about some political scandal, they are surely informing us about the atrocities of war, crime, racism, murder, pollution, dangerous viruses, poverty, social inequality, or some other crisis that never seems to go away. And, it seems, where a crisis cannot be found, one can be artificially manufactured and perpetuated, all for the purpose of advancing some narrative that keeps ratings high. When I turn on the news I am reminded of the adage, “If it bleeds, it leads.” Furthermore, the ABC’s of news organizations—like all secular institutions—will offer Anything But Christian solutions. Their operating assumptions are either God does not exist (atheism), or does not care to be involved in the affairs of mankind (deism), so we are left to slug it out and find our own solutions to life’s problems. The constant internalization of negative news—albeit accurate—without some biblical context or divine solution only serves to create psychological and emotional disequilibrium, which, if left unmanaged, can cause lasting damage to self and others. Without divine revelation to provide proper context, we can become mentally and emotionally miscalibrated. The need for absolute truth as a standard of right is required if we’re to make a proper assessment of what is, and a willingness to conform to that standard if national health is to be achieved.

Sadly, most Americans have developed a Pavlovian response to our problems by looking to our political leaders for our solutions. However, our national problems are not first and foremost political, social, or economic, but spiritual. Much of the blame for America’s decline lies at the doorstep of the Christian church which, for decades, has been playing silly games, wasting time on selfish pursuits and superficial activities while America descends into spiritual darkness and chaos (especially the megachurches). Churches, rather than being centers of biblical learning and worship, have become places where we go for Broadway-style entertainment and motivational messages devoid of biblical content. TV charlatans teach us to regard God as a rich and powerful friend who desires to bless us if we’ll “sow a financial seed” to their ministry. Tragically, there are many fools who keep giving to these false teachers, who spend their money on lavish homes and private jets, while the Bible continues to be distorted for selfish ends and the poor and needy continue to go without. Furthermore, it seems like most of our so-called Christian seminaries and universities are producing liberal pastors who deny the inerrancy of Scripture and who preach that God is only love and peace.[1] God is love and He certainly prefers peace; however, He is also righteous and holy, and as such, He is a consuming fire to be respected. Those who fail to take God seriously will surely feel His heat.

As Christians, we bear some of the blame for the national mess we’re in (some more than others), for we have let the light of Christ and His Word grow dim in our culture. We often treat the study of God’s Word lightly, thinking what we get for one hour each week at Church (assuming we get even that) is sufficient to offset the worldliness we expose ourselves to through humanistic music, literature, and TV the rest of the week. In this way, we fail to guard our hearts from the invading darkness (Pro 4:23). Most Christians spend their days listening to secular news commentators and worldly-minded politicians rather than doctrinally sound pastor-teachers. Such a pattern is lopsided. As a result, we think our battles are political, social, or financial, when in reality, “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” (Eph 6:12). Most Christian men have failed, being more concerned with earning a paycheck and advancing up the social ladder rather than sacrificially serving as the spiritual leaders in their homes, churches, and communities. And most Christian parents have abandoned their duties to raise their children in the fear of Lord, having relinquished their children to the public education system, which is little more than a humanistic indoctrination factory that churns out little socialists and communists who desire a big government because the God their parents worship is too small to guide their lives. Turning our children over to be raised by a purely secular society is tantamount to child abuse. As Christians, we have failed to communicate truth and model the virtues of biblical Christianity, and in this way, we have ceded ground to the enemy, for as goes the Christian, so goes the nation.

But it’s are not over yet. It is bad, but there’s hope of turning things around if we humble ourselves and start living as we should, calling others to turn to God as well. There is an answer in the Bible, which provides us an explanation concerning why the world is the way it is, how we should respond to it, and what the future holds. Hopefully, there is enough positive volition in the country to turn things in the right direction. However, we cannot and will not affect real or lasting change without first bringing God and His Word to the center of all we say and do. This demands a commitment to learning Scripture and living by faith in all aspects of our lives, praying, and modeling Christian virtues. Without making God and His Word central to our lives, everything will continue as it is, and inevitable decline will lead to destruction. It’s just a matter of time.

Dear Father, I pray for Christians and churches across our land. I pray for revival. Shake us and wake us to the current state of affairs and to reality that we must turn to you, the God of all creation, if things are to improve. May we commit ourselves to learn your word and live your will. I pray we learn to walk humbly by faith, to live righteously, to share the Gospel with those who will listen, to pray for others, to live with an open hand to the poor and needy, and to seek your will in all matters. I ask these things in Jesus’ name, amen. 

Dr. Steven R. Cook

Related Articles:

1. The Gospel Message
2. What is the Church?
3. The Righteousness of God
4. Choosing Righteous Friends
5. Improving Culture – An OT Example
6. Improving Culture – A NT Example
7. Righteousness Exalts a Nation
8. Satan as the Ruler of the World
9. Satan’s Evil World-System
10. The Sin of Idolatry 
11. Demons and How They Influence mankind
12. Holy Angels and How They Influence Mankind
13. Restoring Fellowship With God
14. Steps to Spiritual Growth
15. The Filling of the Holy Spirit
16. The Righteous Lifestyle of the Believer
17. Theological Categories of God’s Justice
18. Choosing the Faithful Way

[1] I graduated from a liberal Baptist university that nearly destroyed my Christian faith. Unfortunately, there were other students who embraced the liberal way of thinking, and week after week I would hear their messages on the radio as they preached the misleading garbage to their flocks.