The Justice of God - And The Sins Of Our Country

The Justice of God And The Sins Of Our Country

"When disaster comes to a city - has not the LORD caused it?" (Amos 3:6).

It concerns you all seriously to reflect upon your own sins, and the sins of your land - which have brought all these calamities upon us. If you believe that God governs the world, if you do not abjure Him from being the Ruler of all - then you must acknowledge that all the calamities of war, and the threatening appearances of famine - are ordered by providence! And if you believe that He is a just and righteous ruler, you must also believe that He would not thus punish a righteous or a penitent people.

We and our countrymen are sinners, aggravated sinners! God proclaims that we are such by His judgments now upon us. Our consciences must also bear witness to the same melancholy truth.And if my heart were properly affected, I would concur with these undoubted witnesses; I would cry and not spare; I would lift up my voice like a trumpet - to show you your transgressions and your sins.

O my country, is not your wickedness great, and your iniquities infinite? Where is there a more sinful spot to be found upon our guilty globe? Pass over the land, take a survey of the inhabitants, inspect into their conduct - and what do you see? What do you hear?

You see the gigantic forms of vice bidding defiance to the God of heaven - while true religion and virtue are obligated to retire, to avoid public contempt an insult!

You see herds of drunkards swilling down their cups, and drowning all the morality within them!

You hear the swearer venting his fury against God - trifling with that Name which prostrate angels adore, and imprecating that damnation, under which the hardiest devil in hell trembles and groans!

You see AVARICE hoarding up her useless treasures, dishonest craft planning her schemes of unlawful gain, and oppression unmercifully grinding the face of the poor!

You see prodigality squandering her stores! You see luxury spreading her table!

You see vanity laughing aloud and dissolving in empty, unthinking mirth, regardless of God, of time and eternity!

You see sensuality wallowing in carnal pleasures, and aspiring, with perverted ambition - to sink as low as her four-footed brethren in the stalls!

You see cards more in use than the Bible; the backgammon table more frequented than the table of the Lord; novels and romances more read - than the history of the blessed Jesus!

You see trifling and even evil diversions  and amusements, become a gigantic business! You see the outcome of a horse race or a dogfight more anxiously attended to, than the concerns of eternity! 

And where these grosser forms of vice do no shock your senses - even there you often meet with the appearance of more refined impiety, which is equally dangerous!

You hear the conversation of reasonable creatures, of candidates for eternity - engrossed by trifles, or vainly wasted on the affairs of time! There are their important subjects of conversation, even at the threshold of the house of God!

You see swarms of prayerless families all over our land! You see ignorant, wicked children, unrestrained and untaught by those to whom God and has entrusted their souls!

You see the holy religion of Jesus - abused, neglected, disobeyed, and dishonored by its professors!

You see and hear infidelity scattering her ambiguous hints and suspicions; or openly attacking the Christian cause with pretended argument, with insult and ridicule!

You see crowds of professed believers, who are in reality, practical atheists! These nominal Christians are really unholy heathens! They are abandoned slaves of sin - who yet pretend to be the servants of the holy Jesus!

You see the ordinances of the gospel neglected by some, profaned by others, and attended upon by the generality with a trifling irreverence, and studied unconcerned. Alas! who would think that those thoughtless assemblies we often see in our places of worship - have met for such solemn purposes as to implore the pardon of their sins from an injured God, and to prepare for an all-important eternity?

Alas! Has that religion,for the propagation of which, the Son of God labored, and bled, and died; has that religion, for which His apostles and thousands of martyrs have spent their strength, and shed their blood; has that religion, on which our eternal life depends - has that religion become such a trifle in our days - that men are hardly serious and in earnest when they attend upon its most solemn services?

So few are concerned what shall become of them - when all their connections with earth and flesh must be broken, and they must take their flight into strange, unknown regions! So few lamenting their sins! So few crying for mercy and a new heart! So few flying to Jesus, or even sensible of the importance of a Mediator, in a religion for sinners!

You may indeed see some degree of civility and benevolence towards men, and more than enough of cringing complaisance of worms to worms - of clay to clay - of guilt to guilt. But oh! how little sincere homage, how little affectionate veneration for the great Lord of heaven and earth! You may see something of duty to parents, of gratitude to benefactors, and obedience to superiors - but if God is a Father - then where is His honor? If He is a Master - then where is His fear? If He is our Benefactor - then where is our gratitude to Him?

You may see here and there some instances of proud, self-righteous virtue, some appearances of morality: but oh! how rare is vital, evangelical religion, and true Christian morality, animated with the love of God, proceeding from a new heart, and a regard to the divine authority; full of Jesus, full of regard to Him as a Mediator, on whose account alone - our duties can find acceptance!

~Samuel Davies~

(continued with # 2)