The Psalmist’s declaration should bring comfort to the
Christian citizen: “God reigns over the nations; God sits on His holy throne”
(Psalm 47:8). Christ’s disciples who populate the United States of America wonder (sometimes,
perhaps, anxiously?) about the outcome of war, the result of adversarial
politicking and the consequences of the waning morality of the public. Is the
nation rapidly traversing the gulf from righteousness and God’s blessing to the
sort of wickedness that inevitably provokes God’s wrath?
Bible students know the history of God’s dealings with
kingdoms, whether chosen Israel
of old or anyone else. Of the once chosen nation (Deuteronomy 7:6) who engulfed
themselves in iniquity, God promised, “if My people who are called by My name
will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked
ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their
land” (2 Chronicles 7:14). When they would not, they were punished and
scattered (2 Kings 17, 24-25). The Almighty God employed the kings and armies
of other nations to execute His wrath. Assyria
thought his conquering was of his own might, but the nation was just a pawn in
the plan of the All-Powerful (Isaiah 10:5-11). Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon was
designated by God to be lifted up and have all nations serve him (Jeremiah
27:5-8), but that same Babylon
would be quickly destroyed (Isaiah 13-14). “Hell from beneath” would be
“excited” about meeting this corrupt kingdom (Isaiah 14:9).
It is this Nebuchadnezzar that dramatizes the way in
which God rules in the kingdoms of men. His dream of a statue of metals of
varying values served as God’s tool for the prediction of world kingdoms to
follow his own (Daniel 2). His dream of a glorious tree chopped down was the
predictor of his own temporary insanity that taught him the lesson of the ages:
“That the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, Gives it to whomever He will, And
sets over it the lowest of men” (Daniel 4:17b; cf. 4:25; 5:21).
This lesson is not lost after Old Testament times. Indeed,
Paul’s inspired affirmation was, “He has made from one blood every nation of
men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their
preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings” (Acts 17:26). The
lesson, from Jeremiah, of the potter and the clay still holds true. The Lord
said:
“The instant I speak concerning a
nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it,
if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent of
the disaster that I thought to bring upon it. And the instant I speak
concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, if it
does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will relent
concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it” (Jeremiah 18:7-10 NKJV).
If America
continues its degradation into immorality, materialism and violence, God’s
judgment may come sooner, rather than later. “Righteousness exalts a nation,
but sin is a reproach to any people” (Proverbs 14:34). The intensifying evil of
the land is reason for Christians to be active in government within the
constraints of godliness and lawfulness (Matthew 22:15-22; Romans 13:1-6; Acts
5:29). It is reason to exercise Constitutional freedom of
speech and freedom of religion for the good of fellow citizens. It is reason to
vote for candidates who come closest to standing for principles of life,
godliness, morality and concern for the poor. It is reason to write Senators
and Representatives with concerns from, yes, a biblical perspective. Surely, it
is reason to continue the work of the Great Commission. For if more are
converted to Christianity, perhaps more godliness will produce a penitent
nation in God’s sight. Nineveh
repented from the top ruler on down (Jonah 3). Could America hope for the same?
Yet, what if the worst would happen? What if the godly
can muster only a minority of votes and policies are determined by the wayward,
the idolatrous and the humanistic? What if fraudulent evolutionary theory is,
without interruption, backed by legislative mandate, judicial review and
popular support? What if abortion continues undaunted? What if the poor are
continually cast off? What comfort does God’s reign give the citizen disturbed
at what just might be a successful assault on Christianity and the prospect of
a godless society?
The Present Kingdom is Under Higher Control
The faith of the American need not rise and fall based
on the perceived desirability of presently elected officials. Faint not when
those of ungodly positions prevail (Psalm 37:1). The leaders of an earthly
kingdom are but appointed ministers of God’s reward and wrath (Romans 13:4, 6).
The God who created earth also controls its nations, and in some imperceptible
manner does so without violating man’s free will. He raises up kings when He
wishes. He casts rulers down when their pride warrants. He gives rule in the
kingdom of men “to whomever He chooses” (Daniel 4:25). He is the one ultimately
and always in control. Faith in God’s providential working supersedes hope in
favored officials.
The Christian Can Endure Through Any Kingdom
Further, God’s people can endure through any change of
kingdoms. Daniel was taken captive from Judah by Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel
1:1-7), and prospered in a foreign land throughout the seventy years of
captivity. He would have seen the Babylonian kingdom ruled by three or four
more emperors. By divine dream interpretation, he predicted the end of
Babylonian rule and then witnessed the takeover that very night (Daniel 5). He
thrived in three different kingdoms (the Judean, Babylonian and Persian),
witnessing earth-shattering and prophesied transfers of power.
His well-being was punctuated, though, by moments of
persecution. In youth, he boldly stood up against Babylonian eating customs
(Daniel 1). In old age, he challenged the unalterable Medo-Persian law, and
endured a night with the lions (Daniel 6). Christians all over the modern world
face persecution that tests the genuineness of their faith (1 Peter 1:7). Yet,
they endure. Bible teaching, in its purity, was propagated, although outlawed,
in the atheistic Soviet Union. Some Muslim
extremist countries may threaten professed Christians, but they cannot stop the
peaceful spread of pure truth. Could increasing antagonism come in America?
Could there someday even be a dramatic change of governmental systems? If so,
what is a Christian to do? Endure in hope, trusting the God who is able to
deliver from anyone’s hands (Daniel 3:16-18), even if the relief and
exoneration is not apparent until “the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter
1:7).
The Christian Is a Part of an Eternal
Kingdom
Followers of Christ put their faith in a kingdom like
neither the Babylonian nor any of its successors. This kingdom does not rely on
earthly warfare for its gain. Inasmuch as it was represented by a stone cut out
of a mountain without the aid of hands, it will grow and prosper without the
devious or violent political machinations of mankind (Daniel 2:45). The weapons
of its warfare are not carnal, but mighty in God to pull down any stronghold
that would try to withstand (2 Corinthians 10:4). This kingdom, being
spiritual, does not rely on, sponsor, or even approve physical fighting for its
advancement (John 18:36). Nevertheless, this kingdom is eternal, having one
King that will forever rule (Daniel 2:44; Luke
1:32-33). This kingdom gains its subjects not by force but
by love. Its territory is not ground, but rather the hearts of men (Luke
17:20-21). It is the church Jesus established during the lifetime of those who
heard Him in His ministry (Matthew 16:18-19; Mark
9:1). This kingdom has endured through all the wars and
rumors of wars since its establishment on Pentecost (Acts 2:38-47). Those who
obey the Gospel are translated from the power of the world to this kingdom
(Colossians 1:13), wherein they will be presented to God in the last day (1
Corinthians 15:24).
Today, men and women who desire an assurance that rises
far above the fragility of any earth-bound nation’s success will place their
faith in the God who controls kingdoms, and, by obedience, place themselves in
the kingdom that endures forever. God reigns over the nations; Christ reigns in
His kingdom. These facts ought to bolster the spirits of the true.
