As I See It, the political climate and the environmental climate are colliding pretty hard in the North Eastern United States. Disaster Relief teams will have their hands full for the next several months to years. The sheer force of Hurricane Sandy, colliding with the region of the US with the most people and greatest number of structures (i.e., New York, and the metropolis of the Eastern Seaboard) has generated devastation that more than rivaled Hurricane Katrina.
Such a natural storm comes at a time when our nation is embroiled in a political storm – our national Presidential Elections. With only a few days before the votes are cast and counted, politicians are pressed to appear caring and Presidential while both campaigning and helping those impacted by the Storm. This storm could be a turnaround for the incumbent who is beginning to flail for failing in Benghazi, Syria. Will he do well at home when we need leadership? Or will he campaign in hopes that he might be able to “lead” after November 6th?
With both storms so vicious and contentious, the damage to our country is huge. We have a philosophical divide, and Sandy brings for many a realization of that divide that no social pollster could begin to reveal. Those in need are in need, for sure. Their mere survival depends on having those needs met. But where will those needs come from? The Government? Faith organizations? How great is our faith in our saviors? How great is the savior called government to help the citizens? How great is our God to help our citizens?
With those questions in mind, I must change the topic from Sandy to Salvation. From time to time, I tire of the rhetoric and deep thinking of those who are battling out the philosophies of our day. I rest on the gospel of Jesus Christ. And here is a great time to bring that up.
Whether through Sandy’s direct or indirect destructive force, all of us will one day face the great equalizer – the grave. Kings, governors, senators, and mayors alike will face the grave. The homeless, destitute, and now victims of Sandy will face the grave. The stock brokers, doctors, lawyers, small business owners, and blue-collar workers will one day face the grave. What will happen then? Who is there to help in that time of need? Some have faced the grave in the last two days from Sandy. Others, by disease, starvation, and exposure will face the grave. Who is there to help them in this moment? The government cannot help, for it only can help the living. Disaster Relief teams cannot help, for they can only help the living. Neighbors cannot help – for they can only help the living. Enter the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23) means that we are, every one of us in need of help at the point of the grave – and before. That sin is affecting how we live today. Romans 6:23 offers us the only hope we have – “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Our sin and its penalties (here on earth and forever beyond the grave) is only relieved by our Savior, Jesus Christ our Lord. “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). Confucius, Mohammed, the Dali Lama, karma, the “Great Spirit,” and all other gods of man’s imagination and fable are helpless to save us from our sins. Merely denying that sin exists will not help us avoid its gruesome effects any more than denying cancer is growing will relieve us of the pain and certain death that will come. The Bible makes it clear that it is not what we believe that determines our destiny, it is who we look to that makes the difference.
So the real storm facing our nation is a storm of faith. Our government want to grow, so they ask us to look to them to solve our problems. But some problems are way beyond government’s capacity, regardless of how big they are. Likewise the pride of heady scientists want us to trust them. But their abilities in such times as we face are absolutely helpless – and at the point of the grave, they are altogether useless. All belief systems are not the same as some might want us to believe. But clearly, they do not all deal with sin. The storm comes in that so many are led astray by these “alternatives” to Christianity – and they even vilify those who trust Jesus Christ. It has been so throughout history. The clash of faith has only one winner – Jesus Christ. Our nation must again look to Him – our government, our scientists, our citizenry must look to Him. It begins with believers. “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).
Let Believers repent of their sin and turn to the Lord. We have God’s promise that in so doing, our land will be healed, not sick; united, not divided, strong, not weakened. And our souls will be saved in our hour of greatest need!
Holler for Jesus,
Greg Yount
First Baptist Church of Bakersfield: http://tinyurl.com/weR4him
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