A nation once
known for the liberty it provided for its citizens is now known for the burden
of debt it has saddled on its citizens. The
massive, incomprehensible figure of $15 trillion dollars is a number we like to
ignore but it is the number imprinted on the debt- shackles we have clamped on our
children and grandchildren. This national
failure is unprecedented and this behavior is immoral.
What family
would intentionally max out all their credit cards and then apply for another
credit card in order to pay the interest on their previous cards? Imagine having so much credit card debt that
your entire income must be used just to pay the interest on the debt leaving no
money for food, or transportation or the mortgage. This is insanity redefined. No one in their right mind would allow
themselves to get into such a situation but that is exactly what our government
has done.
Americans
are slowly discovering that the stealthy snake in the grass that has crept upon
us unaware is socialism. The ideas of
socialism and Marxism are no longer just threats, they are upon us. Like a slow twisting boa, we have been constricted
by a powerful ideology that is just beginning to squeeze the life from us. The sleeping giant that could save us from
this slow death of our liberties and freedoms is the church but Christians have
fallen asleep at the wheel.
It is time
for American Christians to awaken.
Isaiah warned an apathetic people; "Awake, awake, O Zion, clothe
yourself with strength." (Isa.
52:1) "Awake, awake! Rise up, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk from
the hand of the Lord the cup of his wrath, you who have drained to its dregs
the goblet that makes men stagger."
(Isa. 51:17) Americans are drunk
on their desire for pleasure and wealth and leisure. We must awaken before it's too late.
The brilliant
British journalist, Malcomb Muggeridge, once addressed the plight of western
society. He illustrated the slow decline
by telling how a frog, placed in a bowl of boiling water will immediately leap
out in fear of boiling to death. When
placed in a bowl of lukewarm water the same frog will adapt to the increased
temperature of the water and will eventually be boiled to death because he was
too comfortable to remove himself from danger.
Muggeridge postulated on the dilemma of western man by saying: "Since the beginning of the Second World
War, Western Society has experienced a complete abandonment of its sense of
good and evil. The true crisis of our time has nothing to do with monetary
troubles, unemployment, or nuclear weapons. The true crisis has to do with the
fact that Western man has lost his way." (1)
The next
election may be our country's most important election. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), grievously declared
that President Obama and his administration continually sees the "government as a solution to everything.” (2) This is in direct contrast to the opinion of
former President Reagan who believed, "government is not the solution to
our problem; government is the problem." (3)
The constant
interference and intrusion of government in our lives has become a huge problem
for concerned Americans. The present day
"Government is the solution" ideology has accumulated for us $15.4
trillion in debt. Many fear a strategy
for a Marxist takeover. George Will
recently said, "There are more Marxists on the Harvard faculty than in all
of eastern Europe." (4)
President
Obama is applying Marxist principles in his attempt to solve our economic crisis. He has attempted to stifle capitalist
innovation by placing an increased economic burden on American
entrepreneurs. He is
changing the very structure of government by writing new rules along the way
and by appointing zsars that do not represent the voting public. His former first Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel
is famous for saying, “You never want a serious crisis to go to waste.” (5) The
president is attempting to use our economic catastrophe to reach into the
pockets of hard working Americans with the intent of redistributing their
wealth to those who have not been so diligent.
Saul Alinsky would be so proud of his disciples.
Christ calls
Christians to be the “light of the world, a city on a hill that cannot be
hidden”. (6) We are instructed to be the “salt of the earth.” (7) But what good is salt if it
has lost its flavor? Christians must not
become apathetic. We are instructed to “occupy until I come.” (8) We are to stay involved and stay busy
preserving the gifts of liberty and freedom granted to us by a Sovereign
God. Yet, of the 60 million evangelical Christians
in America, only 15 million of them vote.
(9)
Americans
are becoming more and more dependent on their government. The government encourages this because
greater dependency creates more power. The
government grubs for power by attempting to control and manipulate Americans in
the areas of health, energy and education.
Many
Americans are horrified when they realize that the government is using their
tax contributions to murder innocent unborn babies here and abroad. Some Americans are disturbed about forced
taxation to support s system of education that teaches a set of values contrary
to their Christian beliefs.
One reason
our country continues its decline toward defeat, decline and despair is because
Christians are asleep. We have built
upon the sand. We have compromised our
values so that we might adapt to the politically correct expectations of our
culture. We have become obsessed with
pleasing others and we’ve forgotten that the chief end of man is to bring glory
to God.
How
inspiring it would be to hear a modern day politician echo George Washington’s words
in his farewell address: “Of all the
dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and
morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute
of patriotism who should labor to subvert these great pillars of human happiness.”
(10)
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