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Introduction

America is a Nation in Crises:

Looking at the current state of our country, most of us would agree that we are moving far away for our moral center. Here are just a few staggering statistics:

• Alcoholism: Alcohol is still the #1 abused drug in America. There are 12 million alcoholics here – making up 6% of our population
• Sexual abuse: there are over 200,000 cases of sexual abuse reported in the US every year. That is one case every 2 minutes.
• Homosexuality: Homosexual couples are on the increase in America in the 2000’s. There were roughly 1.5 million people who were identified as homosexual in 2005. There were 9 million who were identified as homosexual in 2011. Of those individuals, more than ½ have had over 30 partners and 8% have had over 300 partners
• Divorce Rates in America are currently 6^th highest in the world. Over 40% of first time marriages end in divorce in America. Second and third marriages after a divorce rarely survive.
• Abortion – over 3000 abortions every day
  Over 1,000,000 abortions every year

I think that’s enough. Amercia is quickly moving away from its moral center. I think we can agree that we live in a nation that on the surface is hugely prosperous, but lurking right beneath the surface we find a nation in crises. Our nation that is falling apart.

Tonight, I want to define our role here in America. How do American Christians take the gospel to a nation in crises?

Turn in your Bibles to Acts 28.

Paul was ministering a jewish people who were in crises. On the surface, they appeared to be moral. They obeyed a lot of rules. They were decent, law-abiding people.

However, Judaism as they know it is about to come to an end. The Messiah had come and the old covenant was over. The Romans were going to totally destroy the temple in just a few years. The entire sacrificial system that they were trusting for their atonement was about to come crashing down – never to be rebuilt again. Everything the Jews currently knew to be normal was about to come to an end.

Paul is commissionsed by Jesus himself to proclaim that Jesus is the long awaited Messiah. He was commissioned to declare the beginning of a new covenant. The old covenant was done.

Turn in your Bibles to Acts 28.

God had delivered Paul safely to Rome just as he had promised. Paul was under house arrest in Rome, but he was allowed to have visitors. So people came to listen to Paul preach about the Messiah

Verse 23a

²³ When they had appointed a day for him, they came to him at his lodging in greater numbers. From morning till evening he expounded to them,

Paul testified about the Messiah tirelessly Acts 28:23. He was faithful to proclaim Christ regardless of the outcome or the risk.

Verse 23b

testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets.

Paul was convincing Acts 28:23. He had well researched and document arguments established from the Old Testament scriptures that clearly pointed to Jesus as the promised Messiah. Any God fearing Jew would have realized this incredibly good news and received it with joy. But some accepted Jesus and sadly some rejected Him

²⁴ And some were convinced by what he said, but others disbelieved.

At this point, Paul quotes Isaiah

Verse 28

²⁶ “‘Go to this people, and say,
“You will indeed hear but never understand,
and you will indeed see but never perceive.”
²⁷ For this people’s heart has grown dull,
and with their ears they can barely hear,
and their eyes they have closed;
lest they should see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart
and turn, and I would heal them.’

The Jews have rejected the Gospel and the system was about to come crashing down around them. And then Paul adds:

²⁸ Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen.”

The context of this quote in important for us to understand why Paul ministered the way he did to his people and how we can minister the gospel to people right here in America.

Let’s turn to Isaiah chapter 5 and look at what was going on in ancient Judah.

Defining a Nation in Crises

Judah at the time of Isaiah 5 was being ruled by King Uzziah. His total reign lasted 52 years and there was great prosperity in Israel. Their economy was strong. Their land was fertile. Their military was powerful. Life in Judah was good.

God had given them everything they needed to succeed. Unlike any other country – including America – the Jews were God’s special chosen people. He was totally for them. He had given them His word, His prophets and the promise of a coming Messiah. They had all the tools necessary to produce justice, righteousness, honesty and goodness. However, in Isaiah 5, God accuses them of producing immature, worthless, sour fruit. Underneath all their prosperity, there was sin running rampant.

Judah was a Nation in Crises. God could see what wasn’t evident on the surface. Man looks of the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7). God voices to Isaiah a series of “woes” that He has against Judah. These are indictments against them. For these sins against God, Judah is about to be judged. Let’s take a look at these 6 very specific sins

Six indictments of Sin against Judah in Isaiah 5

Materialism vs 8-10

8 Woe to those who join house to house,
who add field to field,
until there is no more room,
and you are made to dwell alone
in the midst of the land.

Greedy land owners were accumulating all of the land, the fields and the houses. In their thirst for more land and more houses and more wealth, they are creating a supply problem. People without wealth still needed a place to live, but the wealthy owned it all. So, the price of houses for the poor were inflated and caused a hardship for the people.

God warned them that he will make their houses empty and their field non-productive if their constant grabbing for wealth didn’t cease.

Drunkenness vs 11-12

¹¹ Woe to those who rise early in the morning,
that they may run after strong drink,
who tarry late into the evening
as wine inflames them!

^12 (P)They have lyre and harp,
tambourine and flute and wine at their feasts,
^(Q)but they do not regard the deeds of the Lord,
or see the work of his hands.

This passage refers to an ancient night club scene… the party crowd… Drinking, Music and feasts…. They loved to party, but they didn’t have any interest in the things of God.

Attachment to wickedness vs 5:18-19

Woe to those who draw iniquity with cords of falsehood,
who draw sin as with cart ropes,

Show Pic: Here is the picture of a person who carried around their sins like it was a cart tied to them with a rope. There was so much sin in the personal lives of these Judeans that they couldn’t even carry it on their backs any longer, so they got a proverbial cart to carry it around with them. Sin was their constant companion. It slowed them down. It hindered their progress, but they loved it. They refused to get rid of it.

And then they wondered why God seemed distant from them.

Glorification of Evil vs 20

²⁰ Woe to those who call evil good
and good evil,
who put darkness for light
and light for darkness,
who put bitter for sweet
and sweet for bitter!

Judah struggled with the kind of sin that turned everything upside down. Immorality was good and restraint was bad. Homosexuality was good. Divorce is good. Lying is fine if it helps you to achieve your goals, but loving God is bad.

Conceit vs 21

Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes,
and shrewd in their own sight!

The Judeans loved their own opinions and rejected the truth of God’s word.

Corruption vs 22-23

²² Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine,
and valiant men in mixing strong drink,
²³ who acquit the guilty for a bribe,
and deprive the innocent of his right!

Their leaders were corrupt. They abused people. There was no true justice. They were easily bought. They weren’t in control of their duties or even themselves. They were drunks.

Judah’s condition is summed up by Isaiah’s statement that “they have rejected the law of the Lord of hosts, and have despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.” Vs 24 In Judah, God’s anger burned against His people. He loved these people, but in His love for them, He was no longer going to tolerate their rebellion.

I want to make it very clear that the Jews were God’s chosen people and He had a special relationship with them that is different than the relationship that God has with America. American is not a chosen people.

However, from this passage we get a glimpse of how God defines a nation in crises. According to God’s definition, we are in a time of Crises here in America. So what does God call His church in America to do during a time of moral and spiritual crises?

Let’s look at the text for what God did next in Judah…

At this point, the Lord give a vision to His prophet, Isaiah and he begins Isaiah Chapter 6 by answering the question, “Where is God when a nation is in Crises?”

Where is God when a nation is in Crises?

Isaiah 6:1

In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple.

Judah was in direct rebellion against the Lord and where was God?

He was totally in control. He was sitting on the throne. He was still sovereign. He was still in charge. When Isaiah got a glimpse of the highest throne in all of eternity, it was occupied by God and God was ruling and reigning.

That’s where God was.

Nobody has usurped his sovereignty. No one else had taken over. God was not confused. He knew exactly what to do and he was working on His perfect timetable.

When we face trouble as a country, God is not wringing His hands and looking for answers. God is still on the throne now, just like He was then. He still rules with absolute power and absolute authority

Verse 2-3

² Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.

³ And one called to another and said:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory!”

God is not just Holy…He is Holy, Holy Holy. They are saying that his holiness is so great that it cannot be measured. Tape Measure If you were to try and measure His holiness, you’d never find the edge of it. God is not only powerful. He’s not only sovereign. BUT, God is Holy.

AND God has not changed today. He has not made peace with sin. God is still holy when our nation is in crises and as a result of His holiness, everything He does today is absolutely right.

The foundation of your life is hugely affected by your view of who God is. If you don’t believe that God is sovereign, then it’s possible that the world could spin out of control. You have something to worry about if God’s not in control. But the God of the Bible is totally in control. Running the universe is no problem for Him

If you believe that God doesn’t have a clue about what is going to happen next, then the future is up for grabs. We should be worried about the future if God doesn’t know what’s going to happen next. But, the God of the Bible knows the beginning from the end. Ruler He’s above time. He sees all events in history not as they unfold, but completely in their entirety.

The Bible presents God as sitting on his eternal throne, lifted up and exalted. He is high above all others and absolutely perfect in everything he does. He’s so perfect that his Holiness makes one of the most righteous man alive, tremble in fear over his sinfulness. When Isaiah saw the Lord, he was grieved over his own sin. He trembled in fear over the judgment he deserved.

Verse 5

And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”

When Isaiah saw the holiness of God and then compared himself to God, he was made aware of how unworthy he was to be in God’s presence. As he recalled the things that had come out of his mouth, he was brought to the sober realization that he was a man of unclean lips.

I say all this about God’s holiness and our sinfulness to help us understand what we need to do to be effective in the service of our King when we find ourselves representing God in a sin-saturated nation.

How do we impact a nation in crises?

First, evangelism begins when God’s people proclaim the truth of the holiness of God. When we come to grips with the holiness of God, it quickly become evident that we are totally insufficient for attaining salvation on our own. We are undone before a holy God and realize our desperate need of God’s grace

Second, after we realize our impurity before a holy God and our need for Jesus. We need God to cleanse our lips. We need our sin and our guilt removed. How does that happen? Only by God’s grace. There is nothing we can do to justify ourselves before God. However, Christ’s finished work on the cross gives us more than enough grace so the through Christ we can stand before God, un-accused and worthy of representing a righteous God in an unrighteous nation.

Third, we must respond to the call of God. It was at this point that Isaiah heard the voice of God. God speaks up and says, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?.” Who shall go and warn this rebellious people about the impending judgment of the Lord. It was going to be a difficult and sober task.

I don’t think that Isaiah stood up and said, “pick me, pick me,” like God was picking teams for the kickball game. I think there was a sober realization of what needed to be done and Isaiah,

humbled in the reality of his unworthiness of being in the presence of God,

possibly beating his chest in repentance like the publican in the gospels,

said humbly and fearfully, well, you could send me.

2 Practical Steps

Let me give you 2 practical ways God can use you to reach a nation in Crises.

1. Watch the news with a prayer journal in Hand. Stop watching the news for entertainment and watch to news only long enough to know how to pray for this country in crises. Turn off the TV and hit your knees!
2. Use your time well and resources. Invest your time in events, people, organizations and opportunities that further the spread of the gospel here in Cottonwood and beyond.

It’s simple – pray and use your resources well – but it doesn’t happen by accident…It must be intentional or it won’t happen at all

What results do the faithful often see during times of crises?

Isaiah 6:9-10 is quoted by every gospel as well as in Acts and in Romans. It’s a very important scripture.

And he said, “Go, and say to this people:

“‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand;
keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’
¹⁰ Make the heart of this people dull,
and their ears heavy,
and blind their eyes;
lest they see with their eyes,
and hear with their ears,
and understand with their hearts,

God is saying to Isaiah that He is sending Isaiah to his sinful, rebellious people to tell them the truth, but many of them won’t believe. It will be frusterating at times, but it’s the right thing to do. Why won’t they believe?

They have dull eyes, deaf ears and fat hearts.

Where do I get “Fat hearts” from? The word for “dull” or “insensitive” is the Greek word shaman (shä·man’) and it means “to become fat”

When God says their hearts are fat, it was not a compliment – it didn’t mean full of compassion (like they had a big heart). He means that their hearts are so stuffed full of the things of the world that nothing else will fit. They have no room left for the things of God.

Some won’t understand and that’s ok – keep explaining. Some won’t see – keep showing them . Some won’t hear – you keep telling them.

The response of the Jews, however, was not suppose to be Isaiah’s concern. The response of America is not supposed to be our concern.

Isaiah’s job (and ours) is to warn and to leave the results to the Lord.

The response of America to our stand for Christ is not supposed to be our concern either. God simply callsyou and I to be faithful

Life Application

Let me sum up what I’ve said here tonight –

For a nation in crises, God looks for people who:

• Have an accurate view of God
• Understand that God is sovereign and powerful – Who know that nothing is beyond the scope of God’s power
• Understand that God is holy and (therefore) everything He does is accurate and right.

God isn’t looking for perfect people. He’s looking for people who are humble… People who are willing to serve and who have been cleansed by the power of the cross

Those are the kind of people that God will use powerfully to impact this nation in crises

Is that who you are?

God is asking you and I today, “who will I send?” What’s your response?

Teaching Outline

Defining a Nation in Crises

Judah was a Nation in Crises: Six indictments of Sin against Judah in Isaiah 5

1. Materialism vs 8-10
2. Drunkenness vs 11-12
3. Attachment to wickedness vs 5:18-19
4. Glorification of Evil vs 20
5. Conceit vs 21
6. Corruption vs 22-23

Where is God when a nation is in Crises?

From Isaiah 6 – God is:

• in control.
• sitting on the throne
• sovereign
• working on His perfect timetable.
• proclaim the truth of the holiness of God Isaiah 6:1-3
• realize our impurity before a holy God and our need for Jesus Isaiah 6:5
• respond to the call of God Isaiah 6:8

How do we impact a nation in crises?

What results do the faithful often see during times of crises?

Isaiah 6:9 says:

• dull eyes
• deaf ears
• fat hearts
• Paul testified about the Messiah tirelessly Acts 28:23
• Paul was convincing Acts 28:23

Where is God when a nation is in Crises?

From Isaiah 6 – God is:

–        in control.

–        sitting on the throne

–        sovereign

–        working on His perfect timetable.

How do we impact a nation in crises?

–        proclaim the truth of the holiness of God Isaiah 6:1-3

–        realize our impurity before a holy God and our need for Jesus Isaiah 6:5

–        respond to the call of God Isaiah 6:8

Paul’s Example

–        Paul testified about the Messiah tirelessly Acts 28:23

–        Paul was convincing Acts 28:23