Jesus is the Life Boat!

1 Remember, O LORD, what has happened to us;

look, and see our disgrace.

2 Our inheritance has been turned over to aliens,

our homes to foreigners.

3 We have become orphans and fatherless,

our mothers like widows.

4 We must buy the water we drink;

our wood can be had only at a price.

5 Those who pursue us are at our heels;

we are weary and find no rest.

6 We submitted to Egypt and Assyria

to get enough bread.

Lamentations 5:1-6

Every farmer knows that you reap what you sow! You can’t plant beans and reap corn. No farmer ever planted corn and reaped potatoes. Sowing and reaping is a law instituted by God that cannot be changed. The law applies to people as well as groups of people who come together as nations.

Today it would be easy to write a Book of Lamentations about the United States. We were a nation that confessed the fear of God. Now we are a nation that fears to confess God. We were a nation which was the envy of the world. Now we are a nation that is scorned. We were a nation with strong family traditions. Now we are a nation without fathers. We were a nation where hard work was rewarded with material blessings. Now we are a nation where the work is hard, but the ability to receive the blessings is being cut off. We were a nation where men could live in peace and not worry about threats from our enemies. Now we are a nation on alert for terror. We were a great lender nation. Now we are a great debtor nation!

How did we get in such a condition? The book of Proverbs gives a clue. Proverbs 12:10-11 says:

A righteous man cares for the needs of his animal,

but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel.

He who works his land will have abundant food,

but he who chases fantasies lacks judgment.

When we rejected the Righteousness of God and embraced wickedness and our own fantasies we set in motion the “Decline and Fall” of our once great nation.

There is Good News in the middle of all the trouble. The nation we live in may fall in the dust but we can stand strong as God’s people. Surely we must call the nation back to God and to repentance. But if our country continues in its rebellion against God we can still be His children and worship Him in Spirit and in Truth!

Remember when the ship is going down, Jesus is the Life Boat!