Q: Do you believe God has already given up on this nation? We've taken God out of so much of our public life that I can't imagine Him withholding His judgment much longer. Can you? - C.Y.
A: The Bible does teach that God not only judges individuals, but He also judges nations when they turn their backs on Him and refuse to listen to His voice. When God judges a nation, the Bible warns, "The king will mourn, the prince will be clothed with despair. ... I will deal with them according to their conduct" (Ezekiel 7:27).
Has our nation reached that point? Only God knows the future, and only He knows how far a nation can go before He intervenes and brings judgment upon it. But one thing is certain: We must never think that God will not judge our nation for its evil and injustice. God's call to His people thousands of years ago applies to us as well: "Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall" (Ezekiel 18:30).
Instead of just deploring the sins we see around us, however, we must pray for our nation and its leaders. God is stronger than evil, and our hope must always be in Him. When the people of ancient Nineveh repented in response to Jonah's preaching, God turned away from the judgment He had planned (see Jonah 3:10). The same could happen to us.
In addition, no matter what others do, make sure of your own commitment to Christ, and make it your goal to live for Him every day. Remember Jesus' words: "You are the salt of the earth. ... You are the light of the world" (Matthew 5:13-14).
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Affectionately known as the “World’s Preacher” for more than 60 years, the Rev. Billy Graham is one of the most influential and respected spiritual leaders of the 20th century. He has been a friend and spiritual advisor to ten American presidents and has preached the Gospel to more people in live audiences than anyone else in history — nearly 215 million people in more than 185 countries and territories — through various meetings. Hundreds of millions more have been reached through television, video, film, and webcasts. Send your queries to "My Answer," c/o Billy Graham, Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, 1 Billy Graham Parkway, Charlotte, N.C., 28201; call 1-(877) 2-GRAHAM, or visit the Web site for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association: www.billygraham.org.
Comments
oh really terryH, then what is the relationship of iraq to 911, where are the wmds & what is the relationship of osama to saddam, did IRAQIs or SAUDIs plan the attack on 911. these are the basic questions that the supporters of the war COULD NOT ANSWER! they label people as unpatriotic, leftist, liberal, & evade when confronted with these questions! maybe you could not admit that this administration is wrong that is why you could not admit you are wrong bec. of your arrogance. so what if you have access to information within the intelligence. the facts are still the facts that IRAQ WAS NOT INVOLVED, NOT WMDS, SAUDIS WERE THE PLANNERS OF 911 & you cannot convince me otherwise!! boo hoo hoohoo!
michaels,
I understand that your comments are based on what little you know about the issue, but you are attempting to comment on an issue that you really do not have all information about. You have obtained bits and pieces of information that fits your position but not the whole picture.
really? then why there are members of the armed forced, some cia analyst who questioned the decisions of this president. some of them even resigned. and I don't need for the 'biased' or 'leftist' media to understand what is going on.
the presidential daily briefing titled 'BINLADEN DETERMINED TO ATTACKED US' (who is a Saudi not iraqi) or the circles of bush & co. who said that iraq or saddam had something to do with 911 can understand & figure out what is happening. these people twist & spin the intelligence so it will fit to what they really wanted. good night & good luck
michaels
Let me clarify as to how I get my info. With family members invovlved in the Dept. of Justice, CIA, FBI, Dept. of Defense and Special Forces, 23 total family memebers. I believe that I may have just a little more access to what is really going on than you do from your news media intelligence gathering. The funny part of this family is there are both Democrats and Republicans in this family and there is no confusion as to how reports of intelligence are received and who is to receive these reports. What the public does not know and probably never will is how this intelligence is obtained. Unless you have direct ties to significant people within the various different intelligent agencies you cannot begin to understand how off the mark you are. Some research will clarify what I have told you and I believe you are smart enough to figure out where to obtain this information. On another note, a wise man once said that behind sarcasm one will find ignorance. So before you attempt to be biased in your opinion be sure you have all of the facts. Not just what you have heard through the grapevine. If you are a Christian I would ask that you pray for my family members as they are directly involved in these affairs and have been for over 30 years.
michaels your information is incorrect. cia intelligent agencies for 8 different countries reported to the Untied nations for the past 15 years of WMD';s in Iraq. this was what caused the controversy as to why Clinton did not attack Iraq during his presidency. It was also 6 different intelligence agencies working in Afghanistan that reported the plan for the Taliban an Al,Queda forces to attack the Us on computers along with maps flight times etc. This information was reported on several different occasions to the UN, In turn the Un reported these findings to both Clinton during his term and Bush shortly aftyer his new officership. As to where i get my information it is not from the media. I question where you get yours or are your posts just knee jerk responses based on your vwery limited thinking. Do your research before attempting to be so sure of yourself.
terryh - first of all, the intelligence titled 'bin laden determined to attack us' was ignored by W.
it was not the Un who told who was responsible for 911, the cia knew who attacked on 911 but rumsfled, chaney & wolfowitz are eager to go to war with saddam so they accused him of that attacked. then bush listened to rumsfled, chaney & wolfowitz.
second the cia does not force the president to go war, they just provide information. the last & final decision is made by the president. but bush blames everybody for the decisions he makes. if he always blames other people for his decisions then he should not be president. so if the cia says to the president 'jump', will he ask how high?
and I am not alleging, the scandals that this president had made for the past 7 years is proof of his sins. politics & loyalty is more important to bush than the welfare of the nation. and I don't know where you get your info. maybe from oreilly shannity & fox news co. good night & good luck
Hey michaels,
apparently you are not aware of the 36 international intelligence agencies that reported Sdam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. @0 of these agencies were opposed to gonig to war but still reported on the WMD's. As far as your allegations to this administration, the same can be found true in any past presidency. I am not of a particular political party nor do I support the actions in certain regards of the current president. But once again, the finger cannot be pointed at one individual. Any president is the commanbder in chief and has the responsibilty of making decisions right or wrong. It just seems that any presidents wrongs are pointed out and expounded upon more than their good works. The UN was the first to report to bush about who was responsible for the attacks of 9/11 and if you haven't noticed they are not just made up of bush & co.
by the way, I am not for a democrat or a republican.
to terryh - what information given to him? bush & co. are the ones who accused Iraq had to do with 911. wolfowitz, rumsfled & chaney said ON THE DAY OF 911, bring iraq into what happened. now, there are 4000 dead & thousands wounded.
oh, and by the way, I am not judging, for the past 5 years of this presidency, bush himself has been lying from torture, cia affair, economy, halliburton corruption, katrina, surveillance, wasting the money of the taxpayer & disrespcting the consitution. who called himself THE DECIDER that caused a lot of problems for this country. if bush is a democrat, you would be 'judging' him too. I guess you are blinded by party politcs instead of what is right & wrong.
I see massive confusion here in these comments.
Over the last several years too many "Christians" have delved in politics. The end result is the Iraq War, etc. Jesus said that His Kingdom is not of this world. Yes, vote for whomever you want, but as Christians we must be careful whom we vote for. I would rather not vote at all rather than vote for someone who pretends to be Godly or doesn't understand what Godliness is, and then in the end with my vote and endorcement I have a hand in bring more sin and suffering in to the world.
Politics is dirty business. We present day Christians need to understand this like some in earlier generations did.
Hey michaels,
Talk about someone lying, how about Hillary Clinton claiming she came under sniper fire in Bosnia? The media says she "misspoke". Maybe Goerge Bush misspoke regarding the war in Iraq. After all he made his decision based on information given to him. Sure it turned out to be wrong but Mrs. Clinton manufactured her story all by herself. HMM... wonder what else she has manufactured up or actually lied about.
Hey michaels,
The sins of this coutry do not fall on one man's shoulders nor are they limited to political parties. Be very careful of attempting to play God and pass judgement it may turn out to be a very humiliating and humbling experience for you.
by the way, your buddy pat robertson has supported & defended W. bush from tax cuts, iraq war, to the belief that W. bush has been chosen by god to be president of the US. Isn't that called SINS OF COMMISSION, SINS OF OMISSION!
mr graham, who are you talking about, the democrats or the republicans. how can god be stronger than evil when W bush & company has already destroyed this nation, lying to its people, & disrespecting its laws. are the sins caused the downfall of W bush? isn't he still president, isn't he still arrogant, & the killing continues? is god closing its eyes to the sins of george w bush -the decider!