Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord. Acts 3:19. (NIV)
The church, like the nation, is in the advanced steps of moral decline. Hypocrisy abounds. Many Christians no longer possess what they profess. The facts speak for themselves. Only 13 percent of North American Christians actively believe in all of the Ten Commandments. Lying, lust, obscenity, coarse joking, malice, greed, anger, slander, sexual immorality, gossip, self indulgence, stealing, and a lack of integrity have increased dramatically among people in the pew.
Christian leaders are speaking out against the decline. Jack W. Hayford, chancellor of The Kings College and Seminary says, “There simply is no way to describe the present situation in lesser terms: We are at a point of crisis.” And Charles Crismier, president of Save America Ministries, is deeply concerned about what he refers to as “the dramatic extent of spiritual drift for those who claim to be the nation’s lighthouse.”
So what can be done to bring the church back to its senses? Three things are necessary – repent, repent, repent. Repentance is an action; you stop going your way and start going God’s way – you stop denying the problem and admit you’re in a mess. From the pulpit to the pew believers must take responsibility for their unholy ways. Christians must recognise the absence of God’s purity in their lives. Individually and collectively we must confess we’re out of step with God and turn from our wicked ways.
Don’t take this lightly. Without God we can do nothing and without our repentance God will do nothing. Politicians will never turn a nation around. Social agencies, despite the positive work they do, aren’t equipped to deal with the moral decline. And service clubs can do all manner of good works, as they do, but good works don’t address the root cause of lawlessness. In short, a nation’s survival rests on the church’s revival, i.e., the well-being of a country lies in the hands of the country’s “born again” Christians.
Yes, the future of the nation you live in depends on you turning whole heartedly to God. If you confess Christ as resident in your life, it’s time to make Him President. Weep and mourn over your sins, find His forgiveness, then live to possess what you confess.