Psalm 79: 1, 9, 10a (NIV)
O God, the nations have invaded your inheritance; they have defiled your holy temple, they have reduced Jerusalem to rubble. Help us, God our Savior, for the glory of your name; deliver us and forgive our sins for your name’s sake. Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?”
This psalm was clearly written after the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonian armies. This event was so important…so traumatic…that it is described four times in the Old Testament: 2 Kings 25, 2 Chronicles 36, Jeremiah 39, and Jeremiah 52. To put it in a context a little closer to home, imagine seeing Washington D.C. invaded and then occupied by a large force of Taliban fighters or ISIS or Al Qaeda. They deface the White House and burn the National Cathedral to the ground. They take to social media with their taunts of, “Where is the great God of America, now?”
In actuality, I can’t imagine such a scenario coming to pass, but there is another way America can be “invaded” and “defiled”, and I’m not referring to illegal immigration. In fact, it has already happened. America has strayed so far from her Christian roots that it would literally have been impossible for our Founding Fathers to have imagined it. Abortion. Sexual Promiscuity. Immoral Entertainment. Materialism. Godless Education. Secularism. Humanism. Most studies show that only 9% of Americans have a biblical worldview while a rising percentage (20%+) are now classified as “Nones” – they claim no religious affiliation whatsoever. America was never made up of all born again Christians, but there was a consensus with regards to God as Creator, Provider, Protector, and Law Giver. Can you hear the nations say, “Where is their God?”
Israel was well aware of her sin, and in this psalm, the writer acknowledges the difficult truth. “Do not hold against us the sins of past generations: may your mercy come quickly to meet us” (v. 8). The Israelites certainly acknowledged and groaned over the horrible acts of their enemies, but they kept their main focus on their own transgressions – past, present, and future. I wonder how often we point the white-hot spotlight of judgment at the godless culture rather than having the guts to point it at ourselves. “For it is time for judgment to begin with God’s household; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God?” (1 Pet. 4:17). We should not be surprised when godless people act like…godless people…but rather, our hearts should break over our own sin and the sins of fellow Christ followers. “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom” (Jas. 4:8–9).
Jesus wept over the great city of Jerusalem (Lk. 19:42) and we should weep over the spiritual condition of our “city” as well. America desperately needs Revival in her churches and another Great Awakening in her streets. And while 2 Chronicles 7:14 is largely mis-applied in the American context, as if America is “God’s country”, so to speak, it does hold within itself a principle that every true Christian in America needs to be acting on regularly:
- Humble ourselves
- Pray
- Seek God’s face/will
- Turn from our wicked ways
If there is any hope for America’s spiritual future, it will be found in the obedience, broken heartedness, repentance, and prayers of its current population of God’s True Children (Jn. 1:12). If we complain about the culture but never offer them Living Water (Jn 4:14) …if we pray for our neighbors and say, “God bless you”, but never offer them any tangible help (Jas. 2:16) …If we cause people to blaspheme the name of God because of our own rampant sin (Rom. 2:24)…then hope is fleeting and the cause is lost.
