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It is written:
Jeremiah 18:1-10-The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying: 2 “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause you to hear My words.” 3 Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something at the wheel. 4 And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make. 5 Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: 6 “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?” says the LORD. “Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel! 7 The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it, 8 if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it. 9 And the instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, 10 if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will relent concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it.
God has always been in control of the nations, and over Satan (who has limited control of the powers in the world-2 Corinthians 4:4; 1 John 5:19). In His mercy, God will allow nations to continue so long and so far in its’ wickedness, extending grace and time for mankind to repent. Yet if man chooses to rebel against the Lord, then the righteous judgment of God will fall.
One sociologist who has studied the rise and fall of man nations throughout time has noticed the following similarities within these nations before they were destroyed. This should be a sobering wake-up call for each of us, since so many of these attributes are not only prevalent in America, but are often celebrated.
“In general when a social system reaches the later phases of developed atomism in family relations, it reaches a state where the following forms of behavior gain great prominence. These are forms of action and thought that are identical with those during the high periods of atomism in Greece, Rome, and the modern world. They are as follows: 1. Increased and rapid easy “causeless” divorce. (Guilty and innocent party theory became a pure fiction.) 2. Decreased number of children, population decay, and increased public disrespect for parents and parenthood. 3. Elimination of the real meaning of the marriage ceremony. (Manus and potestas have no great implications.) 4. Popularity of pessimistic doctrines about the early heroes. 5. Rise of theories that companionate marriage or a permissible looser family form would solve the problem. (Hetaera relations in Greece and the concubinatus marriage form in the whole Roman Empire.) 6. The refusal of many other people married under the older family form to maintain their traditions while other people escape these obligations. (The Greek and Roman mothers refused to stay home and bear children.) 7. The spread of the antifamilism of the urbane and pseudointellectual classes to the very outer limits of the civilization. (Even the Egyptian peoples in contact with Roman society took up the concubinatus, contrary to their earlier family system.) 8. Breaking down of most inhibitions against adultery. (The adulterer now felt that his act should be looked at as no worse than stuprum or at most a tort.) 9. Revolts of youth against parents so that parenthood became more and more difficult for those who did try to raise children. 10. Rapid rise and spread of juvenile delinquency. 11. Common acceptance of all forms of sex perversions. All these forms of behavior reach great heights of popularity in the final atomistic period. They become accepted as the things to do.” (Carle C. Zimmerman, Family and Civilization, 4218-4237 (Kindle Edition): Wilmington, Delaware: ISI Books)
The good news in this regard is that when God spoke these words to Jeremiah, He was still providing time for the nation of Israel to repent before it was too late. In the same way, God extends time for America to repent-both her citizens, and she has a whole.
Would it not be wonderful if each person decided today to obey God’s plan of salvation and allow Jesus to become Lord of their lives?
Acts 2:38-Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all. Amen.
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