TEMPTATIONS AMERICANS FACE

MELVIN M. NEWLAND, MINISTER
CENTRAL CHRISTIAN, BROWNSVILLE, TX

(Changed e-mail address: PowerPoint slides used in this sermon are available at no charge. Just e-mail me at mnewland@sstelco.com with your request - #101.)


ILL. Feelings of patriotism tend to flow rather freely at this time of the year. When we sing the "Star Spangled Banner," or hear a choir sing about America & the freedoms that we enjoy, we often want to stand up & salute or just do something to show that we’re proud of our nation.

Sometimes we hear patriotic speeches which contain that ringing phrase, "I’m proud to be an American!" And we echo those sentiments, too. But think about it for a moment. Maybe what we ought to be saying is, "I’m grateful that I’m an American!"

You see, we could have been born in Bosnia or China or Pakistan. We could have found ourselves on the streets of India this morning, wondering where our next meal is coming from, surrounded by squalor.

But here we are, in a nice air-conditioned building, surrounded by beautiful people, in a loving church, in the great state of Texas.

A. I am deeply grateful to be a citizen of the United States. And I trust that you are grateful, as well.

ILL. A father was talking with his rather rebellious son one day & said, "Every person who lives in the United States is a privileged person." The boy answered, "I disagree." And the father replied, "That’s the privilege."

We have the privilege to disagree. We have the privilege to speak our mind. We have freedom of religion, of speech, of the press, and the right of petition. We have the freedom to hope & dream & pursue our dreams. We are free in so many ways!

We have these rights because of what our forefathers have done. You & I didn’t earn the privileges that we enjoy as citizens of this land. But I am thankful for those who did earn them & passed them on to me, & that is what I celebrate on the 4th of July.

ILL. During the 1800’s, Alexis de Toqueville, a famous French political philosopher, visited our nation seeking to uncover the secret of our greatness. He traveled from town to town, asking questions, examining every facet of our society, & then wrote his conclusions in his famous work, “Democracy in America.”

Dr. John McDowell, a Presbyterian minister, attributed the following statement to Toqueville. While proof is lacking that he is the author, Presidents Eisenhower, Reagan, & Clinton have quoted it. And I believe the message is still relevant today.

"I sought for America’s greatness. I found it not in her fields & forests. I found it not in her mines & factories. I found it not in her Congress & great tribunals. It was only when I entered her churches & heard her pulpits thundering against sin & preaching righteousness that I discovered her greatness. America is great because America is good. If America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great."

The soul of America is God. O beware, America, lest we lose our soul!

SUM. Folks, if we put our trust in education, we’ll get what education can give us. If we put our trust in money, we’ll get what money can give us. If we put our trust in government, we’ll get what government can give us. But if we put our trust in God, we’ll have everything we need,