Divinely Planted to Reckless Abandon

Israel is a divinely planted nation. America is a divinely planted nation.

Take a look at Psalm 80 vs 8-11 This is a prayer of a Patriot.

“You brought a vine out of Egypt; you drove out the nations and planted it. 9 You cleared the ground for it; it took deep root and filled the land. 10 The mountains were covered with its shade, the mighty cedars with its branches. 11 It sent out its branches to the sea and its shoots to the River.[b]”

What is the psalmist saying here? …..

Israel was designed by God, this was a nation divinely planted by God. Look at verse 8, the vine is the nation of Israel, brought out of there torment and slavery to be planted in the land of Canaan, the land of Israel.

There are interesting parallels between Israel of old and America. I believe America was a God planted, God blessed, and God ordained nation. No nation in history has had such a Christian beginning as America.

The Puritans came in search of religious liberty.

In 1620, the pilgrims huddled below the decks of the Mayflower and wrote The Mayflower Compact, which began “In the name of God” and they wrote in it, that their voyage was “for the glory of God and to advance the Christian faith”.

The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, and The Massachusetts Body of Liberties laying out the Christian expectations.

The Charter of Liberties and Frame of Government of the Province of Pennsylvania (1681) begins by making it clear that God has ordained government, and it even quotes Romans 13 to this effect.

It goes on to say… “And that all persons who also profess to believe in Jesus Christ, the savior of the world, shall be capable, notwithstanding their other persuasions and practices in point of conscience and religion, to serve this government in any capacity”.

Article 38 of the document lists “offenses against God” that may be punished by the magistrate, including, but not limited to:

swearing, cursing, lying, profane talking, drunkenness,

obscene words, incest, sodomy…

stage-plays, cards, dice, masks, bull-baiting, cock-fighting, bear-baiting, and the like, which excite the people to rudeness, cruelty, looseness, and irreligion….[11] …and now, we ban prayer in schools and the church is muzzled with the promise of tax exemption.

In 1954 the Johnson Amendment prohibited the church from speaking on politics or suffer the loss of the coveted tax-exempt status. So the church, for whatever reason, got in line. No more can the church have an opinion on politics. If Jesus and Satan were running for the President, they could endorse or oppose neither. The dollar would keep them silent. “The Church must be reminded that it is not the master or the servant of the state, but rather the conscious of the state. It MUST be the guide and the critic of the state, and never it’s tool. If the church does not recapture it prophetic zeal, it will become an irrelevant social club without moral or spiritual authority” Martin Luther King Jr. spoke those words, and he was right!

The church has become complacent, indifferent, scared, and silent.

The church is the Conscious of the state. AND IT IS TIME TO SPEAK UP!

We no longer teach personal responsibility, rather blamelessness.

We have stopped seeking Gods forgiveness and guidance, rather we demand His tolerance.

We removed God and built new idols.

We have endorsed perversion and called it “acceptance”.

We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare.

We have killed the unborn and called it choice.

We have abused power and called it political savvy. We have coveted and called it ambition.

We have polluted our children’s minds with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression.

We neglect to lead our children, instead choosing to let them be led by the world.

What has America done? We are a divinely planted nation, yet we have squandered the blessings of God. We have watched silently as the morals of our society have been eroded away, attacked, and one by one erased. We banned God, we kicked him out!

… and then we have the nerve to pray for Him to bless America. But God is not going to do that.

We allowed America to backslide into spiritual sterility. Many of us pray for God to bless America again, but God is not going to answer those prayers because we are an unrepentant people. We spend all week sewing wild oats and then on Sunday we pray for crop failure.

The prayers of an unrepentant people are an insult to God.

Psalm 80:4

4 O Lord God of hosts, how long will you be angry with your people's prayers? 5 You have fed them with the bread of tears and given them tears to drink in full measure.

These verses show spiritual sterility in verse 4 and personal sorrow in verse 5.

Remember, Sorrow follows sin as night follows the day.

Proverbs 29: 2 “When the wicked bare rule, the people mourn. We are seeing that in America..

In verse 6 you see the National shame Israel brought upon itself. “You make us an object of contention for our neighbors, and our enemies laugh among themselves.”

Israel was divinely planted in verse 8 and divinely prospered in verse 10 and 11. “The mountains were covered with its shade, the mighty cedars with its branches. 11 It sent out its branches to the sea and its shoots to the River.[b]”

The prophets taught property ownership, the dignity of work, they taught honor, and Israel prospered. AND America has prospered.

Israel Divinely planted – America divinely planted

Israel divinely prospered – America Divinely prospered

Israel was divinely protected – look in verse 12

“Why then have you broken down her hedges”

In Bible times, when a man would plant a vineyard he would put a thick, thorny hedge around that vineyard to keep out the thieves and predators.

God planted this vine, (Israel), - and He placed a hedge around this vine. And God has a right to expect good grapes, but He received wild grapes….

Isaiah 5 1-6

“Now will I sing to my well3beloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard, (Israel). My wellbeloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill:

2 And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes.

3 And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard.

4 What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes?

5 And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down:

6 And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.

So where do we go from here? Is America sick to death or is She redeemable? Well, we pull this well-known verse from

2 Chronicles Chapter 7 verse 14

“If my people who are called by my name humble themselves and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

This verse brings a hope in a way only the Word of God can do. America, just like many of us, may be sick, but until death, we can all be brought back into Gods graces.

Ezekiel 2:3-5

And he said to me, “Son of man, I send you to the people of Israel, to nations of rebels, who have rebelled against me. They and their fathers have transgressed against me to this very day. The descendants also are impudent and stubborn: I send you to them, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God.’ And whether they hear or refuse to hear (for they are a rebellious house) they will know that a prophet has been among them.

Titus 3:5 ESV

He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit

Keep in mind as well, when you are out there speaking up as the conscious of the state, that a certain verse is often used against us to justify keeping our mouths shut, as well as used against us, incorrectly and out of context I might add.

That verse is Matthew 7:1, “Judge not, that you be not judged.” It seems pretty simple, but lets put it in context. Take a look at verses 1-6.

1“Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. 3 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.

6 “Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.

So you see, it isn’t that we aren’t to judge, we absolutely are, that is iron sharpening iron. We make each other better in that way, and in turn we better the world. Just be careful not to judge someone when you haven’t looked inward first. Always do it out of love, no other reason is acceptable. 6:1

Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.

Joel 2:12 ESV

12 “Even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.”

13 Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.

Daniel 9:3-21

English Standard Version

3 Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. 4 I prayed to the Lord my God and made confession, saying, “O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, 5 we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules. 6 We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land. 7 To you, O Lord, belongs righteousness, but to us open shame, as at this day, to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to all Israel, those who are near and those who are far away, in all the lands to which you have driven them, because of the treachery that they have committed against you. 8 To us, O Lord, belongs open shame, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against you. 9 To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him 10 and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God by walking in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets. 11 All Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside, refusing to obey your voice. And the curse and oath that are written in the Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out upon us, because we have sinned against him. 12 He has confirmed his words, which he spoke against us and against our rulers who ruled us,[a] by bringing upon us a great calamity. For under the whole heaven there has not been done anything like what has been done against Jerusalem. 13 As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this calamity has come upon us; yet we have not entreated the favor of the Lord our God, turning from our iniquities and gaining insight by your truth. 14 Therefore the Lord has kept ready the calamity and has brought it upon us, for the Lord our God is righteous in all the works that he has done, and we have not obeyed his voice. 15 And now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and have made a name for yourself, as at this day, we have sinned, we have done wickedly.

16 “O Lord, according to all your righteous acts, let your anger and your wrath turn away from your city Jerusalem, your holy hill, because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and your people have become a byword among all who are around us. 17 Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord,[b] make your face to shine upon your sanctuary, which is desolate. 18 O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolation's, and the city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. 19 O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not, for your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people are called by your name.”

God redeemed Israel, and God can still redeem America. Thanks so much for reading!

Restore Us Oh God

Psalm 80:1-19 80 Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock. You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth. 2 Before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh, stir up your might and come to save us!

3 Restore us,[a] O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved!

4 O Lord God of hosts, how long will you be angry with your people's prayers? 5 You have fed them with the bread of tears and given them tears to drink in full measure. 6 You make us an object of contention for our neighbors, and our enemies laugh among themselves.

7 Restore us, O God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved!

8 You brought a vine out of Egypt; you drove out the nations and planted it. 9 You cleared the ground for it; it took deep root and filled the land. 10 The mountains were covered with its shade, the mighty cedars with its branches. 11 It sent out its branches to the sea and its shoots to the River.[b] 12 Why then have you broken down its walls, so that all who pass along the way pluck its fruit? 13 The boar from the forest ravages it, and all that move in the field feed on it.

14 Turn again, O God of hosts! Look down from heaven, and see; have regard for this vine, 15 the stock that your right hand planted, and for the son whom you made strong for yourself. 16 They have burned it with fire; they have cut it down; may they perish at the rebuke of your face! 17 But let your hand be on the man of your right hand, the son of man whom you have made strong for yourself! 18 Then we shall not turn back from you; give us life, and we will call upon your name!

19 Restore us, O Lord God of hosts! Let your face shine, that we may be saved!