Worship The Lord

Worship the Lord

I wish to give credit to Dr. S. M Lockridge for the rhetorical and literary devices as well as some ideas and structure of content that I employ in this message.

Our Text today is Matthew 4:8-10:

“8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; 9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. 10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.”

Our theme today that is tucked away in Matthew 4:10, says: “Thou shalt worship the Lord”

Like the vast majority of the world, I watched the horrifying scenes of the chaotic events of Wednesday January 06, 2021 unfold at the US Capitol. These disturbing scenes are reminiscent of the heart-breaking words of the prophet Isaiah “Justice is turned back, And righteousness stands afar off; … truth is fallen in the street, …” (Isaiah 59:14). These scenes remind me of the sad commentary of Judges 21:25 KJV - In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.

However, this issue is neither unique nor novel. It is sad but not unexpected. It is traumatic but not unprecedented. It would be hypocritical to not see that there are events of history that have positioned this nation for this depth of international humiliation and global ridicule. Is this the city on the hill? Is this the light on the candlestick? Is this the beacon of modern democracy? Is this the law and constitution driven societal mecca, to be emulated by all who live within its shadow? Is this the house built for righteousness that pledges allegiance as one nation under God? Is this the nation that has sent its military might to every part of the globe to enforce democracy? Is this that country? Is this the United States of America? And I must answer yes. So, let me speak the truth and speak it loud and clear. Truth is fallen in the street! Yes, America was established for freedom of ideas, freedom of religion, freedom of worship, freedom to pursue life, liberty and happiness. But let us not forget that the freedom claimed by some, was at the expense of the armed robbery and enslavement of others, namely the Native Americans, the African Americans, Asians, Latinos and many poor White Americans, whose blood drench this soil. Let us not forget that the American War of Independence, was primarily beneficial to a ruling Plantocracy, and remember that without the help of France, England would have prevailed, and the Planter class would have failed. Had the Planter Class, now called the founding fathers, failed, historians would not call them patriarchs, but they would go down in history as terrorists. Nevertheless, God in His infinite mercy allowed the rise of the United States of America and America has prodded along. America has lived through the war of 1812, the bloody Civil War, the assassination of Lincoln, the founding of the Ku Klux Klan, legal or de jure segregation, two World Wars, a War in Korea, the assassination of Kennedy, the Civil Rights Movement, the Vietnam War, the Nixon impeachment, two Gulf Wars, 911, the rise of ultra-liberalism, the election of the first non-white president, Barack Obama, the emergence of ultra-conservatism, the election of Donald Trump, white nationalism, black lives matter, proud boys, neo-nazis, skin heads, aryan nation and covid 19, yet through thick and thin, we have soldiered on. But, on Wednesday the line was crossed when “truth fell in the street.” It seemed like everything that was held near and dear to the hearts of Americans was dissolving before our very eyes. Even the church in America was stunned by the dissolving of what was once the bedrock of civility and stability of the entire world. Therefore, like the apostle Peter we now question, saying: “Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be…? 2 Peter 3:11 (KJV). In other words, what kind of man or woman should we be for the future to prepare for our Lord’s return. Accordingly, I wish to submit to you that to be the people God wants us to be for the future in this nation, the believer must do two things,

(1) Take our eyes off man and

(2) Put our eyes on the Lord.

It is time to say to the devil, like Jesus said to him, “Get away from here, Satan: for it is written, You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.” I say to the United States of America in General and to the American Church in particular, “come home, come back to the arms of our heavenly Father, come back to the holiness of our holy fathers and mothers.